Baby Food Blunders

I have decided to make some more posts about the baby food that I am making for Finn because I am learning quite a bit along the way.  I have been reading a lot about this again (refreshing my memory, really) and I am starting to get in the groove.  I am also on this new kick to try to cook more 'seasonally' since I live in a climate where there are four full seasons and the farmers market actually does change seasonally.  I think that having this mindset when making menus and planning our meals will allow is to eat the freshest produce available and eat locally as much as possible (with one BIG exception--avocados.  They are a main staple in our house year round).

My main source of recipes right now are from a fantastic book, Super Baby Food by Ruth Yaron. My sister gave me this book a couple of years ago and it is such an awesome resource! The book is organized very well to use as a reference on how to cook vegetables and fruit you may have never prepared, as well as the nutrient content of EVERYTHING and some great recipes for toddler food as well.  I don't completely follow her system yet (she prepares a lot of food in advance and freezes it, and I just don't do it that way) but I may try while I'm in Florida visiting my family.

This week I am inspired to introduce parsnips into all of our diets (probably do pureed for Finn, mix with some sweet potato puree) and try some pureed noodle recipes.  I always have leftover noodles because that it all Maeve will eat lately.  She is becoming a very picky two year old.... I'll let you know how it goes!

Monday's Menu--Sunday Edition

I know I skipped trying a new recipe last week, so I have to double up this week.  We had a crazy busy week last week and we didn't have dinner at home as a family AT ALL.  I don't like that!  Anyway, my goal is to try a new recipe every week, so I figure I can average out over the course of the year, right?

We have been watching a lot of the Food Network and HGTV since downgrading our cable (more on that another time), and I saw this recipe from Sandra Lee.  She's not my favorite cook, but this just looked delicious and was actually more homemade than my normal pot roast because I typically use a seasoning packet for the slow cooker.  I like how she cooks the majority of the vegetables separately because I have a small crock pot, so this allowed me to actually get a larger chuck of meat (3 lbs).  I am also excited to cook with some winter root vegetables--yay for seasonal cooking!

Here's what I am making today:

Pot Roast with Roasted Root Vegetables: Recipe courtesy Sandra Lee

Prep Time:10 min Cook Time: 8 hr 0 min

Level: Easy

Serves: 4 servings

Ingredients

Pot Roast:

• 1 1/2 pounds beef bottom round roast
• 2 teaspoons salt, plus more for seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more for seasoning
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 2 carrots, cut into 2-inch pieces
• 2 stalks celery
• 1 medium yellow onion
• 1 (15-ounce) can beef broth
• 1 cup water
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme

Roasted Root Vegetables:

• 2 carrots, cut into 3-inch pieces
• 2 russet potatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 1/2 pound turnips, cut into wedges
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 1 teaspoon each fresh rosemary and fresh thyme leaves
• 1 red onion, sliced

Directions

For Pot Roast:

Season the beef with salt and pepper and lightly coat with flour. Heat the canola oil in a large skillet on medium-high heat and brown the meat on all sides. Remove to a platter and set aside. Arrange the carrots, celery and onion in bottom of slow cooker and top with the seared beef. Add the broth, water, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, and thyme, and set the cooker on low for 8 hours. When finished, remove the meat to a serving platter. Let the vegetables and broth cool for about 5 minutes, then add to a blender. Slowly blend until smooth and transfer to a serving bowl. Serve the gravy with the pot roast and roasted root vegetables.

For Roasted Root Vegetables:

One hour before the pot roast is done cooking, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Add all the vegetables to a large bowl and add the canola oil, rosemary, thyme, and onion. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and arrange on a sheet tray. Roast for 30 minutes, then toss and roast another 30 minutes. Arrange on a serving platter and serve.

Use the leftovers to make Roasted Root Vegetable Pasta Salad or Southwestern Beef and Black Bean Chili.

Friday's Five

This list is about my baby boy, who is growing up way to quickly. Sometimes I looks at him and I can picture a little toe-head boy running down the beach.  I've actually had that vision in my head since I was pregnant with Maeve, which is why I thought she was going to be a boy, but that's another story!

Five things I love about Finn:
1. The Finn Grin: His completely irresistible smile.  Seriously infectious.
2. His laid back attitude: If he is fed and has a clean diaper, you will not see a happier baby on this planet.
3. His Chunky/Chubby little thighs: enough said. I just want to eat them up!
4. He lights up when he sees the people/animals that he loves.  At only 6 months, he completely recognizes Mommy, Daddy, Maeve and Guinness.  He also goes crazy when he sees one of us, and it is so heartwarming!
5. Those Baby Blues:  His eyes are a really clear, beautiful blue (right now...we'll see if they change) and he really smiles with his eyes. I hope he grows up to be as kind as his eyes say he is...

Wordless Wednesday

Back to Basics...Making baby food once again

Taking care of an infant the second time around is totally different than the first.  I am much more relaxed, I hardly read any books and I have learned to trust my instincts and go with the flow.  However, there are a lot of times where I look at Finn and the new milestone he is crossing, and I immediately remember where I was with Maeve at that same moment.  I was so focused on her and only her for that first year that there wasn't room for much else in my life.  Now that I have them both I feel like I am bursting at the seams with joy, frustration, sadness, and love all at the same time. 

One thing that I have been particularly dreading the second time around is baby food. I know I should be excited about. I mean, I am a registered dietitian, specializing in pediatrics.  Food was my profession for over five years.  Not just food, but KID FOOD. Yet, I hate it.  I hate the tedium involved, the preparation and organization that is required.  Yet, I know enough that I am avoiding jarred/boxed foods as much as possible if for no other reason than I did it with Maeve, and Finn deserves it at well.

So, I have tried making foods in batches, I've tried individual servings, I have tried high quality forzen stuff. I have tried it all. Now I am getting ready to try it all again, seeing how it fits into my much busier life.  And while I may complain about it, making food for Finn does make me feel like a good mom.  He doesn't get all of my attention like his sister did at his age, and he never will.  I will probably feel bad about that for the rest of my life.  But, I can do little things to make up for it along the way.

So, today he will be getting a gourmet dinner of pureed chicken and sweet potatoes.  I'll let you know how he does!

January 2010

Click here to view these pictures larger

Wordless Wednesday: Polaroid

Monday's Menu-- Results Edition

Two weeks into my new blog and I have fallen behind...what can I say?  This past Monday was a holiday (Martin Luther King, Jr's birthday) so we had a three day weekend and I've been off kilter the rest of the week!

Regardless, I did end up making last week's menu this weekend, with a few variations, of course.  I ended up using chicken from a rotisserie chicken ($4.99 at Costco...you can't beat that!) and some frozen vegetables and I put it all in the crockpot, rather than using the stove top.  At the last minute I decided to throw some egg noddles in because I had an open bag in the pantry. 

Here's what I started with:

I ended up leaving out the canned tomatoes, because I ran out of  room in the crockpot.  I also added 2 cups of water in addition to the chicken broth.  As the soup cooked, I began to think that adding the noodles was a complete mistake.  They completely dissolved into mush and tasted pretty gross.  I let the soup continue to cook, though and was prepared to make something else for dinner.   However, the noodley-mush ended up making the soup really thick and we all found it to be quite delicious.  While I was envisioning a classic chicken noodle, vegetable soup this one turned out A-ok. 

Friday's Five

Five blogs that I read everyday (via google reader)

1. DadCentric:This is a blog written by several Dads and they have a hilarious viewpoint of family life.
2. STL hops: St. Louis Beer!
3. tuned in: This is a blog written by the TV critic for Time magazine.  You should read his view point of the who Jay Leno/Conan O'Brian debacle.  It's pretty interesting. 
4. the inspired room: This is a great blog full of decorating ideas for your house
5. the hostess with the mostess: This is another great blog about entertaining and decorating your house for parties.  

Wordless Wednesday

Monday's Menu: Big Batch Vegetable Soup

Recommended by my sister. Can't wait to try it!
http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/big-batch-vegetable-soup?backto=true

This basic soup can be made with any combination of fresh or frozen vegetables, so it will taste a little different each time. The recipe can easily be doubled or even tripled.

Prep: 15 minutes
Total: 1 hour 15 minutes

Ingredients

Serves 8

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cups chopped onions or thinly sliced leeks (whites only)
• 1 cup thinly sliced celery
• 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 3 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) reduced-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
• 1 can (28 ounces) diced tomatoes, with juice
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 8 cups mixed fresh or frozen vegetables, such as carrots, corn, green beans, lima beans, peas, potatoes, and zucchini (cut larger vegetables into smaller pieces)

Directions

1. Heat oil in a large stockpot over medium heat. Add onions or leeks, celery, and Italian seasoning; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until onions are translucent, 5 to 8 minutes.
2. Add broth, tomatoes and their juice, tomato paste, and 3 cups water to pot; bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, and cook, uncovered, 20 minutes.
3. Add vegetables to pot, and return to a simmer. Cook, uncovered, until vegetables are tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, as desired. Let cool before storing.

Friday's Five

I read a couple of other blogs that have inspired me to write more regularly as a creative outlet (Simply Modern Moms, The Inspired Room) and at SMM, Tiffany does a list on Friday's called Friday's 5 @ 5. So, this is my take on that.

Given that we have 5 inches of snow on the ground and that the low today was 5 degrees, I thought it only appropriate that my introductory Friday's Five is:

Five Things I Hate About Winter:
1. Cold toilet seats
2. Itchy Dry Skin
3. I can't use my iphone while wearing gloves
4. Gray Gray Gray Everywhere
5. Static Electricity--I get shocked all the time!

Wordless Wednesday

Monday's Menu-- Results Edition

This salmon recipe was a huge success, but I definitely had some changes that I made along the way. First of all, don't make it if you are counting your calories! This salmon is bakes with a 'crust' made from butter and bread crumbs--not diet friendly, but it was certainly delicious.

I used three small fillets of salmon, rather than the whole fish as the recipe suggests. I ended up halving all the ingredients, except the old bay spice, and I still ended up with a tub of the butter mixture that I am saving for the next time I use this recipe. If I were doing it again, I might actually do 1/4 of the original recipe. Here is what I did based on the contents that I actually had in my fridge:

2 sticks of butter, whipped until fluffy

Added 2 T. garlic paste (equivalent of 6-7 cloves according to the jar), 2 T. spicy brown mustard (that was all that I had), 1 tsp. dried thyme, 1 T. lime juice, 1 tbsp., 2 T. Old Bay, dashes of salt/pepper to taste (I used unsalted butter, so added more salt that I normally do)
Stir in the mixer
Add in 1 1/2 c. panko bread crumbs and stir.

Smear the butter/panko mixture onto the fish fillets in a really thick layer. Think 'crust'.

Bake at 425 for 10 minutes.

I served this with corn and sweet potato puree (again, this is what I had in the fridge...) but it probably would have been better served over risotto or wild rice, and with some crunchy green beans.

This is definitely a re-do recipe, and I actually wish I had made more last night because I could have eaten a second helping. To quote Zar (with a mouthful of food) "I think this is the best cooking you've ever done". Success.

Of course, the evening ended with a Dance Party. Tonight's music was provided by KDHX Community Radio. Monday night's show is called Soul Selector with Papa Ray.

Monday's Menu

In one attempt at taking better care of myself and family, I plan to try a new recipe out each week and post the results.  I normally hate trying new recipes because I have a two year old who is becoming quite a picky eater, and a husband who is not always home for dinner, so cooking for just myself can be a frustrating experience.  However, I really want to learn to cook new things and I know that the more foods you introduce to kids, the more likely they are to expand their pallet.

So, this week and I am going to try:

Odyssey's Mustard Crusted Side of Salmon

Prep Time:25 min

Cook Time:10 min

Level: Intermediate

Serves: 6 to 8 servings

Ingredients

Baked Salmon:

• 1 pound butter
• 1/4 cup minced garlic
• 1 cup whole grain mustard
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh thyme
• 2 lemons, juiced
• 2 tablespoons Old Bay seasoning
• 2 tablespoons salt
• 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
• 3 cups panko bread crumbs (Japanese bread crumbs) Do not substitute regular bread crumbs
• 1 (3 to 4 pound) side of salmon, skin on, pin bones removed

Directions

Whip butter with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add the garlic, mustard, thyme, lemon juice, Old Bay, salt, pepper, and panko, and mix well. Line a small sheet pan with parchment paper or waxed paper and lay salmon, skin side down, on pan. Blot salmon with paper towels to remove any moisture. "Crust" the salmon while the butter is still soft, allowing a 1/4-inch crust. At this point, the salmon may be refrigerated (cover with plastic wrap after butter has hardened).

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Bake for approximately 10 minutes for a still slightly pink fish. Use 2 long flat spatulas, coming in from either end, to lift the salmon off the paper and transfer to a serving platter.

Chefs Note: Use your imagination, substitute dill for the thyme, horseradish for the mustard, substitute crushed potato chips for the Panko (try different flavors of chips or use pretzels or tortilla chips). This dish can also be prepared for individual portions.

Happy January!

Any Reason To Shop - January Calendar

National Clean Up Your Computer Month

1/1 Happy New Year!
1/6 Epiphany/Twelfth Night
1/8 Bubble Bath Day,  David Bowie's Birthday, Uncle Orion's Birthday!
1/11 National Clean Off Your Desk Day (followed quickly by Where Did All My Bills Go? Day)
1/18 Martin Luther King Jr. Day
1/25 No Name Calling Week
1/29 Freethinkers Day

Christmas Pics

We stayed in St. Louis and had a very different Christmas than our normal tradition this year. It was good in some ways, and bad in others. Overall, we enjoyed ourselves but really missed our families. Zar and I thought we would really enjoy having Christmas morning with just our 'nuclear family' where we could wake up in our beds and have a stress free day doing whatever we wanted. Little did we know that it didn't work out like that at all. Christmas Eve was down right depressing and lonely although we were together. I tried to make a nice Christmas Eve dinner, when Zar asked me "What's the point?" to which I responded "I guess there isn't one", and we ended up eating leftovers from the fridge.

It wasn't until we put the kids to bed and started preparing for Santa when we began to feel the Christmas spirit. Things were looking up for us, the tree was beautiful, we were sipping egg nog and watching Christmas movies. Christmas morning was fantastic, and we ate dinner with some wonderful friends who welcomed us with open arms into their families for the day. The day was full of cheer and fun and family...which made me miss our extended family all the more. While it was nice not to travel during the holiday season, I don't think I handle another Christmas away again...

Here are some pics of how celebrated, though.


We took a family walk in the snow in our new wagon. Thanks Aunt Lisa and Uncle O!

Playing in the new wagon. Finn looks like a giant baby here.

Finn in his gifts from DiDi and Papa. My mom made this bib (and several other items for the kids)!

Guinn was keeping cool on the tile by the fireplace.

Maeve got a bunch of princess gowns from Santa and immediately wanted Finn to be her prince.

Probably her favorite gift...a DJ Lance Rock costume!

New Year's Resolution

I don't usually make resolutions...mostly because I know that I won't follow thorough with them and it just seems forced. However, I am making a resolution this year, and that it to grow as a person and be the best that I can be. No, I'm not joining the military, I just don't want to be stagnant any longer. So I am taking some small steps to improve my daily life and hopeful that it will reap large rewards.

My resolutions:
1. Do something creative weekly. I really need to tap into that part of myself before it slowly withers and dies. I have decided that the easiest way to make this happen is via my blog (yay for my two readers!). I am also thinking about taking music lessons at the St. Louis School of Folk music. Maybe banjo? mandolin? Any suggestions?

2. Take better care of myself. I am not doing a crazy new resolution where I will be going to the gym, or running on the treadmill. Anyone who knows me understands that it just won't happen in 5 degree weather. What I mean is eating better, getting regular haircuts, maybe a facial here and there and setting some time aside for myself away from the TV and computer.

There. It's in print, so let's make it happen! I can't say that 2009 was a terrible year, because it did bring me one of the greatest joys of my life (Finn), but man am I ready for a fresh start.