Muffin Monday

Ok, I admit this one isn't really for the babies, but I made it for a potluck and am so proud of myself, I have to share.  I couldn't decide whether to make my tomato, basil, and sweet corn pasta salad, or cupcakes. So I decided to compromise.  I give you...[drumroll]... basil sweet corn mini-muffins with tomato-chevre 'frosting'!  All the cute of a mini cupcake, but with a flavorful little punch of savory.

It could be adapted for babies easily enough-- leave out most of the salt, sugar, and possibly the whole corn (which, um, tends to pass right on through little digestive systems), and it would be fine. Mind you, if you use 1 tsp of salt in the whole thing, that's 2325 mg of sodium (according to NutritionData.com), but the recipe makes 54 mini-muffins, so only about 43mg per muffin (before adding the cheese in). Just sayin'.

Basil sweet corn muffins

1 stick butter, chilled
1 3/4 c. cornmeal
1 1/4 c. all purpose flour
1/4 c. sugar
1 Tbs baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 c. buttermilk
3 eggs
1 1/2 c. frozen corn, thawed
1/2 c. finely chopped basil

Preheat your oven to 400, and grease up some mini-muffin tins.

In a large bowl, mix together the dry ingredients. With a pastry blender or a knife, work in the butter until it's all cut into pea-sized bits or smaller. then go at it with your hands and work it in some more.  In a smaller bowl, whisk together the eggs and buttermilk.  Stir these into the dry ingredients, then stir in the corn and basil.  Fill your muffin tins and bake about 10 minutes, until a knife stuck in one comes out clean.  Turn them out on a rack and let them cool.  Makes 4 1/2 dozen.

Tomato-Chevre 'frosting'

This is a bit more approximate, and I didn't take close measurements when I was making it.  So start with small amounts of the spices and work your way up to the amount you think tastes good.

12 oz. goat cheese (Capriole Farms chevre if you can get it!)
12 oz. cream cheese
tomato paste-- the better part of one of those little cans, maybe 6 Tbs total
~1 1/2 tsp or so of powdered garlic
~1 1/2 tsp sun dried tomato powder
~1/2 tsp. white pepper
salt to taste
~ 1/4 c. heavy cream

Let the cheese come to room temperature, mash it up good in a medium bowl. With vigor and enthusiasm, mix in your spices and tomato paste. Gradually stir in the cream. With a hand mixer, beat the mixture on high until light and fluffy, adding more cream to lighten as necessary. The texture should be light and fluffy and easily spreadable.  Pipe it onto the corn muffins and garnish with toasted pine nuts or a sprig of basil.

I promise my muffin for next week won't involve basil or garlic.

Cheesy squash casserole recipe for babies

Squash casserole, that Southern classic, is one of my favorite things about summer. The original recipe involves a cup of crushed Ritz crackers, which isn't the most baby-friendly ingredient in the world (salty!), so here I've subbed in bread crumbs. Traditionally the veggies are boiled, mashed, and turned out into a casserole dish, but I save a bit on cleanup and make it tastier by sauteeing the veggies in an oven-safe pan (my trusty cast iron skillet) and then popping the whole thing into the oven. Even without added salt, this is one that tastes good to both adult and baby palates. Golden brown and delicious!

The squash mushes up readily, and Mae can grab big handfuls with no problem. Sometimes the skin of the squash doesn't mush up quite enough for her preferences, but she just spits that out and carries on.

Cheesy squash casserole

5 small-med yellow squash

1 med. onion, diced

2 Tbs olive oil

3 Tbs minced fresh parsley (or dried if you haven't got fresh)

1/2 c. bread crumbs

1 c. grated cheddar cheese

3/4 c. parmesan cheese

1/4 c. milk or cream

black pepper to taste

Add oil to an oven-safe skillet over medium high heat. Add onions. Cook until beginning to brown. Meanwhile, slice squash into thin disks-- about 1/8 inch wide. Add squash to skillet. Cook until brown -- the squash will cook down a LOT. It should all be very soft (this could take a while, but it's worth the wait). Stir in the remaining ingredients, saving a little cheese to sprinkle on top. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes, until golden brown.