Author Archives: TheGingerbreadMum

Quick Chicken Nuggets

Posted on July 4, 2013 by TheGingerbreadMum

This is another recipe from Annabel Karmel’s new book, ‘Quick and Easy Recipes for Toddlers’, which I recently reviewed. These are a much quicker and easier version of the Chicken Nuggets which feature in her ‘Top 100 Finger Foods’ book. This time she uses store-bought red pesto sauce and smashed up cornflakes.

What children don’t like chicken nuggets? Well I’m sure there must be some, but put a plate of nuggets with some tomato sauce for dipping in front of fussy eaters and you’re most likely going to have a stress-free meal. Now if only we could get some veg in there too…

To be honest, I wasn’t sure about the use of ready-made red pesto, which is a pesto made from sun-dried tomatoes rather than the traditional green basil pesto (it can also be made from roasted red peppers/capsicum). But I’ve made these nuggets a few times now and this recipe’s speed is definitely a winner! It’s also easy enough for your little ones to help you make them. They can have lots of fun bashing up the cornflakes and it’s also fairly mess-free.

If you have a bit more time or if you’d prefer not to feed your little one ready-made sauce, red pesto is quite easy to whip up, basically throwing the ingredients into a blender and whizzing them to a paste. Marthe at The Baking Bluefinger has a very easy recipe. The pesto will keep in the fridge for about a week, but it also freezes very well (freeze it in ice cube trays so you only need to defrost a small portion when you need it).

The original Annabel Karmel recipe adds seasoning to the chicken pieces before covering them in the pesto, but for me there’s well and truly enough seasoning in the pesto itself without adding more, even if you’re serving these to older family members. I’ve also added the preparation time as unfortunately this is lacking for all of the recipes in Annabel Karmel’s new book (that’s a super important piece of information to know for busy mums and dads!.

The nuggets are best eaten immediately as the coating loses some of its crunchiness as they cool down. However, they’re still yummy cold and leftovers can be popped into the next day’s lunch box.

I’m still thinking about how to get some vegetables into a chicken nugget. I’m eyeing up some pea puree left over from a scallop and chorizo starter I made hubby and wondering if it would work instead of pesto. Hmmm… I’ll get back to you!

QUICK CHICKEN NUGGETS

Prep time: 10 mins
Cook time: 10 mins
Makes about 25 nuggets

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 tbsp red pesto
50g cornflakes
15g Parmesan, finely grated

Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan and line an oven tray with baking paper.

Slice the chicken breasts into small cubes (you should get 10-12 pieces from each breast). Put the chicken into a bowl and mix in the pesto to coat the chicken.

Put the cornflakes into a plastic food bag and bash them with a rolling pin to make fine crumbs. Add the cheese and half of the chicken to the bag. Shake the bag to coat the nuggets, then transfer them to a plate. Add the remaining chicken to the bag of crumbs and repeat.

Lay the nuggets on a baking sheet and cook in the oven for 10 minutes.

What foods do your fussy eaters always eat?

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Posted in cooking with toddlers, dinner, family, lunch, recipe, snack, toddler and tagged Annabel Karmel, chicken nuggets, finger food, Quick and Easy Toddler Recipes. Bookmark the permalink.

Ham, Cheese and Veggie Muffins

Posted on July 1, 2013 by TheGingerbreadMum

I was very happy to discover this new blog (The Diary of a Fussy Eater). Amy’s a working mum of a fussy eater who’s taking a stand to get her boy to eat more healthily. If, like me, you’re struggling with your own fussy eater, I’d definitely recommend checking out Amy’s recipes and techniques.

Amy’s Ham and Cheese Mini Muffins are super easy and quick to make. I made them with Nicholas pretty much immediately after seeing the recipe and my fussy eater scoffed three of them as soon as they were cool enough to eat for his afternoon snack. Win!

I made a couple of little changes to her wonderful recipe. I used wholemeal self-raising flour (she uses plain flour with the addition of a couple of tablespoons of wheat bran) and I added some veg (I just couldn’t help myself!). I think you can easily get away with adding some grated vegetables as the overall flavour is still ham and cheese which kids usually love.

Like me, Amy isn’t a fan of hiding vegetables as it doesn’t help little ones learn to enjoy eating their veg. BUT that certainly doesn’t mean I don’t do it. I think the important thing is to keep offering them an assortment of vegetables, cooked in different ways to keep trying to pique their interest.

I make these muffins with Nicholas and point out all the ingredients as we add them, so I don’t think the veg can be called hidden! Our favourite grated vegetable to add is carrot, but courgette (zucchini) has gone down well and also parsnip.

This recipe is also great in that it’s very ‘forgiving’. The amounts don’t have to be exact and we’ve also made them successfully tipping everything into the bowl together (egg unbeaten), mixing until combined, so perfect for getting your munchkins involved (which is also a good way to encourage them to eat).

The muffins freeze very well and are also great in lunchboxes. And I’ve scoffed quite a few myself!

Thank you Amy for helping me get more vegetables into my own fussy eater 🙂

HAM, CHEESE AND VEGGIE MUFFINS

Prep time: 15 mins
Cook time: 10-15 mins
Makes 12 small muffins
Freezable

1 cup of wholemeal (or plain) self-raising flour
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
100g cooked ham, sliced
1/2 cup milk
60g butter, melted and cooled
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/3 cup finely grated vegetables such as carrot, zucchini or parsnip
Salt and pepper (optional)

Preheat your oven to 200C. Lightly spray or grease a 12-hole muffin tin.

In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine the flour, cheese and ham.

In a jug or small bowl, whisk together the milk, butter and egg then stir through the grated vegetable. Season with salt and pepper if desired.

Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined (mixing too much can make your muffins dense and chewy).

Divide the mixture evenly between the muffin tin holes. Bake for 10-15 mins until golden and cooked through when tested with a skewer.

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Posted in cooking with toddlers, family, lunch, recipe, snack, toddler and tagged cooking with kids, family, finger food, freezable, fussy eaters, lunch, recipe, savoury muffins, snack, The Diary of a Fussy Eater, toddler. Bookmark the permalink.

Orange and Soy Sole

Posted on June 20, 2013 by TheGingerbreadMum

As promised, here is one of the recipes I tried from Annabel Karmel’s new book, ‘Quick and Easy Toddler Recipes’, which I reviewed in a previous post and which is out today.

I’ll definitely be making this again. It’s very quick (under 10 minutes!), very tasty and perfect to make for the whole family. Even if your little one isn’t a huge fish fan, give this a try as the sweetness of the orange juice might change their minds. You could cut the fish into more manageable ‘fingers’, before dusting with flour, for little hands to feed themselves.

Serve with a side salad for adults and some raw vegetable sticks for toddlers (prepare a stash of these to keep in the fridge for a few days to save you some time).

Annabel’s recipe says two lemon sole fillets makes 1-2 portions which is confusing to me as the serving sizes throughout the book seem to be a toddler portion. For me, allow at least one fillet (one half of the fish) for each adult and 1/2-1 fillet for each child.

You don’t just need to use lemon sole with this orange and soy sauce; any white fish (cod, plaice, haddock, etc) would go well with the sauce. Next time I’m going to try it with salmon chunks for Nicholas.

ORANGE AND SOY SOLE

Prep time: 5 mins
Cook time: 3 mins
Feeds 1 adult and 1 toddler

2 lemon sole fillets, skinned
Salt and pepper
Plain flour, for dusting
A knob of butter, for frying
1 tbsp orange juice
1 tsp soy sauce

Season the fish fillets and coat them on both sides with the flour, shaking off any excess.

Melt the butter in a frying pan until foaming, add the fish and fry for 1 and 1/2 minutes. Turn them over and fry for 1 minute more.

Mix the orange juice and soy sauce together, pour it over the fish and let the sauce bubble away for 30 seconds.

Serve immediately.

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Posted in dinner, family, lunch, recipe, toddler and tagged Annabel Karmel, dinner, family, fish, lemon sole, orange and soy sauce, Quick and Easy Toddler Recipes, recipe, toddler, whole family. Bookmark the permalink.

Review: Annabel Karmel’s Quick and Easy Toddler Recipes

Posted on June 18, 2013 by TheGingerbreadMum

Annabel Karmel, the saviour of many parents when it comes to feeding little ones, has a new recipe book coming out this week, and I’ve been very lucky to be able to try out her new recipes over the past month.

I know many mums (me included) who found Annabel’s ‘Complete Baby and Toddler Meal Planner’ a godsend during those initially challenging weaning months. So no surprise then that since it’s publication in 1991, it’s remained the number-one bestselling book on food for children. Her new recipe book, ‘Quick and Easy Toddler Recipes’, is a great follow-on from it.

‘Quick and Easy Toddler Recipes’ has the same look as Annabel’s other books with lots of lovely photographs of the recipes and also some cute drawings scattered throughout. It’s a lovely book to look at with an excellent index and useful chapters (Breakfasts and Snacks, Pasta, Fish, Poultry, Meat, Vegetables, and Fruit).

The recipes all have easy-to-follow instructions with ingredients either already in your cupboard or easily bought. The number of portions each recipe makes can be seen at a glance, although as the book’s aim is feeding the whole family with one recipe, adult serving sizes would be useful too.

‘Breakfasts and Snacks’ include buttermilk blueberry pancakes, scrambled eggs with tomato salsa, ideas for sandwich fillings and quick snack ideas (although the inclusion of popcorn as a toddler snack is a worry – see why here).

All the ‘Pasta’ recipes would be suitable for the whole family plus there are some quick sauce ideas. The recipes also include pasta bakes and pasta salads.

The ‘Fish’ chapter includes some pasta recipes as well as the tasty-sounding orange and soy sole, teriyaki salmon kebabs and lemon sole goujons.

‘Poultry’ recipes, the biggest chapter of the book, also has some pasta dishes, as welll as ideas for wrap fillings, soups and meatballs.

It’s great to see a veal recipe (schnitzel) in the ‘Meat’ chapter. There’s also sticky lamb chops, pork fillet stir-fry, and sweet and sour pork, just to name a few.

There are a couple of soup recipes in the ‘Vegetables’ section along with some risotto recipes, pasta recipes, fritters and a frittata recipe.

The most disappointing section for me is ‘Fruit’ and this is where I have to admit I have an issue with Annabel Karmel’s recipes. The one issue I have across all the recipes of hers I’ve tried and perused (and not just in her new book) is the lack of sugar-free sweet recipes. Every single recipe in the ‘Fruit’ chapter, as well as her fresh fruit salad in the opening ‘Breakfast’ chapter, has sugar. Every single one. And this worries me.

Scattered throughout the book are time-saving tips for hassled parents which is a nice addition. Advice includes buying ready-grated cheese, using just boiled water from the kettle to cook pasta, putting dinner leftovers in your little ones’ lunchboxes the following day and buying frozen vegetables (although this last one isn’t reflected in the recipes with several asking for just a couple of spoonfuls of tinned corn!). The suggestion to reorganise your kitchen so you have easy access to the equipment you use the most is good advice, but how many of us would actually do it?

My biggest gripe about this book, especially when it’s being marketed at busy mums and dads who need quick and healthy meals, is the lack of timings. There aren’t any cooking or preparation timse given for any of the recipes. Being able to see at a glance how long each recipe takes would be really helpful for hassled parents.

It’s also a shame there aren’t more suggestions or advice for getting toddlers to help you cook, in fact I can only see one which encourages them to blitz fruit. While you can certainly have your munchkin make her or his own wraps (although do you need a recipe for that?), it would’ve been good to have some recipes that just involved measuring and mixing to fully engage a toddler. For instance, the apple and sultana muffin recipe needs the butter and sugar to be creamed rather than including a muffin recipe where the butter is melted and cooled then all the remaining ingredients just mixed in, which is very do-able for a toddler.

It states there are “tips and tricks to encourage fussy eaters” which I was very enthusiastic to read considering my recent confession to you, but I found no real advice for frustrated parents. Reading the book from cover to cover deciding which recipes I’d try out first, I dismissed many thinking Nicholas would just pick out the vegetables or just not want to try them because of the size of the chunks of vegetables. Yes, you can dice up vegetables so the pieces are tiny and keep your fingers and toes crossed as you serve it up, but I think exasperated parents would welcome even the simplest practical advice to be explained.

However, for the many mums and dads out there who are stressed, tired, often catering for the multiple culinary demands of their family, battling to get their little ones to eat, and in need of help, Annabel’s new book will definitely inspire. There are plenty of easy recipes that can be quickly whipped up (130 to be exact!), saving many of us tearing our hair out not knowing what to feed our family this evening.

Look out for some of Annabel’s new toddler recipes over the next few weeks as I share some of my ‘tests’ with you!

‘Quick and Easy Toddler Recipes’ will be published by Ebury Press on 20 June 2013 (RRP £9.99).

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of Annabel Karmel’s ‘Quick and Easy Toddler Recipes’ to review. My opinions are honest and my own.

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Posted in review, toddler and tagged Annabel Karmel, Complete Baby and Toddler Meal Planner, Ebury Press, Quick and Easy Toddler Recipes, review. Bookmark the permalink.

A confession

Posted on June 17, 2013 by TheGingerbreadMum

I have a confesson to make.

I blog easy and healthy recipes for toddlers (and their busy parents). I love being in the kitchen and I especially love making things for my toddler Nicholas. I would happily spend all of my free time cooking for him.

But (deep breath)…

I have a fussy eater.

There, I’ve finally admitted it. My toddler often refuses to eat what I spend so much time preparing for him and which I then blog giving the impression that he scoffs everything (well at least I think that’s the impression I give).

Having a fussy eater wasn’t in my agenda. Hubby and I are foodies through and through, and food is a big part of our lives.

We did baby-lead weaning immediately, got Nicholas smelling and touching and trying a vast arrange of foods very early on. He happily ate tomatoes and whole broccoli stems as well as other vegetables during his first stages of weaning. I tried to limit the amount of fruit in favour of more veg to encourage his tastebuds to explore not just sweet flavours.

Then he started becoming fussy. Just a little bit. I kept telling myself it’s a normal phrase; it will pass. But it didn’t. I’d hear other mums complain about their fussy toddlers and think ‘I’m glad that’s not us’. But it was.

He got fussier and fussier, and our ‘fussy phase’ goes on and on.

I long for the days when he happily tried pretty much everything he was offered rather than the ‘No! NO!’ and ‘Finished mummy’ (while handing back an untouched plate) I get now. His refusals mainly involve vegetables, even picking out the tiniest pieces from dishes, holding them aloft and declaring ‘No broccoli mummy!’, and not touching meat dishes (usually the only thing he never fusses over) when there’s hidden veg lurking (how does he know when he hasn’t even tasted it?!).

I’ve had a post in my draft section for many many months. A post giving advice for fussy eaters (!). It’s a work in progress as I keep adding things I’ve researched or tips that have worked (although aren’t a ‘cure’). It may be a while before I feel ready to post it!

Now that my shoulders are a little lighter (it always feels better to get something off one’s chest), while I wistfully look at old photos of Nicholas loving food, if any of you lovely readers have some fussy eater advice, please share!

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Posted in toddler and tagged feeding toddler, fussy eaters, fussy toddlers. Bookmark the permalink.

Quick and easy chicken and vegetable satay

Posted on June 13, 2013 by TheGingerbreadMum

When I stayed with my childhood best friend during our trip to Australia six months ago, I had a good peruse of her handwritten recipe book (isn’t that what you do when you’re catching up with friends you haven’t seen for years?!). It’s where I ‘stole’ her mum’s delectable recipe for lemon slice and then was delighted to see this recipe sourced from me many years ago.

I used this make this recipe a lot when I was first venturing into the world on my own after university (probably sourced from a magazine), but over the years had forgotten about it. It’s certainly not an authentic satay recipe, but the great thing is it’s packed with flavour without having to marinate the chicken beforehand therefore saving you time. I also love you throw all the sauce ingredients into a pot and stir and that’s it!

You could easily make this just with chicken, leaving out the vegetables (perhaps have some stir-fried or steamed vegetables on the side instead) or you can reduce the amount of chicken (it is quite a lot) and add more vegetables. Nicholas is a huge fan of satay sauce and will happily eat vegetables he normally refuses to just look at simply because they’re covered in satay sauce! And you really can use pretty much any vegetable you want (I’ve successfully used combinations of cauliflower, carrots, peas, beans, mushrooms, potato, sweet potato, baby corn, peppers/capsicum and broccoli). Now if only I could get Nicholas’ papà to like satay sauce…

QUICK AND EASY CHICKEN AND VEGETABLE SATAY

Prep time: 20-25 mins
Cook time: 25-30 mins
Makes 4-6 adult servings

1/4 cup peanut butter (smooth or chunky)
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp lime or lemon juice
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 cup hot chicken stock or water
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1kg chicken thigh or breast fillets, sliced or chopped
1/2 cup plain flour
500g assorted vegetables, chopped into stir-fry size

In a medium-sized saucepan combine the peanut butter, honey, lime juice, soy sauce, crushed garlic, curry powder, cumin and stock. Stir over a medium heat and gradually bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer uncovered for about 5 minutes or until the sauce has thickened slightly.

While the sauce is simmering, heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan.

Put the flour in a large bowl and stir through the chicken pieces until coated. Tip the chicken into a colander or sieve and shake off the excess flour. (Coating the chicken pieces in flour helps prevent them from overcooking too easily and the flour will also help thicken the sauce later.)

Stir fry the chicken in several batches until browned. Remove from pan and drain on paper towel.

Stir fry the vegetables for 2 minutes ot until they’re just soft. Return the chicken to the pan and add the sauce. Stir fry for about 3 minutes or until heated through.

(If the sauce isn’t thick enough for your liking, add a teaspoon of cornflour or plain flour dissolved in cold water and mix it thoroughly through the sauce, cooking for an extra minute or two.)

Serve with your preferred cooked rice.

Variations:

use thin strips of beef or turkey instead of chicken.
substitute the stock or water with coconut milk for a creamier sauce.
instead of stir frying the meat and vegetables, thread them onto skewers and cook over a grill, then pour over the satay sauce to serve.
for a vegetarian version, replace the chicken with tofu or paneer (a cheese commonly used in Indian cooking that you can actually make yourself!).

Other uses:
Use the sauce as a dipping sauce for sticks of raw vegetables such as celery, capsicum, carrot (perfect for toddlers who love to dip)

Please note: Peanut butter is high in nutrition and a good source of protein, but peanuts are one of the most common food allergies. If you have a family history of allergies of any kind, you should talk to your GP or health visitor before giving your baby any peanut products. In the UK it’s suggested not to give peanut butter to babies under 6 months; it’s also recommended not to give children below the age of five whole nuts because of the risk of choking (either crush or break them into small pieces).

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Posted in dinner, family, recipe, toddler and tagged chicken satay, dinner, family, hidden vegetables, peanut sauce, quick satay sauce, recipe, satay, satay recipe, toddler. Bookmark the permalink.

Dairy-free chocolate cupcakes

Posted on June 6, 2013 by TheGingerbreadMum

Here in the UK the weather is glorious (and what a difference that makes to everyone’s mood!). Although I’ve lived here for (hang on while I count…) almost eight years (EIGHT YEARS – where did that time go?!) and I’m half-British, I find it really difficult to do the very British thing of stripping down to summer clothes the instant the sun drags itself out. My head just needs time to adjust (and often by that time, ‘summer’ is over!).

But, what my friends and I are very good at is having barbecues to make the most of our limited sun exposure. Thankfully Nicholas, growing up in the UK, isn’t missing out on seeing the men folk standing around a sizzling barbecue, stubby in hand (how many of you are going to have to look that one up?!), tending the flames, while the women folk do pretty much everything else (and I wouldn’t have it any other way!).

I made these cupcakes last weekend for our friends’ barbecue. I’ve been wanting to try Nigella’s Chocolate Olive Oil Cake for a while, especially as the barbecue-tending half of our dearest friends is lactose intolerant. The original recipe makes a dense and squidgy flourless cake (well it’s Nigella after all!) which I’m sure is amazing, but for a sunny day, after eating loads of meat, I wanted to make something a bit lighter. I also thought by the time we’d want dessert we’d be lazily enjoying the sun, not wanting to move, therefore ‘pop-in-the-mouth-without-effort’ cupcakes would be better than a whole cake 🙂

If you followed Nigella’s original recipe, using all ground almonds and no flour, these would make fabulous gooey individual puddings. They’re also easy enough, with lots of measuring and mixing, to get your little ones to help you make them.

DAIRY-FREE CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES

Prep time: 15 mins
Cook time: 15-20 mins
Makes 12 cupcakes
Freezable

150ml olive oil (not extra virgin olive oil)
50g good quality cocoa powder, sifted
125ml boiling water
2 tsp good quality vanilla extract
75g ground almonds
65g plain flour
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 pinch of salt
200g caster sugar
3 eggs

Preheat the oven to 170C and line your cupcake tray with paper cases.

In a small bowl or jug, whisk the sifted cocoa powder with the boiling water until you have a smooth paste. Whisk in the vanilla and leave to cool.

Cream the sugar, olive oil and eggs quite vigorously (about 3 minutes) until you have a pale creamy texture. Turn the speed of your beater or mixer down a little and pour in the cocoa paste, beating until combined.

Slowly add the flour, ground almonds, bicarbonate of soda and salt, and gently mix until combined.

Divide your mixture evenly between the paper cases and bake for 15-20 minutes (when you stick a skewer in to test, it should come out mainly clean possibly with some chocolate cake crumbs attached).

Eat warm or cold, dusted with icing sugar or not.

Variations: