Friday 30 March 2012

Bitter Sweet

What shall we talk about today?  It’s Friday night around 9:30pm., Carter is sleeping soundly, Eric is out with friends, hubby is enjoying his biennial evening out, and I’m peacefully curled up on the couch in my jammies unwinding from week 2 at the new job, in my blissfully silent house…the pug (“Hogie”…yes, pronounced like the sandwich) isn’t even snoring at the moment.  Nice.


Completely off topic, although there really hasn’t been a topic introduced, it boggles my mind how a coffee can taste entirely different from one day to the next even though you got it at the same place, the same time (give or take 4 minutes), ordered the same size, requested the same cocktail of cream and sugar, and even got served by the same pleasant person?  One day it’s pretty good, the next it’s wretched and the next it’s mediocre.  How can that be?

Maybe I have extra sensitive taste buds or something?  It’s interesting how our taste buds and preferences develop at such an early age.  According to an article in Canada.com babies are born with a preference for sweet-tasting foods and an aversion toward bitter-tasting foods. They say that anthropologists believe the dislike for bitter foods came from the theory that it may protect humans from ingesting poisonous plants…or in my case, terrible coffee.
They say that taste preferences are influenced by our genes and by our environment so since we can’t manipulate our genes, luckily we can our environment.  Allowing your 6 month old to experience a variety of fruit and veggie puree tastes can help them build up a preference towards these foods as they get older.  I can certainly attest to this as I made homemade baby food for my youngest son who is now 2, but unfortunately 12 yrs. ago when my oldest was a baby he got the standard jarred which isn’t quite as true to taste  as the real deal.  I now have a toddler whose favourite food is broccoli, and a pre-teen whose favourite food is chicken nuggets.  Sorry Eric…hopefully in time you will break down those taste bud walls to let in the almighty vegetable.

Babies LOVE butternut squash, which makes sense after learning sweet-tasting foods are more their cup of tea in the early stages.  Butternut squash is a perfect first food for baby.  It’s best to choose a squash that is 8-12 in. in length with a base of about 12 cm. in diameter.  If there is a green tinge to the skin, it’s not ripe enough yet.  They are an excellent source of potassium and vitamin A and also contain vitamin C and folic acid.

Ready…Set…Evolve…

As Sweet As Me Butternut Squash Puree

Age – 6 months +

Ingredients

·         1 ripe butternut squash

·         Yes, that’s it

Baby Steps

1.      Peel, seed and chop squash into approx. 1” cubes.  It should make about 6 cups chopped.

2.      Add to steamer set over boiling water, cover and cook for approx. 15 minutes or until squash is very tender.

3.      Remove from heat and let cool for a few minutes.

4.      Transfer to a food processor, blender, or bowl to use hand held blender and add about 3 tbsp. of the cooking water then puree to a smooth consistency.

5.      Transfer puree to freezing trays to be used within 3 months and some to a food storage container that can be kept in the fridge and used within 48 hrs.

Makes approx. 20 Servings (1 serving = 2 tbsp.)

Note - I find of all the vegetables, butternut squash is the biggest pain in the neck to peel.  You can buy fresh, peeled and seeded butternut squash in your grocery store if you want to save some time and aggravation.

You know what…I think I realize what the problem with the inconsistent coffee is…some days it’s stirred and others it’s not leaving all the sweet goodness at the bottom.  And who could get to the bottom of a bitter tasting coffee for the reward of sweetness?  Not me, and not our “aversion to bitterness and poisonous plants” ancestors either, so I think I come by it honestly.

Sunday 25 March 2012

21 Days

It’s frightening to realize how much of an affect a change in routine has on me.  I started a new job this week and I quickly realized after I jumped in the car and backed out of the driveway that I had to think about where it was I was going.

Normally when I leave for work my car just takes me there.  Somehow I arrive at my tantamount, daily destination.  But not this week…this week there was a significant breach in my routine.  I had to get up earlier to leave earlier and hit the road with an intricately laid out plan of how I was to get from A to B in the quickest, least traffic clogged way possible.  My biggest challenge was to find a coffee stop that wouldn’t set me back more than 4 minutes.  4 minutes to pick up a coffee is all I had in my tightly wound schedule of events to get me to my new job on time.  Driving home was the next feat…not to discount the real routine change of a brand spankin’ new job and the culture shock that goes along with that of course.  My car pool buddy carefully carved out a smart, tricky round-about route to avoid high traffic areas which governed us through 3 different municipalities.  I had to keep asking her, “are we there yet”??  I thought for sure we were on our way to a mini break at the cottage given the length and scenic mish-mash of the trip.  It was all I could do to keep calm and remember we would have to un-pack and get the cottage organized before taking a leap into the lake.
Back to reality, I made it home just fine.  That night when I was setting the alarm for the next morning I realized I would have to do this all over again tomorrow…and the next day…and the day after that.  GOOD GRIEF!?!!  Good thing it only takes 21 days of doing the same thing for it to become routine.  Come on April 16th!!!!!!

Just like me, babies also thrive in the comfort of a routine they can count on.  I know people hate to hear about their friends not being able to join them for brunch because baby Billy needs to be home for his nap, but trust me, you don’t want to be in baby Billy’s company if he doesn’t have his nap.  For the most part, once you get baby into a great eating and sleeping routine the days become a lot more enjoyable.
Here is an example of the kind of schedule my son Carter (now 2 yrs.) was on when he was about 8 months old. 


It was a note I had written for a friend who was babysitting for us while we went on our trip to meet the Queen of England.  O.K. maybe we weren’t going to meet the Queen, or even going to England for that matter, but I can’t remember where it was we were going so why not embellish a little?  Anyway, I wrote the note to help make the day go smoothly for her in hopes of still having a friend when we returned.  It worked.

O.K. enough talk…let’s cook.  I think we’ll make a baby’s version of the classic Shepherd’s Pie with ground beef.  This recipe has lots of good things for baby…beef, tomatoes, carrots, corn, potatoes and sweet potato all together in one little wonderful package.

Ready…Set…Evolve…

 Mini-me Beef Shepherd’s Pie

Age – 8 months +

Ingredients

·         ½ lb. of ground beef

·         1 sweet potato

·         3 white potatoes

·         2 carrots

·         2 tomatoes

·         ½ cup chopped onion

·         1 clove of garlic minced

·         ¾ cup of corn (canned or freshly cut from a cooked corn on the cob)

·         1 cup of low sodium beef broth or homemade chicken or veggie broth

·         1 tsp. dried thyme

·         1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

·         1 tbsp. of butter

·         ½ cup of milk

Baby Steps

1.      Peel and chop white potatoes and sweet potatoes and place in large pot of cold water.

2.      Peel and chop carrots and set aside.

3.      Chop onion and garlic and set aside.

4.      Peel and seed tomatoes (using the boiling water method) then chop and set aside.

5.      Add ground beef to a large sauté pan and cook over medium high heat until no longer pink, approx. 10 mins.

6.      Add carrots, onions and garlic to beef and continue to cook over medium heat for another 6 mins.

7.      Meanwhile bring the pot of water that the potatoes are in to a boil over high heat then once water begins to boil, partially cover and cook for approx. 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

8.      Add broth, thyme, Worcestershire sauce, tomatoes and corn to pan with beef mixture and stir well.  Bring to a boil then reduce heat, cover and simmer for approx. 20 minutes which is when the potatoes should also be ready.

9.      Once potatoes are tender, remove from heat and drain reserving 3 tbsp. of the cooking water.  Add the reserved water to the potatoes along with 1 tbsp. of butter and ½ cup of milk.

10.  Puree or mash potatoes to a smooth consistency and set aside.

11.  Remove beef mixture from heat and transfer to a large bowl to use a hand held blender to pulse until the consistency is suitable for baby.  At 8 months, baby should be able to handle a chunkier texture than that of a 6 month old Solid Food Apprentice.

12.  When transferring the purees to freezing trays, use half beef mixture and half potato puree in each cube section so that the beef is on the bottom and the potato is on the top to make a little Mini-Me Beef Shepherd’s Pie!

13.  You can also set some of each aside to serve fresh and keep in the fridge in a food storage container to use within 48 hours.

Makes – Approx. 24 servings (1 serving = 2 tbsps.)

Note – If you have more beef mixture than potato, freeze the left over beef mixture on it’s own in the freezing trays to use on a night when the family is having mashed potatoes with their meal to make a quick Shepherd’s Pie for baby.
Give it a try and let me know how it goes!


Sunday 18 March 2012

Solid Food Apprentice

Spring has sprung.

Crocuses are in bloom…

Pedicures are in bloom…

Solid Food Apprentices are always in bloom…

If you have a baby who is approaching 6 months old and you have been longing…or wondering…what types of solid foods you should start with, this will be a good guide for you.  If baby isn’t quite a spring chicken anymore and has advanced to 8 months plus, this will still be helpful if you haven’t tried making his or her food at home as yet but would like to.  In a nut shell, or egg shell, whichever is smaller, this will take you through the painless basics of preparing baby’s first solid foods at home and the discovery of just how easy it can be.
Good news Solid Food Apprentice parents…this stage is the easiest as far as food prep goes.  Good thing because with a 6 month old baby at home I recall trying to battle through the day on very little or sporadic bursts of sleep.  Isn’t it funny how nature seems to provide a tolerable balance between ease and strife for the people?

Once baby is a pro with iron fortified rice cereal, which they can start to have at around 5 months, you can introduce others including oat and wheat as long as baby is over 6 months and you wait 3 days or so in between the new introduction to keep an eye out for any allergic reactions.  This way you can narrow down the culprit to the food that was most recently introduced.  Chances of your baby having food related allergies are higher if there is a history of it in the family.  If not, then it’s more likely that baby will not, but it’s always best to be watchful and proactive.

O.K. all you exhausted yet enthusiastic parents!  Here is a crash course in the top 5 fruit and veggie foods to introduce first to awaken their little taste buds at 6 months of age.

 Ready…Set…Evolve…

Age – 6 months +

New Beginnings Fruit

1.      Banana

Preparation – Pick it up, peel it, mash it, serve it. 

I think that just saved you 53 minutes by taking away your search for car keys, bundling of baby, drive to the store, polite battle through aisles to get to the jarred baby food, line up behind a clerk calling for a price check, drive home and coffee drive through stop for caffeine injection to get you through the rest of your day.  You’re welcome.

2.      Apples

Preparation – Peel, core and slice.  Add to sauce pan over medium heat, cover and cook stirring occasionally for 15 minutes or until apples are juicy and tender.  Remove from heat and let cool for a few minutes then puree to thin consistency.

3.      Pears

Preparation – Same prep as apples above.

4.      Peaches

Preparation – Peel and slice peach removing pit.  If the peaches are really ripe you don’t even have to cook them.  Simply puree.  If they aren’t super ripe you can always put them in a saucepan and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes or so just like you would for apples and pears so they become tender and juicy and then puree.

5.      Blueberries

Preparation Add fresh or frozen blueberries to a saucepan and cook over medium heat for approx. 5 minutes.  Let cool for a few minutes then puree.  You can use a food mill to puree if you don’t want to have any of the skin in the puree making it that much smoother for a young baby to handle, or put the regular puree through a strainer and discard the skins.

All of the above fruit purees are great on their own or mixed with baby cereal.  All except for banana are suitable for freezing so you can make a big batch and freeze in portion sized freezing trays to use within 3 months.

New Beginnings Veggies

All of these veggies have the same prep method…steaming.  Steaming rather than boiling veggies helps them to better retain their nutrients.  So for each, place the chopped and peeled vegetables in a steamer set over boiling water and steam for time indicated.  Remove from heat and let cool for a few minutes then puree with some of the cooking water so that a thin, easy for baby to handle, puree is achieved.

1.      Carrots

Preparation – Peel and chop and steam for approx. 20 minutes then puree with some of the cooking water to a smooth consistency.

2.      Sweet Potato

Preparation – Peel and chop and steam for approx. 15 minutes then just to make things complicated (easy), do the same as you did above for carrots. J

3.      Butternut Squash

Preparation – Peel, seed and chop and then just when you thought things were getting tricky they are the polar opposite…you just prep squash the same way as you would a sweet potato.

4.      Peas

Preparation - Place frozen peas into a steamer over boiling water, cover and steam for approx. 5 minutes.  Remove from heat and puree with some of the cooking water to a smooth consistency.  Just like the blueberries, you can use a food mill to puree peas so you don’t have the skins in the puree, or put the regular puree through a strainer and discard the skins.

5.      Broccoli

Preparation – Clean and chop broccoli into small pieces removing the thick stems and add to steamer placed over boiling water.  Cover and steam for approx. 10 mins.  Remove from heat and let cool for a few minutes then puree with some of the cooking water to a smooth consistency.
All of the above veggie purees are suitable for freezing so just like for the fruit, make large batches and then put into portion sized freezing trays to use within 3 months.

There you have it.  This sounds easy because it is easy…not because I’m trying to make you think it’s easy.  I'm not that clever or calculating.

Saturday 10 March 2012

Win, Win

I am pleased to report that Carter made the leap from crib to big boy bed without a hitch.  It’s been 3 weeks and we’ve only had one episode where we had to run to his room at 2 am. after a clamorous thud and a loud combo call “MOMMYDADDY!!”  I couldn’t quite make out where he was when I got into his room.  The dark, “where are you?”…“here!” game went on for a little bit until I finally found him on the floor in his closet.  He had fallen off the end of the bed into a luxurious cloud of pillows purposefully placed there by me in anticipation of this very event, and rolled into his closet.  He was fine and we laughed.

The new bed even helps the family figure out what to wear in the morning.  We all rise to a pointed brief on the weather as Carter wakes up, sings an American Idol worthy version of “twinkle, twinkle, little star”, stands on his bed, manoeuvres the window blind out of his way to peek outside and holler, “NO SUNSHINE TODAY” or “RAIN” or “IT’S FREEZIN’ OUTSIDE”!  We have our own little meteorologist in the house.  This bed has been a real WIN, WIN.
Since the “freezin’ outside” days are now numbered with nature’s reclamation of spring in a week or so, I wanted to fit in one more cold weather, warm your baby’s bones, stew recipe.  You probably won’t feel like making a stew once the warm weather and humidity sets in so let’s make one today instead.

This beef and barley stew is hearty and healthy for baby and doesn’t take very long to prep…it just takes a while to stew.  But that’s fine because I’m sure you can think of 47 other things you could be doing while the meal is simmering away on the stove.  Don’t worry, the stew won’t grab at your ankles until you have no choice but to pay it some attention, or demand that you change their diaper RIGHT NOW!  No, it will just sit and stew quietly on it’s own leaving you free as a bird to do whatever you want.
There used to be the belief that you should wait until baby is 8-10 months old to introduce beef but more and more pediatricians today are recommending the ingredient at 6 months +.  This is due to the fact that it’s a great source of iron which is key to a healthy baby’s diet.  Beef is also an excellent source of protein, potassium, zinc, niacin and vitamin B12. 

Barley is a perfect grain to use in baby stews as it has a nice soft texture that baby can handle and is an excellent source of soluble fiber.


Ready…Set…Evolve…

Where’s the Beef and Barley Stew

Age – 6 months +

Ingredients

·         1 tbsp. of butter

·         1 cup of chopped onions

·         1 cup of chopped carrots

·         1 cup of chopped parsnips

·         2 stalks of celery chopped

·         ½ cup of frozen peas

·         ½ kg. stewing beef

·         4 cups of low sodium beef broth or homemade chicken or veggie broth

·         ½ cup of pearl barley

·         1 tsp. each of dried thyme and marjoram if baby is 8 months +

Baby Steps

·         Peel and chop veggies and set aside.

·         Cut stewing beef into small pieces and set aside.

·         Heat butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat until melted.

·         Increase heat to medium/high and add beef and onions to pan.  Cook, stirring often until beef is no longer pink, approx. 5 mins.

·         Reduce heat to medium and add all remaining veggies and continue to cook for another 5 mins.

·         Add broth and pearl barley to pan, and herbs if baby is over 8 months old.

·         Stir and bring to a boil over medium/high heat then reduce heat to medium/low, cover and simmer for 1 ½ hrs. stirring occasionally.

·         When there is about 10 mins. left to cook, stir in the frozen peas, cover and continue to cook for the remaining minutes.

·         Remove from heat and let cool for a few minutes.  Transfer to a food processor, blender, or bowl in batches to use a hand held blender and puree to desired consistency depending on age of baby.  8 months + can handle a chunkier consistency than that of a 6 month old.

·         This recipe makes a lot so you can set some aside for the rest of the family before you puree and add some salt & pepper for added flavour.  Puree the rest for baby’s meal plus extra to freeze in cube trays for future.

Makes – Over 30 servings (1 serving = 2 tbsps.) – You can always half this recipe if you just want to make this for baby and not the rest of the family, otherwise you may not be able to use up all the frozen servings within 3 months which is recommended.
I hope you give this a try and let me know how it goes, and I hope that one day your baby grows into a toddler that can bellow out weather observations as astutely as mine can.  Enjoy!


Saturday 3 March 2012

We'll See

Finding the time to squeeze in this blog and the writing of my baby food cook book which includes recipe trials and nutrition study is proving to be very challenging in my world of engaging full-time work and engaging full-time family.  I started my quest last summer and have been relentless in fitting in time on weekends during naps and fleeting moments here and there during astonishing alone time.

Sometimes I need a boost of inspiration.  Besides watching Dragon’s Den knowing exactly how they feel when they get the ever elusive “YES, I believe in your business” comment, I am also an inspirational quote junkie.
“I will prepare and someday my chance will come” – Abraham Lincoln
I have had this compelling quote pinned up on my bulletin board ever since I was 2 yrs. old…o.k. maybe I’m exaggerating, but I bet if I was allowed to use push pins and understood the gravity of this quote at age 2, I would have.

In moments when I’m feeling a little lack lustre about my journey I check in on a website called “Startup Quote” to bask in the useful words of those who “made it”.


"Stay Hungry, Stay Strong”, are powerful and affecting words that Steve Jobs delivered during his 2005 commencement speech at Stanford. 


This phrase is on auto-repeat in my brain.  I will stay hungry because I don’t quite know how not to.  Foolish is a trickier one for me.  I am not so foolish as to give up my day job in pursuit of my goal, however I am still foolish enough to tell everyone I’m writing a baby food cook book and hope to develop my own business around it one day. 

Underneath the smiles and high fives I get from some, I bet there are thoughts of, “poor girl…she thinks she is going to write a baby food cook book that will be sold in places beyond her annual Cleaveholm Drive neighbourhood garage sale.”  Or maybe that’s just what I fear they’re thinking?  Regardless, I have my qualms about acting or sounding foolish so I’ll have to let loose and work on that one.
So I will be relentless in my quest for spare time to work on this, stay hungry and work on being foolish, and then “we’ll see” what happens.  “We’ll see”, is an inspirational quote I took from my mother.  When my brothers and I wanted something we would look up at her with big Puss ‘n boots (from Shrek) eyes and ask the big question.


She would then consider an answer and begin with, “we’ll see.”  That used to always mean YES!!