Hi all,
I don't want anyone reading my recipes to be envious and think I have a 2 yr old that eats all of the food I cook. I offer him everything I prepare, but he is still a typical 2 yr old. I try not to prepare 2 separate meals, but it does happen. Here is a short list of Jack's favorite meals.
Breakfast: for over a year we had oatmeal and then one day he started refusing it. It was shortly after he was able to try pancakes for the first time. This has led to many mornings filled with tears. If only we could have pancakes every morning. Instead I make 20 pancakes every Saturday and see how long it takes for them to disappear. After the pancakes are gone, usually by Tuesday. We resort to dry Cheerios and fruit or Rice Chex with rice milk. Each morning we have a countdown to the next batch of pancakes.
Lunch: This has been a variation of the same meal since Jack was 9 months old. Rice bread with pieces of Boar's Head honey maple turkey or BH low sodium ham. We also have fruit and leftover vegetables. Just recently started giving Jack wheat bread which took some getting used to, but now he asks for it every day. I am very slowly trying to get him to try sunbutter (tests say he is allergic, but he just had the smallest taste today and nothing happened).
Dinner: If I give Jack an option of what he would like for dinner 9 out of 10 times he will choose turkey sausage. When he was a baby I would take the casing off and mash it in the pan while I cooked it in chicken broth. I would finish by adding some rice pasta and Paul Newman marinara sauce. Now we just saute the sausage in a little water to keep pan from burning or sticking. I know he likes it because it is salty and that is why I cut out the chicken stock. The only brand I have ever tried is Shadybrook Farms breakfast sausage or Italian sausage. I prefer to give him the breakfast sausage because of the size.
Other nights we have baked chicken thighs. No sauce. I marinate pork chops in soy vay marinade and he enjoys that. He loves roasted potatoes with salt pepper and extra virgin olive oil. The vegetables he will eat over and over again are broccoli, cauliflower and asparagus. Zucchini is hit or miss as are the peas. In the summer he could eat corn every night and we have frozen sometimes but it's not the same. He used to love cooked carrots, but now only if they are in the chicken soup.
Brown rice and peas are still a favorite. And if I am making the quinoa, lentil and chicken stew. Jack will eat the carrots and chicken if I wipe off the quinoa.
Meatballs are a weekly staple and if he could eat pasta with sauce every night he would, too.
So when people learn about our allergies they ask well what can he eat. My response is very healthy and better than most people. I am fortunate that he has a terrific appetite and will ask me for a second apple a day!
Friday, January 21, 2011
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Braised short ribs with acini de pepe
It took me a few hours and I couldn't decide what to cook for our New Year's eve dinner. Not until I arrived at Whole Foods could I make up my mind. When I saw the short ribs my mouth started watering.
Sorry for the approximations, but I made this dish by eyeballing each ingredient
1.5 lbs boneless short ribs
couple of TBS of flour seasoned with Salt and Pepper
about 1/4 c of olive oil
1 small onion small dice
1 large celery stalk, small dice
2 cloves of garlic minced
2 handfuls of baby carrots, sliced lengthwise
1, 8 oz package of sliced white mushrooms
2 spoonfuls of tomato paste
rosemary, dried -- to taste
thyme, dried -- to taste
1/2 - 1 c dry red wine (I used a CA cab)
approx 1 c of chicken broth
1 c of frozen green peas
Heat a medium sized Dutch Oven pan with the oil. Flour and season the short ribs. Add to the pot and brown on all sides. The browner the better. It creates a crust that keeps the moisture in the meat and brown bits in the bottom of the pan create the extra good flavor for the sauce. Once all sides have been equally browned remove and set aside covered. Add the onions and celery. Cook about 5 minutes. Add the carrots and stir cooking another 3-4 minutes. Add the mushrooms, herbs and garlic. Season with some salt and pepper to taste. Let the mushrooms begin to cook down and add the tomato pasted. Stir the vegetables until the tomato paste has been cooked in. Pour the wine into the pot and stir the brown bits. Let reduce and thicken. Now add the meat back to pan and the stock. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer on low for 2 to 2 1/2 hours or until the meat is fork tender. Add the frozen peas and stir. Cook on low about another 5 to 10 minutes with lid off.
You can serve with mashed potatoes, rice, barley, quinoa. On this night I made one of my favorite side dishes.
Acini di pepe with Spinach
1 cup of acini di pepe
1 package of frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed of excess water
1 small red onion, small dice
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 c olive oil
salt and pepper
(optional: parmesan cheese and butter can be stirred in at the end)
Bring a medium sized pot of salted water to a boil. Add acini and follow cooking instructions. In a large saute pan over medium high heat add the oil, onions and spinach. Let the onions soften. Add the garlic and season with salt and pepper. Turn to low.
Drain the acini (reserving a cup of cooking liquid). Add the acini to the large saute pan. Stir thoroughly, adding some cooking liquid if necessary. Also, add some additional olive oil if desired. Turn the pan off and serve.
The additional side dish to the meal was some beets with shaved aged manchego. It was so delicious.
Sorry for the approximations, but I made this dish by eyeballing each ingredient
1.5 lbs boneless short ribs
couple of TBS of flour seasoned with Salt and Pepper
about 1/4 c of olive oil
1 small onion small dice
1 large celery stalk, small dice
2 cloves of garlic minced
2 handfuls of baby carrots, sliced lengthwise
1, 8 oz package of sliced white mushrooms
2 spoonfuls of tomato paste
rosemary, dried -- to taste
thyme, dried -- to taste
1/2 - 1 c dry red wine (I used a CA cab)
approx 1 c of chicken broth
1 c of frozen green peas
Heat a medium sized Dutch Oven pan with the oil. Flour and season the short ribs. Add to the pot and brown on all sides. The browner the better. It creates a crust that keeps the moisture in the meat and brown bits in the bottom of the pan create the extra good flavor for the sauce. Once all sides have been equally browned remove and set aside covered. Add the onions and celery. Cook about 5 minutes. Add the carrots and stir cooking another 3-4 minutes. Add the mushrooms, herbs and garlic. Season with some salt and pepper to taste. Let the mushrooms begin to cook down and add the tomato pasted. Stir the vegetables until the tomato paste has been cooked in. Pour the wine into the pot and stir the brown bits. Let reduce and thicken. Now add the meat back to pan and the stock. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer on low for 2 to 2 1/2 hours or until the meat is fork tender. Add the frozen peas and stir. Cook on low about another 5 to 10 minutes with lid off.
You can serve with mashed potatoes, rice, barley, quinoa. On this night I made one of my favorite side dishes.
Acini di pepe with Spinach
1 cup of acini di pepe
1 package of frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed of excess water
1 small red onion, small dice
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 c olive oil
salt and pepper
(optional: parmesan cheese and butter can be stirred in at the end)
Bring a medium sized pot of salted water to a boil. Add acini and follow cooking instructions. In a large saute pan over medium high heat add the oil, onions and spinach. Let the onions soften. Add the garlic and season with salt and pepper. Turn to low.
Drain the acini (reserving a cup of cooking liquid). Add the acini to the large saute pan. Stir thoroughly, adding some cooking liquid if necessary. Also, add some additional olive oil if desired. Turn the pan off and serve.
The additional side dish to the meal was some beets with shaved aged manchego. It was so delicious.
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