Pear Banana Custard & Lentil Soup
It’s month 9 here & Arafat’s appetite is growing faster than he is!
My baby boy has been eating solids for almost 3 months now but at month 8, I started giving 3 him meals a day, with some of these “meals” just being snacks since he is still getting introduced to new foods, and more importantly to eating as part of his routine. There are many days when Arafat’s appetite is just on and he will finish big potions, and others when he is more interested in playing with his food, and of course there are the times when my recipes are simply not to his liking ;) On days I send him to daycare, it is important I send two meals with him. I usually do a fruit snack for his breakfast and a savory meal for his lunch.
I tried making these meals day-to-day but it was just too draining, I couldn’t keep up! So I came up with a new system where I make two portions of each meal, save in the fridge, and alter for daycare. That’s 4 days covered without my baby boy getting bored of repetitive meals. I have been trying this for close to a month now and Arafat does not seem to mind at all! He is eating all of the food I send to daycare with him, favoring of course, the fruit snacks which sometimes I send two of.
I am starting this series of Daycare Meals with one of Arafat’s favorite snack the Banana Pear Custard which I pair with one of his less favored recipes, Lentil Soup. (Sorry Aroof, it’s too nutritious for me to give up.)
I like these meals because they are easy to make and pretty straightforward in preparation, wherein I can always quickly whip it up, or prepare a little in advance. As a new Mama it is difficult to continue coming up with new ideas and new recipes when a growing baby is increasingly demanding your attention. Meals like this make use of what you have around the house, giving you space to play around with it and make it your own.
I highly recommend you make sure your child has tried all of these ingredients separately with no allergic reactions before you try them. Please note that the recipes below include certain spices that I have slowly been introducing to Arafat’s diet. It is actually recommended to include spices in your baby’s meals to avoid the bland taste generally associated with baby food. Here is a list of Spices & Herbs for Babies by Clinical Dietitian Jumana Bashiti who’s account is a great resource for new moms.
| Yields 2 portions of each dish |
Ingredients:
Banana Pear Custard:
2 Large Bananas (fully ripe)
3 Pears
60 ml of Breast Milk or Formula
2 tsps Cinnamon
Lentil Soup:
1/2 Cup Lentils
1 Cup boiled Water
1/4 Cup Shredded Carrots
1/4 Cup Shredded Zucchini
2 tbs Oats
2 tsp Cumin
1 tsp Turmeric
Method
Banana Pear Custard: Preheat your oven to 175. Steam your Pears until tender, or you can alternatively boil them, but take into account doing so reduces their nutritional value.
Combine all custard ingredients in a blender and blend until very smooth. Pour into an oven-safe bowl, I used a ceramic bowl, and bake for 25 minutes, or until a tick custard layer forms on top.
Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, then enjoy!
Lentil Soup: Combine all Soup ingredients in a pan over high heat until it boils. Reduce heat and simmer soup for 30 minutes until fully cooked.
Play around with the consistency adding more water for a thinner texture and oats for thicker build based on your personal preference. You can also opt into bending this soup, a choice favored by many, but I personally choose to stop at this step.
