Happy New Year! I wanted to start the year with something healthy and heartwarming, perfect for cool weather days.
Last night Kenya ate 4 servings of this recipe for dinner! That’s only 2 days after I made it! I gave it to him for lunch and dinner both days (talk about a culinary groundhog day), but he kept slurping it up so I figured “why not”? I usually don’t give him a lot of meat or pork, but this soup really calls for it to get the perfect flavor. After the ham hock finished stewing in the soup, I simply removed it, let it cool, pulled off all the fat and cut it into a tiny dice. It was luscious! Don’t worry if you want to leave it out. No biggie. It will still taste great.
Split peas are a fantastic source of protein and cook in no time compared to most dried beans. Even better, this recipe very inexpensive. The split peas were less then a dollar, I only used 1/3 of a package of the ham hock so I froze the rest and the other items I already had on hand (and you probably have them in your pantry as well). In 45 minutes I had a creamy pureed soup that everyone in the family could enjoy — even the tiniest member!

Split Pea Soup (Makes 6-8 Toddler Servings)

1 Small Onion, diced
1 Carrot, peeled and diced
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Cup Split Peas, rinsed
3 Cups Water
3/4 Lb Ham hock (optional)

1. Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over low to medium heat. Saute the onions and carrot until onions are translucent, about 4 minutes.
2. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil.
3. Reduce to a simmer and cover. Cook for 45 minutes.
4. Remove the ham hock and let cool.
5. Puree the soup with a handheld blender or in a blender until smooth.
6. Cut the meat off the ham hock, discarding the fat. Cut the meat into tiny pieces.
7. Serve the soup with ham mixed in or sprinkled on top.

Finding healthy snacks for kids these days can really be a challenge, especially
in the Elmo and Hannah Montana universe of marketed, processed food products that seem to be overtaking supermarket shelves.
I went to Whole Foods last week on a mission to find straight forward, good-for-you treats and actually found a few that I couldn’t keep my own hands off of, let alone Kenya’s.
These Bare Fruit 100% organic, bake-dried chips are to die for. They have the crisp texture of a potato chip, but the sweet natural taste of your favorite fruits. With a variety of kinds like Fuji apple, pear, Granny Smith apple, cherry and mango, there’s truly a flavor for everyone.
The day I bought them I wound up eating the entire bag on the way home and gave myself a stomach ache. Thank goodness kids tend to be better about portion control, because mommy can get a little out of control sometimes! Luckily I bought several bags, so when I got home
Kenya’s eyes lit up as he munched and crunched on fruit chips.

Stuffing is one of those Thanksgiving foods that I’ve found you don’t have to twist a kid’s arm to eat. I mean come on, the base of it is bread!
This recipe is sweet, savory and truly delicious. There are tons of variations on the ingredients you can put in your stuffing. Cornbread, wheat or white bread, fruits, vegetables, herbs, the list goes on…But the mixture of ingredients in this apple sausage stuffing is truly geared for little ones taste buds (and secretly mine, too!).

Kids Apple Sausage Stuffing (Makes 8-10 Servings)

3/4 Pound Bread Cubes (I use 1/2 whole wheat and 1/2 white bread cubes, but you can also buy other types of bread cubes that are already dried out and skip step 1).
3 Chicken Apple Sausage Links (or 1/2 pound ground sausage)
2 Tsp Oil
2 Tbsp Butter plus more for greasing
1 Apple, peeled and chopped (Gala, Fuji and Golden Delicious or any other sweet apple)
2 Celery Stalks, chopped
1/2 Onion, chopped
1 Tbsp Fresh Thyme, chopped
1/2 Tsp Salt
3 Eggs, beaten
1 1/2 Cups Chicken Stock

1. Toast bread cubes in a 300 degree oven for 8-10 minutes.
2. Turn the oven temperature to 350 degrees.
2. If using sausage links, remove casings.
3. Heat 2 teaspoons of oil in a large saute pan over medium heat and cook sausage for 3-5 minutes or until cooked through. Remove to a plate.
4. Heat butter in the saute pan over medium heat and cook the apples, celery, onion, thyme and salt for 6-8 minutes until soft and tender.
5. Place the bread cubes in a bowl with the sausage, vegetables, eggs and chicken stock. Combine thoroughly.
6. Grease a 11 x 7 baking dish. Place the stuffing mixture in the dish.
7. Bake for 40 minutes.
8. Serve.

With Thanksgiving right around the corner, I tested this recipe out on several little ginuea pigs. I made these for a recent “kid’s dinner party” that my friends and I do every week and I can’t even tell you how hard I laughed when I pulled these sweet potatoes out of the oven and three of the kids simultaneously yelled “cupcakes”! No matter what we said they decided the orange and white “cupcakes” were a holiday treat and scarfed them down. The only “oops” moment came when one the little girls looked at me with a huge hunk of orange peel in her mouth and said, “I don’t like the wrapper”. Whoops!
These heavenly treats only take minutes to prepare, and they made quite a visual and edible impact on the kids and adults alike. I’m a big fan of cooking this dish with evaporated skim milk because it makes the potatoes really fluffy without the added fat of heavy cream. I usually don’t like to use foods that have a ton of sugar, but just a few mini marshmallows really take this recipe to the next level for kids and makes it fun for them. After all, it’s the “icing”! They’re not essential to the recipe, so you can easily leave them out.
This recipe is also a time saver when you’re cooking Thanksgiving dinner, because the orange pulp that you scoop out goes right into the weelicious cranberry sauce recipe! A green vegetable, some succulent turkey and you have a perfect meal for the entire family with a few leftovers for the next day.
*Check out the Thanksgiving article and pictures on one of my favorite websites, CafeMom:

Sweet Potatoes in Orange Cups (Serves 6 Big Kids)

2 Lbs. Sweet Potatoes (you want to use potatoes that are really orange, also known as yams)
2 Tbsp Butter
1 Tbsp Maple Syrup
1/2 Cup Evaporated Skimmed Milk (you can substitute it with regular milk)
1/2 Tsp Kosher or Sea Salt
3 Navel Oranges
Mini Marshmallows

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Poke the yams several times with a fork or knife to pierce the skin.
2. Place on foil or a sheet tray in the oven and bake for 1 hour.
3. Let yams cool for several minutes, cut in half and scoop out the fluffy insides (I love eating the high fiber skin as a snack).
4. Mash the yams with butter, maple syrup, evaporated milk and salt until creamy and fluffy.
5. Cut the oranges in half and slice a very thin disk from the bottom so they rest flat. The skins are actually going to be the “bowls”.
6. With a pairing knife cut around the inside rim of the orange removing the orange sections and pulp. Place any of the orange juice and pulp in a bowl and discard the white membranes and seeds. Save the juice and pulp for cranberry sauce recipe or just enjoy as a snack.
7. Fill each orange cup with 1/4 cup of puree and top with several mini marshmallows (you can cover and refrigerate these overnight).
8. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
9. Place on a sheet tray and bake for 20-25 minutes.
10. Serve.

As a kid growing up in the south, cornbread in any form — be it sticks, muffins, whatever — was a staple. My grandmother used to take her old seasoned cast iron corn pone mold (a southern style cornbread) and grease it with fat drippings she kept in a jar above the stove. Then she would fill it with sweet corn batter which came out crisp, tender and delicious. I just can’t imagine how many calories there were!
Sadly (or should I say “fortunately” — sorry grandma!), we don’t keep a jar of drippings in our kitchen, but the taste of these muffins run a very close second, are healthy and they only take minutes to prepare. I especially like this recipe because they have a crunchy top, a tender middle and they’re perfectly sweet from the agave instead of a cup of sugar like my grandmother’s recipe calls for.
I made 2 dozen of these thinking I would have plenty for days. Nice try, they were gone within 48 hours. My husband would eat like five in one sitting. Oh well, better double the recipe next time.

Lil’ Corn Muffins (Makes 24 Muffins)

1 3/4 Cup Cornmeal
3/4 Cup Flour
1 Tbsp Baking Powder
1 Tsp Baking Soda
1/2 Tsp Salt
1/4 Cup Agave
1 1/2 Cup Buttermilk
2 Eggs
1/4 Cup Vegetable Oil

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Mix the first 5 dry ingredients in a bowl.
3. Whisk the remaining wet ingredients in a separate bowl until
thoroughly combined.
4. Pour the cornmeal mixture into the wet ingredients and thoroughly
combine with a whisk.
5. Pour into 24 greased mini muffin cups.
6. Bake for 15 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when
inserted inside.
7. Cool and serve.

When Kenya was a baby, I always wanted to make him dessert. It somehow felt unfair to me that as my husband and I devoured sweet treats, he couldn’t be a part of our fun. I devised this sweet potato pudding in an effort to remedy that. The creamy and light texture of this dish is so smooth, its perfect for babies with or without teeth.
I love cooking with sweet potatoes because they’re in season right now, packed with antioxidant vitamin and phytonutrients, and almost every baby I’ve ever known loves them. When I first took a bite, I couldn’t believe how much it tasted just like the filling of sweet potato pie. You may want to double this recipe because it goes perfect for a baby’s dinner or dessert!

Sweet Potato Pudding (Makes 3 Baby Servings or 2 Toddler Serving)

1 Sweet Potato
1 Egg Yolk
1/4 Tsp Cinnamon
1/4 Cup Rice or Almond Milk
Hot Water

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Bake sweet potato for 1 hour or until fork tender.
3. When potato is cool, remove the flesh and cool (I like to eat the high fiber potato skin as a snack).
4. Whisk the egg with the cinnamon, rice milk and cooled potato until smooth.
5. Pour into a ramekin (or other small baking dish).
6. Place the ramekin in a larger baking pan.
7. Place the ramekin and baking pan in the oven and pour hot water into the baking pan until it reaches halfway up the ramekin (otherwise known as a water bath).
8. Bake for 30 minutes.
9. Cool and serve.

Whenever I have to cook grains for a dish, I always make more than the recipe calls for and set the extra portion to the side. Keeping cooked rice or quinoa in the refrigerator is a meal-time life saver, especially when you’re trying to prepare a quick and healthy breakfast (or lunch or dinner for that mattter!) for your family.
I make this recipe for Kenya at least once a week and sometimes make enough for two mornings so I can serve it to him the next day. The only trouble this week when I made it was that my husband found Kenya’s second day portion and ate it for his dessert (yes, you could also serve this as a dessert, too!). No matter, it tastes like a sweet risotto and it’s delicious!

Breakfast Grains (make 2 toddler or 1 big kid servings)

1/2 Cup Cooked Grains (rice, quinoa, kamut or wheat berries would be a good choice)
1/4 Cup Milk (vanilla rice, soy or cow’s milk are good choices)
1 Tsp Honey
Pinch Cinnamon
2 Tbsp Berries (I use blueberries)

1. Place all the ingredients in a saucepan and cook over low to medium heat until the dish is creamy and most of the liquid has absorbed into the rice.
2. Cool and serve.

These feel like an authentic English or Irish dish to me. Or maybe it’s a 
New England treat. I don’t know where fish pies were born, but I do know they’re gorgeous and delicious. I try to avoid using too much butter whenever possible, but from the time I was a kid, I knew that there was one indisputable culinary fact: if it had a crust, it had to be delicious!
Having pre-made puff pastry in the freezer is a lifesaver for whenever you are making anything with a crust, so I always have some on hand. The golden puff pastry in this dish encloses a warm, creamy mixture of fish and sweet vegetables. It’s so creamy in fact that you would think it’s made with heavy cream, but in fact it’s just an easy mixture of milk and a roux. Yes, moms and dads, you get to be culinary geniuses this week and make a roux, which is SO easy to do! I guarantee this will be a hit for even those little ones that turn their noses up at vegetables. Give it a try.


 Fish Pie’s (Makes 4 Individual Ramekins for Big Kids or 1 Large One)

1 1/2 Cups Milk (I prefer whole milk for this recipe)
1 Cup Broccoli Florets, fresh or frozen
1 Large Carrot, peeled and diced
1 Ear of Corn or 1/2 Cup Frozen
2 Sole Fillets, fresh or frozen (or 1/2 Lb halibut, haddock or cod)
2 Tbsp Butter
2 Tbsp Flour plus extra for sprinkling
1/2 Box Puff Pastry, 1 sheet (I like Dufours or Pepperidge Farms), defrosted
1 Egg, whisked with 1 tsp water (this is known as an egg wash for the crust)

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. Bring the milk to a boil in a large saucepan.
3. Add the broccoli and carrots and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cover and cook for 3 minutes.
4. Add the corn and fish and continue to cook for 4 more minutes or until vegetables are fork tender.
5. Remove the vegetables to a separate bowl. Break the fish into pieces and chop the broccoli into bite size pieces if needed.
6. Melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat. When it’s melted add the flour and whisk making a roux.
7. Add the milk a little at a time until mixture is a thick saucy consistency.
8. Add the sauce to the fish and vegetables and combine.
9. Pour the mixture into individual ramekins.
10. Sprinkle work surface with a bit of flour and roll out puff pastry to remove lines (only if necessary).
11. Cut out 4 individual circles, using a knife, just larger then the top of each ramekin.
12. Divide the fish mixture between the 4 ramekins and cover with puff pastry sheet.
13. Brush each puff pastry ramekin with egg wash.
14. Bake on a cookie sheet for 20 minutes or until pastry is golden.
15. Serve.