Eggplants are all over the farmer’s market right now. Purple, black, white, lilac, white….the list goes on. I’m not sure why they get such a tough rap, but eggplants are one of those vegetables that seem too daunting to cook with at first glance. They’re beautiful, but what do you do with these big orbs?
Well, I could eat eggplant until I’m blue in the face. I love it in any form. Grilled, sauteed, roasted and, especially, pureed in baba ghanoosh, a dip popular in middle eastern cuisine. By modifying the traditional recipe slightly for a little one’s palate it’s a perfect choice to serve as a puree on its own for babies or as a dip with vegetables or baked pita chips for toddlers.
Eggplant can block the formation of free radicals, help control cholesterol levels and is also a wonderful source of folic acid and potassium.
This isn’t a typical baby/toddler food, but I think you’ll be shocked to see how much your little one will love it!

Baba Ghanoosh (Makes 4-6 Toddler Servings)

1 Eggplant
1 Tbsp Tahini (available at most groceries)
1/2 Tsp Lemon Juice
1 Small Garlic Clove
2 Tbsp Plain Yogurt

1. Place the eggplant directly on a burner of your stove top. Turn the flame of the burner to medium and place the whole eggplant on the burner.
2. Cook the eggplant turning every few minutes for 20 minutes or until the eggplant skin is blistered and slightly charred.
3. Place the eggplant in a zip lock bag, seal and let steam for 10 minutes.
4. Cool and peel all the charred skin off the eggplant.
5. Cut the pulp into chunks and place in a food processor with remaining ingredients.
6. Puree and serve.

In my ongoing quest to find foods that are both healthy and easy for toddlers 
to hold themselves, I decided to make falafels for Kenya. The only 
trick to this dish is to make them suitable for his little taste-buds without having to fry them in gallons of oil like most falafel recipes call for.
Falafels are made with a base of garbanzo beans, a legume also known as 
chickpeas. Have you ever looked closely at a chickpea? Some say they 
look like a chick’s beak, hence the name. Beak or no beak, they’re a powerhouse of 
fiber. Fiber is an important part of a little one’s diet because it tends to fill them up longer then other foods, giving them energy to run around and 
play. Garbanzo beans are an excellent vegetarian source of protein and are 
high in calcium, magnesium and folate.
I also added a little yogurt dipping sauce alongside this recipe which boosts the nutritional content of the meal even more and adds a little fun for the kids. Now, if I can only 
get my husband out of Kenya’s food, which is slowly becoming “their” food. My husband figures that if what Kenya’s eating is super healthy, he wants to eat it too. Like father, like son. Or should I say, like son, like father?!

Falafel (Make 14 Mini Falafel)

1 1/2 Cup Chick Peas, cooked
1 Garlic Clove
1/4 Cup Onion, chopped
1/4 Cup Cilantro, chopped
3 Tbsp Flour (I used whole wheat, but you could also use white flour)
1 Tsp Baking Powder
1/2 Tsp Cumin
Olive Oil

1. Place the first 7 ingredients in a food processor and puree. Make sure the mixture is throughly combined. Scrape down the sides of the mixture as needed.
2. With moist hands (so the mixture doesn’t stick to your hands) form patties with about 1 tablespoon of the mixture and place on a plate while you form the remaining patties.
3. In a medium saute pan, heat around 2 tablespoons of oil over medium heat. You want the pan to have a thin coating of oil.
4. Add half of the patties to the pan and saute for 4 minutes on each side or until golden (you may have to add a little more oil if your pan get too dry).
5. Remove the patties from the pan and place on a paper towel lined plate (to absorb any extra oil).
6. Cook the remaining patties.
7. Cool and serve with yogurt sauce.

Yogurt Tahini Sauce (Makes a little over 1/2 Cup)

1/2 Yogurt
1 Tbsp Lemon
1 Tbsp Tahini (if your little one has a nut allergy, you could leave this out)

1. Place all the ingredients in a bowl and stir to combine.

So here’s one of those posts I feel a bit guilty about writing since I’m all about the farmers market and eating what’s fresh and in season. I started preparing this recipe and had bought the most gorgeous, already pre-shelled peas at the market. I was so excited to steam them and pop them in my mouth like candy. I bit into one waiting for a sweet explosion and instead got a bland mealy taste. Luckily I had a bag of frozen sweet peas in the freezer that were the perfect substitute.
I like fresh vegetables as much as anyone, but when you need something easy and full of flavor, frozen peas are a godsend.
This puree is a vegetarians dream. Packed with protein from the garbanzo beans and tahini, there are so many flavors for baby to explore. This is the first time I’ve given Kenya parsley which also seemed to be a hit.
The best part was watching Kenya trying to grab at the spoon as I fed him. I always give him his own wooden spoon to hold while he eats (so that he’s part of the process) and this time I put some of the hummus on his. Since it’s a little sticky, it held on to his spoon as we waved it around and he was able to get several bites in his mouth.
This was a big step for the little guy.

Fresh Pea Hummus (15 Baby Food Servings)

1 Cup Peas, fresh or frozen
1 Cup Garbanzo Beans
1 Tbsp Parsley, chopped
1/4 Cup Whole Milk Yogurt
1 Tbsp Lemon Juice
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Tbsp Tahini

1. Put peas in a steamer over boiling water for 2 minutes if frozen,
4-5 if fresh.
2. Place all the ingredients in a food processor and puree until smooth.
3. 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.

In my quest to create new and exciting recipes, I forgot how much Kenya loves Tahini. He eats hummus as fast as I can get it on the spoon. Why not add it to a puree of protein and vegetables. Tahini is packed with Vitamin B3, E and Calcium. Since he’s still under a year, I’ve decided not to give him any nuts, since babies can have allergies at a young age. Tahini is a great replacement when you’re looking for a nutty taste and smooth texture. The bonus to this recipe is the frozen vegetables. It makes this recipe super fast and easy to prepare with minimal clean up.

Sesame Chicken Mash (10 Baby Servings, freeze 1/2)

1 Potato, cubed in 1/2 inch pieces
1 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breast
1 Cup Organic Frozen Peas, Carrots, Corn and Green Beans
1 Tbsp Tahini

1. Put potato cubes in a steamer pot over boiling water and cook for 2 minutes.
2. Add chicken breast and steam another 4 minutes.
3. Add vegetables and steam for 3 more minutes or until all the ingredients are fork tender and chicken is cooked through.
4. Put steamed ingredients and tahini in a food processor and blend until smooth (for babies with a few teeth, you can leave it a little chunky).
5. Cool and serve.