sprinklefingers

cooking has changed dramatically for me since the birth of my kid. when he finally reached the age where he could start eating some real foods, i went crazy-over-the-top-nutso for making my own baby food. never, not once did he eat baby food from a jar. which isn’t because i didn’t try to feed it to him - it’s because everytime a spoonful of jarred baby food was brought to his lips, he refused to eat it. but my crazy baby food concoctions? he’d eat them every time.

and, even though he’s turning three next month, he still eats them. only now they are stirred into yogurt or blended into smoothies. i’m not really one for tricking kids into eating foods, but if he’s going to eat yogurt, might as well pack it as full of vitamins & minerals as i can, right?

speaking of tricking kids into eating their veggies, i’m sure it’s not news to you that there are entire books dedicated to the craft. hiding food in kid’s food has become a favorite pastime for some - it’s almost like the gauntlet has been thrown down and now moms are overflowing with pride to say that, “tate ate beets last night!” “oh, really? how’d you prepare them?” “oh, it was so easy! i found recipe that has you bake them into chocolate cake!”

see where i’m headed with this? yes, i have been known to puree some spinach, mix it with applesauce and then stir it into yogurt. and yes, i have been known to add less-than-desirable veggies to smoothies. but in addition to this, i also make sure to put one to two ‘experimental’ fruits or veggies on the kid’s plate every single night. i kind of draw the line at making brownies and cakes and ‘fried’ chicken fingers and mac & cheese that have added veggies that my kid should be learning to eat anyways. i don’t understand how this translates into good eating later in life - if you’ve only ever gotten your veggies from ‘kid food’ and have never seen a carrot or red pepper or snap pea sitting on your plate in unadulterated form, what’s going to make you start eating them later on? magic?

our pediatrician suggests we offer new veggies to our kid 10-15 times before we should expect him to eat it. and that’s what we do. it’s hard for me to waste food, but i know these things take time. plus, i somehow became more patient than ever after having a kid, so i’m not particularly bothered by the wait.

all that said, here are my top three favorite purees.
perfect for your lil’ babe who’s past his first foods.
perfect for your toddler if you’d like to mix them into a little unsweetened yogurt or a smoothie.

but i draw the line at mixing them into cake batter.

spinach

you need:

• large lidded pot with 1”-2” water in bottom
• steamer basket
• desired amount of spinach (or any greens - kale, collards, etc.)
• bit of apple or pear

1. place steamer basket inside pot of water and bring to a boil. add spinach and cover. let steam for 6+ minutes. remove steamer basket from pot and scrape spinach into your food processor.
2. in the same steamer basket, add one or two chunky slices of peeled apple or pear. steam until a toothpick slides easily into fruit. add slices to food processor with spinach.
3. select a spice to add - all you need is a dash - but it’s a good way to get some different flavors into food to expand the little one’s palate. i like cinnamon.
4. add your desired spice and a touch of water and puree. if it’s too thick, add a tiny bit more water (you could also use juice here. as long as it’s 100% juice.)
5. store puree in fridge, or pour into ice cube trays and freeze. thawing cubes as you need them.

sweet potatoes

following the same method you used for spinach, sweet potato puree is a snap!

• peel & cut desired amount of sweet potatoes into chunks.
• place inside steamer basket and steam for 5-7 minutes, until potato is easily pierced with toothpick. remove from heat and tumble the potato chunks into your food processor.
• select a spice to add - you just need a dash. i like freshly grated nutmeg or a bit of ginger powder.
• puree potatoes, adding a bit of water or 100% juice to reach desired consistency.
• the potato puree can also be stored in your fridge for a few days or frozen in ice cube trays.

white beans & parsnips

say what?
this is my favorite puree. i love white beans. and i also LOVE parsnips. together, they are quite delicious. honestly.

• prepare a pot of water & steamer basket like in the previous purees.
• if using dried beans, you’ll need to soak & cook them ahead. canned beans need to be rinsed repeatedly in a colander, and i suggest buying NO SALT beans.
• using 3-4 parsnips, peel them and cut off either end. then cut parsnip in half to make each end shorter. parsnips have a very fibrous core, and you’ll want to cut away as much of the flesh surrounding the core as possible for use in the puree. to clarify: you don’t want the core, you want the stuff surrounding the core. although, since you’re steaming and then food processing the parsnips, you could just skip this core-removal step altogether and just steam for an extra minute or two.
• steam for 8-10 minutes (or a 1-2 more if you didn’t remove the core,) until a toothpick pierces parsnip easily. place your parsnip pieces into food processor and add desired amount of beans. i like a ratio of half beans to half parsnips, but you can decide what you think tastes best.
• add a touch of spice - chinese five spice or cinnamon - either would be perfect.
• puree with a touch of water or 100% juice. store in the fridge or freeze in ice cube trays.

i like this puree with a bit of brown rice or even stirred into oatmeal. i realize that sounds gross, but it’s really not. okay, maybe it is. sheesh.

can you tell that i’m obsessed with figuring out what to feed my kid? i want to raise a good eater. it’s just so hard sometimes! damn it!