Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Lil Green Baby Food:Organic Eggplant


My mom used to try her best to get my brother and me to eat healthier by serving up a variety of colors at dinner. Corn, green beans, squash and tomatoes out of the garden were frequently added to meals. I could have cared less. I've since learned that as a Mother, you try to do the best thing for your child, regardless of their reaction. Because nutrition is a little more of a priority now than it was then I find myself thoughtfully adding various colors to my own plate and I hope to instill the same food values into my daughter, L.

I looked in the freezer at the baby food I had been making: mango, carrot, pear, apples, squash. Where were the greens, the reds, the purples? She needed some color! So I bought a nice big purple eggplant and started making baby food.

Organic Eggplant Baby Food (Organic Eggplant Puree)
Take one large ripe eggplant, and quarter it longways. Scoop out the seeds. There are a lot and it might not look like much left, but stick with me! Cube the leftover pieces and put them into a pot with about 1/2 inch of water. Boil for about 10 minutes, or until visibly tender (when the eggplant changes color.) Drain the water into a seperate bowl and save. Pour the cooked cubed eggplant into the food processor and chop. Add back the water until you reach the desired consistency, but be sure not to make it too watery, this is already a watery vegetable (unlike carrot.) Pour into your freezer trays and freeze. My daughter loves eggplant mixed with pear. They might sound funny together but eggplant puree has very little taste on its on and can be added to almost anything without your baby knowing! Ta-da!

Eggplants are low in saturated fat, sodium and cholesterol. They are good sources of dietary fiber, folate, potassium, maganese, Vitamins C, K and B6, Thiamin, Niacin, and Magnesium. You can easily add your eggplant puree to spaghetti or lasagna, just mix one part eggplant puree to two parts store-bought or homemade spaghetti sauce. No one will be the wiser, but they will be a touch healthier!

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