CHILLI BEAN-LOVER RETURNS HOME FROM THE DESERT

 Now I'm not advocating feeding your baby loads of hot chilli.  But perhaps keep an open mind. During our US travels Billie embraced food with a hint of heat, with both hands.

Here's a new recipe below to try out on all the family. It's a fabulous vegetable chilli served to us by Great Grandma Eve in Baraboo, Wisconsin.

Billie's first accidental chilli outing was in Chicago when we stumbled upon a fantastic buffet at Oak Park's popular Indian restaurant - Khyber Pass. Billie ate spoonfuls, and handfuls, of the palek paneer without even wincing. The popular spinach and cheese curry often contains no chilli, but this one definitely had a wee kick. 

Black beans, refried beans and chilli beans became our go-to option to keep Billie busy when we were eating out in the US. We're gonna miss this $2 healthy option offered at the many and varied Mexican restaurants we visited in Chicago, and then on our little trip through the south-west desert.

Monument Valley, Utah/Arizona border. Snapped out the window.

 But usually these Billie bean sides were without chilli. Until we got to the Taos Nachos. Billie and I took a later-than-usual dinner excursion, leaving Miles in the Taos hotel dealing with food poisoning picked up in Las Vegas, New Mexico.

 Taos is a gorgeous little arty New Mexican town that sits at the foot of several ski mountains, surrounded by desert. The buildings are all either Adobe or Faux-dobe, to keep the Native American tradition of mud-brick houses alive. Or at least the feeling of it alive.

Sidling into a bustling restaurant bar at 8.30pm with Billie strapped to me in the Ergo, I opt for the vegetarian nachos as an easy dish to share with my bean-hungry bub. Thankfully the staff notice my difficulty easing black beans out from under the fresh jalapeno, and deliver a bowl of plain beans for Billie.

But not before she has managed to consume several bits of jalapeno. Fortunately, each time her reaction is rather mild. A little spluttering and reaching for her water beaker, but then she insists on digging into more of where that came from please.

Dawn on the Amtrak between Arizona and California

Flagstaff, Arizona

I wouldn't go round sprinkling chilli in her food, but when I'm cooking a casserole of vegetarian chilli for the family meal I now know we can meet half way on the heat.

The recipe below called for two tablespoons of chilli, so I opted for just one. Miles and I enjoyed it last night with brown rice and good quality organic sour cream (ie just cream and cultures). Today we'll all enjoy it for lunch.

POST NOTE: Billie ate a bowl for lunch with rice and cheese and a bowl for dinner with sour cream stirred through to mute the chilli. This is a dish to spoon-feed to avoid rubbing in eyes, although Billie did finger feed a few of the beans (her favorite pastime).

GREAT GRANDMA EVE'S VEGETABLE CHILLI

3/4 cup olive oil

2 courgettes, cut into 1/2 inch dice

2 onions, diced

4 garlic gloves, chopped finely

2 red peppers/capsicums, diced 1/4 inch

800g tinned tomatoes

1 T chilli powder, or crushed dried chillis

1 T cumin

1 T fresh or dried oregano

1 T basil (opt)

black pepper

1 t salt

1 t fennel seeds

1/2 cup fresh parsely, chopped

1 cup kidney beans

1 cup chickpeas

1/2 cup fresh dill, chopped (essential - tastes great)

2 T lemon juice

grated cheddar

sour cream

4 scallions/spring onions chopped for garnish

First cook the beans. If you don't have a pressure cooker, soak them for few hours or overnight in 3 cups of water each. Cook separately as chickpeas take longer kidney beans. Drain water and place in large pots with 3 cups of water each. Cook kidney beans for 1 1/4 hours or 25 mins in pressure cooker. Cook chickpeas for 2 1/2 hours or 45 mins in pressure cooker.

Meanwhile, heat 1/2 cup of the oil in a fry pan and add courgette. Saute and then transfer to a large casserole. Heat 1/4 cup oil in the fry pan and add onions, garlic and red peppers. Saute and then transfer to casserole. Place over low heat and add tomatoes, chilli, cumin, oregano, basil, black pepper, salt, fennel seeds and parsley. Cook uncovered, stirring often, for 30 minutes. Cook brown rice now if using. Corn chips are another option.

Now stir in beans, chickpeas, dill, lemon. Cook for another 15 minutes. Stir well, adjust seasonings. Serve with scallions, sour cream and grated cheese on the side. 

Eve served hers with guacamole, refried beans, Italian beans and corn chips. It was a bit of a Welcome to Baraboo Feast.

BILLIE BITES ALL

We're more than half way there, and it's not even four months.

The main premise of this blog when started in April was to create tasty, healthy meals without meat for our family. As in ONE evening meal, not one for baby Billie and a second installment for ma and pa. I wanted Billie to embrace food and eating with the passion of her parents. To yearn for different textures, colours and flavours.

Well, Billie must have been listening. And watching.

On Saturday we took Billie to her first big festival. It was the perfect introduction - the very baby-friendly Chicago Folk and Roots Festival. Put on by the Old Town School Of Folk Music, the $10 admission was the best tenner ever spent.

Despite coming prepared with the ubiquitous banana, Billie grew bored after a few mouthfuls and wanted some of the black bean cakes with mango salsa that mama was chomping on. And a bit of that red beans and rice that dadda was downing. Thumbs up to the festival organisers for inviting Wishbone restaurant, and keeping food vendors to a limited quality few.

But Billie's bean feast wasn't that surprising - she asserted her fondness for handling beans (unmashed please) the previous weekend while staying with her Italian Great Grandfather. (STAY TUNED FOR AN INCREDIBLE ARRAY OF RECIPES SWIPED FROM GREAT GRANDMA EVE).

No, it was the STUFFED SPINACH PIZZA that did it.

Our festival party stared wide-mouthed as Billie demolished most of a large slice of this Chicago institution. If you haven't been here you probably don't know what I'm talking about. At first I was reticent when Miles tried to take me out for stuffed pizza on my first Chicago visit. But it's not like that Pizza Hut stuff. Chicago stuffed pizza is more like a pie.

We've yet to try Billie on regular thin crust pizza, but something tells me we couldn't keep her away.

My mission has caught up with me sooner than anticipated. There's no more slipping Billie some mush while the adults dine on a smorgasbord of dishes.

Recipes to come...

Below: Billie tonight after sampling soft-shelled crab at local Oak Park restaurant Poor Phils

GETTING CREATIVE with NUTTY TOFU AND SWEET POTATO FRITTERS

Being 'stranded' in a Chicago kitchen sans cookbooks and my usual over-stocked pantry is forcing me to get more creative.

It's a good way to be. I think when we return home to Sydney I will force myself use everything in the cupboards before buying any more dried goods. That's if the guy renting our apartment hasn't already made good use of the stocks (I did encourage him - being a fellow cook and vegetarian).  

I devised this delicious, adult-and-baby-friendly recipe while brushing my teeth one night this week, and have since made the fritters twice - to Billie's delight. Both times she munched her way through FOUR - she demanded I cook up some more after demolishing her first. Not only does she love the taste, but the fritters are perfect self-feeding items. Just break off a little and hand over. Although Billie also allowed me to spoon her a fair amount of fritter, impatient for that taste sensation.

A note on nuts: I began feeding Billie nut butters (but not yet peanut) when she was about 8.5 months. Please consult your doctor if your baby is deemed at risk of allergies.

Check these for more info:   An Eggy Affair - allergies etc             American Academy Pediatrics


NUTTY TOFU AND SWEET POTATO FRITTERS

1 large sweet potato

1/2 block tofu

4 T almond butter (or any other suitable nut)

2 eggs, beaten

1 spring onion

1 clove garlic

handful fresh coriander, finely chopped

1/2 t salt (optional - best not for baby)

Fresh lime or lemon wedges to squeeze over hot fritters   

Cut sweet potato into pieces and steam. Remove skins and mash with fork. Meanwhile, finely slice spring onions and garlic, saute briefly. Mash tofu and combine all with eggs and sweet potato. Mixture should be wet.

Heat olive oil in fry pan.When hot, spoon tablespoons of mixture into pan and turn heat right down to low. Cook gently for few minutes (about five) before attempting to flip. They are prone to break, but when cooked enough on one side they will stay intact. So if the first one crumbles, leave the rest a bit longer. If you find they are too fragile, add about one-two tablespoons of flour. Avoid doing this though as it changes the flavour.

Eat hot with freshly squeezed lime or lemon juice. Serve as is for lunch, or with green and tomato salad for dinner. Be sure to reserve some for the adults, as baby likely to munch through more than you may think....

EXTREME FOODS, HEALTHY MONDAY AND A SUPERIOR SALAD

Since stepping off the Sydney-Chicago flight on Wednesday night, there's been a lot of pancake and burrito-eating. Family reunions tend to be centred around food, and here that means the local diner. Or the favourite diner in the neighbouring suburb. Or the fast-food outlet trussed-up to look like a fancy family restaurant.

But when an order of vegetable omelet comes with hash browns, a side of blueberry pancakes and toast for Billie - in other words our family of three can split one meal that costs $US6.75 - why would you bother cooking?

Well, after a few days you just do. You crave fresh vegetables and fruit, cheese that's not melted and a salad that's not sweet. (Why, oh why, do Americans put sugar in everything?)

The balance of the not-particularly healthy ubiquitous diners and fast food outlets are farmers markets - such as Oak Park's 34-year-old one where we picked up affordable organic vegetables on Saturday - and the impressive Whole Foods Market franchise.

On my previous visit to Oak Park (an 'urban village' on Chicago's western fringe) I was taken to Whole Foods a few hours after landing. It blew my mind.

So on Healthy Monday, this organic/healthy/sustainable/fair trading/locally produced but MASSIVE and CHEAP supermarket was the main destination for Billie and I.

In Australia, I buy bits and pieces of organic food - milk, yoghurt, teas, breads etc but it's often too darn pricey.  As usual, today I studied the price tags of every item before it made its way into Billie's stroller/shopping cart.

A dozen organic large free range eggs for $US3.99? Organic raspberries at $US.300 a punnet? A block of organic tofu for $US1.69? And apparently the big regular supermarket chains offer some organic lines even cheaper.

Oh, and fresh organic mozzarella for $US3.99 - several large pieces. So that became the protein in our vegetarian Healthy Monday Superior Salad tonight:

SPINACH, MOZZARELLA, ASPARAGUS  SALAD WITH CRANBERRIES

Fresh baby spinach leaves, washed and picked
Three ripe tomatoes, quartered and then cut again
1 orange pepper/capsicum, cut into chunks
1 large round of mozzarella cheese, chopped in smallish pieces
Handful Brazil nuts, chopped in half
Handful dried cranberries
Bunch asparagus, chopped into thirds of quarters and then lightly steamed
Vinaigrette

Assemble all ingredients except dressing and asparagus. As soon as asparagus is cooked, add to salad, dress and serve. This is a light meal - serve with bread perhaps. Or corn chips, guacamole and salsa as we did (only because we had leftovers in the fridge).

Yes, this is not really a baby recipe, but Billie would love mozzarella given half a chance.
Sorry - no pics as using mother-in-law's computer...