Baby Stir-Fry

In search of a combination of finger food, vegetables, protein, and grains? Try a baby stir-fry. Easy and nutritious!

For protein, I have used cubed tofu and halved black beans. I think other beans would work as well.

For grains, I have used brown rice, brown rice spaghetti, and assorted quinoa pasta shapes. Her hands-down favorite is the brown rice spaghetti, despite its nutritional deficiency as compared to the quinoa pasta. I think she likes it because it clumps together nicely and she can actually get it into her mouth.

For vegetables, I like carrots, broccoli, green peas, onions, and green beans. Last night she had a bit of red bell pepper and mushroom. I keep the vegetables at an adult bite-size for the cooking, but cut them smaller before I put them on her tray.

I found a wheat-free tamari sauce (San-J brand) at Safeway. Of course, not wanting her to have too much sodium, I try to keep the tamari to a minimum. But she seems to really like it, especially on the tofu.

1) Cook rice or pasta according to package directions.

2) Chop all ingredients to desired size. (For stir-frys, a thin slice or dice is appropriate.)

3) Heat canola oil over medium or high heat. Fry tofu (if using) until golden. Spoon out and set aside.

4) Fry vegetables. Start with the hardest (e.g. carrots) and add additional vegetables every minute or two. End with the softest.

5) Mix all ingredients together. Let cool before serving to baby.

Garbanzo Beans with Spinach and Spices

One of my favorite quick-and-easy recipes -- very low-fat and nutritious!

Ingredients:

1 medium onion, diced
3-4 cloves of garlic, minced or pressed
2 T canola oil
2 T ground cumin
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp tumeric
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (or less if you don't like it spicy)
1 28-oz can diced tomatoes
1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1 10-oz package frozen spinach
2 tsp garam masala (Indian spice blend)
1/2 tsp salt, or to taste

1. Saute the onion and garlic in the canola oil over medium heat until translucent.
2. Stir in the cumin, coriander, tumeric, and cayenne and heat for one minute.
3. Add the tomatoes and simmer five minutes.
4. Add the garbanzo beans and simmer five minutes.
5. Add the spinach and simmer until fully thawed. Stir it in.
6. Add the garam masala and salt to taste. Simmer a few more minutes and taste to adjust seasonings.

Serve over brown rice cooked with a little tumeric in the water for yellow coloring.
Optional: If you make it spicy, serve with plain nonfat yogurt on the side.

Fat-Free Stir-Fry

Finally having recovered from my delivery & postpartum complications, I decided it was time to work on losing the pregnancy weight. I gained a rather astonishing 45 lbs... of which the baby was less than seven. Three months of breastfeeding and limited exercise enabled me to drop 25lbs, and finally at the beginning of July I felt ready to start focusing on diet.

I lost 30 lbs on Weight Watchers in 2004 and I am a big fan of the program. I find it works very well with being vegetarian. Since starting to count points and increase my exercise in the middle of July, I have dropped another five pounds. This recipe for fat-free stir-fry has become one of my lunchtime favorites over the past couple of weeks.

Points Value: 6 (without egg) or 8 (with egg)
All ingredients are Core

Ingredients:

1 cup cooked brown rice or whole wheat pasta
1 1/2 cups frozen vegetables
1/5 block of firm or extra firm tofu, diced
vegetable broth
soy sauce

Optional: chopped onion, minced garlic, chopped hard-boiled egg, cayenne pepper, whatever else you want to throw in

1. Heat a frying pan and spray it with cooking spray. Saute the onion and garlic, if using, until the onion is starting to soften.
2. Saute the tofu until the sides are starting to turn golden. Add vegetable broth as needed to keep the tofu from sticking to the pan.
3. Add the frozen vegetables and saute until cooked through. Add more vegetable broth as needed, and soy sauce for flavor.
4. Add the cooked rice or pasta and saute until heated through. Add more soy sauce as needed.
5. Remove from heat and turn onto a plate. It will be a large pile of food! Mix in the egg, if using.

Hints: When taking care of a baby all day, I don't have time to spend cooking rice or chopping vegetables. I'll make a large pot of rice one day to keep in the refrigerator and use for several days. Same goes for eggs - boil a bunch at once and then eat over several days. The frozen vegetables are a big time-saver, and are often more nutritious than fresh ones anyway. I like the vegetable broth that comes in a rectangular carton that you can keep in the refrigerator, just using as much as you need at a time.

A Recipe at Last

I've made it to the 2nd trimester, and today my 18-week ultrasound showed a healthy baby. It was a huge relief! My diet hasn't been the greatest lately. I have a huge appetite, it seems, and though as is usual for me I tend to focus more on savory carbohydrates, I also have been eating more sugar than I did before I was pregnant. Oh well. Halloween is over, so maybe the sweets will disappear for a while.

In the meantime, here's a recipe I recently made. I started making risotto in 2004 with my pressure cooker. After more than a two-year hiatus from that appliance while we were in Thailand, I finally dug it out of storage last month and started practicing my risotto again. It's surprisingly easy to make, and wonderfully comforting to eat. This version, based on a recipe from The Roasted Vegetable, uses butternut squash -- perfect for a cold fall day.



Butternut Squash Risotto:

1 butternut squash, peeled and cubed
1 red pepper, diced
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
4 T olive oil
2 tsp thyme or rosemary
salt and pepper to taste
1 small onion
4 cups vegetable broth + 1 cup water, heated
1/2 cup white wine (don't worry, the alcohol will cook out)
1 1/2 cups Arborio rice
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese, plus more for the table

1. Mix together the squash, red pepper, and garlic with 2 T of the olive oil and the spices. Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet and roast at 425^F for 20-25 minutes or until soft, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking.

2. In a pressure cooker over medium heat, saute the onion in the remaining olive oil until translucent. Stir in the rice, making sure to coat each grain with some of the oil, for about 3 minutes.

3. Add the white wine to the rice and stir until the liquid is evaporated.

4. Add the broth and water, close the pressure cooker, and bring to high pressure for ten minutes. Release the pressure with the burner on low heat.

5. Test the rice for doneness. There may still be a little bit of liquid, but it will soak up quickly, so only continue cooking if absolutely necessary.

6. Stir in 1/2 cup of the parmesan cheese. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed. Serve with additional parmesan on the side.

** If you don't have a pressure cooker, you can make this recipe in a regular pot by adding about a half-cup of the liquid at a time and stirring until it is soaked into the rice before adding the next half-cup.