Tuna Pasta Salad

Just typing that title makes me nauseous. This meal is a shining example about serving your children things that you may not like yourself. Personally, I can't stand tuna (unless it's raw), "salads" (you know, a mix of whatever thrown in some mayo), or peas. YUCK! Nevertheless, it's an excellent meal for little man.

Here's what you need:
Tuna
Pasta (we're using whole wheat rotini)
Peas
Mayonnaise
Canola Oil (or olive oil, etc.. optional)




Start by cooking your pasta. To save some time, add your peas to cook with the pasta when it's close to being done.


Once cooked, drain the water and add a teeny tiny bit of canola oil. This keeps the pasta from sticking to itself and adds a pinch of healthy fats.

Next, add your drained tuna and a small spoon of mayonnaise. You just need enough to lightly coat everything. Stir it all up. DONE!

To add some different texture, I broke up a couple crackers on top of everything. Easy peasy! I suppose this can be made as a family meal, but as mentioned, I can't stomach any part of this! Lucky for me though, baby boy ate it right up. Enjoy!

The Finest of Finger Foods

Oh finger foods, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways….

Finger foods sure are wonderful. They're quick and easy. They encourage your tot to work on that pincer grip, fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, the art of chewing, and how to simply enjoy mealtime.

Most days, lunch is 100% hands on for Fry. It gives him that lovely feeling of independence and "I can do it!" that toddlers thrive on, and it gives me a chance to catch up on chores around the apartment. The nice thing about this age, is that it doesn't have to make sense either.

Today's finger food lunch, for example, is a bowl full of: peeled green apple, raw zucchini, peas, matchstick carrots, cooked tomato, cheddar cheese, ham, turkey, and white bread.

Is this my ideal lunch? Goodness, no! (I'm a bit compulsive, so the thought of all these things mingling and touching is kind of repulsive to me.) But that doesn't mean it's not great for Fry! It's just a pile of things he likes with a whole array of different flavors, textures, and colors that is as filling as it is healthy.

To add to the fun, every now and then I'll serve him his nibblies in a few different sized and shaped containers. It gives him the opportunity to play with his food in a mommy-approved fashion. Be prepared for a super messy floor though!

Apple Cinnamon Waffles

The sun is up and tiny tummies are already grumbling. Time to get started on some breakfast, and I mean fast, otherwise there's going to be a little grumpers running around my ankles screaming.

Now, you want your baby's meals all homemade, right? Sometimes you just don't have time to make every little thing from scratch. Understandable! That's where the freezer comes in, your new best friend. There are tons of things that can be pre-made, pre-portioned, put in the freezer and will be ready to go whenever you need them. Breakfast items are some of my favorite to make ahead of time and put in the freezer. Pancakes, waffles, and even french toast heat right back up without any hassle straight from the freezer to the toaster.

And on that note, we can get started. So QUICKLY NOW! Breakfast!

Grab a waffle from the freezer and pop it in the toaster. Wash your apple thoroughly. (Quick tip: apples are one of those items you may want to consider buying organic. Why? It's almost standard for them to get a coating of wax to make them all pretty and shiny in the produce section. Nice to look at? Sure. Nice to eat? Not so much. More on this subject later.) Today baby boy is getting a nice tart granny smith green apple. I peel the skin since it's still tough for him to chew when raw, core it, and dice it up. I give him about half to go with his waffle, and the other half gets put away for finger food nibblies for later. Waffle popped up yet? It should have. If not, you might wanna check on it because it's probably on fire. I like to cut it along it's built in grid because until my coffee is ready my brain is useless, and these seem to be perfect sized squares. Toss your cut up waffle and apple into a bowl, dust with cinnamon, and put a light drizzle of syrup on top. No need to avoid syrup if you're feeding your tot well, the bit of sugar is a nice treat for them as long as you're giving it in moderation and not loading them up on other junk throughout the rest of the day. Personally, I like to put this into the microwave for a few seconds to warm up the apples and the syrup, but this certainly isn't a must. Make sure you mix it up a bit so that cinnamon gets on everything, and that's that!

Breakfast time! If you like, take the other apple half and make some waffles for yourself! After all, baby isn't the only one that needs a good breakfast to start the day.

Toddler "Sushi Rolls"

Lunchtime is looming. The kiddos are already rolling their eyes at the thought of another sammich. What's a parent to do? Try this fun alternative! Toddler "Sushi Rolls" are easily customized to your child's particular tastes, and are really quick and easy to make.

Here's what you need:

Lunchmeat

Cheese

Veggies (optional)

Today, we're using turkey and ham with colby-jack cheese, cooked matchstick carrots, and pureed yellow squash and zucchini.

Simply lay out a slice of lunchmeat and add some shredded/grated cheese and your veggies (if any).

Now roll it all up!

Heat in the microwave for a few seconds to melt the cheese and warm everything up.

Slice, serve, and you're all done!

I served this up with some cucumber cubes and some whole grain white bread on the side. Now, baby boy loooves him some cheese. I was really expecting this to be a big hit. The verdict? FAIL. Fry used to adore his zucchini and yellow squash, but for some reason he hasn't been taking to it. I'll be damned if I'm gonna let this last batch of it go to waste though! I keep trying to sneak it into other meals, this being one of them. Sometimes it works, this time it didn't. Darn! Normally though, this meal clears plates.

"Nice try, Mom. I keep telling you I'm not eating that green mush crap though."