Cayden's dinner - Baked Fish with Orange Sauce, Zucchini and Pea Soup and Mango Apple Pear Puree

How appropriate that my first blog post has to do with my little man and not something for his father or I!

C has become quite the little gourmand! Both Mr. A and I are total foodies and not picky eaters, and I'll admit that while we were expecting we had quite a few discussions on what we would do if C turned out to be picky. I've seen a lot of picky eaters lately and I wasn't sure how I would handle having one myself. With that in mind, I made a decision to introduce C to a variety of foods (different meats, veggies etc) and varying textures early. C has never really had pureed foods. From the beginning he started off with mashed, to mashed with chunks, and while most of his food is still "lumpy", he will eat meat off my plate (he has 2 teeth now so is able to chew). And chew he does! It seems I have the opposite. Far from a picky eater, C LOVES to eat. These days he will eat dinner on his own and then still want a taste off my plate when we eat around 6:30-7.

With all of that in mind, once C had tasted different meats and poultry, I started him on fish. The first time I gave him fish, I was making South American Fish Cakes for Mr. A and I. I made C's batch prior to adding any seasoning (that would be chile, salt, pepper - C has had quite a few different herbs and I encourage any parent to add herbs for flavor when making kid's food. It expands their palate and if introduced early it decreases the potential for them to be more picky about unfamiliar flavours later on)

With all of that introduction, here is C's dinner:

Baked Fish with Orange Sauce
(adapted from Annabelle Karmel's "The Baby Meal Planner - a good friend got me this as my shower gift and I LOVE it. HIGHLY recommend)

2 pcs white fish fillet (any white fish - I used basa)
1/2 cup orange juice (not from concentrate)
Fresh Parsley
1 cup crushed cornflakes
Pat Butter

Preheat oven to 375F. In a rectangular dish, put fillets, add all ingrediants on top, and bake 20 mins until cooked. Flake fish and mash with liquid.

Zucchini and Pea Soup (also adapted from Annabelle Karmel)
2 zucchini, skin on, ends trimmed, cut into slices
1 onion
Chicken/veg broth or water
Garlic
Potatoes - 2

Saute onion in garlic until tender (5 mins). Add zucchini, saute a few mins then cover with liquid. Add potatoes. Boil 20 mins or so covered until tender. Puree to desired texture (I used a handheld blender)

Mango, Apple, Pear Puree

When making fruit purees I like to use apple and pear as my base as I find it gives a good consistency. So I actually made 4 different types of puree the same day I made this.

(No real measurements)
A couple of apples
A couple of pears

Peel, core, dice. Add some water on top of apples, simmer 5 mins till tender. Add pears, simmer an additional 2-3 mins. Add mango (I used frozen) and add'l water if needed. Simmer covered a few mins and then puree.

Other add-ins I've done that C loves:
Blueberries (i.e. blueberries, apples and pears)
Cranberries
Dried prunes and apricots (add more water, and then strain as they need water to plump up. You may want to use a food mill depending on your baby. I never did)

Enjoy!