RECIPE: #InstaWeanTeam Challenge - Date & Butternut Squash Tagine

Last week I made my Healthy Lunchbox Snack (Date & Walnut Cereal Bars) using dates so for this week's challenge I wanted to do something completely different. My sister bought me a tagine a couple of years ago and I hadn't used it for a while so I decided to dust it off to make a Moroccan-inspired dish this week. I originally planned to use lamb but the supermarket only had full lamb shoulders which intimidated me a bit so I went with a vegetarian version instead. Fear not, carnivores, it's still a hearty, satisfying dish :)

YOU'LL NEED:
4 chopped Medjool dates
1 onion, roughly chopped
1 tin cherry tomatoes
4-5 chopped walnuts
250g frozen butternut squash (cutting this stuff is my pet hate so I bought a lazy version!)
100g sliced mushrooms
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp tumeric
1 tsp cinnamon
A squeeze of runny honey

METHOD:
1. Defrost the frozen mushrooms and butternut squash (I poured boiled water over mine and left for 5 minutes or so until it was soft).
2. Slice the onion and dates, lay in the bottom of the tagine
3. Add the butternut squash, mushrooms, tomatoes, spices, sesame seeds, garlic and honey. Stir well.
4. Add a splash of water to loosen the mixture slightly
5. Bake in the oven as Gas 4 for 1 hour.
6. Eat chocolate while it cooks - optional but highly recommended! :)

I served ours with wholemeal giant cous cous and a sprinkle of sesame seeds and chopped walnuts on top. Delish!
 
Note - The NHS guidance is that honey should only be given over the age of one. I'm not sure if this changes if the honey is cooked but personally I always err on the side of caution and would skip it for younger babies.

Don't forget to check out what the rest of the team have made for Date Week by visiting our Facebook Page 

RECIPE: #InstaWeanTeam Challenge - Walnut and Date Cereal Bars

Anyone who follows my Instagram feed will know I'm a big fan of putting lunchboxes together. Filling them with varied, healthy food can be a bit of a challenge, especially when it comes to snacks. This week I decided to make something I've tried before but not perfected: homemade cereal bars. I totally revamped my recipe and was really pleased with how these turned out - they are soft, sweet fingers of pure deliciousness!

To make these...

YOU'LL NEED:
5 Medjool dates (I used organic ones)
70g walnuts
25g sultanas
70g porridge oats
15g dessicated coconut
1 beaten egg
Coconut oil or unsalted butter for greasing the baking tray

METHOD:
1. Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper and grease very lightly with coconut oil.
2. Finely blend the nuts then tip them into a large glass bowl. Add the sultanas, coconut, and porridge oats then stir.
3. Blend the dates into a sticky paste - throw in a handful or two of oats if they start to gum up the blender like mine did.
4. Put the dates into the bowl then using a thumb and forefinger, rub them into the oat mixture as if you were making crumble. Continue until the dates are distributed evenly into the mixture.
5. Stir in the beaten egg.
6. Press the mixture onto the baking tray in a rectangular shape about 2-3cm thick.
7. Bake for 15 minutes at Gas 5, ensuring the egg is cooked.
8. While still warm, slice into finger shapes with a sharp knife. I used a pizza cutter which was the perfect tool for the job.
9. When cooled, peel the cereal bars carefully off the greaseproof paper. I will keep mine for a few days in a sealed Tupperware container... if they last that long!

Don't forget to check out what the rest of the InstaWeanTeam are making this week by visiting our Facebook Page

 

Healthy eating out and about...

Little Dude and I went shopping today. My plan to make a quick dash to get him some new shoes turned into a casual jaunt round a dozen shops and before I knew it, it was 11.30. I'd packed some snacks - raisins and a Nom Nom Kids smoothie pouch filled with kiwi, banana and apple - but nothing substantial enough for lunch. The smoothie was still half frozen at that point anyway - excellent planning Mama!

Usually when we eat out I pack a full homemade lunch box to take with us. Quite honestly, kids menus at most cafes and pubs make me cringe; the majority of them don't seem to extend beyond fish fingers, chicken nuggets, and burgers. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy to serve the odd thing like this in moderation (white chocolate buttons are a particular weakness for both of us!) but I'd much prefer to do it when I can read the packet myself and check out the salt content, amongst other things.

L tends to nap after lunch so I figured it was worth braving it and ordering a couple of things for us to share, rather than let him fall asleep on the way home and go to bed with an empty tum. Mama needed coffee so we headed to Starbucks and I picked a cheese and ham toastie and a chicken salad. The food selection was obviously aimed at adults but both of these seemed suitable enough for the pair of us. I figured Little Dude would be all about the carbs but he surprised me by merrily munching through a handful of sugar snap peas and bravely sampling a huge slice of lime. It's just a shame I didn't capture the faces he pulled on camera - he went back for several tastes though so must have liked it!

This got me thinking... where else can I find decent children's menus? I generally really enjoy putting a lunchbox together for him but it'd also be handy to have more places that I can visit on a whim without stressing about what there is for him to eat. I'd love to hear from other Mamas about their favourite places to take little ones for decent, healthy food. Let me know your recommendations here or on the BLWMamaUK Facebook page and I'll put a list together for us all to share.

PRODUCT REVIEW - Ezpz Happy Mat & Happy Bowl

Ezpz have a pretty straighforward mission statement: To take the mess and stress out of mealtimes. Founder Lindsey Lourain is a Mama of two boys and, being the proud owner of a very grubby little man myself, someone I am now eternally grateful to!

First, the technical bits - Ezpz placemats are:

• Dishwasher safe
• Microwave safe 
• BPA, PVC, phthalate and lead free (I had to look up phthalate but didn't like the sound of it when I did)
• Made from FDA approved silicone
• Suction to the table
• Can be stacked and carried together
• Can be drawn on with dry wipe marker  

 
I was pleasantly surprised when I opened my parcel from Ezpz; the mats are much more substantial than I'd expected with a thick, chunky base. The bowls have stiff sides that don't yield to little fingers (ours was excitedly prodded and poked by both myself and Little Dude!). The divided plate on the Happy Mat has three good sized sections which are more than enough to satisfy a hungry toddler. I have a tendency to over-cater so I like this gentle nudge towards portion control.

We have an Ikea Antilop high chair and the Happy Bowl fits quite neatly onto the tray, while the Happy Mat hangs over the sides a little. This doesn't bother me though - the more coverage the better in my opinion. Having said that, Ezpz have noted the seemingly universal popularity of the Antilop and I believe are working on a mat specifically to fit this particular highchair. Personally, I think the 'suction' element would be better described as 'sliproof' but semantics aside, it definitely works. Obviously it can still be peeled off the table by a determined toddler but there is definitely less chance of the meal being upended than with a traditional bowl or plate.

We used our mat and bowl for some very messy meals - overnight oats, pasta bolognese and yoghurt to name a few. So far, it's done a grand job. Often, I find that tomatoes and berries can permanently stain my tableware but so far it hasn't happened with the Ezpz mats. The absolute best feature is that the built-in placemat allows me to let Little Dude do his own thing with a spoon (he's all about spoon practice at the moment) then just lift up the mess and tip it into the bin or rinse it under the tap. This really saves me a lot of time in chasing squished bits of food round the highchair tray while L tries to catch them first and throw them over the side!

In terms of downsides, there is very little to call out. The Ezpz logo has indented lettering which can be a bit fiddly to clean if food gets stuck in there, but that's about it. I have a titchy microwave so I haven't tried heating food up directly in them yet (I guess other people might have the same problem), but again, that doesn't cause me any real issues.

So - overall, I think these are a fab product and they've already become a staple part of mealtimes in our house. Ezpz ship internationally from their website currently but are also working on setting up distributor in the UK - keep an eye on their website for details. Happy eating!


Note - technical details are taken from ezpz's own website/literature.

RECIPE - #InstaWeanTeam Challenge - Casserole-Pot Moussaka

Outside of Greece, the best moussaka I've ever had definitely has to be the one my mother-in-law makes. Aubergine is another ingredient I don't cook with very often (read: ever) so when the girls decided it was going to be this week's #InstaWeanTeam challenge, I knew there was only one dish I wanted to try. When I told my own Mama that I was going to tackle a moussaka she suggested adding courgette - followers will know I'm very partial to this particular veg so throwing it in seemed like a great idea. So basically, my version is an amalgamation from the two Mamas in my life, plus my own random invention. Fortunately, I wrote the recipe down as I went because this one really is good - hearty, warming and really, REALLY tasty.

YOU'LL NEED:

2 aubergines
1 medium courgette
1 medum onion
3 large white potatoes
500g lamb mince
2 tomatoes
1 tin chopped tomatoes
1 garlic clove
2 tsp oregano
1 tsp ground cinnamon 


Béchamel  Sauce:
300ml whole milk
30g butter
30g plain flour
1 beaten egg Grated cheddar

METHOD:
1. Slice the potatoes into discs and par-boil (6-8 minutes). Drain and set aside to cool.
2. Slice the courgette and aubergine into discs. Lay on a baking tray and drizzle with olive oil. Bake at Gas 5 for 25-30 minutes then set aside to cool.
3. In a pan, heat the butter and flour gently, stirring all the time until they are well mixed
4. Pour in the milk, whisk gently until just boiling and the sauce has thickened. Set aside to cool.
5. Meanwhile, add the finely sliced onion, lamb, oregano, garlic and cinnamon in the casserole dish and fry in the little oil (I used organic rapeseed) until cooked.
6. Add the tinned tomatoes and simmer for 3-4 minutes.
7. Spoon the lamb mixture into a separate bowl so the casserole dish is empty.
8. In the bottom of the casserole dish, arrange a thin layer of potato slices. 
9. Spoon a layer of lamb mixture on top, followed by another layer of potato.
10. On top of the potato, lay the aubergine then courgette, then fresh sliced tomatoes.
11. Add another layer of the lamb mixture, another of courgette and aubergine, and a final layer of potato (obviously feel free to freestyle here and arrange the layers however you fancy!)
12. Stir a beaten egg into the cooled white sauce. Pour on top of the moussaka.
13. Sprinkle on some grated cheese then bake at Gas 3 for 2 hours. 
14. Turn up the heat for the last 10-15 minutes to brown the top.

Don't forget to check out the other dishes the #InstaWeanTeam made this week by visiting our Facebook page.

RECIPE - #InstaWeanTeam Challenge - Watermelon Kebabs

I chose a simple summer dish for my watermelon #InstaWeanTeam Challenge – fruit kebabs with natural yoghurt and chia seeds. This took 5 minutes to prepare and about 5 seconds to devour! The sweet watermelon works really well with the creamy yoghurt and I used a flower shaped vegetable cutter to make it a little more appealing – still not enough to convince L to eat fruit unfortunately but it worked for the grown ups!

YOU’LL NEED:

¼ Watermelon

½ Mango

10-15 White and Red Grapes

Kebab Sticks

Natural Yoghurt

Chia Seeds (optional)

METHOD: 

1. Slide a knife along the rind of the watermelon to remove the tough skin. Slice the melon into strips. Using a cookie or vegetable cutter, cut out some pretty shapes :)

2. Same deal with the mango - remove the skin and slice into cubes

3. Slice the grapes in half lengthways (this reduces the choking hazard)

4. Thread each piece of fruit onto a kebab stick until it's full.

5. Service dipped in yoghurt with chia seeds (you might want to remove the stick for younger children)

RECIPE - Banana Choc-o-Nut Pancakes

Yes, I'm still on my one-woman mission to make every possible type of pancake! Today I adapted the standard two ingrediant banana pancake recipe to make a Saturday treat to take to my sister's house. These are handy for lunchboxes because they make minimal mess.

YOU'LL NEED:
1 large banana, mashed
1 medium egg, beaten
1 tsp cocoa powder (I used Green & Black's Organic powder)
2 tsp almond butter
Handful porridge oats
Few sprinkles of dessicated coconut
Coconut oil (or unsalted butter) for frying

METHOD:
1. Mash the banana in a medium sized bowl.
2. Add the beaten egg and stir well.
3. Add the oats, almond butter and cocoa and stir well (again).
4. Melt a little coconut oil in a heavy frying pan. Keep the heat very low if you have a lighter pan as it helps stop the bottom and edges of the pancakes from burning.
5.  Dollop the mixture into the pan, each one should be a little smaller than the palm of your hand.
6. Sprinkle a little dessicated coconut on top of each pancake so it sinks into the mixture slightly.
7. Once the bottom has started to cook but whilst they're still too soft to flip (after about 3 minutes), pop them under the grill for 2 minutes or so.
8. Once the top has started to cook, flip the pancakes over for another 2 minutes or so until they're cooked through.
9. Leave to cool for a few minutes then serve. 

This makes about 5 small pancakes, just double the quantities if you want enough for the whole family!