Frozen Ban-Ola – Do you have bananas that need to be used up?

Apr 30, 2010 Fruits and Veggies, New Baby Food Recipes

Well we had snow 2 days ago and now, it’s looking to get up to 80 degrees F by the weekend.  Having a few bananas on hand that are rapidly approaching their “brown-by” date, I’ll be making Frozen Ban-Ola for the kiddos!  Of course, you could use those bananas to make banana bread teething sticks.

Frozen Ban-Ola

Ingredients:

1 medium sized banana – peeled
1/2 cup crushed granola or Oatie O’s or cereal of your choice
1/2 cup plain or vanilla yogurt (blueberry yogurt is good to use too!)

Directions

Dip or roll the banana in the yogurt
Roll banana in crushed granola
Place in freezer bag and freeze.
**If you prefer, push a popsicle stick into the banana before rolling and dipping to give tiny hands a handle to grab**

You can serve this up without it being frozen but caution, it makes a mess!  For younger babies, add the frozen ban-ola to a baby safe feeder for a tasty nutritious snack!

Alergy Alert – dairy, wheat (depending on cereal/granola you use)

Jazz up Quinoa with Cherries – Ooh pretty color

Apr 29, 2010 New Baby Food Recipes

Quinoa is one of our favorite grains!  It can be a breakfast cereal, a great addition to a soup and even substitute for couscous and rice.  It can be a messy endeavour for the little self-feeding foodie.  As someone on the Fan page mentioned, it’s like chasing after beads!  If you have any cherries hanging about in the freezer or find some at the grocery store, make this tasty recipe!

Red Quinoa

Ingredients

1/2 cup of frozen or fresh cherries (pitted, washed and picked through for stems and other debris)
dash of vanilla
1 cup of cooked quinoa

Directions

Prepare quinoa according to package directions

In a glass bowl, warm the cherries in the microwave for about 30 seconds and then squish cherries with a fork and add dash vanilla.  Puree in a blender/food processor if needed.  Stir the cherries into the quinoa and serve warm.  Very colorful and very nutritious.  Try stirring in some yogurt to make this more creamy.

Good for babies 7-8 months of age

Quick & Easy Cheesy Veggie or Apple Quesadillas

Apr 28, 2010 Baby Food Recipes Updated, Dairy, Finger Foods, New Baby Food Recipes

When my kiddos were able to handle lots of texture (about 9 months), I began making them quick & easy cheesy quesadillas.  These quesadillas were great for them to gnaw and suck on.  It was rare that they “bit off more than they could chew” due to the overall size and texture of the quesadilla.  Please be sure to keep an eye on your baby whenever feeding her large sized foods!  This is a great way to use up any extra food cubes that may be hanging back in your freezer!  This is also a healthy snack food.

Ingredients
1 large whole wheat or plain flour tortilla
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 or 2 thawed cubes of pureed veggies or mashed veggies

Directions:
Spread the veggies over the tortilla and then toss on the cheddar
Bake or broil until cheese has melted [If broiling, watch carefully as cheese may burn quickly!]
You may also warm in the microwave, on a glass plate, until the cheese is melted at 25 second intervals

Once the cheese is melted, fold the tortilla in half and then press the contents throughout so that they fill the tortilla.  Allow to cool a bit and then serve straight up!

Variations – use applesauce instead of veggies, keep the cheese.  You could also add some shredded chicken.

Allergy Alert:  dairy, wheat