20121102 Chicken Casserole

After the success of the finger food dinner last time, I am giving it another go again. This time, it is a simple casserole. As I got some baby organic stock cubes from UK last time, it saved me the trouble of making the chicken stock from scratch. I wish they sell such baby stock cubes in The Netherlands too as it has made my life SO MUCH easier! But I guess there is not much of a market here as most Dutch parents I know prefer to buy the baby dinner jars instead of making baby food themselves. Anyways, you can also add 1 diced celery stock to the casserole to enrich the flavor. I think this is a great dish to introduce onion to your baby's diet. This recipe makes enough for a parent and a hungry baby.

INGREDIENTS
1 chicken filet, diced
1 small onion, finely chopped
4 small potatoes, peeled and diced
1 medium carrot, peeled and diced
300ml baby chicken stock

METHOD
1. Heat the oven to 180 degree C.
2. Heat some olive oil in a frying pan and fry the onion until fragrant and soft. Add the chicken cubes and cook for another 5 minutes. Throw the diced vegetables into the pan and fry for another 3 to 5 minutes.
3. Transfer everything into a medium casserole dish and pour in the stock. Cover the dish and cook in the oven for 45 minutes.

20121101 Fish with Broccoli and Potato

I was a bit lazy so I didn't make anything fancy or difficult today. The beauty of this dish is - my baby can simply feed herself the whole dish without any help (my 9 month old is a big fan of finger food and has mastered chewing pretty well)! Oh it is the PERFECT dish after a work day, so I don't have to gulp down my dinner while feeding a hungry baby. This recipe makes enough for 2 servings.

INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cups broccoli florets
1 medium potato, diced
120g white fish filet, cut into large chunks
1 tsp flour
grated cheese

METHOD
1. Heat the oven to 150 degree C.
2. Dab the white fish chunks dry and sprinkle them with about 1 tsp of flour. Heat a little olive oil in a non-stick frying pan and cook the chunks - about 4-5 minutes per side, flip occasionally.
3. In the meantime, steam the broccoli florets and potato (I use Philips Blender/Steamer) for about 15 minutes.
4. In a small casserole dish, mix the fish chunks and vegetables together. Sprinkle with some grated cheese and cook in the oven for about 5 minutes. Cool and then serve.

20121025 Fish Fingers

I read about this recipe before but can't remember the exact ingredients and couldn't find it from the pile of baby books I have. I was a bit worried if the fish fingers would be too fishy as I couldn't marinate them with white pepper. Also I wondered if it would taste bland as I could neither sprinkle them with lemon juice nor dip them in ketchup. Oh well, you never know until you try, right? They were good! The below recipe made enough for a baby and an adult. For myself, I dipped them in some ketchup. They would taste good with some mayo with dille and lemon juice too. And you could easily replace the salmon with chicken tenders or white fish.

INGREDIENTS
150g salmon fingers
1 egg
Fresh breadcrumbs from 2 slices of brown bread
1 tbsp parmesan cheese
olive oil

METHOD
1. In a small bowl, mix the breadcrumbs and parmesan together. In another small bowl, beat the egg.
2. Dip a salmon finger into the bowl of egg, then roll it in the breadcrumb/parmesan mixture until well covered. Repeat until all the fingers are coated.
3. Cover and refrigerate the fish fingers for about an hour.
4. In a non-stick pan, heat the oil over medium heat. Cook the fish fingers for 5-8 minutes, turning occasionally.

20121018 Baby Fish Pies

This recipe makes 4. For Olivia's dinner, I gave her one serving plus two buttered toast fingers and about a cup of chopped mangoes as dessert - yes, she was very hungry tonight! As hubby was working late today, I was too lazy to cook and ate two of these too (I added some freshly grounded 4-season pepper). They are really tasty! Next time I may just make a bigger batch for the whole family. And I think half a teaspoon of kerrie powder would go well in the sauce too - can't wait to give it a try when Olivia is ready for more spices in her food.

INGREDIENTS
10g butter
1/2 small onion, finely chopped
1/2 medium leek, thinly sliced
200g salmon, cubed
1 tbsp flour
150ml milk
3/4 cup grated cheese (1/2 cup for sauce, and 1/4 cup for topping)
1/4 cup fresh breadcrumbs (about 1/2 slice of brown bread)

METHOD
1. Heat the oven to 200 degree C. Slightly grease 4 ramekins. Mix the breadcrumbs and 1/4 cup of cheese in a small bowl.
2. Divide the salmon cubes into the ramekins, and set aside.
3. Melt the butter in a small saucepan, and sweat the onion and leek for about 5 minutes.
4. Sprinkle half of the flour over the vegetables and stir well. Pour the milk into the pan, and cook for about 3 to 5 minutes (keep stirring!) until the sauce starts to thicken. Add more flour to reach the desired consistency. Stir in 1/2 cup of grated cheese and remove the pan from heat.
5. Spoon the cheesy vegetables into the ramekins, and top the ramekins with the breadcrumb/cheese mixture. Cook in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes.

20121011 Baby Mac and Cheese

(Made this again to take the picture!) Forgot to take a picture as I was too busy tending a baby who is sick and teething at the same time. This is Olivia's very first Mac and Cheese, and she LOVED it! Olivia is chewing well these days so I try not to mash all her food together. This actually looked like a proper dish, so it is a shame that I didn't take a picture. Oh well, another time. The most important thing is, my baby cleaned her plate! (Note: the below makes two servings for a hungry baby!)

INGREDIENTS
15g butter
15g flour
1 cup full fat milk
grated cheese
3 baby carrots, sliced and steamed
2 chicken tenders, steamed and shredded
1/2 cup uncooked macaroni

METHOD
1. Cook the macaroni in a pan of boiling water. Drain and set aside.
2. In a small sauce pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Stir in enough flour to make a roux. Add milk to roux slowly, stirring constantly. Stir in the cheese, and cook over low heat until cheese is melted and the sauce is a little thick.
3. Put macaroni, sliced carrots, and shredded chicken in a bowl, and pour sauce over it. Stir well and serve.

20121007 Baby Congee with Tofu Sheet

The tofu sheet gives the congee an interesting texture, and Olivia simply can't have enough of this congee. We are both trying to shake off a bad cold this week, so I made this congee for the both of us. For mommy, I replace the water with vegetable stock (using stock cubes), and serve the congee with sesame oil and soy sauce instead.

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup uncooked rice
3 pints water
4 chicken tenders
1/3 cup diced pumpkin *
1/3 cup diced carrot *
1/2 cup crumbled dried tofu sheet (also called soya bean sheet)

METHOD
1. In a medium pan, bring 3 pints of water to the boil. Add the rice and bring it to the boil again. Lower the heat the medium and cook for 30-45 minutes.
2. Add the chicken, pumpkin, and carrot. Bring it to the boil, then simmer over low heat for about 30 minutes.
3. Add the crumbled tofu sheet and simmer for another 30 minutes, or until the congee reaches your desired consistency.
4. Remove the chicken from the pan and shred them into tiny pieces. Return them to the congee.
5. Remove from heat to cool to handwarm temperature. Serve.

* You can replace them with:
- carrot + sweet corn
- carrot + courgette
- carrot + green peas
- cauliflower + pumpkin
- courgette + pumpkin

20120917 Macaroni with Chicken and Veggie

The Philips Avent Baby Food Steamer and Blender has made making fresh baby food so much easier. When I had time, I chop up all the vegetables in one go during the weekend and refrigerate them in ziploc bags. Then I simply make fresh lunch and dinner in the morning by throwing any combinations of vegetables into the steamer/blender. To make life even easier, I now steam, puree, and freeze different vegetables and chicken over the weekend. So I simply take out a combination of vegetable/chicken ice cubes the night before, and maybe cook some fresh pasta to go with the pureed food - like the below example. You can easily replace macaroni with other pasta, replace chicken with fish, and use any combinations of vegetables.

INGREDIENTS
1/4 cup cooked macaroni
3tbsp pureed vegetables (carrot, courgette, green beans)
2-3 tbsp pureed chicken
grated cheese (I used "jonge kaas" as it is less salty)

METHOD
1. To make the pureed vegetables, simply steam and puree the vegetables individually. Then freeze them separately. Defrost several cubes of vegetables (see below for suggested combinations) in the fridge the night before making the dish.
2. To make pureed chicken, steam little chicken cubes and puree them. They can be frozen and kept for 4-6 weeks.
3. Mix the macaroni, vegetables, and chicken together. Sprinkle the dish with grated cheese.

Veggie combinations:
My baby girl likes the below combinations with her macaroni.
broccoli + carrot + sweet potato
cauliflower + pumpkin + sweet potato
cauliflower + parsnip
cauliflower + carrot + courgette
butternut squash + courgette

20120909 Baby Congee

Congee (also called "jook") is a common first baby food in Chinese culture. I often make congee myself whenever I feel a bit under the weather. As Olivia is now 7 months old, I made her a thick congee with chicken and some vegetables. As the rice and vegetables are so soft, I can just puree the chicken and serve the congee to Olivia. As I made a huge pot of congee, I ate some for lunch and dinner myself. To add more flavors, I drizzle the congee with some soy sauce and sesame oil, yum!
(By the way, I haven't taken any pictures of the congee as baby food at this stage just looks like mush anyways.)

INGREDIENTS
1 cup short grain rice
4 cups water
4 cups home made vegetable stock*
1/2 cup diced carrots
1/3 cup diced courgette
1/3 cup tiny cauliflower florets
150g diced chicken filet

METHOD
1. In a large pot, bring the water, vegetable stock, and rice to the boil. Lower the heat, cover the pot (leaving the lid cracked), and cook for about half an hour.
2. Add the carrot, courgette, cauliflower, and chicken. Bring to the boil, then simmer over medium low heat for another 30-45 minutes. Stir occasionally.
Cook the congee for longer or add some boiling water in order to get the right consistency.
3. Remove congee from heat. Scoop out the chicken to puree them. Return the chicken to the pot and mix well. Cool the congee with the lid on.

*To make baby-friendly vegetable stock, bring to the boil 4L of water and 200g of mixed vegetables (onion, carrot, celery stick, prei). Simmer over medium low heat for about 2 hours, or until the content is halved.