Creative baby dinner: Prawn, pea and mint risotto

Here’s a recipe for a dish I recently made for baby. Risotto is a pretty easy meal to make and baby loves this meal. He has been eating it since he was 12 months old. I don’t use stock in the food because of the high salt content and try to use fresh ingredients but you can also make this from frozen produce. If buying fresh prawns the smaller ones are usually better than the bigger king prawns you find in shops because they have more juice and flavour. 

Ingredients

300g risotto rice (for 2 people + baby with big appetite!) 

Small lump of unsalted butter 

1 onion

Approx 4/5 cups of boiled water (in replacement of stock)

Herbs: Parsley, thyme, nutmeg (half teaspoon of each or chopped finely if fresh)

Prawns (Fresh or frozen)

Peas (Fresh or frozen)

Handful of fresh mint

One lemon

Method

1. Put a lump of butter in the frying pan and leave to melt while chopping up the onion
2. Fry the onion in the butter until soft
3. Add the risotto to the onion and stir constantly for a couple of minutes
4. Poor the boiled water over the mixture one cup at a time and simmer. Add more water when needed
5. Add the parsley, thyme and nutmeg to the mixture and stir thoroughly
6. If using frozen peas and prawns add after 20 minutes and simmer for another 10 mins
7. If using fresh peas and prawns add after 25/30 mins and simmer for another 2-3 mins 
8. Chop the fresh mint and add to the mixture
9. Squeeze one lemon into the mixture. Stir for another minute
10. Make sure the risotto is cooked well and soft enough for baby

Enjoy the meal :)

Healthy eating for baby

We started weaning at 6 months and started off with very simple food - banana, mashed fruit and vegetables and slowly introduced other foods. Now that baby is 15 months we can be completely experimental in what we give him. We usually eat the same evening meal together as a family so don’t add any salt or sugar to our food. We use fresh ingredients as much as possible and make most things from scratch. Indian, mexican, thai - baby has tried them all. Of course we don’t always have time to make a creative dinner but we try to make them varied. I’m sharing a risotto recipe in the next post.

Family outing

Last weekend we all went for a stroll through the ‘North Laine’ area in Brighton. It’s filled with lots of lovely little boutiques, colourful arts and crafts, cafes offering sumptuous food, most of which are independent, and whatever you need you can find it here! There are some wonderful baby shops filled with beautifully crafted toys, fantastically illustrated books and pretty clothes and I’m usually enticed into these even if we don’t actually need anything new! I love going into town but the downside is that during the weekend the place is packed and pushing a buggy through crowds is not fun, as any parent will know! So we got there early, visited a few shops and went over to the sea for some peace. That’s the wonderful thing about Brighton, the sea is literally just around the corner. Baby loves throwing stones into the sea at the moment. So, we sat on the beach till the sun was setting and watched the swimmers :)

Baby boogie

Baby boogie is back at the local library this month! We have missed it over the Summer. In Brighton it’s held twice a month. I’m pretty sure there is something similar in libraries all over the UK, in the big towns at least. A library employee leads the session, singing all the popular nursery rhymes at the front of the class with mums and dads joining in, if they want to haha! Half way through the babies can choose any small musical instrument (great for small hands) and the singing continues. We have been going since baby was a few months old and we both love it. I think all babies love music though and it’s such a great source for development. In Brighton there is also a special Dads’ baby boogie every month which is a great idea as most groups are dominated by mums. It’s completely free as well which is always a bonus :) Is there something similar near you?

A Seaside Baby

We live in Brighton. The best thing about living here is the proximity to the sea. Many a time have I been for a stroll with baby in tow along the promenade, first in his pushchair, and now that he has learnt to walk, with him by my side toddling along. He loves the sea, he understands the word and is pointing at it as soon as it’s in sight. Born at the Brighton hospital with a room overlooking the sea, he’s a true seaside baby :)