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Posts Tagged ‘Bananas’

Strawberry Fruit Leather

20 Sep

Call it a supply versus demand thing. I was at the Farmers Market yesterday and the berries for the most part had disappeared…I found one vendor selling strawberries.  The rainy season started early here in Seattle and that does not bode well for strawberries, I was told. The poor little things get beaten up by the rain. So I wasn’t taking any chances and bought several pints. I knew just what to do with those strawberries – fruit leather.

Many recipes for fruit leather exist in the universe. I chose to test drive Catherine McCord’s recipe over at Weelicious. It seemed simple and quick.  Most recipes are pretty simply in terms of ingredients but some recipes require much more time, heating the fruit first to the desired thickness, a lower oven temperature and (gasp) the use of a dehydrator, which I am guessing most of us don’t own in our home (although we’d really like to).  Below is Catherine’s recipe.  We liked it enough with both my husband and little man repeatedly asking for “more”. With that said, I listed a few other recipes that I plan to try for the next batch.

The most important take away from making fruit leather is that TECHNIQUE MATTERS. Before I list the recipe, repeat after me, “I will spread the fruit puree evenly on the baking pan”. Phew. Now that is out of the way, proceed to enjoy yourself. This stuff really is delicious, an easy, portable (for travel and nearby excursions!) snack that your whole family is sure to love. Finally, be patient. This recipe may require trying again and possibly again. Everyone’s fruit is in a different state and ovens are very different. In the end, you will be happy. I promise.

Recipe on Weelicious:

Time required: 3-3.25 hours – 3 hours cooking and the remainder prep

Servings: 8 long strips

Gear:

  • small cutting knife
  • cutting board
  • baking sheet
  • Silpat or plastic wrap
  • blender
  • tablespoon for measuring honey (although I always just count to three for a tablespoon)

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Food:

  • 3-4 cups strawberries, washed and de-stemmed (I personally needed more fruit puree so I’d go with 4 cups)
  • 1 tablespoon honey

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Approach:

  • Preheat oven to 250 degrees
  • Prepare strawberries by washing and de-stemming and place in blender
  • Add tablespoon of honey to blender
  • Blend strawberries and honey to a puree
  • Line your Silpat or plastic wrap on the baking sheet
  • Spread puree evenly onto the Silpat about 1/4 or 1/8 inch thick
  • Bake for 2-3 hours depending on your oven
  • Pull from oven when not sticky to touch (it’ll feel “dry”)
  • Let cool at room temperature for several hours until fruit leather softens. The edges may be burnt a bit but they will soften if you give the leather time. This result may also be an indication that the puree was not spread evenly (or simply that you cooked it too long).
  • Cut with a sharp knife, kitchen scissors or a pizza cutter.
  • Roll and serve. I hesitate to write “store” here because honestly this stuff doesn’t stick around for long because it is so delicious. However if you are making big batches, freeze away in a freezer bag or appropriate glass container. As with any food, don’t keep it in the freezer longer than 3 months.

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Fruit Suggestions:

  • Apple – perfect fall flavor. add cinnamon. yum.
  • Banana – perfect anytime! add nutmeg, vanilla. yum.
  • Blueberry – perfect all by itself.
  • Raspberry – perfect all by itself but most like very juicy so focus on thickness if you’re using this berry.
  • Pumpkin – perfect for fall. add fall spice of your choose and you have got yourself a warm and fuzzy fall snack. mmm.

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Other fruit leather recipes and ideas to consider:

  • Simple Recipes – I love this site. This recipe adds sugar and water, which is necessary for “less juicy” and “less ripe” fruit. Also she cooks the fruit on a much lower temp for a much longer period of time. This recipe is first on my list to try next.
  • Not So Humble Pie – This site is beautiful. The photographs make me feel a bit inadequate but also inspired! This writer and food maker heats the fruit, like Simple Recipes, and therefore has some control over the thickness of the puree.  There are some very useful comments from her readers who tried the recipes so be sure to check them out.

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Happy Eating!
Marnie

We used this product in the above recipe:


 
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Posted in 12 months +, Finger Food, Nutrition, Recipes, Snack, Vegetarian

 

Mama’s Magic Shake

28 Jul

Let’s face it parents, every once in a while we need a boost. We work hard and we play hard, most often all for the sake of our kiddos. I have made “protein shakes” for years now but only recently, in a desperate attempt to find some sneaky way to integrate more iron into my diet, I started adding greens to my “protein shakes”. Thus I stole a term coined by my husband and his morning routine. Meet the “Magic Shake” because, my friends, it is just that, magic. This shake will give you the energy you need to get through a morning, an afternoon, heck even a couple of days. Plus it’ll lift your mood. The great part about the shake is that you can customize it to your liking. For example, I use milk but you could use yogurt or add peanut butter to get a thicker shake. Below is my recipe for you. I hope that you use it, or are at the very least inspired to add a little magic to your day.

Servings: 1-2, makes 24 ounces give or take

The gear:

  • Small cutting knife
  • Blender
  • Pint glass or any glass for serving

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The goods:

  • 1 medium sized banana, peeled (duh) and cut up
  • 2-3 Strawberries, cut up – I happened to use fresh but frozen work perfectly fine. If you use frozen, you’ll want to add a few more.
  • Three scoops of protein powder – I use GeniSoy’s vanilla flavor
  • 1 Emergen-C, raspberry flavor but you can use whatever flavor you want
  • A handful of fresh, washed spinach
  • Enough orange juice to count “2 one thousand”
  • Enough milk to count “4 one thousand”

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The approach:

  • Take out our blender
  • Peel your banana and cut up or break up into pieces and put into blender
  • Cut your strawberries into quarters and add to blender
  • Add Emergen-C
  • Add Protein Powder
  • Add Spinach
  • Add OJ (“one one thousand, two one thousand…”)
  • Add Milk (“one one thousand, two one thousand, three one thousand, four one thousand…”)
  • Blend away on “Puree” if you have the option
  • Pour into Pint sized glass, there should be some leftover for an additional glass or to give some to your little one

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Goodness Factor: There is so much good stuff in this shake I don’t even know where to begin. The killer for me was the spinach. A great way, in my mind, to add greens if a salad isn’t working into your daily routine.

Happy Eating!

Marnie

 
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Posted in Family Wellness, Nutrition, Recipes

 

FIVE Ways to Integrate OATS into a Kiddos Diet

21 Jun

Oats are a wonderful addition to your family’s diet. Oats are great for the heart, and packed with loads of fiber and protein, oats help your family start the day right.  They also contain antioxidants that protect the circulatory system. Some of you may have noticed that I get a wee bit obsessed with certain food (erh…leeks for example) and OATS are no exception. Oats provide a good bang for your buck. So great for you and easy to integrate into your meals.  So below are a few of my favorite ways to integrate oats into my kiddo’s diet.

As many of you know, my current method of preparing oats involves grinding them to a powder with my coffee grinder.  This method works well for us and I am sticking with it.  You can choose to prepare your oats any way that works for your family.

TOP FIVE FAVES

  1. Simply Oatmeal with Fruit– Now this one is big and wide. Very simple. Add oats to a variety of fruits such as bananas, apples, peaches, blueberries apricots or strawberries, serve with some Greek yogurt and you have a breakfast jammed packed full of goodness to start your kiddo’s day.  Also adding a little spice, such as cinnamon or nutmeg, is always a sure winner!  A few of my favorite combos are:
    • Apple & Cinnamon
    • Pear Cinnamon & Vanilla
    • Strawberry & Peaches
    • Roasted Banana & Nutmeg
    • Any sort of melon (helps to thicken the puree too)

  2. Smoothie Sneak – I am a fan of banana smoothies with vanilla, plain yogurt with ice. You can get as creative as you want with smoothies but I like to keep it simple, especially if your kiddo is still young (i.e. one year or less). Strawberry peach smoothies are also a favorite.  Add a bit of ground oats and you are off to a great day. Smoothies are also a good vessel for adding Flax Oil.

  3. Banana Oat Pancakes with Cinnamon – One of my kiddos recent favorite meals. Such a treat and so easy. Simply make a batter as you would normally, add a bit of ground up oats (as much as you would like to add, I typically add 1/8 cup to a cup of batter or so) and mashed bananas (again as much as you would like to add, I typically mash a half a banana and mix in a bit at a time).  My kiddo takes to a thicker pancake better because it works better as a finger food. I also put a smidge of Greek yogurt on the side of his dish. He “dips” the pancake (or smashes) in the yogurt as a nice compliment.

  4. Breaded Fish - Totally with compliments to Wholesome Babyfood.  My little guy loves cod so adding a little oat crust and some spice was welcomed with opened arms (or mouth I should say).

  5. Oatmeal with Pumpkin – Bake or steam pumpkin, add a little nutmeg, add your ground oats and puree away. Your little one will be in heaven.  With loads of Vitamin A as well as other Vitamins and Minerals such as Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Potassium, Copper and Maganese, pumpkin is wonderful to integrate into your family’s diet.  Of course you can substitute other squash, acorn or butternut for example, and the combination would also work well.  I just happen to like pumpkin!

A great resource for using OATS is the Quaker Oats website.

Happy Eating!
Marnie

 
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Posted in 6-9 Months, 9-12 Months, Breakfast, Finger Food, Fish, Nutrition, Recipes

 

“Monkey” Cakes with Cinnamon and Nutmeg

12 Jun

The Little Man is very interested in feeding himself these days, which, as you know, can pose a few problems. So in my search for that perfect finger food, I decided today to make pancakes. I used cutters to shape the cakes into a whale and a car (I let the Little Man choose which ones he wanted) to make eating pancakes even more fun. However, with that said, my Little Man is 11 months and I don’t think he appreciated the effort of making shapes. So unless your kiddo is old enough to get the shapes (I took the car and drove it around his high chair but he grabbed it and shoved it in his mouth) I recommend not worrying about being creative. Your kiddo will find eating the pancakes themselves interesting enough.

Servings: I made enough of this batter so my husband and I could have breakfast too. The batter proportions below reflect that approach. I am trying very hard to integrate our adult meals and the Little Man’s meals. Makes for a more efficient meal time!

Grab your Gear:

  • Pan
  • Spatula
  • Bowl for mixing pancake batter
  • Whisk
  • Small bowl for mashing banana
  • Fork for mashing banana
  • Tablespoon measure
  • Pyrex cup measure

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Food:

  • 1 cup pancake mix (I used the Farmhouse Pancake Mix from Stonewall Kitchen, our favorite)
  • 1 medium egg
  • 3/4 cup buttermilk
  • 1 tablespoon melted butter
  • 1/2 banana
  • Pinch of nutmeg
  • Pinch of cinnamon

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Method:

  • Beat egg and milk together
  • Add pancake mix
  • Stir in butter and mix

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At this point I scooped out some batter for my Little Man’s breakfast, about 1/5 of the batter, basically enough to make two small pancakes.

  • Mash half banana
  • Add pinch of nutmeg and cinnamon
  • Mix in with batter
  • Pour batter onto griddle (I waited until the pancake was done and then cut the shape)
  • Once the pancake is done, you can keep your shapes and serve them to your little one. I ended up breaking up the cake into bits for the little guy, and putting the bits into a suction cup on his high chair. Although he did make a mess, the mess was remarkably contained because he was very into eating the cakes.
  • I also served the cakes with a side of Greek yogurt. This added the something extra (i.e. something other than syrup) and protein to the meal.

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Ideas for next time: I am going to try adding another fruit, like strawberries or blueberries instead of bananas or a vegetable, like adding a carrot puree. Also, I am going replace milk with ricotta

Happy Eating!

Marnie

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Posted in 9-12 Months, Breakfast, Finger Food, Recipes, Snack

 
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