When I first moved to Los Angeles, several of my friends were regulars at Chin 
Chin restaurant, which is famous for its chinese chicken salad. One bite of this 
crisp, crunchy, fresh salad and you’ll immediately understand why it’s so darn popular.
I’m 
always trying to think of recipes that our entire family can eat together (this is yet another one of my tips for getting your little ones to eat since they love to have what mommy and daddy are having) and 
this one is a winner in my house. This is one of those dishes that Kenya better 
eat quick or Mommy and Daddy are definitely going to get to it first.
Steaming the chicken breast is the most complicated part — this recipe couldn’t be easier. You just 
toss all the ingredients in a food processor and whiz it up. The salad 
is packed with vitamin packed veggies and the dressing is almost creamy. 
You would never imagine a toddler eating “salad,” but trust me, 
this will change their minds.

Chin-wee-se Chicken Salad (Makes 8-10 Toddler Servings)

1 Chicken Breast
1 Large Carrot, peeled and cut into chunks (or 1 cup shredded carrots)
1 Cup Napa Cabbage (about 6 leaves)
1/2 Cup Red Bell Pepper
2 Tbsp Cilantro
2 Tsp Toasted Sesame Seeds

1. Place the chicken breast in a steamer pot over boiling water. Cook for 8 minutes or until cooked through.
2. Cool and cut into chunks.
3. Place all the ingredients in a food processor and pulse until all the in the ingredients are in small bite size pieces and combined.
4. The chin-wee-se chicken salad in a bowl and combine with the dressing to taste.
5. Serve.

Dressing (makes 1/4 cup)

1/2 Tsp Sesame Oil
1 Tbsp Braggs (tamari or soy sauce)
1/2 Tsp Ginger, chopped
1 Tbsp Rice Vinegar
1 Tbsp Almond Butter
1 Tbsp Vegannaise (or mayonnaise)
2 Tbsp Oil

1 Place all the ingredients in a food processor and puree.

One of Kenya’s favorite treats is almond butter. On the rare occasion he’s not in the mood to eat anything, but I want to make sure he’s gotten enough protein for the day, I find almond butter to be the perfect snack. However, when you’re on the run, carrying a jar around with you isn’t the most convenient way to go.
I find “squeezy” packs to be a life savor. These individual packs have around 1 tablespoon of almond butter in them. You can just squeeze it on to a cracker, apple, banana or, as Kenya seems to love best, right into his mouth.
We’re huge fans of Barney Butter but, recently, several of my friends turned me onto Justin’s which has interesting flavors like “honey almond butter” or “honey peanut butter”, “cinnamon peanut butter” and “maple almond butter”. Can you say delicious and nutritious!

I have been on a huge almond butter kick ever since I tried Barney Butter, which I think is the best of all the brands that I’ve tried. Still, my husband has always loved almond butter and he thinks he knows what tastes best, so just to make sure, I did a blind taste test with seven people of different ages (Kenya included!) to see what they thought. It was so much fun! I hid the three different nut butters we were testing (raw almond butter from Trader Joes and Mara Natha no-stir almond butter were the other brands) and let each person try a spoon full of each brand and let them decide which they liked the best. Incredibly, it was unanimous, Barney Butter won each time — even with my husband!
Besides the fact that this almond butter is smooth (not the kind where the oil and nut butter separate and you have to stir for ages to get it to a normal consistency). Even better, it’s produced by a California mother of four, has less saturated fat then peanut butter and its high in magnesium and vitamin E which amongst other things helps to protect skin, circulation, brain and hormones against pollution.
These pops are a perfect energy treat for your little one because they have a fruit and protein. Try pulling them out at a kids summer party and I guarantee you’ll hear oohs and ahhhs from the crowd.

Banana, Almond Butter Pops (Makes 8 Pops, depending on the size of your molds)

3 Bananas
1/4 Cup Almond Butter
1/3 Cup Rice or Almond Milk (Plain or Vanilla)

1. Place the ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth.
2. Pour several tablespoons of mixture into popsicle molds (follow manufacturer’s directions for your mold).
3. Freeze overnight (or a minimum of 4-5 hours).
4. Serve.

I literally have hundreds of cookbooks I started collecting when I was a 
little girl and continue to this day. I admit that after all these years, it’s gotten a little out of 
control, but I love the endless variety and different styles of books out there. There are also some genuinely odd and funny ones as well. The Elvis 
Presley cookbook “Are you Hungry Tonight” is great. Just looking at the table 
of contents makes your arteries feel like they are clogging, but the one recipe Elvis is best 
know for is the “fried peanut butter and banana sandwich”. I’m not 
saying that it doesn’t sound incredibly delicious, but it’s not 
exactly one of the first dishes I would want to turn my son on to given the “fried” approach. So, always in service of trying healthy approaches to not-so-healthy classics, I think I came up with a good one: Mini Elvis Paninis.
I recently had over a group of 
little ones ranging from 15 months to 4 years old and they devoured 
these sandwiches faster then I could make them. Since I still haven’t 
given Kenya peanut butter (our Doctor recommended we wait until he’s over the age of 2 in case of allergies), I made his with almond butter (feel 
free to replace it with peanut, soy or cashew butter if that’s what your 
little one prefers). Almond butter is an ideal first nut for babies to 
try since it has a low allergic potential and almonds are packed with 
calcium, vitamins B and E. 
By using the panini press, the heat melted the banana and almond 
butter together while pressing the sandwich together for smaller 
mouths to get bigger bites. And….same great taste, no frying. These mini sandwiches are delicious and 
will give your little one tons of energy for playing.

Elvis Panini (make 4 mini sandwiches)

2 Piece Whole Wheat of Ezekiel Bread, 7 grain or cinnamon raisin
1 Tbsp Almond Butter
1/3 Banana, cut into several slices cut lengthwise

1. Spread almond butter on one side of one the bread and cover with 3 slices on banana.
2. Place in a panini press on medium/high heat (level 5)
3. Cook for 3-4 minutes or until sandwich is pressed and golden.
4. Cool throughly.
5. Cut into 4 squares and serve.

Oats are among the most nutritious grains you can give your baby. They have a higher level of protein (15-20 %) higher than other grains and contain good levels of polyunsaturated fats. These fats include linoleic acid which is part of the omega-6 fatty acid family which helps support a strong immune system and healthy blood. They’re also rich in vitamin E and zinc, which protect free radical damage, maintain the body’s thymus gland and aid in fatty acid metabolism. Oats are also easy to digest which makes them important for babies immature tummy’s.
More importantly, though, they’re delicious and so many things can be added to them. Now that Kenya is over a year, I’ve come up with different morning recipes, but this one stands out because he loves it. It’s easy to prepare, refrigerate and just add a touch of milk to make it creamy and serve.

*There are several types of oats you can use. Just follow the package directions depending on which you choose. Adding a few extra minutes to the cooking time will make the oats softer.

Oatmeal, Almond and Banana Puree (4-5 breakfast servings)

1/2 Cup Oats (I use 5 minute Rolled Oats)
1 Cup Whole Milk (you could also use water)
1 Tbsp Almond Butter
1/2 Banana

1. Bring oats and milk to a boil and simmer (the package says to cook them for 5 minutes, but I find that for babies you should add a few extra minutes to make them softer).
2. Place all the ingredients in a food processor and puree.
3. Serve.

Breakfast was always my favorite meal growing up. My Mother would make us homemade pancakes, muffins, eggs and more. It was always a surprise to see what would be waiting at the table before we started our long day of play and school.
Since Kenya has been eating almond butter for two weeks, it’s been my saving grace and a new addition to his usual breakfast dishes. He smiles when I show him the bowl with his new favorite treat.
This protein mash is packed with vitamins and minerals. It’s smooth and creamy and easy for him to digest first thing in the morning. Even better, it only takes seconds to prepare and can be made fresh each morning.

* Make sure to cover the tofu with new water everyday, so it remains fresh.

Oaty-Almond Protein Mash (1 Baby Serving)

1 Tbsp Soft (Silken) Tofu
1 Tsp Almond Butter
1 Tbsp Oatmeal Cereal (you could also use other infants cereals such as rice, barley or multigrain)
1 Tbsp Hot Water (use more if too thick)

1. Place all ingredients in a bowl and mash with a fork.
2. Serve.