This time of year, it seems like all I want to eat is corn. I love steaming up a bunch of ears and keeping them in the refrigerator to snack on. It’s also become one of Kenya’s favorite snacks. For little ones just starting to hold their own food, corn on the cob is a great choice. Kenya proudly holds his ear of corn, like it’s the crown jewels and just munches away.
Corn is full of fiber as well as being high in beta-carotene, vitamin B1 and C. Corn is also a great choice because it’s economical. Our farmers market was selling it for $2 for 3 ears.
When I buy too much (which is often) I love to use what’s left over and make this recipe, which is also inexpensive. When I’m having summer pool parties for the kids and need to feed a crowd on a budget, its perfect.
The entire dish cost me $5.75 when I made a double batch (which served
16) of the recipe below (I also saved a bit more because the cherry tomatoes came from our garden).
With such beautiful colors, a ton of vitamins, and plenty of cheese for little ones who can’t ever get enough, this is a choice dish.

Summer Pasta Salad (8 Toddler Servings)

8 Oz Dry Pasta (I used dry mini cheese filled ravioli that I got at
Trader Joes, but you can use any type of pasta you enjoy)
1 Ear Corn, yellow or white
¼ Cup Asparagus
1/2 Cup Cherry Tomatoes, chopped
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Tbsp Parmesan

1. In a steamer pot of boiling water, prepare the pasta according to the package’s directions.
2. Place the corn and asparagus in a steamer pot of boiling water and cook for 3-4 minutes.
3. When the corn is cool, cut it off the cob and dice the asparagus into small pieces.
4. Throughly combine all the ingredients in a bowl.
5. Serve.

Several years ago I co-hosted “New Years Rockin’ Eve’ with Dick Clark”. There’s nothing more magical then actually being in Times Square, seeing the ball drop and watching the literal shower of confetti float through the air at the stroke of midnight. How that night inspired a vegetable dish while I was sitting and staring blankly into a saute pan one evening, I have no idea. Maybe it’s because this delicious recipe reminds me of bright and colorful confetti and that was such a special night for me.
I took gorgeous summer vegetables from the farmers’ market, threw them in the food processor and, as Emeril would say, “BAM!” In minutes I had a vegetable dish that’s so easy for babies to chew and digest since the pieces are so small.
If you can’t find the vegetables I’ve used, you could substitute with what is available to you. Try using yellow or green squash for the patty pan squash, broccoli or cauliflower for the romenesco and any color bell pepper that looks appealing. If you’ve never seen or heard of romenesco, search it out. It’s packed with vitamin C, fiber and carotenoids (which have strong antioxidant properties) and it’s visually appealing — definitely one of nature’s cooler looking vegetables.
Chock full of vitamins and minerals, this is a good one for even those little ones that turn their noses up at the foods you really want them to eat.

Vegetable Confetti (Makes 8 Toddler Servings)

1 Cup or 1 Patty Pan Squash, chopped (You could also use zucchini or yellow squash)
1/2 Cup Asparagus, chopped
2/3 Cup Bell Pepper, chopped (any color)
1/2 Cup Romenesco
1 Garlic Clove
1 Tbsp Olive Oil

1. Place the first 5 ingredients in a food processor and pulse until you have small pieces.
2. Heat the olive oil in a medium saute pan over low to medium heat and cook for 3 minutes.
3. Cover, reduce heat to low and cook for 5 minutes or until vegetables are fork tender.
4. Cool and serve.

This past weekend I went to the farmers market and gorgeous pencil asparagus were everywhere. Asparagus aren’t one of those vegetables that you naturally think of giving to a baby. I was struggling to think of a recipe, then last night my husband said, “Let’s have stir fry for dinner”.
The ingredients in a stir fry lend themselves to the flavors that marry beautifully in baby food. I will say that it was tough leaving out the soy sauce, but young babies still don’t need the extra sodium in their diet.
When I pulled the lid off the food processor the sesame aroma leapt out at me and I guess Kenya too, since he was screaming, and I mean SCREAMING for a bite. He only mumbles a few words, but “mmmm..,” kept coming out as he ate bite after bite. I’ll take that as a compliment.

Chicken “Stir fry” Puree (makes 12 baby servings, freeze 1/2)

1 Chicken Breast
1 Tsp Fresh Ginger, peeled, chopped or sliced into 2 coins)
1 Garlic Clove
2 Tbsp Onion, chopped
3/4 Cup Broccoli, peeled, stem and florets (or frozen)
1/2 Asparagus, bottoms trimmed and chopped
1 Tbsp Tahini
1 Tbsp Sesame Seeds

1. Put chicken in a steamer pot over boiling water and cook for 4 minutes.
2. Add ginger, garlic, onion, broccoli and asparagus and continue steaming another 4 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and vegetables are fork tender.
3. Place all the ingredients in a food processor and puree. Add some of the water from the steamer pot to make smooth.
4. Cool and Serve.