Curry Carrots

My little man has dropped carrots like a girlfriend caught cheating.  When he was little, he'd eat them puréed and I've had success sneaking them into other food, like these muffins.  Lately, he's avoided them like the plague.  I had this crazy idea as his "I'm hungry, please feed me" meltdown began that I would make carrot galette for him this evening.  I didn't have a recipe, I've never done this before, and I had a 21 pound sack attached to my leg.  It wasn't the best time to fiddle with something complex and new.  I only got as far as shredding the carrots in my Beaba before I quickly abandoned the original plan.  Curry Carrots evolved as my (extremely successful) Plan B.

Curry Carrots

Curry Carrots in the pan.
Simple and quick for desperate times.

• 2 large carrots
• 1 medium shallot
• Ghee
• Green Curry Paste (I like Thai Kitchen!)

Directions

• Wash and roughly chop the carrots
• Grate the carrots in a food processor or Beaba
• Heat about 1 Tbsp of Ghee in a frying pan
• Add the grated carrots into the mixture, stirring to incorporate with the Ghee
• Dice the shallot and add to the Carrots
• Add about 1.5 Tbsp of Green Curry Paste to the carrot mixture.  Use more or less depending on your baby's spice tolerance
• Stir all ingredients together and cook over medium low heat until the carrots are soft (about 5-8 minutes)

Zucchini & Shallot Frittata

I served the Frittata (center with no capers)
with grilled corn and peas.

I recently came across a delicious and simple recipe for mini muffin zucchini, leek & ricotta frittatas.  With a couple of minor changes, I found a version that I think is delicious and were devoured by my family.

Zucchini & Shallot Muffin Frittatas 

• 1 large Zucchini
• 1 medium-large Shallot
• 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese
• 5 large eggs
• Olive oil
• Pepper
• Capers (optional)

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 350
• Dice the Shallot and begin to sauté in a small amount of olive oil over medium heat
• Wash and julienne the Zucchini.  (I'm a huge fan of this Julienne slicer!)
• Add the Zucchini slices in with the Shallot and continue to sauté
• Beat the eggs in a large bowl
• Mix in both cheeses.  Try to blend thoroughly, but it is ok to have chunks of ricotta in the mix.
• Add the Shallot and the Zucchini to the egg and cheese mixture.  Mix until incorporated.
• Add pepper to taste
• Line 1 muffin tin with cases and pour batter into each case
• Sprinkle capers on top if desired
• Cook for 25 minutes, or until set.

These are best eaten fresh, but they're ok to spend a few days in the fridge, too!

Muffins, Part Three

After literally months of muffins, I think I have the recipe down.  These are kid friendly with no sugar and dad friendly with real flavor.

Banana Sweet Potato Muffins

Simple and Delicious!

• 1 sweet potato
• 4 smallish ripe bananas 
• 1/3 cup oil (I used Safflower or canola oil)
• 1 eggs
• 1.5 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp All Spice
• 1 cup spelt flour

Directions

• Heat the oven to 350
• Peel and roughly chop the sweet potato
• Steam the potato (I use my Beaba Babycook) and then puree into a sweet potato mash
• Use the KitchenAid and mix the bananas, oil, eggs, vanilla, and potato.  Blend thoroughly.
• Add in the baking powder, soda, spices, and flour.  Mix until the batter is smooth.
• Line a muffin pan with cases.  
• Fill up each case to the very top.  This should make 12 muffins.
• Bake for about 40-45 minutes.  Cool and store!

Muffins, Part Two

I've been on a muffin kick lately, though I will confess that many of the muffins haven't been very successful - hence the lack of posts.  Muffins are so easy to make and excellent finger food for Robert, especially as he becomes more and more determined to feed himself.  After many failed attempts at a wide variety of muffins (including these delicious but way-too-sugary blueberry and orange ones) I've worked out a recipe that is delicious and doesn't include lots of extra sugar.

Banana Mango Muffins

By the time I was able to take a photo,
half of my muffins were gone.  I think
Dad helped.

• 3 ripe bananas (you know, the ones that are too brown to eat, but you can't quite get yourself to throw away)
• 1/2 cup oil (I used Safflower oil)
• 2 eggs
• 1.5 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/2 cup spelt flour
• 2 ripe Ataulfo (Champagne) mangos

Directions

• Heat the oven to 350
• Break out the KitchenAid and mix the bananas, oil, eggs, and vanilla.  Blend thoroughly.
• Add in the baking powder, soda, and flour.  Mix until the batter is smooth.
• As the batter is mixing, Peel and dice the mangos into small pieces.  Put the mango pieces in with the mixing batter.
• Line a muffin pan with cases.  
• Fill up each case to the very top.  This should make 12 muffins.
• Bake for about 55-60 minutes.  The muffins will look dark but may still be soft inside.

Asparagus with Dijon and Lemon

Robert wants more and more finger foods and fewer and fewer puréed items.  It is simultaneously exciting and sad.  I finally get to move on to more food as he become independent, but I will miss the sweet moments of him waiting expectantly for another spoonful.  This super fast and easy starter is a good dish to set down while preparing the rest of a meal.  I rushed it to the table after music class yesterday, and he gobbled it up!

Robert loved feeding himself.

Asparagus with Dijon and Lemon

Ingredients

• 2-3 thin asparagus stalks
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• a drizzle of olive oil
• 1 lemon wedge

Directions

• Wash the asparagus and cut off the tough end of the stalk
• Cut the remaining asparagus into small bit size bits, but leave the tasty end in tact
• Put a small amount of water into a sauté pan and place the asparagus pieces in the water
• Cook for 5-7 minutes or until soft
• Meanwhile, put the mustard and olive oil in a small bowl and mix together
• Squeeze the lemon and mix again
• When the asparagus is cooked, transfer it into the mustard bowl and incorporate thoroughly
• Let the asparagus cool slightly before serving  

Sardine Stuffed Mushrroms

I admit it. I went back to the French Foodie Baby blog and took a chance with the mushrooms stuffed with cream of sardine recipe.  There are some absolutely wonderful recipes on this site, and this one is particularly quick and easy.  And delicious.  My husband, who doesn't usually like stuffed mushrooms, was swooning.  Robert, who has never had stuffed mushrooms, ate one and a half by himself.

Sardine Stuffed Mushrooms

Ingredients

• 4 Portabello Mushrooms
• 1 can of sardines in olive oil
• 1 cup Ricotta 
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
• a few chives
• 1/3 bunch of parsley

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 375
• Rinse the mushrooms and cut off the stems.  Place mushrooms on a cookie sheet
• Put the mushroom stems, chives, and parsley into a food processor and blend until fine
• Pour the sardines and oil into a large bowl and fork mash
• Add the Ricotta, Parmesan, and mushroom stem/herb mixture.  Stir until thoroughly mixed
• Spoon into the 4 mushroom caps 
• Cook for about 20 minutes or until there is a pool of liquid bubbling under the mushrooms

I needed to cut Robert's mushrooms into small, bite size pieces for him to enjoy this dish.  This will definitely show up on our table again.  It is nice to have a tasty option for days when I can't get fresh fish.

Easy Oatmeal

I am not a morning person.  It is quite a change for me to get up with Robert.  I used to sleep until 8 or 8:30 most days and was lucky enough to be able to arrange my schedule to allow me to be alarm clock free most of my adult life.  Now I have a 20 pound alarm clock that likes to wake up between 6:45 and 7:00.  In my foggy state, I've developed a simple breakfast routine that gets him fed and requires minimal brain power on my part.  Easy, no-cook oatmeal.  I make this in small batches that create oatmeal for about 4

days and are stored in 2 oz containers in the fridge.  I pull one out in the morning, along with an apple-pear sauce container, and we have breakfast.

Easy Oatmeal

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup oats  (I like old-fashioned Irish oats, but really anything that's not instant will do)
• 1/4 dried fruit (like raisins, currants, blueberries, or craisins)
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• Light 1/2 cup water

Directions

• Pour the oats and dried fruit into a food processor.  Blend to chop up the dried fruit and oats.
• Pour in the juice and water.  Pulse once or twice in the food processor.
• Let the mixture sit for at least 5 minutes before mixing again.
• If you need breakfast immediately, you can take a portion and heat in the microwave for about 15 seconds at this point, though I recommend letting it sit overnight in the fridge.
• Pour the moist oatmeal mixture into portion cups, cover, and place in the fridge.
• To serve, heat in the microwave for about 20 seconds and mix thoroughly with a spoon.  Pair with your favorite fruit puree.

Spicy Fish

We've just introduced a new fish to Robert - Monkfish.  I became familiar with the fish through sushi restaurants.  Monkfish liver is a tasty treat!  I've also found it to be a delicious and simple fish to cook for myself.  Tonight, we took the fish in a different direction and added a few dollops of Sriracha

onto the fish pieces.  I wasn't sure how the extra spice and heat would go over, but Robert loved it!  He ended up eating two huge servings.  I don't think I'll be as hesitant to add some real heat from now on.

Spicy Monkfish

Ingredients

• 2-3 oz of Monkfish 
• Olive oil for the pan
• Sriracha (use your best judgement - start off with a small amount and add more if you think your little one will like it.) 

Directions

• Heat the oil in a frying pan so the bottom of the pan is lightly coated
• Place the fish in the pan on a medium-high heat
• Put a few drops of the Sriracha on each side of the fish
• Cook for about 5 minutes or until done.  Try not to over cook the fish so it is still tender and juicy.
• Either puree for young babies or cut into small, bit-size chunks for kiddos who want finger food.

Artichoke, Two Ways

Artichokes scare me.  How do you cook them?  Why do all of that work for not much food?  And they're not exactly the cheapest vegetable out there.  Our bushel from Farmhouse Delivery included a few gorgeous looking artichokes, and I had to conquer my fear.  My first attempt was a simple puree.  It wasn't exciting and didn't go over that well.  I think there's value in introducing a food by itself, but I didn't have much success this way.  My second attempt added more flavor and was a huge (messy) success for Robert, Jon, and myself.  My second attempt, with lots of good, strong flavors, and taken from the French Foodie Baby, was a total winner!  I made two dips, one for the tasty bottom and heart, and one for the leaves.  Robert was able to suck and chew on the leaves of the artichoke with lots of gusto.  This became an easy finger food.

Ingredients

• 2-3 artichokes
  
• Fresh parsley
• Garlic (3 cloves)
• Olive oil
• White wine vinegar
• Dijon mustard
• Salt & pepper
• Garlic powder (optional)

Steaming Artichokes

• Fill a large pot with water with enough room to boil without boiling over
• Sprinkle salt into the pot and bring the water to a boil
• Cut off the stems (the handle) of the artichoke
• When the water is boiling rapidly, but the artichokes in
• Turn down the heat and cover for about 25 minutes.  About halfway through, turn your artichokes so the top side is down
• When you can easily remove the leaves, they're done
• Remove from the water and let cool slightly

Lemon Vinaigrette

• Combine five parts olive oil to one part white wine vinegar
• Add a generous dollop of dijon mustard, salt and pepper to taste
• Squeeze fresh lemon 
• Fork the mixture until combined

Parsley Tapenade

• Dice 3 cloves of garlic 
• Cut the crust off of one piece of bread
• Cook the garlic and bread in a small amount of olive oil until both are brown
• Blend garlic, toasted bread, a dash of white wine vinegar, and about 1/2 cup of fresh parsley together in a food processor.
• Add more olive oil to get a smooth texture
• Add pepper and garlic powder to taste

We dipped the leaves in the vinaigrette.  When I got to the bottoms of the artichoke (the bits underneath the hairy fur) I chopped them up and mixed it with the tapenade to feed Robert.  He loved it!  Then again, he loves most things with garlic, especially Grandma's Humus.

First Muffins

A fellow new mom brought a version of the One Handed Cooks' Sweet Potato, Carrot & Apple Spelt muffins to a little get together last week.  Robert got a hold of some and devoured an entire muffin, so I asked for the recipe.  I made a batch yesterday, and they are going quickly!  Robert ate 2 as part of his lunch today.  (Don't worry, they were dessert - he still got plenty of good vegetables!)

Ingredients

• 2 cups peeled and chopped sweet potato (this is one good sized, but not huge, potato)
• 1 cup spelt flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 3 Tbs coconut palm sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 1 carrot
• 1 peeled and chopped apple
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk

Directions

• Preheat your convection oven to 350
• Steam the sweet potato for about 15 minutes
• While steaming, mix the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg)
• Using a food processor (or a Beaba once the potatoes are steamed), blend the carrot and apple together.  Mix the carrot and apple into the dry mix
• Use the food processor to puree your sweet potato
• In a Kitchenaid or big bowl, beat your eggs and milk
• Add the sweet potato puree to the eggs and milk
• Fold in the dry mixture until just blended
• Either use cupcake wrappers or butter a muffin pan.
• Bake for 25-30 minutes  My muffins were perfect at the 25 minute mark - and that never happens!

This recipe made 12 muffins exactly.  My husband's comments about them are, "They are so moist and spongey!  I love that!"  Needless to say, I think 3 or 4 have found there way into his belly, too.

*** Update ***  I tried another variation with about 1 tsp of Mexican vanilla.  This added just a touch more flavor.

How to Turn a Baby Purple

I've recently been exploring the French Foodie Baby blog.  It is a new obsession with wonderful recipes that are full of flavor.  Last night we made a variation of Romanesco and Purple Potato Salad.  It was so good that I ended up making a large portion of it for the adult dinner, too!  I had never heard of Romanesco broccoli before, and I haven't seen it at our local grocery stores either.  I used readily available Broccolini instead with great results.  It is fun to have new finger food options to try with Robert.  It is a mess, the dogs are getting fat, and we (Robert and I, not his dad!) love it.

Purple Potato & Broccolini Salad

Ingredients

• 2-3 purple potatoes (like Peruvian fingerlings)
• 1 bunch of Broccolini (you will only use some of this)
• 1 small shallot
• A few sprigs of fresh Dill
• A lemon slice
• A small portion of Smoked Salmon
• Olive oil
• Balsamic Vinegar
• Mustard

Directions

By the end, both cheeks and hands were
purple - and he loved it!

• Peal the potatoes, cut into small, bite size pieces
• Wash the broccolini and cut an equal volume as the potatoes into small, bite size pieces.  This way, there is approximately the same amount of green as purple in the dish.
• Steam the potato for 15 minutes.  After 5 minutes, add the broccolini in with the potato so it steams for 10 minutes.
• While they're streaming, mix up the dressing.  You can make this to taste, but I diced 1 small shallot, 5 Tbs of olive oil, 1 Tbs of vinegar, a small dollop of dijon mustard, and 2 chopped sprigs of dill.  This made enough dressing for the adult portion later on, too.
• When the Potato and Broccolini are done, let them cool slightly.  I expedited by putting them in the fridge for a few minutes.  Then I tossed with a small amount of the dressing.  
• Add small, bit sized chunks of salmon to the mixture.
• Squeeze the fresh lemon on top.
   

17 Basic Purees

After several months of feeding my first baby, I feel like I've got a pretty good list of basic purees that helped introduce different foods and flavors.  In a desperate attempt to not get bored - because let's face it, there are a lot of meals when you have to feed this little person something but I certainly don't have the brainpower, time, or ingredients to do something fancy - I've created a go-to list of purees that are simple.  These basics will most likely be the keystones for many more meals.  Just appropriate prep the food by peeling (if necessary) and cutting into chunks.  Steam, puree by adding enough reserved cooking liquid as needed, and you're ready to go:

Watermelon Radishes

I've always had a weird aversion to radishes.  I never ate them growing up and assumed that they are just a strange, unnecessary food item.  When I started planting my own garden a few years ago with zero experience or knowledge, I found that radishes were as close to an immediate gratification plant as you get.  They can go from seed to plate in about 28 days given the right variety and conditions.  And they actually taste pretty good if you harvest them when they are young.  (A word of caution - don't try to grow a giant radish and then try to eat it - it will be peppery!)

And then I discovered watermelon radishes.  They are a light green on the outside with a beautiful dark
red to hot pink interior.  They are beautiful and delicious.  I've found that they are perfect steamed and pureed.  No need to add anything as they will be subtly sweet when prepared.  It's one of the easiest veggies to prepare:

Watermelon Radish Puree

• Rinse and peel the radish
• Chop coarsely
• Steam for 12-15 minutes
• Blend
• Serve

Tex Mex, Baby Style

I've been waiting for good, fresh tomatoes for Robert, and finally they came!  Farmhouse Delivery sent three gorgeous, local tomatoes in our bushel this week.  Since this is Texas, guacamole is practically its own food group, and should be introduced early.  We've already done plain avocado mash, but haven't quite made the jump to full on guacamole.  These tomatoes gave me the perfect opportunity to start introducing more flavor in an intermediate step.

Tomato Mash, Texified

First, remove the skin of the tomato (I had to look this one up)

• Bring a pot of water to a healthy boil and submerge the tomato for about 30 seconds
• Remove the tomato and dunk it in a bowl of ice water
• Use your fingers to peel of the skin

Then prepare

• Cut the tomato in half and scoop out the seeds
• Steam the tomato halves for about 10 minutes (you can reuse the pot that you just boiled the tomato in)
• Wash a few sprigs of cilantro
• Wash an avocado, then scoop out one half (mash with a fork if you need a mush)
• Blend the tomato and uncooked cilantro.  Don't add any cooking liquid as the tomato will be mash after just a few pulses
• Pour the tomato mixture into the center of the avocado half.
• Serve by taking a small sliver of avocado combined with tomato on each spoonful.

Cauliflower Overload

In my bushel from Farmhouse Delivery this week I had the largest cauliflower I have ever seen.  I mean huge.  Gigantic.  Larger than a basketball.  Cauliflower is ok, but what on earth do you do with a cauliflower that large?  Clearly the baby needs to try some.  I was a little reluctant because the Babycook Book suggestions introducing cauliflower much later, but I'm beginning to learn that these intro times are really vague suggestions that often contradict based on culture, pediatrician, and generation.  Everyone has their own opinion, and I have a giant cauliflower that needs to be consumed.

My bushel also contained some broccoli, which Robert is comfortable with.  I thought the two together could work well.  The creaminess of steamed and pureed cauliflower blended with gritty broccoli could work well together.  The blend would have a texture to it that Robert would (hopefully) like.

Cauliflower & Broccoli Blend

• Cut broccoli florets and cauliflower bits into similar sizes
• Wash all of the vegetables and pace in steamer basket
• Steam for 15 minutes (level 3 on the Babycook)
• Blend thoroughly using just a small amount of cooking liquid to get desired consistency

Robert really loved this combination - more so than broccoli by itself.  I think next time I'll try a blend with a slightly higher cauliflower to broccoli ratio.

Even More Root Vegetables

Since it is winter and root vegetables are everywhere these days, and squash and carrots are getting a little boring, we're branching out and trying new root vegetables.  So far, we've tried turnips and celery root.  Both have gone well.  We've put a little potato with dark leafy green purees to give them more oomph, and sweet potatoes are popular.  Our newest additions to the root vegetable group are sunchokes and parsnips.

Sunchokes are overlooked and delicious.  The hardest part of cooking with a sun choke is peeling it if it has lots of little nubs and crevices.  I try to find the straightest and smoothest sunchokes, but realistically you should factor in a little bit of time to peel them well.  With the peel, they look similar to a ginger root, and without the peel, they look similar to a potato.  I've heard they are really high in iron and are good prebiotics for digestive health, so they seem like a good thing to give a baby.  (I've also heard that they cause farts, but so far that hasn't been our experience.)  

Along with our sunchokes, I added some turnip and our old standby - leek.  

Sunchoke, Turnip, & Leek Puree

• Peel sunchoke and turnip
• Chop into small chunks
• Wash leek and slice white end
• Add sunchoke and turnip chunks & leeks to a steamer basket
• Steam for 15 minutes
• Blend with a small amount of cooking liquid for desired consistency

I scooped out several portions of this dish and set them aside for Robert.  Then I made a mistake.  I didn't taste it before altering for a more adult version.  If I had tasted it, I would have declared it practically done - just in need of a small amount of salt and pepper.  Unfortunately, I plowed ahead without thinking and added a generous block of butter (and salt and pepper.)  

Whoops.  Later, while feeding this to Robert, I had a bite of his, and it was delicious.  The adult version was overrun with butter.  It wasn't bad, it just didn't let the flavors of the veggies through.  

Our next root vegetable was the misunderstood parsnip.  I thought this would be a good addition because they can be even sweeter than carrots and are easy to prepare.  

Parsnip and Carrot Puree

• Peel parsnip and carrots
• Chop into small chunks
• Steam for 15 minutes
• Blend with a generous amount of cooking liquid to get a good mush

I used substantially more parsnip than carrot, and Robert loved this!  Since he's familiar with orange colored foods - and likes them a lot - he took the first bite willingly and cleaned his bowl.

Adventurous Food

We were doomed for a meltdown around lunch time today after Robert only took a short 30 minute nap this morning.  At noon, I strapped my fussy-but-not-quite-screaming baby into his high chair with a bowl of our carrot and celery root puree, said a silent prayer that he would actually eat something, and whipped out the baby spoon.  Mercifully, he opened his mouth and started to eat.

I had a tray of grocery store sushi for myself.  Nothing fancy, just a rainbow roll with a generous portion of wasabi and pickled ginger on the side.  I love the pickled ginger, especially soaking on piece in the soy sauce and having that tangy, salty bite near the end of my meal.  I alternated feeding Robert a bite of his orange mush and using chopsticks to feed myself a slice of sushi or a slice of ginger.  Robert thought this looked pretty cool, and was staring intently at the chopsticks.  

Without thinking, I took a piece of ginger in my chopsticks and held it out for him to try to grasp.  I didn't really think he'd get anywhere with it as the ginger can be slippery and his motor skills, especially pinching things, are lacking.  Somehow, he got that piece of ginger from my chopsticks and into his mouth.  He started sucking and exploring it.  I briefly thought it might be a choking hazard and tried to retrieve it, but came back with only a small sliver.  He swallowed the rest of the ginger and started looking at my plate for more.  A second slice quickly disappeared.

Yep, this is truly my kid.  We both love that ginger.

Mixed Meals

Last night I cooked up a big batch of baby food since we were running low.  My beloved Babycook is in New Jersey getting repaired.  I'm upset that it started beeping uncontrollably, but I've been moderately impressed by Beaba's customer service.  They are nice, though not entirely efficient or accurate.  As a result, I'm steaming in a big pot and using our Cuisinart to puree everything.  This clunky method has only made me fall more in love with the Babycook.  I prefer to make small batch meals that are easy to clean up, and it was much easier to make a variety of foods for Robert using the Babycook.

Since I was going to be cooking several big batches of food, I decided to make a good soup for Jon and myself with the remnants of Robert's baby food.  The first round was carrots and celery root, a new food for my little man.

Carrots & Celery Root

• Chop roughly
• Steam for 15 minutes
• Blend with cooking liquid for desire consistency

The carrots and celery root
are a hit!

As soon as I removed this first batch from my pot, I through in squash and the rest of the celery root for another flavor combination.  I blended the first batch while the second batch steamed.  I spooned out the carrot mixture, but didn't bother to clean out the Cuisinart before adding the squash and celery root mixture.  This was the basis for our soup, but I spooned out a 2 oz portion for Robert to try as well.

In a cast iron soup pot, I sautéed onions until they were soft, then added those to my Cuisinart.

Next, I changed out my cooking water and chopped apples for a separate puree for Robert.  Those steam for just 10 minutes.  During that time, I blended the onions with the rest of the Cuisinart mix and returned it to the soup pot.  I added some vegetable stock and set the soup to simmer.  I finished cleaning out the Cuisinart just in time for the apples to go in for their puree.  I spooned about the equivalent of one apple into the soup mixture and saved the rest for Robert.

As the soup simmered I added a little salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder to taste.  My sister gave us some of her delicious homemade bread, which I chopped into rough chunks and toasted for crunchy croutons to add.  The verdict?  A fine winter meal for the adults, and several days of food for my little man!

Winter Vegetable Soup

• Peeled and roughly chopped carrots, winter squash, and celery root
• Steamed for 15 minutes
• Chopped apple
• Steam the apple for 10 minutes
• Sautee onions
• Blend all veggies and apple together
• Add vegetable stock generously and set to simmer
• Add salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder
• Add croutons, if desired

Gritty Broccoli

I am apathetic about broccoli.  There's nothing wrong with it, but it doesn't do much taste-wise for me.  I recognize that it is nutritionally beneficial and therefore eat it on occasion.  Maybe I just don't know really good ways to prepare it for myself, so if anyone has any suggestions, I'm all ears!  For Robert, I'm not too concerned about flavor combinations and seasoning at this point, so plain-ish broccoli is just fine for him.  However, the first time I steamed and pureed straight broccoli florets, I was taken back by the gritty texture of the mix.  I didn't like the texture in my mouth, and I'm sure that came through for him.  He ate it, but like his mom, wasn't excited.

Fast forward a couple of weeks and I'm ready to try again.  This time, I took a couple more steps to get a better texture, and it really worked.

Steamed Broccoli

• Broccoli florets steamed in water for about 15 minutes
• Blend
• Mush through a strainer
• Blend and add cooking water to get a desired consistency

A much better mush!