DIY Fruit and Veggie Pouches

These are so easy and so versatile. My littlest little will not eat baby food from a spoon. Who knows why he eats everything else from one! and my eldest little is of course in that picky toddler phase where all vegetables just about are the enemy. And baby cereal psh. He just says no to that too...So what's a mom to do!

I began buying pouches all the time and the baby food in my cupboard was just sitting there. I thought hmm I wonder if I could make these things myself. I did a Pinterest search for inspiration and realized BAM I definitely could! Next was Amazon to see if they sold reusable pouches that wouldn't require me to purchase any baby food making gadgets and BEHOLD These pouches appeared! I have been using them now for about 3 months and they are perfect. AND come with a 1 year warranty. The bottom opens up quite large which is perfect and the zipper seal is crazy strong so they do not come open. Score! Here is the link in case you wanted to check them out... http://a.co/bkjLw6w

Pictured above are Pea Spinach Carrot Pear Oatmeal pouches. I have made all the usual flavors you find in the store and even tweaked some and added things like chia, flax meal, and baby cereals. I found a ratio of 2 vegetable jars to about 5 fruits work best. Mr. Little will go 50/50 or straight veg but his sister will not and so a 2/5 ratio works best for her. It still tastes like the veg with the fruit but no too veggie. If you add any baby cereal or chia you will want to add some water or juice to thin it out a bit. I typically just use water. 

Basic Pouch Recipe Formula
makes about 8 pouches

2 4oz. jars of vegetable baby food
5-6 4oz. jars or fruit baby food
seasonings to taste like cinnamon (start with 1/4 tsp and adjust up)
1/4 cup rice or oatmeal baby cereal (optional)
water or juice to thin out to desired consistency (optional if adding chia, baby cereal or flax)

Pour all the pureed baby food and baby cereal if adding into a pour-able bowl whisk it all together making sure everything is well blended. Add some water or juice to thin out the puree if you need to whisking well again to make sure your puree isn't thick like mashed potatoes and then fill the reusable pouches. 
Freeze the pouches until the day you are going to use them. They will keep 48hrs in the fridge. 
To thaw sometimes I simply place them in a bowl of warm water or take them with me to the park if I am heading out and let them thaw on their own if I do not need them right away. You can always pull them out the day before and thaw in the fridge too. They work great for a cold pack in a picnic lunch.

**Handy Tip**
I do not like to write on the pouches and I keep several flavors in my freezer so I take a gallon ziplock and write the flavor of each batch on it with the date I made them and when it's empty I simply cross out the previous flavor/date with my sharpie and put the new one. It keeps my freezer tidy this way. 

A few other flavor combos that my 2 littles enjoy are: (all are good with or without the cereal type add ins)

Banana pumpkin
Apple blackberry carrot 
Sweet potato and pear
Pea pear and spinach
Apple pumpkin cinnamon
Mixed vegetables with apples
Apple and butternut squash (with cinnamon and with out)
Parsnip and apple cherry banana
Pear mango and spinach
Apple and carrot (with and without cinnamon)
Pea spinach carrot pear
Pea spinach Apple
Apple carrot butternut squash
Apple Blueberry carrot
Apple Blueberry butternut squash
Apple Blueberry sweet potato 
Apple and Sweet Potato (with and without cinnamon)
Pear and butternut squash (with and without cinnamon)
Pear and sweet potato (with and without cinnamon) 
Apple cherry banana with chia

Next I am going to try to add grains like quinoa or barley but I think after the grain is cooked they may need to be pulsed in the food processor so they aren't so chunky. It's on my list of pouch add ins to try. 

Has anyone else tried a unique flavor combos? When Mr. Little is older I want to try making my own purees but for now the ease of using the pre-made packaged ones fits better with our busy life here. 

Toddlers French Toast

So finger foods are life right now with my 2 year old and 9 month old.  I found roofs recipe here is the link... https://www.myfussyeater.com/baby-french-toast-eggy-banana-bread/

And I've changed it several ways depending on the day the the basic recipe is...

1 ripe banana mashed
1 egg
Splash of milk
3 to 4 slices of bread

INSTRUCTIONS

-Mash the banana and add it to a bowl with the egg and milk. Mix well until all the ingredients are well combined.

-Cut the bread into fingers and dip each one into the mixture. Don’t let it soak in the mixture, just dip it very quickly so it coats each side.

-Cook on each side and serve immediately or store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 48 hours.

Sometimes I'll add some vanilla or cinnamon to spice things up. The whole

Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

Mops is soon upon us and so I have been racking my brain to come up with a tasty dish to bring for the brunch...Someone else is already bringing a breakfast casserole and another a dessert and I wasn't feeling particularly fruity but rather more like a pasta since we don't really eat pasta here often. Then it hit me... Chicken. Cheese. Tangy mustard and PASTA! 

So here it is....

1 small rotisserie chicken de-boned or about 5 cups or so chopped chicken
1/2 pound deli ham. you could use a thin sliced or just buy an hunk and chop it into small chunks
12 oz. bad of egg noodles cooked to the lowest amount of time the package says
2 heaping cups shredded swiss cheese

The sauce
4 TBS butter
4 TBS flour
4-5 cups of whole milk
3 TBS Fresh squeezed lemon juice
2-4 TBS Dijon mustard (I like mine rather tangy so I lean more towards the 4 TBS)
squirt of regular yellow mustard 
1/2 TSP Salt and Pepper
3/4-1 TSP Paprika

The Topping
1 1/2 cup panko
4 TBS butter
1/2 TSP seasoning salt
1 1/2 TSP crushed dried parsley

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 F. Butter a 9×13-inch baking dish. Set aside.

For the sauce:

Melt the butter in a large sauce pot over medium heat. When butter is melted, quickly stir in the flour to form a smooth roux. Do not brown! Once the roux is smooth and bubbly, slowly pour in the cold milk while stirring briskly to make a smooth sauce. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until the sauce thickens. Stir in the lemon juice, mustards, salt, smoked paprika and white pepper. Bring sauce just back to a low boil and turn off heat. 

Assembly

In your noodle pot after draining the noodles pour your mustard roux and give a good stir. Add your shredded cheese, diced chicken and ham. Stir to combine and make sure your sauce is not to thick as the cheese will thicken it a bit. If you need to add a splash or 2 of more milk. Taste for seasonings to see if you need more mustard or lemon salt/pepper or paprika. 

Pour the casserole filling into your 9x13 dish

For the topping:

Melt the butter in the microwave in a medium sized microwaveable bowl. Heat it for 30 seconds at a time and stop once it’s melted. Take the bowl out of the microwave and stir in the panko bread crumbs, crushed dried parsley. Sprinkle over the top of the casserole.

Bake casserole uncovered for 45 minutes until hot and bubbly throughout and topping has turned a light golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 5-10 minutes prior to serving.

Moroccan Tea

How to make the perfect pot of Moroccan tea...Trust me I married one

Of course boil up your water.  Then in your tea pot place 1 to 2 handfuls of gun powder green tea.  Pour some boiling water into the pot swish about a few seconds and pour off down the sink.  Then pour more boiling water into the pot about one Moroccan tea cup size and let sit a few seconds. Pour into one of your tea glasses and reserve. Then again (Yes I know) pour more boiling water into the pot. Swish about and pour out again. Finally place a generous amount of mint and sugar (and if you have it a small amount of sheba) into the pot fill with boiling water again and let sit a minute.

Here you can simply stir and pour or be fancy and pour several cups in and out to mix everything up.  And then enjoy!

Handy tip: if you're like my hubby and I we stretch the pot a little farther by refilling with boiling water after we pour out the first 2 glasses just to get a bit more cups. Be sure to stir again though. 

*** My favorite treat from Morocco he brought me home from his last trip I didn't get to too was my chabekya...I do love my tea with shortbread cookies or almond biscotti as well...

sweet potatoe cheddar croquette

Lentils, uncooked 1/2 cup
Sweet potato, raw 10.5 oz
carrot, grated 2.5 oz (optional)
cheddar, grated 3.5 oz
1/2 cup shredded parmesan
1 large egg
frozen peas 1/4 cup (optional)
1/2 tsp paprika
olive or avocado oil
Low sodium chicken or vegetable broth 1 cup

Add the lentils to a saucepan, cover with the broth, bring to a boil and simmer till all liquid is almost absorbed, turn off heat, cover with a lid and leave for 10 mins. you want them mushy so they blend easier

Pierce sweet potato with a fork and microwave for approx 6 mins, until soft to touch (if you don't have a microwave you can steam)

Remove skin from sweet potato and mash until smooth.

Or they are equally good left raw and shredded like the carrot

Preheat oven to 200c or 400f

Add lentils to a bowl, along with sweet potato, cheddar, carrot, paprika and combine

Add the egg and mix till combined

Stir in the peas

Form into croquettes or patties (approx 15) and place on a baking tray lined with parchment paper

Spray or brush over the top with olive or avocado oil

Bake in the oven for approx 30 mins, until firm and lightly golden.

Note the raw sweet potatoe makes them not hold their shape as much add is you'd done it the mashed way. My kiddo prefers the texture of the raw though.

Enchaladas

enchaladas

3 cups beef, shredded
1 small onion, diced
3 tablespoons canola oil
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 cups water
4 ounces tomato paste
1⁄2 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1⁄8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1⁄4 teaspoon sugar
1 dozen corn tortilla
4 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
1 (4 ounce) can black olives, sliced, drained
sour cream, for topping (optional)

Directions

In a medium size mixing bowl, add shredded beef and diced onions, mix well and set aside.
In a medium size sauce pan, add the oil, flour, and chili powder. Turn to medium heat and whisk the ingredients together. Continue to whisk as the mixture begins to boil for one minute, then whisk in the water, tomato paste, cumin, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper until smooth. Allow the sauce to come up to a simmer. Once it reaches a simmering boil it will begin to thicken slightly after about 20 to 30 minutes. Add salt to taste and 1/4 teaspoon sugar, mix to combine and then add about 1/4 cup of sauce to the shredded beef mixture and stir to combine. Set aside remaining sauce for enchiladas.

Warm tortillas so they're soft for rolling.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease or spray with a nonstick cooking spray a 9x13 baking dish. Set aside. Lay (one at a time) tortilla on a flat surface, add about 2 tablespoons shredded beef mixture to the middle of the fried tortilla and top with about 1 teaspoon shredded cheese. Roll the tortilla tightly and place in the baking dish (seam side down). Repeat until all 12 tortillas are filled. (For best results, line the enchiladas into two rows of 6).Pour the enchilada sauce evenly over the top of the filled tortillas, and then add remaining shredded cheese evenly to the top of the sauce and top with the sliced olives.Cover baking dish with foil and bake in preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until bubbly and hot. Serve with sour cream, optional.
Makes: 6 servings.

Oatmeal fingers

Oatmeal fingers

Ingredients

10 heaped tbsp porridge oats or 2 packets of instant oatmeal (or a mix or oats, millet flakes or barley flakes to provide a mix of grains to your baby’s diet)

10 tbsp full fat cow’s milk (or any milk really.)

1 to 2 tsp ground cinnamon

½ mashed banana (optional)

Strawberry jam (optional)

Method

Pour the oats into a small, flat bottomed microwave proof dish and pour over the milk. Add the cinnamon and mix together. Press the oat mix down into the dish with the back of the spoon and cook in the microwave for 2 minutes on high.

Cut into fingers and serve once cool.

If you don’t want to use the microwave, these work just as well in the oven. Heat the oven to 375F and cook for 15 to 30 minutes.

Notes

Storage: Lasts 3 to 4 days in an air tight container in the fridge