Table scraps

Baby, I don't think we're in Jackson any more.
We are finally settling into our temporary home in the Atlanta area. Right now, we still live in a magical fantasy world of cardboard boxes and clothing piles. So, cooking is not the top priority. But I've managed to make some decent meals this week and Josie has tried some new things.

Babysaurus Rex
A while back, I fretted about whether and how to introduce Josie to meat. Turns out she's a big fan of animal flesh. I'm OK with it. I'm OK with it. I'm OK with it....(repeat).
Actually though, I am becoming OK with it. While I have made the decision not to eat mammals and flip-flopped back and forth with vegetarianism, I think Josie should eat what makes her happy and healthy. And that can include meat until she decides otherwise.
She's been a big fan of eggs and poultry — especially dark meat chicken and turkey — since the day she first tried it. In fact, on cranky days when we can't get her to eat anything else on her tray, she'll eat baked chicken.
She's had beef at day care. And she tried ham at my parents house last month.
Today, she tried lamb and fish (mahi mahi) for the first time. She ate both like she'd been eating them her whole life.
So, look out animals! Basically if you roam, crawl, fly or swim, Josie will eat you.
And there's more bad news. She'll get more teeth. (She still only has two)

Berbere baby
We've only been in the ATL for four days and already we've eaten Indian and Ethiopian. Food. Not people. Felt the need to clarify, after the previous post.
This was my first time eating at an Ethiopian restaurant. It was good. Hearty, spicy lentil stews. Garlicky collard greens. Spongy, sourdough, pancake-like rolls of bread for scooping and sopping.
Josie was a big fan of the bread, called injera. She also liked the greens (??? I can't figure out if she likes garlic or just humors me sometimes.) and the mild, stewed chick peas.
I didn't actually let her try any of the Berbere spice mix because I thought it may be too overpowering for her. But she ate some of Chris' lamb stew.
It made me happy to share a new experience with her. And I hope she's an adventurous eater as she gets older. I think it's a good way to broaden her palate and introduce her to new cultures.
Whose cuisine should we hit up next? Maybe Polish. 'Bout time she had some pierogi and borscht. Those are her birthrights after all.
Or maybe some Persian (Ahem. Samira, I will trade babysitting. Seriously.)
Or Korean. Or Lebanese. Or dim sum. Or South African. Or Jamaican.
Atlanta maybe rooted in the heart of Dixie, but it's dinner table has traveled the globe.

Weekend recipe: baby quiche

The other day I was soliciting breakfast ideas for Josie after falling into a rut of cereal and fruit. Thanks to kind hearted readers, I am regaining my mojo. Josie thanks you, too.

One of the ideas that has gone over really well so far is from my coworker Lisa. She said to bake eggs in a muffin pan, like quiches. I tweaked the idea by adding cottage cheese, which Josie is crazy about.

These quiches won my heart because they are easy to make, easy to store and made with whole foods. Josie fell in love with their eggy, cheesy goodness.

Breakfast bachelor No.1, step up and introduce yourself.

Baby Quiche

(Does not contain real baby)

Time

15 minutes

Ingredients and Equipment

This recipe should yield six quiches.

- 6 egg yolks (save the whites for a healthy grown-ups' omelet)

- 1 heaping cup cottage cheese

- pinch of dried chives (optional)

- muffin pan

Directions

In a bowl, mix the egg yolks, cottage cheese and chives. Pour the mixture evenly into a muffin pan and bake at 375 degrees for about 5-10 minutes, until the tops are firm and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

(NOTE: I didn't use a nonstick muffin pan and discovered I should have sprayed the bottom with oil. Also, my muffin pan had 12 muffin cups. So, I poured a little water into the six empty cups so that the heat would be even. I think the water also added some steam and helped keep the quiches from drying out.)

Weekend recipe: croque bebe

Here's my sigh of relief. Josie is recovering this weekend from a viral cold that burned her up for about a day and took away her appetite. But she woke up Saturday morning just in time for brunch.

I was so happy that she was game for a meal and sweet talked my man — THE BREAKFAST MASTER — into making our little bunny a special treat. Cue the bread. Cue the cheese.

Croque Bebe

This is a play on the French comfort food croque monsieur, which is sort of a savory, eggy grilled bread with ham and cheese. Except, no ham and sandwichified. (Oooh. That's a $10 word I just made up.)

And it is another recipe borrowed from What to Expect the First Year and tweaked. (We also cut the recipe in half because the serving size seemed too large.)

Time

Less than 20 minutes

Ingredients and Equipment

- 1 egg yolk

- 1/8 cup formula or breast milk

- about an ounce of sliced cheddar, Swiss or American cheese

- 1 slice of whole wheat bread cut in half; crusts removed

- vegetable oil cooking spray

- saute pan or griddle

Directions

- Beat the egg yolk and formula/breast milk together in a bowl

- Sandwich the cheese between the two pieces of bread. Soak the sandwich in the egg mixture until it absorbs the liquid.

- Spray pan or griddle with oil and cook sandwich over medium heat until it is golden brown on both sides (about five minutes). Make sure not to burn either side.

- Cut the sandwich into small pieces and serve warm. (The sandwich should be served on the day it is made. Leftovers can be refrigerated and reheated in a toaster oven at 325 degrees for a snack later in the day.

Mmmm...grilled, cheesy, eggy, good.

Post Script: Our dog, Maxine, liked it too. The chunks that didn't make it into Josie's mouth somehow found a way into hers. (Next time, I'll get a photo of that.)