Just EAT It!

I'm sure you guys remember how delighted - and, I'll admit it, slightly smug - I was when my baby girl started eating food? She ate everything I gave her (aside from peas and peaches) and asked for more. It was so exciting! It was so much fun! I made purees and brown rice cereal until my freezer was full.

Well, now she's two, and she wants to be in charge of stuff. One of the few things that she can actually control is what goes in to her mouth... so she does. Because of the variety in what she will actually eat, our pediatrician agrees that this is a control issue and not just picky eating. Unfortunately, control issues can take longer to grow out of :-/

It's hard, ya'll. I love food. I love to cook. I firmly believe in not making a separate meal for children. This means that as a family, we've been eating a lot of boring stuff lately because Lily Ruth's sticking points are spice and stuff that's mixed. I occasionally lose my mind and make something spicy or a soup or spaghetti sauce and give my daughter leftovers from a previous night, but it's getting old.

My redemption may be here. Right as I began to really worry about her food intake, I had several different people mention Deceptively Delicious to me. Around the third time someone referenced it, I finally listened (obviously the Universe is feeling pushy) and grabbed a copy.

Of course, I've had it for two weeks, and just got around to making my first batch or purees... The concept is simple, and sounds foolproof - you add vegetable (and sometimes fruit) purees to almost everything you cook. You also continue to offer veggie and fruits in their un-pureed forms with every meal, but if it takes your kiddo a while to incorporate them into their list of acceptable foods, they'll still be getting all of the benefits on the sly.

Today, I steamed and pureed carrot, butternut squash, calabacita squash (a Mexican name for summer squash - mine was green and white) and cauliflower. I also have broccoli, but I got tired of the process, so I'll do it later... maybe...

Here's what I ended up with:

from left to right:

1 Lb carrots = 1 1/2 cups puree

1 head cauliflower = 3 cups puree

a 3 Lb butternut squash = 3 1/2 cups puree

1 1/2 Lbs calabacitas = 3 cups puree

The only thing that I'm not fond of is the waste involved in using the baggies. By the time I was done with the butternut squash, I felt very guilty. Luckily for my conscience, I had a few containers left from Lily's baby days that hold exactly 1/2 cup (the portion size suggested by the cookbook). 

I'm going to make her Rice Balls recipe tonight. It uses brown rice, chicken, purees and spices made into balls and baked... mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...  I'll let you know how it goes!

** Update: The Rice Balls were very good! I ended up punting on the final prep because I left half of the recipe at home... typical :-P... The adults loved them. The kids were suspicious, but seemed to like them. Definitely one to try again!