She’s only recently started using a spoon by herself and she loves that control. She really concentrates and gets into it. The picture above caught her in a rare moment of looking up from her food.

This was actually my first try at polenta. I’ve always been a little afraid of it the way I used to be afraid of risotto – I fear neither no more! Polenta is so easy as long as you’ve got a moment (actually many, many moments) to stir. It was a good thing Claire was already in her high chair because Aaron was manning the grill (another fear of mine). I used a recipe (from Bon Appetit) that was nice and creamy, which was perfect for Claire to eat. Easy to spoon or grab – and either way she was shoving it in her mouth.

Creamy Polenta
serves 6
Ingredients
2 cups whole milk
2 cups water
1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt (Gasp! I used this before I gave it to Claire for taste. It’s not that much so I didn’t feel too badly about it.)
1 cup polenta (coarse cornmeal)*

Bring milk, water, and salt to boil in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Gradually whisk in polenta. Reduce heat to low; simmer until smooth and thick, stirring almost constantly, about 18 minutes.

*I used regular cornmeal and it worked out just fine – just only cook it for about half the time.

She’s really getting into finger foods now. This is a blessing and a curse, as they say. It’s becoming a problem because she really only wants to eat what she can put in her mouth. She doesn’t want a bottle either. She’ll take it. Sometimes she’ll drink it. Often she drinks half and then throws it down and takes off running. She’s not quite skilled at putting food in her mouth just yet; so, she doesn’t eat very much on her own. The trouble is that she doesn’t want me to feed her, either. She doesn’t get the spoon yet – it’s still a device of mystery when not in mama’s hand. I’m working on various ways to get her to eat pureed foods and trying all kinds of finger foods, probably more quickly than I would have planned. But with a baby, nothing goes as planned so here we are trying eggs and whatever else we can get our hands on.

Claire’s had egg yolks before and they were on the Do Not Eat list for some time. However, with her lack of coordination (and teeth) I am running out of options of what she will eat. So I decided to hard-boil a few eggs and give it another go. Here is the result:

She loved it. The yolks* are mushy and easy to grasp and they melt in her mouth. I’m happy because she’s eating and eggs are such an easy food to prepare. Once they are hard-boiled they last about a week in the fridge, which makes for an easy, ready-to-eat food.

*Note that the whites of the eggs are typically an allergen and it’s advised that you don’t give egg whites to a baby under 12 months.

Broccoli food cubes are super simple to make. I usually use the broccoli crowns that are readily available in my supermarket. I trim off some of the stem and leaves (but not too much, broccoli is full of flavor). Then I steam it as I would if I were going to eat it. It’s almost as simple as 1-2-3:

1. Trim (and I cut into smaller bits for easier steaming).

2. Steam until tender.

3. Puree.

Okay, there are a few more things involved; but not too much. Just add some water as the broccoli is pureeing to your desired texture and you’re done.

The cauliflower I make the exact same way. I use cauliflower often as what I call a ‘filler’ veg. Cauliflower is good on it’s own but not always. Sometimes I use it to add a little extra something to veg, like broccoli or carrots. It gives it a nice depth. (Yeah, I just used ‘depth’ when talking about baby food.)