POTATO & BROCCOLI RICE - BABY FOOD SERIES (1)

Ijust realised that the last post here was about a month ago! Where does the time go? Days are just flying by and even before I realise Summer is coming to an end, Costco has started stocking up on Christmas decorations!! Eeeks! That means just one thing...winter is around the corner! I know, I know, there's a season called Fall in between to come but everything just spells Winter to me. Winter in Minneapolis...is too harsh.

A lot of you had asked me about what I feed Ian Vaava on a daily basis.I give him different things depending on my mood on that given day.Sometimes, he has a spread and sometimes it's just some veggie loaded rice and yogurt.Either way, he always relishes everything to the last morsel. So,it works out for us.

I also realised,after reading your emails,that I haven't shared any birthday photographs from Ian's 1st Birthday Party as I promised to! So here are some of them. When I look at these photographs, my heart cannot hold back the emotions I had during those days...a month ago.The drama because he was turning one, the headless chicken dance I did because I wanted EVERYTHING, yes, every single thing to be homemade! Did you know that I even asked Jobin if I could make the burger buns & potato chips at home too...so that it's like a complete homemade thing??

To be honest, when I go for a birthday party or for that matter any party,I look forward to eating the food,the host/hostess cooked. If possible, from scratch. Yeah,I can be a bit difficult that way. I somehow love the charm of homemade meals. I love the fact that there was a lot of thought process that was involved in making that day special, in a complete homemade way.

I feel very accomplished,when I look at the food photographs from his birthday party. I had been planning it since the time he was born. Menu changed multiple times and finally we decided on these things that you are seeing right now.Everything, including the spring roll wrappers were made from scratch. I wanted his birthday to be so special, so special that I didn't mind breaking my head over each detail.

It was a quiet,fun filled day with our good friends here.Ian had a good time and stayed up until we packed up and left from the picnic spot.

POTATO & BROCCOLI RICE
My own recipe

One thing I want to tell you is that I am not a certified baby food maker, so please, please use this as a guide to develop your own recipes,for your child. You know your child better,than me. This is what I feed our baby.

Ingredients
2 tablespoon oil
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 large dried red chili
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1/2 red onion, sliced fine
1 large potato,peeled & cubed
1 cup broccoli florets
1/2 cup sona masoori /basmati rice
1 1/2 cups water
Salt to taste

Method: Heat oil in a pressure cooker,on medium heat.Splutter the mustard followed by cumin and dried red chili.Add the turmeric,onions,potato & broccoli and saute for 2 minutes.Add the rice and stir for a minute.Add water and salt and pressure cook for two whistles.Once the steam is released,open the cooker and adjust seasonings/water to your child's preference*.
*If your baby likes mushy rice,add more water and mush it up using a potato masher.

We must be quite weird when we say that we really like baby food,when made this way. I find Jobin and myself helping ourselves from his little porcelain pot that I keep his food in. If at all,you feel like making it for yourself,decrease the water and pressure cook it for just one whistle. I hope to update this space with more baby food,so that it may benefit some of you.