Kids Dish

Another guest post from Blythe

I got this recipe from the May issue of Real Simple magazine, but it’s the perfect summer time meal that might actually get your little one to eat asparagus.

5 cups low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth (I once substituted vegetable bouillon cubes for store-bought broth – definitely not as good)
2 T. olive oil
1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
1 large clove garlic, finely chopped
1 ½ cups barley (you can find boxed barley in the same aisle as the cous cous, or you can buy bulk at a health food store)
1 cup dry white wine (Sauvignon Blanc works well)
1 pound asparagus, cut diagonally into 1-inch pieces (it doesn’t really matter how you cut it)
½ t. salt
¼ t. pepper
½ cup grated Parmesan

Warm the broth in a saucepan over low heat. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for seven minutes or until soft. Add the garlic and cook one minute more. Add the barley and cook, stirring, for two minutes. Stir in the wine and cook until the liquid is absorbed, about three minutes. Add the broth, ½ cup at a time, stirring occasionally and waiting until it is absorbed before adding more (this helps to keep the barley firm and prevent it from becoming soupy). Add the asparagus with the last ½ cup of broth and cook until tender. It should take 30 to 35 minutes for all the broth to be absorbed. Remove from heat, season with salt and pepper (I personally skip the salt – the cheese has enough in it and the broth is flavorful), and stir in the Parmesan. I usually add more Parmesan than they recommend. It’s so delicious.

Aidan wasn’t crazy about the consistency of the barley in his mouth, but he’s come around to it. I love asparagus, especially when it’s in season and I get bored steaming it all the time. My family enjoys this variation.

My husband Bob wrote a guest post after taking Sam to a party at his brother’s house.

For the first ten months of Sam’s life I didn’t possess many concerns regarding his eating until my mom ruined it for me. Other than feeding the baby the food Jackie told me to feed the baby food wasn’t something in which I was involved. Then one day my mother was at the house, Jackie was out, and my mom was feeding Sam cereal. My mother started in on this concern she had, that Sam wasn’t eating all that he should be eating. Like, “Don’t you feed him baby food from a jar?” And the high-pitched questioning, “You just give him a whole pear ? How can he eat a whole pear?”

I don’t know if it’s a problem with men in my family that they just can’t tolerate people telling them things they don’t want to listen to, or if it’s a problem with the women in my family that they just can’t stop telling people over and over and over again things they don’t feel like hearing. On that particular day one of the two dynamics surfaced and remains with me today.

The irony regarding the day my mom wouldn’t shut up about how Sammy wasn’t eating enough was that Sammy wanted nothing to do with the cereal she was feeding him. He ate a little, but lost interest. While Sammy struggled to get off her lap, swatted the spoon away from his face, and expressed his general discontent my mom hammered away with her concerns. I kept saying, “Mom, this is absurd, look at him, he’s not even hungry, you’re argument isn’t valid. If he couldn’t get enough of that food you’d have a strong point.” But she didn’t stop.

I thought of this discussion again today while at a party at my brother’s house. Jackie was out with some friends and Sammy wouldn’t eat much of anything besides chips and pretzels. He ate a stalk of asparagus and an ear of corn, which I considered a great victory, but nothing else to make a parent proud. While I presented options galore: fruit, cheese, meat, bread, vegetables, he wanted nothing and I felt that odd self consciousness reemerge from that day my mom argued Sammy wasn’t getting enough to eat. It sort of makes me dread when Jackie is out and I’m solely responsible for making sure Sam eats.

self-feeding, baby led weaning, guest post, dad in charge,

A guest post from my good friend Blythe

Because of the heat this summer I have been trying not to use the stove and am completely avoiding the oven. I use our toaster oven when I have to bake something. Last week I made broccoli calzone in the toaster oven and shared it with my husband and 15-month old son. My son really enjoys the crust – no surprise there, he loves all bread products.

Broccoli Calzone
Ingredients:

2 broccoli heads cut into large florets

1 12 oz. container of ricotta cheese

½ c. mozzarella cheese (fresh or shredded)

1 egg

10 fresh basil leaves (substitute: dried basil)

15 fresh oregano leaves (substitute: dried oregano)

2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

Salt and pepper to taste (I always skip the salt)

1 ball pizza dough (I buy mine at the supermarket, but I know local pizza places sell it too)

Steam or boil the broccoli for about 7 minutes. I prefer steaming to keep the nutrients in the vegetable, but boiling will work too. You don’t want to over cook the broccoli because it will be cooked again in the calzone. Preheat the toaster oven to 400. Grease the toaster oven’s broiler pan. In a large bowl combine all ingredients except the dough. Set aside. Stretch the dough out with your fists rotating them quickly around the periphery, then transfer it to the broiler pan. Scoop the filling onto half of the dough piling it high. Fold the vacant half over the filling pinching the edges together to hold in the filling. Bake for 20 minutes or until the crust is golden brown. Serve with marinara sauce.

I love this dish because I can get Aidan to eat broccoli which is otherwise impossible.

toaster oven baking, broccoli calzone, recipe