Strawberry Rhubarb Oatmeal

Summer is finally here and we are loving it!  For the past few weeks my garden has really gotten going, so I've had lots of fun as Mini Muffin has enthusiastically observed our seeds sprouting and growing into every bigger plants.  Not only are the veggies coming along nicely, but my rhubarb is up and producing like mad!  It's a good thing because I certainly do enjoy rhubarb!

While searching for ways (other than delicious pie) to use rhubarb, I came across the idea of rhubarb oatmeal on eatingwell.com and just had to give it a try.  So this morning, we broke from our usual mid-week breakfast routine and tried something new - Strawberry Rhubarb Oatmeal.  Yum!

Strawberry Rhubarb Oatmeal

1 1/2c 2% milk
1/2c orange juice
1c old fashioned rolled oats
1c chopped rhubarb
1/2 tsp cinnamon
pinch salt
1c chopped strawberries
1tbsp maple syrup

1.  Chop rhubarb into ~1cm pieces (or finer if making for baby).
2.  In a medium saucepan, combine milk, orange juice, oats, rhubarb, cinnamon and salt.  Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
3.  Reduce heat until gently bubbling and cook, stirring often, for three minutes.
4.  Add chopped strawberries and cook an additional two minutes or until most liquid has absorbed.
5.  Cover and let rest for five minutes.
6.  Stir in maple syrup, adding additional to taste if desired.

Makes ~3 cups

Little Smiling Man and I both enjoyed having oatmeal with a sweet/tart twist for breakfast.  Since strawberry rhubarb is a common combination the taste was familiar, but somehow completely new being in oatmeal form.  It definitely made for a delicious and unique dish!

The oats held their shape very well, so after having some from a spoon, Little Smiling Man decided to turn it into a messy finger food and enjoyed feeding himself.  For younger babies, I would consider puréeing the final product, but for older babies ready to explore texture this is a great dish! 

I also took some to work for my afternoon snack.  It wasn't quite as satisfying for my sweet/tart cravings as rhubarb pie, but it was definitely a better choice and kept my energy levels steady through until dinner. 

With more rhubarb ready for harvest, I suspect there'll be some more recipe experimentation this weekend.  Stay tuned for more rhubarb goodness!

Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies for Baby

As I was getting ready to return to work, in addition to my flurry of preparing freezer meals, I worked on finding easy, freezable, wholesome finger foods I could make for the kids.  My vision was to have foods, preferably containing some form of vegetable, ready to go in the freezer so that when my hungry littles got home I could put something in their hands to help them wait until dinner's ready.

The first baked creation I tried was a tweaked version of Pumpkin Pie Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies from Amy's Healthy Baking.  It came highly recommended from an online forum I frequent, so I had to give it a try.  The original recipe looks absolutely delicious for grown ups, but for my kids I did need to tweak it a bit.  The end result was a moist and flavourful cookie that Little Smiling Man devoured each and every time I handed him one!  I definitely ate my fair share of them too, and I may or may not have had some breakfast at some point before they ran out...

So without further ado -

Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies for Baby

Soft and delicious Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies

1c instant oats
3/4c whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp nutmeg
pinch salt
3/4c pumpkin purée
1/4c maple syrup
2 tbsp melted butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4c raisins

1.  Preheat oven to 325F
2.  Blend dry ingredients in a medium sized bowl, created a well in the middle.
3.  Combine pumpkin, maple syrup, butter and vanilla.  Pour into dry ingredients and stir until just combined. 
4.  Add raisins, and mix until well distributed.
5. Spoon onto parchment lined cookie sheet.  Using a spoon, press down and form cookies.  These cookies do not spread at all during baking, so form the cookies however you'd like the final product to look.  I used a cookie-sized ice cream scoop to get the volume and round shape I was looking for, then just pressed them down.
6.  Bake 12-14 minutes.  The cookies should still be soft, and slightly browned on the bottom.  Cool on pan for a few minutes before transferring to a rack.

Makes 18 large cookies

Among the many things I like about this recipe (aside from the cookies of which I ate quite a few myself!) is that it gets its sweetness from raisins and a bit of maple syrup as opposed to large quantities of added sugar.  I also like that they work well with whole wheat flour, and have a healthy portion of pumpkin in them.  All in all, they're a well rounded cookie, and did I mention that they're delicious?   

Easy Win - Three Food Group Oatmeal Breakfast for Baby

After a difficult February, including the devastating first trimester loss of Little Smiling Man's precious little sibling, March has arrived with all of us on a more even keel.

Yesterday, I spent some time in my favourite baby cookbook - "Better Baby Food" by Kalnins and Saab, looking for inspiration to help dig Little Smiling Man out of his toast-with-Laughing-Cow-cheese-for-breakfast-food-rut.  I did find inspiration and made it my own, and so I'm happy to share with you my easy, healthy, three food group oatmeal breakfast for baby!  I love slipping veggies in unexpected places like breakfast or dessert, so this breakfast features veggies, dairy and grains.

Three Food Group Oatmeal Baby Breakfast

1/4 c quick cook oats
1/2 c 2% or homo milk
1/4 - 1/3 c roasted butternut squash, mashed

1.  Combine oats and milk in a small saucepan.
2.  Bring to a boil on medium-high heat, reduce heat to simmer.
3.  Cook until thickened, about three minutes.
4.  Add well mashed squash.
5.  Allow oatmeal to cool to baby temperature, and serve.

Makes 2-3 baby servings.  Appropriate for babies 8 months and older.  To reheat, add a little more milk to maintain texture.

Three Food Group Oatmeal Baby Breakfast

That's it!  Super easy, and a healthy way to start the day, or finish off dinner.  Little Smiling Man is a fan, and I'm a fan of getting a head start on our daily veggie quota.  In future we'll try mixing it up, maybe trying sweet potatoes or carrots.  But for now, aside from having to deal with clean up of a little boy with oatmeal plastered in his hair, I'd say this low effort meal is an easy win!

Simply Delicious - Fruity Oatmeal Bites

Little Smiling Man has seriously been enjoying raspberries this week.  It's the first time in a couple of months that we've had them on hand, and he will truly eat as many as I give him.  He just can't seem to get enough!

This morning, I decided to make a quick and easy breakfast I haven't made in ages and that Little Smiling Man has actually never had before (and would give him that raspberry taste he loves so much)!  I originally came across this recipe on an online forum focused on babies, as an idea for baby finger foods, and have made it many times since.  It's a fun way for babies and toddlers to enjoy their oatmeal, and makes a nice change from the usual cereal, bowl of oatmeal or toast.  It also makes an easy breakfast or snack on the go since it's a non-sticky finger food.  Enjoy!

Fruity Oatmeal Bites

Cooked bites, after being transferred from plate.

1/2 banana
5 raspberries (approx.)
1/4 cup quick cook oats

1.  Thoroughly mash banana and raspberries.  The banana should be mashed until the point that it's pretty much smooth.
2.  Mix in oats, making sure that they're thoroughly coated with banana.
3.  Transfer to a plate, forming the mixture into a square.
4.  Microwave on high, for approximately three minutes.  You're looking for the oatmeal to be held together enough to lift off the plate as a square, but still soft enough for little ones to enjoy.  If it's undercooked it will be too soft to transfer off the plate, and if it's over cooked it gets very chewy/hard as it cools.  It may take a few times to find the right time for your microwave.
5.  Cut into bite sized pieces and serve once cool enough.

Ready for little fingers!

The final verdict?  Little Smiling Man thought it was fantastic and gobbled the whole thing up.  I suppose it's not really surprising since bananas and raspberries are two of his favourite things!  I suspect that I'll be making this one for him many times in the future.  We may also start experimenting with a few variations, like adding some nut butter for protein, or using different berries.  So many possibilities.... 
     

Perfect Homemade Peanut Butter and Other Good Stuff Granola Bars

In our house, we love granola bars as a quick and convenient snack.  Hubby takes them to work, I use them as energy boosts when I'm on the go (which seems to be most of the time!), and Mini Muffin enjoys them as an occasional treat.  I've been trying to find a delicious, simple and relatively healthy recipe for a homemade version.  It's harder than you might think!  Some were too heavy, some too sweet, and don't get me started on problems getting some of them to bind...

The closest recipe to 'just right' that I've found is from Super Healthy Kids (here: http://www.superhealthykids.com/peanut-butter-chocolate-trail-mix-granola-bars/).  I really enjoyed them as they were, but thought they could be even better.  So, using it as a guideline, I incorporated my favourite aspects of all the other recipes to create my own "perfect", simple, no-bake recipe.  I hope you enjoy it!

Perfect Homemade Peanut Butter and Other Good Stuff Granola Bars 
 
Ingredients
 
1 1/2 cups rolled oats
2/3 cup roughly chopped raw almonds
2/3 cup Rice Krispies cereal
1/3 cup ground flax seed
1 1/2 cups "other good stuff"
1 cup natural peanut butter
1/2 cup honey
pinch of salt

Directions

1.  Line a 8x8 (or similar) pan with parchment paper.
2.  Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl. "Other Good Stuff" includes things like sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, nuts, dried fruit, chocolate chips, etc.  I used 1/4 cup each of sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, mini chocolate chips and craisins, as well as 1/2 cup raisins.  By mixing it up, and using what you have on hand, these bars can be different every time.  Try a few salted nuts to get a sweet and salty combo, or banana chips with coconut to give a tropical flare.  Your imagination (and the contents of your pantry) are the limit!
3.  Warm peanut butter until it pours easily (~45 seconds in my microwave), then stir in honey and salt.  If you want to reduce the amount of honey, just compensate with peanut butter so there's still enough moisture to bind the bars.
4.  Mix wet and dry ingredients; I found using my hands was most effective.  
5.  Transfer to parchment lined pan.  Using another piece of parchment paper firmly press down into an even and well compacted layer.
6.  Refrigerate and cut into bars when well chilled.  Store covered in refrigerator. 

The final step, of course, is to enjoy them.  Mini Muffin's verdict? "There's chocolate in there... more treat, please!".