Recently, some of my friends asked me to share Luca’s favourite dishes. Well, I thought it might be interesting to share something that is not only yummy but also healthy and (last but definitely NOT least) easy and quick to prepare. The ideas I will share below are far from being fancy to be honest… There are so many mums out there that prepare real little art works (just check out onceuponapot on Instagram: I love this account!!). The food I prepare for little L does look, well, interesting from time to time (at least, our little monkey seems intrigued) but, usually, this is more of a coincidence😉 Nevertheless, I try to make sure that it tastes good, that it is healthy and that Luca can eat it more or less easily as he tends to get bored quite quickly when he is spoon-fed AND doesn’t really like what I am giving him. So, here we go:
This is Luca’s favorite breakfast at the moment. I looks very colourful and interesting and takes me 10 min max to prepare:
What you need:
some strawberries, grapes, raspberries or any other fruit your lo enjoys
Put 20gr quick-cooking oats (I usually use the Quaker ones), 9-10 blueberries, cut in halves, and 200ml of full-fat milk in a pan. Alternatively, you can use 2 tablespoons of semolina. If you want to, add some cinnamon and chopped raisins. Bring the milk to the boil while stirring. Lower the heat and stir continuously for about 5 min to reach the consistency of a proper porridge. While the porridge (or semolina) is cooling down a bit, prepare the fruit mousse. To do so, mix some fruits (I usually use kiwis and strawberries or raspberries but you could use any fruit that your little one likes), which will be used as a fruit topping. Voilà
as easy as it gets!
I tried so many different pancake recipes for Luca… Out of all, he definitely prefers the yoghurt pancakes! I found this recipe on the Annabel Karmel app:
What you need:
1 egg
150gr natural yoghurt (I usually use Rachel’s organic yoghurt)
150ml full-fat milk (I usually use Koita organic whole milk)
150gr self-raising flour
You can add some salt if you want to but I never do
Some olive oil
Mix the egg, yoghurt, milk and flour to make the batter. Simply heat some olive oil in a pan and form several tiny pancakes. Turn them around when they are golden brown on one side (well, my first ones usually turn black… it’s kind of a tradition ;-)). That’s it. They are easy to hold with little hands and can be served with any kind of fresh fruits.
3. Yummy meat balls à la Omi
Omi means granny in German and this recipe was already one of my favourites when I was a kid. My mum simply makes the best “Fleischküchle” in the world – I swear! Luca can’t get enough of these meat balls – he always tries to put several of them in his mouth at the same time And they are so easy to make – even my husband can do it (well, let’s say, he could do it hehe).
What you need:
15 gr rye bread (not too fresh, should be at least 1 day old)
1/2 egg
Some fresh persil (if available, otherwise, you can use the dried one)
about 1/3 of a very finely chopped onion (depending of the size of the onion)
some olive oil
Chop about 1/3 of an onion. Wash some fresh persil and chop it very finely. Heat some olive oil in a pan and fry the onion and persil (stop before the onion is getting brown😉 ). Put the fried onion and persil in a small bowl and clean the pan with some kitchen roll paper.
Preheat the oven (around 170-180°). Mix the minced meat, 1/2 egg and bread (cut into small pieces) in a bowl. You can either use your hands or a big tablespoon. Then, add the onion/persil mixture. With your hands, form some small balls (ours are no real balls but they are rather flat to make the frying easier). Heat some olive oil in the pan and add the meat balls. Fry until brown on both sides. Put the meat balls on a plate and cover the latter with aluminum foil; put them in the oven for about 30min or until properly cooked through. Super yummy and no added salt!
I would serve this with home-made potato or sweet potato fries (just sprinkle a bit of rosemary and olive oil on some potato or sweet potato sticks and put them in a pre-heated oven (around 200°) until golden brown) and some vegetables that are easy to hold, such as broccoli trees, butternut squash sticks etc.
4. Little sandwiches for busy days
I usually try to cook a warm meal for lunch but, let’s be honest, sometimes, I just don’t have the time to do so… So, here’s one of my back-up meals (that Luca loves by the way!) for busy days:
What you need:
1/2 ripe avocado
some canned tuna (I usually use the one in spring water and without added salt)
some natural yoghurt (Rachel’s organic full-fat yogurt in our case)
labneh cheese
wholemeal toast
Some rapeseed oil
Remove the curst from the toast slices and cut them in little triangles. For the avocado dip, simply mash about 1/2 of a ripe avocado and add 1 teaspoon of rapeseed oil. You could also add some salt or lemon juice but I usually don’t bother as little L loves avocado just like that. For the yoghurt-tuna dip, mix about 1/3 of a tuna can with some natural yoghurt until you get a smooth but not runny consistency.
Prepare little triangle shaped sandwiches with the avocado, tuna-yoghurt dips and the labneh. And voilà, an easy and rather healthy snack or even lunch if you combine it with some fruits or another dessert.
I also usually give little L a cheese stick with this. When I have time, I quickly chop up some small broccoli trees and steam them until tender while preparing the sandwiches. This gives some extra vitamins.
Ok, it might not look super yummy but Luca is crazy about this dish and it’s so easy to prepare!
Here’s what you need:
Prepare all fruits and vegetables. Cook the lamb in its own fat until thoroughly cooked. Remove a bit of the fat, if needed. Add the previously prepared fruits and vegetables as well as the apple juice. Being to the boil. Cover, reduce the heat a bit and let it simmer for about 20-25 min. Add a pinch of cinnamon and continue to let simmer for some further minutes or until the vegetables and fruits are soft. As Luca is already 14 months old, I only mash it roughly with a fork. I usually serve this with couscous or quinoa. Perfect dish for us to practice eating with the spoon as Luca loves it so much and cannot get enough of it😉 otherwise, he quickly gets bored of eating with the spoon.
Well, these are just some of Luca’s favourite dishes. As a snack, he loves seedless grapes cut in halves, blueberries, mini watermelon pieces (without seeds), strawberry quarters… Actually, you could use any fruit your little one likes really. No easier snack than fruits Another favourite are tiny peanut butter sandwiches (I always make sure to get a peanut butter without added salt or sugar). I have to admit that, when we spend the afternoon outside, I usually take a fruit pouch from Ella’s Kitchen. Simple and yummy.
I’m very curious and always happy to try out new ideas!xxx