Nasi Goreng for kids

Nasi Goreng is a spicy Indonesian Fried rice dish based on peanuts.  You can do as much of the 'faffing' in this recipe as you like but the basic idea is a paste, rice, some protein and some vegetables.  I've made this to be reasonably mildly spiced so kid friendly but up the chilli if just cooking for adults (if you like, it's still blooming tasty as it is!)

As spring is in the air, I even got outside for my lunch!

Healthy Fish and Chips for the Whole Family

Healthy fish and chips.  The mark of a good recipe is when you make it twice before posting it!

We should all eat more omega 3.  One of the best sources of it is oily fish but that can be a tough sell to adults let alone kids.  Mackerel can be fantastic and delicious, especially grilled on a barbecue but can be strong tasting and a lot of people aren't all that keen on the bones.

I introduced a way of cooking mackerel recently for reluctant adults, now I thought I'd look at kids.  Mackerel is such a well flavoured fish, it can stand up to some really strong flavours and it goes fantastically well with mustard.

The best ideas come to me at 5:30am when I'm lying in bed wondering why I'm not still asleep!  One morning, I had a bit of a brainwave; why not use mayonnaise as a way to adhere a coating?  If I used mackerel I could also mix in some mustard... and so an idea was born!

As I was starting to prepare this I had a sudden thought, why not make this a healthy fish, chips and peas dish?  Why not indeed!

Fish and Cauliflower bake, great for all ages

I had thought for a while about making something which was like a fish pie meets cauliflower cheese.  Fish pie is great but it would be great to include some more vegetables.

This recipe has two vegetables and is a source of omega 3.  My son described it as 'delicious'!  Although he didn't eat as many peas on the side as I would have liked, can you tell there are four different vegetables on this plate?  Nope?  Neither could he!

Smoked Mackerel Fish Cakes

I may worry (probably unduly) about my child's nutrition but it can be difficult to encourage kids to eat oily fish. Oily fish is an excellent source of Omega 3 oils.  Omega 3 are a group of oils which, although the jury is out on the specific health effects; it's generally believed they're pretty good things to have in your diet.  Sources include things like salmon, herring, sardines, mackerel, fresh tuna, pollock (at lower levels) etc.  There are other sources but oily fish is the most concentrated.  This might not look like a lot of mackerel in the recipe but there's about five times more omega 3 in mackerel than there is in cod.

So how to get this goodie into your child's diet?  A challenge and I've linked some other oily fish recipes at the end if you'd like some more ideas!

Child friendly Prawn Laksa

Laksa isn't an obvious choice for a preschooler but why not?  Most kids I know are fans of prawns and noodles.

I've toned this all down a bit to make it friendly for kids who aren't big fans of spice.  Although my son does have more spice in his food than he sometimes realises, last time his Dad cooked him a curry, he was less then keen and apparently ended up eating fish fingers so I went gentle (but noticeable) on the spicing here.

He looked at it.  Said "I don't think I like that"
I said "Have you tried a prawn?"
He said "Ooh, no"
Has a couple of bites, then starts eating the mushrooms and noodles.  I'm trying to photograph my portion while my stomach is rumbling because it smells pretty good (I'm not one of those food bloggers who cooks to photograph, I cook to eat.)
"Mummy this is yummy"
And indeed it was :-)

Tuna 'meatballs' for babies, toddlers and grown ups

Fish can be a hard sell for a lot of kids.  Partly it's flavour, then there's the bones and the look of it.  I was lucky though and for some unknown reason as soon as I had the chance to try fish, I loved it and ate it as much as I could.  I remember peeling prawns at the age of about 6 or 7.  I only hope I encourage my son to do the same because people who say "I don't like fish" are missing out.

We all know nowadays how important Omega 3 oils are in our diets and fish is a great source, especially oily fish like tuna.  Unfortunately unlike some other fish, tinned tuna doesn't have much in the way of Omega 3 but fresh or frozen does.  The great thing is about tuna is it does taste so meaty so if you really do have a reluctant fish eater on your hands, this could be the dish for you!

Sweet and Sour for the Whole Family

Ok, I'm going back on my normal principles here.  There is no cutting out sugar in sweet and sour.  Well not unless you want to go down the sweeteners route which I don't.

That said, this is slightly lower sugar than a normal sweet and sour and full of fruit and vegetables.  It's all credits and debits, i.e. the hidden additional veg kind of offsets the sugar and much better than those nasty balls that you can get; you know the ones with the frighteningly thick batter.  Ewww.  I'm justifying it...

So I've written a recipe for the sauce and a couple of ways to use it.  The great thing is you can make the sauce in advance then use a few spoonfuls for your child's tea then use the rest for yours when you're ready for it.  I know in our household my son is ready for tea around 4:30/5pm which is a stretch for me.

Rarebit Fish for the Whole Family

The cooking time on this will vary depending on the size of your fish fillets (particularly the thickness) and whether you are cooking fish fillets from frozen or fresh.  Just be aware of this and keep an eye on them.

This came to me while lying in bed at 3:30am wondering why I couldn't sleep.  The answer came to me that I was a bit disorganised.  This happens to me, if I have something on the following day, I have to get things ready the night before, otherwise I'm a mess.  Anyway, sleeplessness is bad but it is surprisingly good for creativity.  That moment between sleep and awake is where your mind wanders and finds new ideas.  So this is my new idea while thinking "I've not packed up the car", "will I have time to go for a run in the morning?" "Where is my sports bra..."

Prawn and Potato Soup for the Whole Family

It is soup season.  Although the snow has gone, it's still brrr.  That said, I don't want all of my soups to be stodgy and heavy, this is a sunshine of a soup.  Also my poor little man needed some cheering up and he loves prawns.

Oodles of Noodles for toddlers

An 'OMG what am I going to feed him' moment came upon me a few days ago.  Not that the fridge wasn't groaning but it was groaning with all the high fat foods for the festivities to come.  So I came up with this.  A delicious (if I say so myself) slightly sweet sauce which worked well with the noodles and would also be great with some chicken.

Prawn and Broccoli Pie - Great for babies, toddlers and adults

This is a great one for older babies and toddlers.  Some hidden vegetables and a thick cheesy sauce.  Great for parents too because not only is it tasty, the ingredients are pretty cheap too.  No need to splash out on the priciest prawns.

Baked prawns for babies, toddlers and adults

My son loves prawns.  This is a simple mixture of hot baked prawns which is popular with adults and kids alike.  I remember having something very similar in a tapas bar in Madrid before I became Mrs Mamacook.  The terracotta dishes were put onto a griddle and cooked over hot coals.  It's not quite replicating the gorgeous garlicky smokiness of those prawns but it's not bad.  I do love that attitude in Spain though.  This particular tapas bar only served four different things; prawns with garlic, deep fried prawns, grilled prawns and grilled langoustine (alongside wine of course).  There is something to be admired at finding what you're good at in life and sticking to it.

I buy prawns frozen and defrost them.  A lot of seafood is previously frozen even if it's sold as chilled, particularly if it's something from far afield.  Also having been kept frozen means it's been kept at a temperature bacteria can't grow at.  Another bonus when feeding kids.  It's worth stocking up when they are on offer as raw prawns can be pretty pricey.

Only 10 minutes to cook for your toddler?

I know what it's like being a mum.  At best you have 10 minutes of time to spend on cooking for your child.  You've got back through the door from Mums and Tots or you lost track of time while playing with playdoh.  I do understand this is why so many mums want to turn to prepared foods.

So, here are my top ideas for an emergency "need to cook some food RIGHT NOW" for your toddler moments without resorting to a smiley face or a cheese string!  Think about it, this has to be quicker than most preprepared foods.

Tempura for the whole family

Ok, I have to 'fess up, I've not tried my son with this yet but I have absolutely no doubt that he will LOVE tempura.  He loves spice, his favourite foods are prawns and mushrooms.  What's not to like?

That said, this isn't the healthiest, it is deep fried but most kids do need calories so that's not necessarily a disaster.  It can also be a great way to get reluctant vegetable eaters to give them a go.  You don't have to go with the dips I've suggested, perhaps if your kids aren't into all that spice you could mix some sweet chilli sauce with ketchup?

Anyway, here is the recipe.  A word of warning, make this when you have another responsible adult in the house.  This is absolutely not the thing to make with a toddler clinging onto your ankles!  Frying can be very dangerous.  Never leave it unattended.

Mussel and Broccoli Pasta for Toddlers and Adults

I'm imagining at the title of this recipe a lot of parents getting weirded out.  I am perfectly serious.  This is a toddler friendly mussel recipe.

I'd been mulling over cooking mussels for my son for a while, after all, they fit into what I consider to be a good food to eat; delicious, cheap, easy, quick and full of lovely stuff.

Herb Crusted Salmon for Toddlers and Adults

I was thinking when shopping today how people would happily feed a toddler fish fingers but would consider this kind of dish to be too 'adult' for them.  Apart from the herbs, what's the difference?  The joy with this is not only is it really easy to make but also it's freshly made and free from anything artificial.

Baked White Fish with Herbs

Why is it that we're obsessed with feeding babies and toddlers crumbed foods?  What is that about?  I remember a colleague saying to me once, why is it mothers feed their babies organic everything, then they hit toddlerhood and it's all chicken nuggets and smiley faces?

There is a place for hiding things, making things look tasty, or familiar but if you never offer fish that looks like fish or meat that looks like meat, how will your child learn to like it?

So, in the supermarket, I picked up some basa and marinaded it in olive oil, lemon and herbs and served it simply with some vegetables.  No reason why you shouldn't use a different fish, basa was just chosen for cost purposes.  I wasn't sure my son would like it but he did.  A lesson in being brave perhaps?  Why not try something which looks like real 'adult' food to your kid tomorrow and see what happens?  Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Might not look pretty but it tasted good!

Singapore Noodles for Toddlers (and parents)

If I have a philosophy, it's probably to introduce interesting foods to kids in the healthiest way I can.  I also like to challenge what is traditionally seen as 'kids food'.  I have a lot of sympathy with Antonio Carluccio's comments recently (even if I question his credentials as a famously fat man) that children's menus make kids fat.

The 'typical' children's menu features chips, chips and more chips.  If you're lucky there's a pasta dish on there, pasta is fine but it just makes me think "yawn".  Isn't there anything more interesting?  The silly thing is loads of kids go to nurseries nowadays and in my experience of two local nurseries, their food is far more interesting and presumably they have no issues getting kids to eat it.

So, I urge you to be a little bit brave with your toddlers and older kids.  There might be some refusals, there might be some less than positive reports but really, why don't we feed food which is closer to what we'd like to eat?  After all if you don't you're setting yourself up for a lifetime of cooking two meals.

That said, I'd be spinning a yarn if I didn't tell you that all of the prawns were eaten along with a couple of pieces of pepper and a few noodles.  It was a hit but my son has his favourites and prawns are probably the thing he would eat for every meal if I let him.

Prawn Pasta Bake for the whole family

There is something about baked pasta dishes which feel somehow more indulgent and satisfying than normal pasta.  For me I also find I can squeeze more vegetables in and reduce the quantity of pasta per person.

I just made this for my husband and I but I know my son would love it.  Mushrooms and prawns are two of his favourite things.  That said, the prawns are optional and more for a protein source than flavour.

Pad Thai for Toddlers

Oodles of noodles for your little one.  Toned down so not super hot and using peanut butter rather than peanuts to avoid choking hazards.