Cream cheese and cucumber sandwich breakfast!

I have been craving cucumber and cream cheese sandwiches for a few weeks now. This morning I decided to have one for breakfast. Clark was intently looking at me making the sandwich. I figured I would make him a tiny sandwich (open faced) and let him try it out. Then this got me thinking... why not just have the same things as my chunk!

Clark devouring a cream cheese and cucumber sandwich!

To start I used Trader Joe's Whole wheat Tuscan Pane bread. This bread is excellent for sandwiches and for dipping in the white bean and basil dip that I made a few days ago. Clark really loves it and it has no soy or soy products!! Winning!!!  I also used Philadelphia cream cheese.

Ingredients

Cut the crust off the bread and then put a think layer of cream cheese on the bread.  Next I cut the piece of bread into thirds.

Whole wheat Tuscan pane topped with cream cheese

For the cucumbers I already had them diced so I chopped them into a think layer and placed a few on each piece.
I added a forth of a string cheese cut into forths -- sort of like a triangle. And for Clark's dessert he had blueberries.  Clark does pretty well with whole blueberries, however if the berry is bigger I do cut it in half.

Clark's breakfast plate

For my breakfast I made the exact same food. Again, I think its really important to show your child, no matter how old that what you are feeding them is exactly something you would eat!

Mama's breakfast plate

Clark and I had a delicious breakfast--- I think we are almost ready to go swimming!

White bean and basil dip!

I never really enjoyed basil until just short time ago. I have been getting fresh basil at the local market and decided to make some quick and easy pesto. It came out delicious! I had some basil left over and didn't want it to go to waste, so I decided to have Clark try some white bean and basil dip.


To start, I got one can of trader joe's cannelini beans- wash and rinse the beans until the water runs clear.
Next, add oil (2 tablespoons) and 2 cloves of garlic minced to the beans and process until smooth.

All the ingredients

With the paste still in the processor add 1/2 cup of minced basil ( I chopped it so that it was small, but not too tiny) , 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and a dash of pepper , cover and process until smooth.

beans, oil and garlic

add in the basil

You can serve this chilled with carrots, celery, pita bread (or pita chips) , or any other veggie you have around the house!
So quick and simple... the chunk and I are going to enjoy this snack!

This Mama is on the go today! Cream of Rice, graham crackers with apple sauce and sliced banana

We are on the go today! Tomorrow we are heading out on a day trip to NYC. Tonight I wanted a super fast, yummy dinner for Clark. I decided to use Cream of rice with banana chunks! For dessert Clarky is having graham crackers topped with apple sauce (home made) and a slice of banana.

To start bring one cup of water and a dash of salt to a boil

Add 1/4 cup cream of rice.

 Stir this constantly until all water is absorbed.  I decided to add a half of a banana -- leaving it a little chunky.

I decided to top two graham crackers with homemade apple sauce and a slice of banana as Clark's dessert for the evening! 

This was a simple,yummy dinner that left Clark feeling full. I would also use this as  breakfast foods.

As you can tell Clark loves bananas, he has been on a probiotic for his digestive system for a week now and the use of banana is helping with his bowel movements.

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a messy face is worth a million!!!

Creamy Curry Chicken for the chunk.... and me too!

Clark throughly enjoys new foods. I introduce each item prior to mixing all ingredients. As of this moment, Clark has been introduced to chicken, green beans (as well as pureed green beans) , basil, coconut milk, and garlic.
For me, I want Clark to try new foods that help him develop his sense of self. Meaning that, the more unique foods he tries the better his palate may become. Using good foods, fruits, and vegetables and watching what you are putting on your plate or your child's will help your child eat healthy.

As for today's recipe. I was missing Green Star Co-op's (out of Ithaca)  curry sauce. I decided to try my own. However, I really like to incorporate Clark into our nightly meals. That being said, I decided to try a mildly spiced curry that is rich with garlic, sweet yet spicy ginger, and coconut milk.

First, pour water into a small pan about 1 inch. Place cut ,washed green beans into pan, bring to a boil. Once at a boil cover and steam. This should take about 5 minutes. Place on cutting boad and chop again
( remember chop in a way that your child can eat the vegetables without choking,)

 Prepare the chicken by placing in a roasting pan- lightly oil. It took about 25 minutes to cook 3 pieces
 I took a 1/4 of the chicken out and chopped it finely for Clark after cooking.

In the saucepan add in the green onion ( I omitted ) and saute until the onion wilts, this should be about two minutes.  Stir in garlic and ginger, cook. Stir for about 1 minute. Next stir in coconut milk(1/2 cup) and vegetable stock (1/2 cup) and raise the heat, bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer. While simmering add the green beans, chicken,and basil. Simmer, covered until the sauce thickens. Serve luke warm with either brown rice or jasimine rice.




Viola, a new twist on an old recipe!

Clark's bowl of Creamy chicken curry!

Yum-o Cheesy broccoli casserole

Today on the menu is Cheesy broccoli casserole.  Over the past several weeks Clark has needed some help getting more starches into his diet. This is the perfect recipe that includes, rice, vegetables and dairy!

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees, lightly butter the casserole pan  (I used two small loaf pans).

Pour water into saucepan about 1 inch. Put the broccoli into the steamer basket and bring to a boil. Cover and steam until broccoli is tender this should be about 6-8 minutes.Remove from heat and transer the broccoli to a cutting board. Chop very finely and set aside.

 While you are waiting for the broccoli to cook, start cooking the rice. I used jasmine rice. Take 1/2 cup of rice to 1 cup of vegetable broth. Cook until rice is fluffy. 

While you are waiting for the rice to cook, start shredding 6 Tablespoons of Monterrey Jack Cheese

In frying pan over medium heat warm the olive oil ( about 2 Tablespoons). Add the mushroom ( about 1/2 cup, finely chopped)  This should be cooked about 5 minutes.

Remove from heat and stir in rice, broccoli, stock (1/4 cup) and 3 tablespoons of chesse.  Divide the mixture into the greased pans you have choosen.

Cook for 20-25 mintues the cheese should be bubbly. Make sure to let the casserole cool before serving to your babe!
Viola! A delicious meal that you and your babe can enjoy!! It was really yummy!! :)

Mama's day apricot and coconut milk rice pudding!

Today I thought would be a great day to try a new spin on an old recipe that I had. I'm not a fan of coconut, but I must admit I did enjoy having some pudding with my guy!

To start you will need to combine 1/2 cups of jasmine rice with 1 cup of water. Bring to a boil. Once at a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover ,and simmer gently, stir occasionally, until liquid is absorbed and rice is creamy and soft. This should take about 15-20 minutes.

Remove from heat and stir in 3/4 cup of coconut milk. Set aside and cool.
I mistakenly bought cream of coconut. I think actually this worked a bit better because the cream gave it more of a smooth feel right from the beginning. Once you get a portion out of the can, there is some coconut juice at the bottom!

In another pan , on medium heat combine the dried apricots and 1/2 cup of water. Bring to a boil, once at a boil , reduce heat to low, cover partially, and simmer until fruit is tender. This should take about 10 minutes. Strain fruit through fine mesh sieve. Make sure you set it over a bowl, you want to collect the apricot juice. Set aside to cool.

At this point you will transfer the cooled fruit to a food processor t o smooth into a puree. Add enough of the juice to the consistancy that your baby can handle.  I added a small banana to our puree.

Next, transfer the rice mixture to the processor and process until smooth and creamy. The mixture may be thick, so you can add a bit more milk or apricot juice. 

Spoon some rice pudding into a bowl and top with a spoonful of apricot puree!











Viola! a simple rice pudding that you can make with in about 45 minutes or so.
Since you are making a larger quanity than you babe can eat, you will want to store the rice separately from the puree. Make sure you use air tight containers, if you store it properly you can use it up to 3 days from the date of cooking. If you chose to freeze it, use ice cube trays, make sure you have proper coverings and you can have it up to 3 months!

Lemon Chicken for grown ups and babes!

Today I was craving lemon chicken. However with very little time due to life's circumstances, I decided to make it a quick and easy way.
First I washed the chicken pieces ( I used boneless chicken breasts), placed in a skillet with about 1/2cup of water. I added about 1 cup of vegetable broth. (I didn't have chicken broth!) Using the vegetable broth actually gave the chicken more lemon flavor! Weird, I know:)

I let the chicken cook in the water and vegetable  broth for about 20 minutes.  I used Nature's Promise vegetable broth. On a side note, Nature's promise comes in a smaller 17oz container. I love this size:) If you have extra left over you can make a smaller vegetable soup ( next blog! )

While that was cooking I cut up two lemons. The first one I cut in half and squeezed as much juice as I could out of it. The second lemon I cut into slices. After squeezing the lemon I placed the sliced lemons over the chicken pieces.

Once the lemons are sliced, I place several on top of the cooked chicken. I let the chicken cook more in the lemon juice and vegetable broth. You can add capers and or other spices, however because I was making this for the baby I omitted the spices.

I took a piece off of one of the breasts and chopped it so that Clark could eat it. If needed you can put it through the grinder to get it smaller. 

Clark throughly enjoyed his dinner tonight. I paired the lemon chicken with a butternut squash risotto. Clark did really well eating and "feeding" himself :)

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Chicken, broccoli and rice baby style

Dinner time at my house growing up was all about family,food and conversations. It was a great time of the day to discuss your days events and show respect for others by listening. Each night, dinner time was spent as a family, there was no television, no one running in or out, it was time to be with our family.
During dinner time now, Clark is always involved. He sits at his highchair and devours his food. Our first course is always salad, Clark usually has yogurt melts or some sort of finger food. Once we begin our main course, Clark has the bulk of his food at this time.

Since Clark has been eating solid foods, I have tried to incorporate more of what we eat into his meals. This saves me alot of time! During meals for the most part I try to show Clark that we are eating many of the same foods. Tonight we had chicken broccoli and spaghetti. Instead of using spaghetti in Clark's meal, I substituted it for Arborio rice.

Chicken, broccoli and rice baby style was very easy to make.
First I took the broccoli and steamed it using the Babycook machine. Once the broccoli is steamed, I used the chopping button to chop the broccoli. As stated before I leave it a bit chunky.

Next I took the chicken (I used chicken breast). After cutting the chicken into cubes, I placed them into a small pan of water.

I let the chicken boil until it was completely done! It is important to make sure there is no red or pink in the center of the meat.  Once completely cooked I took 4 cubes of chicken out and placed into the chopper. **This made a bit more chopped chicken than I needed for tonight's meal, so I placed the rest in a container to use tomorrow or in another recipe. **

 Next, boil 1/2 cup of water, once boiled add 1/4 cup of rice. Cook according to package directions. You will have extra rice, it is safe to place rice in a container and refrigerate it. However, use it within 2-3 days.

For a little bit of moisture I added a dollop of plain yogurt.  This helped the rice, broccoli and chicken become a bit more moist.

Viola! A simple,quick meal that uses many of the same ingredients that will be on your plate. Showing children good eating habits even at 9 months old helps them to make good choices later. 
Oh by the way, Clark had blueberries on the side:)
All together this meal took about 20-25 minutes between chopping, steaming, cooking and plating.

Cucumber mint yogurt!

I love when you find a new recipe that sounds a bit different. Today I decided to try a recipe for Clark that I found a while back. Cucumber mint yogurt was a big hit this morning.
First take an English cucumber (1/4th) wash and semi peel it. I left about 4 strips of green on the cucumber.

Next take the big holed side of a grater and grate the cucumber. I grated the cucumber over the measuring cup.

Next take about 4-6 leaves of mint. I washed about 4 leaves under cool water. Finely chop the mint. 

Take about 2-3 scoops of Stonyfield farms yogurt and spoon it into a bowl. Add shredded cucumber and top with mint. 

Viola! A new cool treat that can be used as a breakfast food or snack! All in all it took about 3 minutes to prepare this treat!