Beetroot Jam / Chutney

This is one of my favorite 'inventions'. Technically you can give beetroot gradually after 6 months, say by 7 months or so. Although it is sweet, it has a raw-ish taste to it that makes it impossible to give it alone most times, unless you cook it really well and make sticks, which I do sometimes when all Athyn wants to do is bite and eat.

Yea so sometimes he is very cranky, I guess every mommy knows those tantrum days, teething or not! Those days, the one thing that really works for me is making him believe he is eating what am eating. Keep away his bowls and spoons and feed from my plate. Try it, it works most times, else head for a cold teether anyway! Or all of us sit with him and eat, he is very proud to share the family dinner. This beetroot chutney comes in handy when feeding idli and dosa. Psst... once i dipped a whole idli in this chutney all over and gave it to him as 'red' biscuit and he loved it :D

Method to make Beetroot Chutney

1. Wash and peel a beetroot, cut into 5 to 6 cubes.
2. Wash and peet a carrot, Cut into 5 to 6 pieces.
3. Steam for about 20 to 25 minutes / Pressure cook up to 4 whistles
4. Blend along with very little water.
5. Serve with idli, dosa or roti

Method to make Beetroot Jam 

1. For the jam, steam an apple instead of carrot, along with the beetroot.
2. Cut the beetroot into smaller pieces than the apple (apple cooks faster) 
3. Reduce the steaming time to max 15 to 20 mins lest the apple becomes tangy
4. Blend to get a cutesy pink puree as sweet as any other sugar-loaded jam.

So the Beetroot jam can be had as a meal in itself. It is very filling if you use a whole apple and whole beetroot. Apple is one the best first foods. If using for breakfast, you can even add beetroot and potato together, it has a very unique taste and is full of energy.

But if you are serving with dosa or bread, do wait until 9 months or whenever your baby is ready.

Tomato-flavored Sooji Kheer / Upma

This one came out of an experiment with adding taste to simple rava (sooji) upma while not adding salt. I usually add some vegetable or fruit to make his food tasteful without the need of salt or sugar, but here I get stuck. I know babies have no taste of salt and it does not matter to them but somehow the idea of bland sooji kheer (porridge) seems boring right?

So I started out flavoring the water that I use to make the Upma and was amazed by the result. The smell in the kitchen after making this Upma is divine! It is sooooo tempting that you wanna eat it yourself. Well the best part is when I did, I absolutely didnt feel the need for salt in it even for me!

Method to make Tomato-flavored Sooji Upma / Kheer

1. Wash and deseed a couple of juicy tomatoes
2. Boil them in water for few minutes.
3. Mash and squeeze the juices out of the tomatoes and strain.
4. Boil the tomato-flavored water in a fresh pan
(make sure the water is in 1:4 ratio with the sooji to be used)
5. Add Jeera (cumin) powder, hing (asafoetida) and ghee.

6. When the bubbles form, slowly spread the rava  into the boiling water.
7. Keep in lowest flame and let it cook.

Serve it warm to baby, they love it. It hardens when cold. You can increase the water ratio if you want to feed like a porridge. You can even add little pepper and turmeric powder if you are giving your baby. But i think its the cumin, hing and ghee combo that makes it smell and taste so yumm.

Some people start rava / sooji right after 7 months, but in case of tomato, do the 3 day test for sure, cos it is a known allergen in many people (especially if one or both of the parents / siblings are prone to allergies). And about the spices, its your call again, cumin is very good for digestion and I started it a little before 8 months or so. You can wait until 8 or 9 months or until you feel your baby is ready.

Sweet Potato Puree

Here I begin one more blog on food. Something that I hope will help a lot of mommies like me wanting to feed their baby the best, while it is both yummy and healthy, and most of all appropriate. Small snippets from my experiments with nutrients and tastes based on my baby's love - hate relationship with food and of course the extensive gyan I picked up from where else but the internet!!

So to give it a sweet start, this is a simple recipe made with sweet potato (chakravali kizhangu), considered one of the best first foods when starting solids to six month olds! Although my son had carrot as his first food, this one was one of the first few that was welcomed with much enthusiasm. Babies love sweet potato. It is one of the most natural sources of sweetness for those lil tongues used to the sweetness of breastmilk alone for six whole months. Plus it serves awesome for that extra energy when only one solid food a day is given or as a breakfast to kick start the day with a good carbohydrate meal. It is easily digestible and contains vitamin b6 and c, beta-carotene, iron and potassium.

Method to make Sweet Potato Puree 

1. Wash and cut one sweet potato into half
2. Place in a steamer (or a small bowl that is partially covered)
3. Pressure cook up to 3 or 4 whistles (or steam for 20 minutes)
4. Peel the skin and blend with little water.
5. Alternatively, you can use raisin water too. (soak a handful of raisin overnight or at least for 3 hours, boil it and strain it, you can use the water to make any fruit or vegetable puree, this helps relieve constipation)

If your baby is over seven months, you can give multiple fruits and vegetables. Try steaming an apple along with the sweet potato and make a puree. It adds a little zest to the puree while the sweet potato takes away the tangy flavor that babies hate in an overcooked apple puree. Makes a winner combo!