I didn’t really go down the pureed food route with the monkey, instead opting for the “Baby Led Weaning” approach where you give the baby chunks of food for them to chew (or gum) their way through. However I have recently found some new uses for veggie purees that I thought I’d share.
The Monkey is a big fan of pasta (like her mother) but tomato based sauces give her a bit of a rash. While I love a creamy carbonara, obviously its not the healthiest option and I’m keen to include extra veg whenever possible so I’ve been exploring using veggie purees as sauces. The Monkey isn’t a huge fan of broccoli – she seems to think it is something to play with rather than eat. She wolfed down most of my portion of spaghetti pesto when we were down in Melbourne which gave me a brainwave for a quick dinner idea. I steamed two heads of broccoli, pureed them with my stick blender and stirred in a shop-bought tub of pesto adding a drop of the pasta cooking water to get to the desired consistency then mixed with the cooked pasta and served with some extra parmesan. It was a success all round with Mr Jen enjoying it just as much as the Monkey who made liberal use of the latest word in her repertoire – “MORE!”.
The other success has been steamed pumpkin which I’ve just mashed and added parmesan and some pasta cooking water for another tasty sauce. Both of these sauces are made in about the same time as it takes to cook the pasta so are fantastic 15 minute dinners.
Mr Jen’s potato addiction has reared its head since the detox ended so I tried an alternative to mashed potato the other day – pureed cauliflower. It was a triumph! I couldn’t believe how well it turned out. I steamed a whole head of cauliflower and then pureed it with the stick blender and added a tiny bit of butter , a drop of milk and sea salt and pepper. It was absolutely delicious with a slight sweetness that was perfect with the grilled trout that I served it alongside. I used a fraction of the butter that I’d use in a potato mash and really didn’t miss it – that combined with the great nutritional value of cauliflower – this dish is a winner all round. Even Mr Jen agreed it was a worthy alternative to potato which I never thought he’d admit!
The Monkey is a big fan of pasta (like her mother) but tomato based sauces give her a bit of a rash. While I love a creamy carbonara, obviously its not the healthiest option and I’m keen to include extra veg whenever possible so I’ve been exploring using veggie purees as sauces. The Monkey isn’t a huge fan of broccoli – she seems to think it is something to play with rather than eat. She wolfed down most of my portion of spaghetti pesto when we were down in Melbourne which gave me a brainwave for a quick dinner idea. I steamed two heads of broccoli, pureed them with my stick blender and stirred in a shop-bought tub of pesto adding a drop of the pasta cooking water to get to the desired consistency then mixed with the cooked pasta and served with some extra parmesan. It was a success all round with Mr Jen enjoying it just as much as the Monkey who made liberal use of the latest word in her repertoire – “MORE!”.
The other success has been steamed pumpkin which I’ve just mashed and added parmesan and some pasta cooking water for another tasty sauce. Both of these sauces are made in about the same time as it takes to cook the pasta so are fantastic 15 minute dinners.
Mr Jen’s potato addiction has reared its head since the detox ended so I tried an alternative to mashed potato the other day – pureed cauliflower. It was a triumph! I couldn’t believe how well it turned out. I steamed a whole head of cauliflower and then pureed it with the stick blender and added a tiny bit of butter , a drop of milk and sea salt and pepper. It was absolutely delicious with a slight sweetness that was perfect with the grilled trout that I served it alongside. I used a fraction of the butter that I’d use in a potato mash and really didn’t miss it – that combined with the great nutritional value of cauliflower – this dish is a winner all round. Even Mr Jen agreed it was a worthy alternative to potato which I never thought he’d admit!
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