Very important lesson: Take the time out of your busy schedule to teach your toddler to see the beauty in everyday things. We make a scrambled egg together and take pleasure in touching it to our skin, cracking it, stirring the pretty yellow yolk, sprinkling pepper in it, and plopping shredded cheese in it. Making your toddler a part of your daily routine will make them feel included and important while they learn. Pretty simple.
I am just sharing a proud mommy moment. Piper is so obsessed with her beloved edamame that at 20 months old, she has perfected the word right down to the very last 4th syllable. Except she does put an "s" on the end because there is more than one, but we can work on her proper Japanese a different day.... I couldn't be more proud of my little foodie baby!
I am a proud foodie mama today. Piper, who will be 18 months old in 3 days said "potato" as I was chopping off a hunk of the delicious raw tuber for her to gnaw on. Of course there was a complete omission of the "p" phoneme but the three syllables were clear as day! Say it with me! "UH-TAY-TOOWWW!, UH-TAY-TOOWWW!" Power to the uhtaytow. That is all.
This is one of Pip's all-time faves! She polished off an entire jar each and every time without fail. I also scoured my entire computer and somehow deleted all of the how-to pictures! But I have something better. I have a VIDEO. Apparently Cajun food makes babies SPICYYYYY!!! I hope your little one enjoys this healthy, zesty, and a-tad-spicy baby food as much as mine does!
~Ingredients~
1 bag of Boil-In-A-Bag brown rice
1 can red beans, drained
1 Tbsp. butter
drizzle of olive oil
2 small chicken breasts, cooked ,seasoned with salt and pepper, and chopped into chunks
1 tsp. Zatarain's Creole Seasoning
1/2 cup (about 2 stalks) celery, chopped
8 cherry tomatoes
1/4 cup white onion, diced
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 and 1/4 cup water
~Directions~
1. Cover bottom of large skillet with olive oil and butter and cook on medium heat until butter melts.
2. Add the white onion, cherry tomatoes, cayenne pepper, celery, and Creole Seasoning
3. While vegetables are cooking, prepare brown rice as directed on box.
4. When rice is done cooking, add it to the vegetables in skillet.
5. Add the can of drained red beans.
6. Add cooked chicken breast.
7. Cook together on medium heat for 10-15 minutes.
8. Transfer mixture to blender.
9. Add the 1 and 1/4 cups of water and stir.
10. Blend until you reach the desired texture.
LEISSEZ LES BONS TEMPS!!!!
I grew up on a Sloppy Joe-type of sandwich that my family calls a "Nu-Way." I remember my mom and dad tweaking the recipe much like they did with chili, in order to find that perfect blend of ingredients, desperately searching for what they believed was "The Perfect Nu-Way." To me, just the combination of the main ingredients was perfection enough, in any capacity.
When Piper was 10 months old or so, I figured she was probably ready to handle some foods that were a bit more coarse, and little more bold. She still preferred creamier textures, as your infant might, so be sure to continue to add water and puree until it's thin enough for their liking.
~Ingredients~
1/2 pound of 90% lean ground beef
3/4 cup cooked Basmati rice
3 slices American Cheese
1 Tbsp. yellow mustard
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1/8 tsp. celery seed
1 cup of water
~Directions~
1. Brown the beef in skillet.
Even the most motivated and doting new mothers around know that there are some mornings that one cup of coffee isn't doing the trick and the thought of hearing the food processor whirring at its eardrum-splitting decibel level sends a shiver down the back of your neck. Most days you do it anyway because, well, you love your baby and the look on their face when they hear the screeching devil machine is just too much to take:
