Pieces of Me



 

Where was the serenity of my tulips this past Thursday at 2:32pm. when my wisdom tooth was being yanked out?  I hadn’t so much as ever even had a cavity filled in my life when this was thrown at me.  Since it was only one that needed excavating and the word around town was, “it’s quick and easy these days”, I thought I could just go for the freezing and be done with it.

I survived the freezing with relative ease, “there you go, that’s the worst part over” said Dr. Nightingale.  Oh, this is not so bad…easy street…I thought.  They let me linger with the freezing for a few minutes for it to take effect.  As soon as a fork could be stuck into my right cheek with me none the wiser we were ready.  “Now you’re going to feel a tremendous amount of pressure” said Dr. Death as his assistant kept me comfortable by stroking my head and telling me to breath.  I didn’t realize I needed to fire up the old VCR before this appointment to watch “So You’re Having a Baby” to brush up on my labour survival skills.  A tremendous amount of pressure there was, but he neglected to mention the tremendous amount of aggression that goes along with removing someone’s tooth with a tool, brute force and your own two hands.  I’d sooner have someone tie one end of a string around my tooth and the other on a door knob and slam that baby shut!

Don’t worry…I survived.  There was just the swelling to deal with and relearning how to chew and keep food away from the canyon in the back of my mouth.  Tricky.  At least I’m well versed at making food for people who gum their food into oblivion or I would have felt pretty deprived these past couple of days…maybe I’ll eat today’s baby food recipe for dinner tonight.  Mmmm.

It was just a little wisdom tooth.  I’m now a ¼ less wise, so says my husband.  Lucky for him. 

It’s just another little piece of me gone like my favourite mug I had to throw out last week.  I was in ceramic chip denial for a few weeks until I had no choice but to give in.  So sad.

In other news…

 

This maple syrup has been in my fridge for a while.  When my husband asked me how long today, I thought for moment and remembered picking it up at the St. Lawrence Market in Toronto while away with my friend for her birthday…maybe last year.  Then I thought about what we did for my friend’s birthday last year, and it wasn’t this.  REALLY…it was 2 years ago and I still have the maple syrup in my fridge??  How do 2 years pass by so fast?  Clearly we don’t eat enough pancakes.

Ready…Set…Evolve…

 

Cheesy Veggie Risotto

Age – 8 months +

Ingredients

·         1 cup broccoli florets chopped

·         1 cup of carrots chopped

·         ½ cup of frozen peas

·         ½ cup of rice

Cheese Sauce

·         1 ½ tbsps. butter

·         1 ½ tbsps. flour

·         1 ½ cups of milk

·         ¾ cup of grated cheddar cheese

Baby Steps

1.      Cook rice according to package directions leaving out the salt and set aside.

2.      Peel and chop carrots into small pieces and place in steamer set over boiling water.  Cover and cook for 10 mins.

3.      Clean and chop broccoli and then add to carrots once the first 10 mins of cooking is complete and continue to cook for another 8 mins.

4.      Add peas to steamer and cook for 5 more mins.

5.      To make cheese sauce, melt butter in large sauce pan over medium heat.

6.      Add flour and stir with a spatula until it makes a smooth paste, approx. 1 min.

7.      Add milk to paste, increase heat to medium/high and stir and cook until lumps are gone and milk begins to thicken, approx. 3 mins.

8.      Add grated cheese and continue to stir until melted and well combined.

9.      Remove steamed veggies from pot and transfer to a bowl to use hand held blender to pulse a few times breaking veggies into tiny pieces.

10.  Add rice to veggies and pour in cheese sauce and stir together until well combined.

11.  Let cool for a few minutes then transfer some into freezing trays to be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months, and some to a food storage container in the fridge to use within 48 hours.

Makes – Approx. 12 servings

I wonder if the pain of a tooth forcing itself in is as bad as someone forcing one out?  Just another reason why I wish babies could talk.

Don't Delay

Can any of you working parents out there appreciate my anxiety at abandoning the office at the stroke of 5pm. to get to the daycare by cut off time…6pm.?

Luckily for me, my husband works from a home office most days which is 5 minutes from the daycare so he can pick up our son seamlessly.  It’s only the odd day here and there, or if he’s away on a business trip that I tag in as one and only pick up parent.

If the anxiety at the thought of my little one longingly staring out the daycare window asking the cleaning lady, the only other person left there,  why I haven’t shown up yet isn’t enough, there’s the added stress of how to plan my impending escape from a meeting that was scheduled for 11am. but started at 4:36pm.  Do they not understand the gravity of my situation?

If I don’t get to the daycare by 6pm. there is a firmly broadcast rule that you will pay a $ amount for every minute past and get tarred and feathered.  Maybe the last part was made up but I bet that’s what they would like to do.

4:57pm…I make the announcement…”I really do have to get going to pick up my son”.  The initial response is, “of course, that’s fine”, which is then followed by a lackadaisical subject change delaying the meeting wrap up and ultimately my exit to on time pick up.

Luckily this live re-enactment of The Amazing Race only has to happen once in a while for me.  I don’t know how some of you out there face that stress every day.  BRAVO!!

Wow…I just re-read that and my blood pressure is starting to rise.  I think I need to switch gears and get me some baby food making therapy.

This week I’m going to incorporate an ingredient that may seem like an unusual addition to a baby food dish…mushrooms.  Mushrooms can be safely added as an ingredient to a dish for babies over 8 months old.  They are fungi so it’s best to make sure they are cooked well to be on the safe side.  They don’t pose a high allergy risk, but they could cause a digestive issue in some over sensitive tummies.  If you are watchful for signs of a reaction, just as you were when introducing all first foods to baby, it should be fine.  Use them pureed in a sauce to add some great flavour and nutrients, including potassium, to baby’s meal.  More info. on mushrooms and other unusual ingredients that can be safely used in baby food dishes can be found at Momtastic’s Wholesome Baby Food website…a great on-line resource for all things baby food.

Ready…Set…Evolve…

Don’t Be Saucy Mushroom & Chicken Risotto

Age – 8 months +

Ingredients

·         1 ½ tbsps. of butter

·         1 small boneless, skinless chicken breast

·         ½ cup chopped onions

·         2 cups sliced mushrooms

·         1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves

·         1 cup of milk

·         1 tbsp. of flour

·         1/3 cup of homemade or low sodium chicken broth

·         1/3 cup of frozen peas

·         ½ cup of rice

Baby Steps

1.      Cook rice according to package instructions, leaving out salt and set aside.

2.      Chop chicken breast into small pieces.

3.       Melt ½ tbsp. of butter in a large sauté pan over medium high heat.

4.      Add chicken to pan and cook for approx. 10 minutes until cooked through stirring as required.

5.      Transfer cooked chicken to a large bowl and set aside.

6.      In same sauté pan melt 1 tbsp. of butter over medium heat then add onions and mushrooms.  Cook until tender, approx. 5 minutes.

7.      Whisk flour into milk and then add to mushrooms and onions along with the chicken broth and thyme.

8.      Increase heat to medium high and cook, whisking occasionally, until creamy, approx. 4 minutes.

9.      Remove from heat and transfer to a blender and puree to a smooth sauce.

10.  Return sauce to sauté pan and add in the peas.  Cook over medium heat for approx. 5 more minutes until peas are tender.

11.  Remove sauce from heat and let cool for a few minutes.

12.  Dice the cooked chicken that is set aside into tiny pieces that baby can handle.

13.  Add cooked rice and mushroom sauce to the chicken in large bowl and combine well.

14.  Let cool for a few minutes then transfer to freezing trays to keep in the freezer to use within 3 months, or to a food storage container to use within 48 hours.

Makes – Approx. 10 servings (1 serving = 2 tbsps.)

 

Note: If you, like I used to, enjoy using canned mushroom soup in various family dinner recipes, you can use the mushroom sauce in this baby food recipe instead.  Just add some salt and pepper to boost the flavour for adults and older children.  This sauce is great with chicken and rice or pasta, or even as gravy on mashed potatoes and pork chops.  Up to you if you want to puree it smooth, or leave it as a chunky mushroom sauce.

Another little tip when using a blender to puree…rinse/clean it right after you use it otherwise it can be a pain to get it clean.  If you clean it right away with some hot water and dish soap it really just takes a few seconds instead of a lifetime to get the dried on ingredients out.

It’s amazing how getting back into my kitchen helps me de-stress.  I hope it does you too.  In the meantime, may the force be with you as you plan your next meeting escape to avoid the hypothetical tar and feathering ceremony at daycare.

Cultivate

Endless days and hours of preparation.  The culmination of all the baby steps that led up to this moment.  The exhilaration of reaching the highest summit!!

No, my baby food cook book isn’t done…my garden is planted.

I love gardening almost as much as I love cooking so when the two marry as veggie and herb seeds are sown to birth greens and produce for us to eat?!?  Well let’s just say I get a HUGE kick out of that!

Here comes the baby spinach…

Even when this type of spinach is full grown it’s still called a baby.  Just like some adults.

When we plant our edible garden, we really take some time to think about what veggies and herbs we eat on a regular basis so we can consume as much of what we plant as possible.  I remember the first year I wanted to plant everything even if I wasn’t that keen on eating some of the choices.  3 little pumpkin seeds turned into gargantuan vines that twisted and turned around all the other greens stifling them like an uninvited guest.  Although I loved the look of the pumpkin vines, I realized I would need to have acres of land to put them in so as to not cramp their style.  Live and learn.

The Basil is coming of age well now that she is free from the choking grip of the pumpkin creeper of years past…

If you’re making your own homemade baby food, think of things you can plant that can be used for baby food purees.  Imagine the $ you can save by making your own baby food, and then couple that with growing the ingredients at home?  Crazy savings and crazy inspiration to see those babies grow for baby!

Carrots, spinach, tomatoes, parsnip, potatoes and turnip are all great choices, and a strawberry patch will allow for weeks of strawberry puree to add to baby cereal or mashed fresh banana for babies over 8 months.

If you have older kids, gardening is a fun thing to do to get them and you outdoors.  You can teach them how food grows and explain that with a little culinary help, it can transform into wonderful things like spaghetti sauce and strawberry ice cream…that one may inspire them.

Here’s a fun little video I came across on Design Mom’s website.  They have a video series called “Olive Us” and this one was particularly cute for this time of year.

Olive Us – Episode 1 – Gardening

Now let’s use some of those home grown ingredients to make a wonderful little meal for baby.

We’ll feature some baby spinach in this one.  Spinach is jam packed with nutrients like Folic acid, Vitamins A, C and B6 and iron and calcium, to name a few.  It makes a great addition to baby’s menu.  And we’ll throw in some tomatoes and basil since they’ll be growing in abundance, along with a carrot or two and some onion.

Ready…Set…Evolve…

Cheesy Tomato & Basil Rice with Spinach

Age – 8 months +

Ingredients

·         2 plum tomatoes

·         ¾ cup chopped onion

·         1 tbsp. butter

·         2 Basil Leaves chopped

·         1 cup of Baby Spinach loosely packed

·         ¼ cup of cheddar cheese

·         ¼ cup of milk

·         1 large carrot

·         ¾  cup of rice

Baby Steps

1.      Peel, seed and chop tomatoes using the boiling water method. See instructions from an earlier post “Bye, Bye Spontaneity.”

2.      Clean and dice basil making sure to remove stems.

3.      Clean spinach well and remove stems.

4.      Peel and chop carrots and onion.

5.      Cook rice in rice cooker or however you would typically make your rice.  I add double the amount of water to rice and let it cook for approx. 20 minutes.  So you can use ¾ cups of rice and 1 ½ cups of water.

6.      Meanwhile add carrots to a steamer set over boiling water, cover and steam for 20 minutes or until tender.

7.      While carrots are cooking, melt butter in a sauté pan over medium heat and add onion.  Sauté until soft, approx. 5 minutes then add tomatoes.  Stir frequently for approx. 2 minutes until tomatoes start to soften.

8.      Add basil and spinach to tomatoes and onion and continue to cook until spinach is wilted, approx. 4 minutes.

9.      Add cheese and milk to tomatoes and stir until cheese is melted.  Remove from heat and set aside.

10.  Transfer tomato and cheese mixture to a food processor, blender or bowl to use hand held blender to puree, and add cooked carrots.  Puree to a smooth consistency.

11.  Add tomato sauce to cooked rice and stir together well.  You can add some of the cooking water used to cook the carrots a tbsp. at a time  if you want a thinner consistency.

12.  Let cool for a few minutes then transfer to freezing trays to store in the freezer and use within 3 months, or to a food storage container in the fridge to use within 48 hours.

Makes – Approx. 12 servings (1 serving = 2 tbsps.)

Now go get the kids, put baby in a shady spot and get out in the garden and cultivate some family fun!!!