Oh my goodness, these are amazing! I’m not just saying that from an adult culinary point of view either. I made these for 8 kids, age 20 months to 5 years old and even the 5 year old who supposedly hates everything gobbled them up. The best part is that the “crust” is a vegetable (not more bread), but they look just like pizzas.
The big bonus is that they took me no time to prepare and I had barely any clean up. I was kind of scared the kids would say “wait, this isn’t REAL pizza,” but not a word. Happy kids make happy mommies. What could be better?

Portobello Pizzas (4 Big Kids)

1 15 Oz Can Tomato Sauce
1 Garlic Clove, minced
1/4 Tsp Thyme, Basil and Oregano
1 Tsp Salt
4 Portobello Mushrooms, stems removed (wiggle the stem back and forth gently to remove)
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1/2 Cup Mozzarella Cheese, shredded

1. Place the first 4 ingredients in a bowl to combine.
2. Preheat the oven the 400 degrees.
3. Place a piece of foil on a cookie sheet and brush lightly with olive oil.
4. Place the mushrooms stem side down on a cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes. If there’s a lot of excess liquid on the cookie sheet, discard.
5. Place the mushrooms stem side up, cover with 2-3 tablespoons of tomato sauce and 2 tablespoons of shredded cheese.
6. Bake the mushrooms for an additional 10 minutes or until cheese is melted.
7. Serve.

This seems like a very unlikely combination, but it’s a good lesson in working with what you have available. The results were better than I expected and even when I tried it I thought it was delicious.
I added an extra ingredient to this dish: brewer’s yeast. Most people have no idea what brewer’s yeast is, but it’s a great source of vitamin B and has a kind of toasted cheese flavor. The B complex vitamins help the body produce antibodies, provide, energy by converting carbohydrates into glucose, metabolize fats and proteins, and help regenerate red blood cells. A lot of vegetarians sprinkle brewer’s yeast on cereals, salads, or put it in soups, sauces and even baked goods. It can be purchased at health food stores.
Add in the broccoli and apricot puree, and this dish is also packed with vitamin C, iron, potassium and beta-carotene. Your baby will happily buzzing about with good energy from this delicious combination.

Broccoli, Tofu and Apricot Puree (6 Baby Servings)

1 Cup Broccoli Florets
1/2 Cup Soft Tofu
2 Tbsp Apricot Puree
1 Tbsp Brewers Yeast

1. Place the broccoli in a steamer pot over boiling water and cook for
4 minutes or until broccoli is fork tender. Cool.
2. Place all of the ingredients in a food processor and puree (you can
leave it chunkier for babies with a few teeth).
3. Serve.

Last Sunday I ran into my friend Leslie at the farmers market. We started talking about weelicious and a recipe that she had come up with for her adorable son, August. She said that the rice ball recipe I had made for the website inspired her to try a polenta version. She took me through how she did it and I thought it was a genius and healthy idea. I changed it up a bit, but so can you. Feel free to use greens instead of broccoli or cheddar instead of Monterrey jack. This is a perfect recipe to improvise on. Also, if your little one isn’t ready for bites yet, you can do a pureed version.
Trader Joe’s (to the rescue, again) sells organic polenta packaged in an 18 oz. tube, which is a huge time saver. Since it’s also gluten free, it’s a perfect option for little ones with allergies. You only need half of the tube for this recipe, so you could take the leftover portion and pan sear slices for your dinner and serve it with some fresh tomato sauce and cheese.
Kenya loved popping these little bites in his mouth!

Polenta Bites (makes 30-40 “bites” or 2 cups of puree)

1 Cup Broccoli, florets
1/4 Cup Red Bell Pepper, chopped
1/4 Cup Tofu, chopped
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1/4 Cup Monterrey Jack Cheese, shredded
2 Tbsp Parmesan
1/2 Tsp Garlic Powder
1/2 Tsp Italian Herbs
1/2 Tube (9 oz) Polenta

*You can also use 1 cup of fresh polenta

1. Heat the olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add the
vegetables and tofu and saute for 3 minutes. Cover the pan and steam for
2 more minutes or until broccoli is fork tender.
2. Place the sauteed ingredients, cheese and herbs in a food processor
and pulse until everything is combined, but tiny pieces remain.
3. In a bowl mix the polenta with the vegetable/tofu mixture and roll
into bite size balls.
4. Serve.