This Yolk's on You!!

Awful jokes... I know... but I sometimes struggle with something catchy and not so boring to call these blog posts.  As our little girl hit 8 months, we decided to start trying the proteins, starting with Egg Yolk. There are mixed things out there as to when you can give your kid egg yolks or eggs, so we figured we'd start with the yolk first.

I separated two eggs, and mixed up the yolks with a fork.  I oiled a pan with olive oil (we are out of pam spray and I know she does fine with olive oil), and dropped the yolks in.  I let them harden on the bottom and then flipped them over and folded it like an omelette. It wasnt quite as fluffy since it was just the yolks so when I cut it into little pieces, they almost looked like little squares of cardboard.

At first she was having a bit of a tough night and didnt seem to want to pick them up herself, so we just put one in her mouth to see what she'd think.

She quickly realized how much she liked it and started reaching for it and shoving fistfuls of the egg into her mouth.  She didnt end up finishing it all (like I said a bit of a tough night), but she definitely really liked it!!

The next night I decided to be a bit more creative.  I separated 5 eggs, and just used the yolks to make her an omelet.  I shredded some zucchini and yellow squash and sauteed that in olive oil for about 4 minutes.  I then poured the beaten egg yolks over the top and occasionally stirred the egg mixture as it cooked so that it came out more like scrambled eggs.  I let it cool in the fridge while I finished some other work in the kitchen, and then broke it up into smaller chunks for her to eat.

 Once again she definitely really liked it.  I think I sound like a broken record... we really havent found much she doesn't like!! But we're happy eggs seem to be a hit!

Asleep on the Job!

Daycare told us that she had fallen asleep at lunch a few times, but we had yet to see it ourselves.  This weekend she passed out while eating her puree after a handful of finger foods.  I could see her eyes starting to droop, and wondered what the outcome would be.  I sort of suspected a 5 minute nap, but boy was I surprised when 25 minutes later she was still fast asleep!!  I guess this eating thing is hard work!! Food coma.......

Stuff your face with Turnip

Root veggies had gone well so far, but Turnip can be an acquired taste as it is a tad stronger sometimes than the others.  Like many of the others, I cut it into fry shape sticks tossed it in olive oil and baked it at 400 degrees for roughly 35 minutes.  She went through it just like the sweet potatoes!  In fact she tried shoving entire fries in her mouth, which ended up being too much for her little mouth to handle so she'd have to spit some of it out.  But she definitely liked it!

Left photo entitled: What do you mean I have too much in my mouth mom? Im practicing to be a squirrel!!

As of this blog, we haven't tried the puree yet, but its made up and in the freezer!!

Recommendation:
Turnip: Clean and Peel the turnip. Chop into fry shapes, toss in olive oil and bake at 400 for 35-45 minutes until tender.  It will soften a bit more after it cools.
Turnip Puree: Clean and chop in half, place cut half down on a baking sheet with a bit of olive oil.  Bake for 45-60 minutes until center is tender.  Allow to cool, peel, cut into large chunks and puree with some water in a blender.  You may need a decent amount of water as the turnip is a pretty thick vegetable.

HmmmMillet?

Working on more grains, we decided to try Millet.  I mixed it up with one of her favorite fruits - Apricot.  When I made it to freeze, it seemed light and fluffy like cous cous.  The problem was as our daughter tried it, I think the grains were a little thick, and every time she worked her way through a bite, while she would swallow a lot of it, I think it ticked her throat and she would gag a little bit.  We tried it a few times across a week with the same results, so I think we will wait on that one for a while.  Millet pureed or something might be ok, but just straight up millet was a bit much for her for now.

Chilly Cucumber

So one of the veggies that is simple enough to prepare, but I wasnt certain she was going to get much out of was cucumber.  I peeled the cucumbers and cut them into little sticks.  She did seem to enjoy gnawing on them, and on nights when she wasnt absolutely starved she could chew on it for quite a while, and dissolve and get some of it down.

This is one that doesn't freeze or puree well from what I read, so I didnt bother trying.  I did read that you could shred it and mix it in with yogurt, or I've even seen cucumber soups made for summer, but didnt bother trying that level yet.

A while later, we decided to try some shredded cucumber, and that was a little easier to swallow.  The first night she kinda just shoved some towards her mouth, and Im not sure much made it down, but I also think it was really the first shredded food she had had, so after a second and third night of trying it, she got better at actually picking up and eating the shredded cucumber.

Classic Cheerios

Ok, I know I didnt have to make them... I didn't do anything special at all... but we so far had pretty much properly introduced almost all foods, so Cheerios deserved their time as well.  She had a blast picking them up and noming away.  At first they were crunchier than they were used to and you could actually hear her trying to chew on them, but she soon got the hang of it and moved through the pile!

Popeye's Girl

It was time to work on some greens - get that iron in! So we moved on to spinach.  The first night I just tried steaming the baby spinach in our convenient little microwave steamer.  It came out reasonably tender, but I think it was still hard to process without teeth.  She grabbed it and put it in alright, but it was mostly gumming and drooling, and eventually getting just a smidge of it down. The stems always stuck out a bit and never really got swallowed.

The puree was much easier!! The second night I tried sauteeing it with a little olive oil and that broke it down a little more, but still wasn't terribly appetizing I guess.  The puree was a little easier to get through and she seemed to like it just as much as anything else.  Perhaps we will try spinach again when we get to eggs or something we can chop and mix it into...

Recommendations

Spinach: Use baby spinach and perhaps even chop it up a little bit.  Saute it with Olive oil until soft.  Serve in little piles for little hands to grab.

Pureed Spinach: Saute bunch of spinach with a little bit of olive oil.  If some liquid is retained in the pan, add that to the mix and puree with a blender.