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Posts Tagged ‘Broccoli’

Chicken and Broccoli Brown Rice “Casserole”

07 Jun

Now that we’re full on past your basic purees, life gets pretty interesting. Not only does my Little Man have six teeth to gnaw through new foods, he knows how to make a mess. Tough to contain him these days. I have been using these great bibs and suction cups that have helped a great deal. This recipe is easy and straightforward, adapted from Annabel Karmel. She does a wonderful job preparing simple, yet delicious meals for kiddos. The great thing is that not only are there good things for your kiddo in this recipe but it tastes good too! Who can resist  a cheese sauce?

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Perfect for: 9+ months

Servings: 3-4

Time Required: 20 minutes

Grab your Gear:

  • Saucepan
  • Sautee pan
  • Wooden spoon
  • A cutting board
  • A cutting knife
  • Tablespoon measure
  • Whisk
  • Grater
  • Rice cooker (or simply a pan)
  • A steamer and a pureer (or your Beaba)
  • Bowl and spoon for serving

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Food:

  • One cup of broccoli cut into small pieces
  • Quarter pound boneless, skinless chicken breast, cooked and chopped
  • 1/8 cup brown rice, cooked
  • Veggie Oil
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 2 tbsp flour
  • 1 1/4 cup milk
  • 1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese (or any mild cheese that you have on hand)
  • Black Pepper

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Method:

  1. Throw the chicken and veggie oil into a sautee pan, add a little black pepper and cook chicken through
  2. Meanwhile, add your chopped broccoli to your steamer and steam away (~10-15 minutes)
  3. Meanwhile, take our your saucepan, melt butter, stir in flour and cook for about 1 minute. Whisk in the milk. Bring to a boil and cook sauce until thickened.
  4. Remove sauce from heat, add cheese and stir until melted
  5. Combine the cheese sauce, chicken, broccoli and rice in your pureer or blender to your desired consistency
  6. Serve

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As always store what you are going to use within the next 3 days in the fridge. Any remainder should go in the freezer.

Goodness Factor: Calcium, Protein, Folate, Niacin, Vitamin A, Vitamin C

Check out this site for information on vitamins and minerals.

Happy Eating!

Marnie

 
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Posted in 6-9 Months, 9-12 Months, Dinner, Recipes

 

Our Favorite Finger Foods!

30 May

Hello folks! It is that time – Finger Foods! Fun, right? Sure!  I am having fun with it so I thought I’d share a few of my favorites.

String Cheese – buy in bulk packages, stick them in the fridge and pull when your little one gets hungry.  I usually let the cheese warm a bit and then peel it for my guy, usually I break the strings in half.  I had fun with String Cheese and Peas recently by making Mr. String Peas. Ha! Clever, right?

Tofu – A great source of protein and wonderful finger food because it breaks down easily.  There is little harm in serving this finger food.  I like to use soft or medium tofu. The harder the tofu, the less need to cook it. Cut the tofu up into perfect little pieces for your little one. If you have soft tofu, cook it up in a sautee pan with some veggie oil.

Avocado - You all know my obsession with avocado.  Peel, cut into small pieces and serve it up!

Berries – We’ve been giving berries to our little guy since he was about 8 months old.  Strawberries and raspberries are his favorite.  Blueberries work well too.  Just cut them up in small pieces (small enough so your little one can still grab them but not large enough to choke the little one!) and serve.

Happy Baby Yogurt Melts and Puffs – Great go to finger food, especially when you are on the road. Use a “Snack Trap” for best results.

Banana – Simple. Cut it up in small pieces or simply let your little one gnaw on a bigger piece (a little messy but fun for them).

Sweet Potato Bites – These bites are by far my Little Guy’s favorite. Sweet Potatoes are ranked #1 in vegetable land because of their complex carbs, protein, Vitamin A, Vitamin C and Fiber.  I could go on because really we can’t forget how good they taste too. I peel a few potatoes, cut them up in fairly small pieces, put the pieces in a Pyrex, cover with some olive oil and bake at 400 degrees for about 45 minutes. Nurture Baby has a some great finger food recipes, including Sweet Potato bites and other yummy ones that I cannot wait to try.

Broccoli Bites – I am looking forward to trying this recipe suggested to me by a reader.  Check it out.

Sweet Potato Banana Puffs – I just posted this recipe recently. Can we say “Yum”?

Shredded Chicken- I am also going to try some shredded chicken this week.  Shredding chicken is super easy. Boil a breast or two on low heat for about 30 minutes. Then remove and let cool.  The chicken should shred fairly easily at this point.  I am going to try to add a few spices, or maybe just black pepper and garlic to give the chicken a little kick. Maybe serve with some black beans, also a great finger food.

Happy Eating!

Marnie

 
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Posted in 9-12 Months, Finger Food, Recipes

 

Simply Broccoli Cheddar Puree

22 Feb

So we just arrived home from five days on the road. The Little Man has done well these past few days. I brought along Sprout Baby organic baby food pouches mainly because they are really easy traveling food for the little ones but they also have great, yummy variety. In addition to Sprout Baby I brought along a cooler filled with puree I had frozen over the last week – chicken, cod and leek purees.

So tonight my fridge had little exciting in it but we did have a head of broccoli and cheddar cheese leftover from purees I had made last week. Voila. Who doesn’t like broccoli and cheese? Broccoli is a vegetable that is so good for you but in my opinion tastes bitter without some sort of goodness included…a la cheese, butter, etc. That doesn’t mean the extra goodness has to be unhealthy, just enough to add a “little something” to the vegetable.  Be sure the broccoli is still in good health (i.e. that it is bright green and crisp but not too crisp so that you can put a fork in it fairly easily)

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What I used in this puree is pretty straightforward:

  • 1 head of broccoli, chopped and steamed, about 1 1/2 cups
  • 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, added after pureeing broccoli

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What’s in it for my little one:

  • Calcium
  • Protein
  • Vitamin C
  • Fiber

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How many servings did this recipe make?  2 servings = 4 2 ounce BabyCubes

The result?  My Little Man gave it five stars (as measured by a full body wiggle).

Next time?  I think I will add leeks.

Happy eating!

Please visit the GEAR section for links to items featured and used in this post.

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Posted in 6-9 Months, Recipes