Meal Plan- 2nd Half of October

Did you know that most babies don't have to eat pureed baby food?  I sure wish I had known this when I had my first child seven years ago or even my second 5 years ago. 

Our journey: At 6 months of age, I introduced baby cereal as our pediatrician advised to our first son and thus began a 2 month battle of wills.  I used an airplane spoon; I pleaded; I tricked; I forced.  Our son hated solid food! Simply hated it.  At 8 months old, I decided I was done trying to get him to eat cereal, pureed baby food out of a jar, or homemade pureed baby food.  I then started cutting up table food  and putting it on his tray.  At first, he played with it.  Then he threw it.  Then miraculously, he ate it. 

When we had our second son two years later, I again tried to follow through with our pediatrician's orders.  Our second son took to cereal right away for a month and then stopped.  Just like that- no more baby food.  I was stumped.  We were in the process of moving so I did not worry about it and went back to solely nursing him.  When he reached 10 months old and we were settled in our new home, I tried again.  Nope- he would not have it.  So we began offering yogurt and he gladly took that.  Pureed baby food- he would not touch.  I stayed frustrated.  Why would my children not eat traditional baby food?  What was I doing wrong?  I continued to coerce, trick, and beg for another 7 months....yes, you heard me...7 months.  At 15 months I was desperate as I was solely nursing this baby with the exception of a little yogurt he ate.  I contacted multiple lactation consultants and began to research.  The most helpful sources were two books: My Child Won't Eat: How to Prevent and Solve the Problem by Carlos Gonzalez (now out of print, but available on amazon) and Baby-Led Weaning: The Essential Guide to Introducing Solid Foods and Helping Your Baby Grow Up to be a Confident Eater.    I really believe these books changed the trajectory of how I saw food and prevented many potential problems.  My job was to offer.  Their job was to eat as much or as little as they wanted.  We began offering table food cut up in small pieces and ever so slowly, he took it and actually enjoyed eating!

With my last two children, I decided I would not even try baby food.  I nursed them solely until 7 months and then at 7 months began offering table food in little pieces along with breastfeeding. 

Looking back and looking forward, offering healthy table food is a great way to introduce nutrient dense foods when taste buds are forming.  It also saves tons of money and you avoid the preservatives found in jarred baby food.  It also saves you the time of making it yourself. 

Without further ado, the meal plan for the last half of October......

Breakfasts

Chicken Sausage, grits, and fruit (3 breakfasts first week/ 3 breakfasts second week)

Vegetarian Egg Bake (3 breakfasts first week/ 3 breakfasts second week)

*TOP FAVORITE in our home for breakfast/ brunch/ double it for a full meal for family of 6.

kale, spinach, etc or chopped veggies of your choice ...roughly 2 cups
2 tbsp. coconut oil, melted
onion
garlic- lots
3/4 cup homemade chicken stock
1/2 cup half-n-half (can use alternative dairy free if avoiding dairy)
4 eggs
salt and pepper and thyme
Shredded parmesan cheese

*Combine all ingredients BUT cheese. Sprinkle fresh shredded cheese on top. I tend to use parmesan an use 2.5 ounces.
Bake 30 minutes or until done at 350. 6 ww points

Baked Sweet Potato with Raisins, Chopped nuts, Coconut Butter, & Cinnamon (1 breakfast first week/ 1 breakfast second week)

Recipe and picture by Mary Collins

Lunches

*two recipes my friend Kristin Jackson recommended

Chicken and Black Bean Casserole (first week)

http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2011/10/healthy-meals-monday-chicken-and-black.html

Sweet potato and Quinoa (second week)

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/spicy-quinoa-with-sweet-potatoes.html#!
*We don't do spicy, so I leave out spice for us.

Dinners

Salmon, broccoli, and sweet potato fries (3 dinners)

My husband makes a rub with coconut oil, sea salt, and pepper and puts in the oven on 400 until cooked.  For the potatoes, I cut them up so that they look like fries and coat them in coconut oil and bake at 375 until done. 
*I just bought 25 lbs of wild caught salmon for $6.99 a pound from Zacon.  Zacon delivers to most areas of the country.  I blogged about it here.  Sign up here if you like salmon and don't want to miss it the next time it comes around!

Chicken and Guacamole (3 dinners)
2 cups cooked chicken (make ahead is easiest)
1/4 cup green onions
1/4 cup cilantro ...
1 cup black beans
3/4 cup corn
1/2 ts cumin
1/2 ts salt
brown rice to serve 6 (cooked)

sauce: 2 tbsp. olive oil, juice of two limes, 1/2 ts. cumin, 4 TBSP honey (mix all ingredients together)
Mix chicken, green onions, cilantro, beans, corn, cumin, and salt together and then mix with sauce. Serve over rice.
Top with homemade guacamole. Delicious!
recipe from: Jennifer Brooks

Winter Delight (3 dinners)
(Another family favorite and quite simple...great for breakfast or dinner.)
Cook butternut squash in oven face down for 30 minutes or so at 375 until tender but not all the way cooked.  They key is you don't want to cook the squash all the way.

Cook 1 lb sausage and one onion on stove until sausage mostly done and drain fat
Add kale (use as much as you'd like....I use a lot....3 handfuls and put in food processor). Also add one cut up apple for a few minutes. Add silvered almonds. Put mixture aside.
Cut up butternut squash in squares or whatever and place in a Pyrex dish and set aside
stir 2 tbs milk and one egg together and then mix with sausage, kale, apple, and almonds and onion mixture and then mix with squash.....bake in oven about 30 minutes on 350

Pork Tenderloin with Salad and Potatoes (3 dinners)

marinate in freezer bag and place in freezer or marinate in fridge for at least 6 hours
Ingredients: 1/4 cup lime juice or lemon juice (whatever you have), 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil, 2 tbsp. fresh cilantro or two tbsp. dried cilantro, 1/4 tsp cumin, sea salt and pepper to taste (make sure well mixed before placing chicken in mixture) - recipe from The Inside Tract: Your Good Gut Guide to Great Digestive Health

Place in baking dish after marinating with marinade at 350 for 45 minutes.  I then turn the oven off and leave for an additional 15 minutes watching to make sure it does not overcook. 

Chop potatoes and toss in coconut oil.  Bake on 375 for 45 minutes or so until done stirring occasionally. 

Pizza Night (1 night each week)

*add in basil, oregano, Italian seasoning to dough

 top dough with sauce, mozzarella cheese, and toppings  http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bobby-flay/pizza-dough-recipe.html