Free Range on Food: Making Baby Food, Hitting Farmers Markets, More

Free Range on Food is a forum for discussion of all things culinary. You can share your thoughts on the latest Washington Post Food section, get suggestions from fellow cooks and food lovers, or swap old-fashioned recipes the new-fashioned way. This week, Food Section staffers making their own baby food, checking out new restaurants in the 14th St. corridor, unlocking the secrets of cooking eggplant and dishing about farmers markets. They were online Wednesday, April 15 at 1 p.m. ET.

Archive of past discussions

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Joe Yonan: Welcome, Rangerinos, to this week's chat, where we will help you feed yourself, your baby, your kid, your kid's friends, your non-drinking friend, your hipster urbanites, your eggplant lovers, your -- well, you get the idea. Everyone!

Toss your questions our way; Jane Black is on assignment, but we have some reinforcements at the ready to help us answer. Nina Planck, author of "Real Food for Mother and Baby" is in the house, poised to tackle those queries. And I think I saw Spirits guru Jason Wilson shaking and stirring in a corner somewhere.

Besides the usual reward (fabulous ideas and witty banter with us), you also might be one of the privileged two to win a giveaway book. We have "Preggatinis: Mixology for the Mom-to-Be" as well as "Real Food for Mother and Baby."

But don't get the idea that this is all we're willing to talk about today. The sky's the limit.

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Colesville, Md.: My six month old has just started on solid foods. So far we have had success with canned products. Making my own baby food seems like just another time consuming chore since I already work full time. Do you think there is really a great benefit healthwise to making your own? Would love some quick recipes. Thanks

Nina Planck: Dear Colesville,

Time-consuming, you bet. My own feeling was that I didn't want to make two meals for three people - no more than I want to make a separate meal for Rob and for me. So my starting point with the first-foods sections of Real Food for Mother and Baby was SIMPLICITY. And I'd be glad to give you recipes except that I never used any. When your baby is ready to eat solid food -- and that time varies widely, from five or six months to 8 or 9 -- you may start with any real food. So from 7 months or so, Julian ate: pieces of fruit and vegetable (raw and cooked), pieces of cheese, all kinds of other fresh dairy, including yogurt, creme fraiche, and milk. He had butter, olive oil, and coconut oil. He had coconut, fresh and dried. He had meats, lightly cooked eggs yolks, fully-cooked eggs, e.g. scrambled. What he didn't have before a year was very much wheat, or indeed very many grains, because these are not easy for little stomachs to digest. They lack.

I didn't cook special meals for Julian and I didn't puree his food, either. Babies are remarkably adept at keeping chunks of food in the front of their mouths. They don't like choking any more than you do, you'll be right there anyway (to help), and they LOVE to gum firm things. The little teeth are right under there -- have you ever put your finger in your babies molar area? It's HARD. So there is plenty of resistance, and for some babies, this teething time is a great time for hard-ish things -- hence, of course, teething rings.

Having said NO RECIPES, here are some with 3 or fewer ingredients: From an Italian mama -- grated Parmiggiano and olive oil, mixed up in a paste. Babies like salty things and a little salt helps develop glial cells in the brain. Bananas sauteed in coconut oil. Julian happened to like cinnamon (me too). Yogurt with honey. (I read a good study in which infants eating honey produced ZERO cases of botulism. It's probably (though I can't prove it) more common in canned food than in local, raw honey from a good beekeeper. Brown rice with melted cheese. And, of course, anything from your plate. Julian gnawed on chicken bones, couldn't have been happier.

All the health benefits of feeding your baby real food mirror the benefits your whole family will reap from real food. Real food is fresher. it's whole, not broken, so all the nutrients are there in the right and natural proportions. If ecological, it contains fewer pesticides. If in season, it should taste better. And so on.

But 'making' your own 'baby food,' as in a small 9very small) factory producing 'homemade' baby food to replace the jarred stuff? That was not my goal, nor do I see any reason, practical, culinary, or health-related, to do it. So I'm with you.

Nina (tried to work today with a toddler, visiting eight-year-old, and twins-in-the-belly, feel-your-time-crunch) Planck

www.RealBabyFood.info

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Mocktinis: Hi Crew,

Great section today! I am expecting, and really appreciated the mocktini column. I was wondering if Jason has a recipe that uses fresh mint leaves? I'm missing my mojitos!

Jason Wilson: There is actually a recipe for a "Momjito" in Preggatinis. Here it is:

1 lime, diced with peel on

5-6 mint leafs

1 tsp. brown sugar

1 oz. Torani Butter Rum syrup

lemon/lime soda or club soda

1 lime wheel

Muddle lime, mint, sugar, and syrup in the bottom of a tall glass. Fill with ice. Top with soda.

Note from me: I think that seems like a lot of lime, so you might want to experiment.

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South Riding, Va.: We didn't get particularly wild or crazy when we made food for our son as a baby. We just cooked veggies/fruit without seasoning and pureed. He was a bit slower to warm to meat texture, so was handling some pieces by the time he started eating those. We got to the point when he was eating all regular table food, and realized that the few jars of baby food we purchased for backup or travel, never got opened.

Bonnie Benwick: Sounds sensible. But these days seasoning's being included. Several spices and ingredients like ginger have ayurvedic/healthful properties.

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Athens, Ga.: Can you suggest any interesting breakfast ideas? I make a big breakfast every Saturday, and I feel like I'm in a rut. My boys would be content with pancakes every week, but I'm tired of them. We sometimes do scrambled eggs with biscuits/potatoes, French toast (baked or cooked in a waffle iron), waffles. What else can I add to the rotation? I'm stumped.

And for baby food, with my first, I made a ton of it. I put it in 4 oz Gladware in the freezer, and it worked great -- just like the jarred stuff. My second had NO patience for that. He wanted what I was eating; at 5 months he grabbed a sweet potato from my husband's plate and never looked back. So, every meal I made sure we had something baby friendly and never fed him jarred/pureed food. Their little gums are remarkably hard (he's 20 months and just now getting molars), and he's been eating meat, beans, tofu, cooked veggies, cheese cubes, etc for over a year. I have to say, feeding the second one was way less hassle than feeding the first!

Joe Yonan: The boys might get a kick out of a Spanish tortilla made with potato chips, right? It's a typical tapa, but you could certainly swing it for breakfast. Or if they like spicy food, might I suggest two recipes from my kindred spirit, Lisa Fain of the fab Homesicktexan blog? She has killer recipes for two of my faves from my Austin days: migas and breakfast tacos, both of which have kid appeal.

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Cleveland, Ohio: I loved the "Mocktails" article today. I think having interesting nonalcoholic beverages really sets apart good bars/restaurants. I noticed this first-hand when I was pregnant, and now with a 4-year-old who is able to go out to dinner with us at a decent restaurant and enjoy a mocktail of her own.

Any idea where I can get Timo Janse's book? Didn't see it on Amazon.

washingtonpost.com: Taking Mocktails Seriously (The Washington Post, April 15, 2009)

Jason Wilson: Unfortunately, Timo's book hasn't yet been translated into English (but I understand it's in the works). If you can read Dutch (and really...who doesn't??) here is his website for the book. If you go to the page that says "Recepten &Tips" you'll see a bunch of recipes, which you can most likely self-translate online.

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Alexandria, Va.: My arugula plant from last year is growing again and we have been harvesting it. However, it seems more bitter than usual. Is there a type that does not increase in bitterness over the winter?

Joe Yonan: Here's what gardening guru Adrian Higgins says:

"The lengthening days are causing it to bolt and turn bitter. Rip it out and sow some more, which you can harvest as baby arugula until June, then sow again in August for a fall crop."

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Alexandria, Va.: So, this has nothing to do with babies or farmer's markets. I recently came across fat-free half and half. Yes, you heard me. Total oxymoron. It comes in pints and quarts in the dairy section. I don't cook a lot of cream based things but I bought it and have been using in in everything from coffee to seafood chowder (amazing) and cream sauces and whenever I make a cream based dish now. I cannot tell the difference in a final product however I have not tried to drink it directly for a taste test. I can't help but wonder though if I am getting it wrong. Should my reaction to this have been to put it down and run the other way? To only use it for coffee? Does it have the potential to not be as good a quality product as regular cream or half and half? I am looking for any argument as to why this fat free product is not as acceptable to use as the high test version. I think I might be in love.

Joe Yonan: People have very divergent opinions about FFHH. It's an oxymoron because, well, if you want to get technical about it it's not really true that it's half and half. Half and half is half milk and half cream. FFHH has a few more things than that in it, including a little sweetener, thickeners/emulsifiers, etc. Here's an example from Garelick's label: Nonfat milk, milk, corn syrup, artificial color, sugar, dipotassium phosphate, sodium citrate, mono and diglycerides, carrageenan, natural and artificial flavors, vitamin A palmitate.

If you're trying to eat fewer artificial ingredients, then this would be a no-no. It's not up to me to judge what you want to eat yourself, but this is not something I'd personally be into consuming much of. I'd rather either splurge on whole milk or, once in awhile, regular half and half. Another idea: Have you tried evaporated skim milk? It's just milk with vitamins added, none of that other stuff, and it's nice and creamy.

Nina Planck: I like what's above. I'd just add some reasons we don't eat or drink things engineered to be low in something or high in another.

One, they're broken. An all egg-white omelet (lacking, of course, the yolks) gives you have the nutrients of the whole egg. You miss the omega-3 fats and you cannot properly digest the white protein without fats.

Two, they don't taste as good. Do a few side-by-sides with an imitation product and the real thing.

Three, they don't register in your body honestly. Cream is supposed to be rich. The body knows and expects to feel something (tasty, filling) when eating cream. When it looks like cream but acts like something else, all the signals are off.

Four (with dairy) there are more androgens -- male hormones -- in skim and fat-free products because they add them for texture. These may contribute to PCOS (female infertility) and acne. I put this in Real Food for Mother and Baby and it's explained admirably by Walter Willet and co-author Skerret (sp).

Five, why substitute corn syrup for fat? That, we have learned, after thirty years of the low-fat diet paradigm, has given us the triple epidemic of obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. No thanks.

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Columbia, Md.: I am looking for a place to buy beautiful cured meats -- the sort you can find in Europe on the beautiful charcuterie plates. Any ideas or leads in Maryland or D.C.? Okay -- even Virginia -- I'm desperate!

Bonnie Benwick: Try Nathan Anda's Red Apron Charcuterie, sold at Planet Wine in Alexandria (703-549-3444).

Joe Yonan: There's a small selection of great stuff at Cowgirl Creamery in Penn Quarter, but for fantastic, locally made charcuterie, head to Red Apron Charcuterie in Del Ray. Now I KNOW chatters have other favorites, so I'll stop there and let others weigh in.

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lamb leftovers: Any ideas? We had a lovely roast lamb on Sunday and have plenty left over. Froze about half the roast for future meals. Wondering about the best way to reheat and serve without losing taste and texture. Thanks.

Nina Planck: Our Easter Sunday lamb roast became curry with soaked dried apricots and diced potatoes the other night. I used a packaged (but high quality) spice mix because I know little about curry. I grated (out of season) cucumber in yogurt for the side and some (local) cilantro.

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pav bhaji: I went to Woodlands South Indian restaurant in Langley Park, Md. and I discovered pav bhaji. Bhaji is basically a mixed vegetable mash that is thin enough for my baby to eat. So how can I make this Bhaji at home, which seems to me to be the same consistency as baby food, but with a bit more flavor? Granted, I would have to keep out the chilis when cooking for my toddler.

Bonnie Benwick: The nice restaurant folks have given us an approximate recipe; amounts are up to you.

1. Boil or steam some cauliflower, potatoes, green bell pepper and green peas. Reserve the cooking liquid. Mash the cooked vegetables together in a bowl.

2. Saute some diced onion in a skillet with a small amount of oil, until they are quite caramelized. Add finely chopped tomatoes and garlic-ginger paste to taste.

3. Add the pav bhaji spice blend mix to the onion-tomato mixture, to taste. This is a mix you can make at home or buy at Indian markets...it usually contains ground coriander, chili pepper (omit or cut back on this, maybe?) and cumin, dried mango (amchur) powder, cardamom, black pepper, fennel seeds, ground cinnamon and bay leaf, seeds of anise and caraway, some grated nutmeg and ground cloves.

4. Keep the mashed vegetables separate from the spiced onion mixture till you're ready to serve. Then combine some of the spiced mixture with the mashed vegetables and add the reserved cooking liquid as needed, to create the desired texture. Good luck!

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Md.: Okay, I have to ask. What is the big deal about making baby food? My mom always fed us pretty much what the family ate, just mashed and pureed. And people, JUST SAY NO to the cutesy little baby food machines. Just use your regular food mill or food processor.

Bonnie Benwick: Well, it might not be a big deal for some people, but for others there's lots of worry about whether baby's getting enough to eat, the right nutrition, etc. Some young parents don't know how to cook at all, so maybe they'll learn how to feed themselves and their babies healthfully.

Your mom did it the way lots plenty of other moms did, but then again, some parents go straight to jarred food not just for convenience but for safety, etc.

I agree about the food mill/processor. That said, small amounts of food are easy to do in a smaller machine. If you have a mini food processor, great! Chef Ryan Morgan was recommending a Magic Bullet. (as seen on TV?)

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Clarksburg, Md.: (From last week's chat...) Graham Flour: Before somebody asks, graham flour is a type of whole wheat flour. You can get bags of it at health food stores, made by the usual health food suspects. But it's great stuff. Or you can fly to England and bring some back.

Bonnie Benwick: Editor Joe, this chatter deserves special book-giveway consideration...

I was reading the above -- you really do not need to fly to England to bring this stuff. Go to nearby Indian Grocery shop and get it. It is great to make sweets and tempura kind of snacks. Hope we are talking about the same graham flour!

Bonnie Benwick: I think it's spelled "gram" flour at the Indian shops.

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Boulder, Colo.: Question for Dave: we will be in the Livermore Valley this Saturday. Any vineyard recommendations for us to visit?

Joe Yonan: Sez Dave: "Wente and Concannon are the only Livermore Valley wineries that have much of a national reputation, so they'd be my suggestions for a starting point. Wente, especially, will have some historical interest, as the family has been producing wine for generations. I've also heard good things about Tamas (very close to Wente) and Fenestra. But you have an opportunity to set off and explore for something new and surprising. When you stay at a hotel, or eat at a restaurant, or visit Wente or Concannon, ask someone there to suggest an interesting winery to visit. The good news: Most of the wineries are close by to Livermore, so there won't be much driving in between."

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Reston, Va.: Loved the mocktails article. I'm not a parent (and don't plan on being one), but between all my suddenly sprogging friends and my own mother who can't drink alcohol, I'm seeing a mocktail party at my house in the near future. Not to mention all the showers over the next few months!

Joe Yonan: Sprogging? Love it.

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Philadelphia, Pa.: Where do you find food blogs you love? Just word of mouth? I recently started a food blog and want to make sure I'm getting the word out to readers beyond putting the link in my posts on foodie websites and getting the word out to my Facebook friends.

(Resisting the urge to self-promote with a URL in this question.)

Joe Yonan: Well, one way is to get media attention, sure. And to do that we'd need a URL. We'd look and if we love, we'd mention you. We're starting up our own blog soon, so there'll be many chances for cross-promoting/referencing.

Mostly, the way I find blogs is through other blogs, what they link to, or what they include on their blogroll.

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Washington, D.C.: I picked up a chocolate mint plant at the Dupont Circle Farmer's Market on Sunday. Other than inhaling its delicious minty-chocolate scent, I'm not sure what to do with it. I thought about infusing some cream for chocolate truffles but can't imagine making too many of those (well, I can, but shouldn't).

Bonnie Benwick: Infusing's the way to go -- teas, simple syrup, sauces. Chatters, what other things do you do with choc mint?

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Baby food maker!: I read with a smile the article on making baby food! I made both my kids food (well, I still make their food, as I do the cooking!) And they have been eating what we eat since they were 6 or 7 months old. They are now three and a half and 19 months. My advice for anyone making their own food:

-- Keep a few jars of pre-made food around. People, you have a baby now! You will be busy and tired! Having a backup for those nights you look in the fridge and say, "uh oh, I have nothing made and baby is hungry" will give you relief.

-- I attempted to "make" meat food (I am a vegetarian) but was not successful. Even using my books for guidance, I could not get it to the right consistency. I bought the pre-made meat food that neither child really seemed to like nor would my carnivore husband eat. It smells funny (the food, not the husband, although he has his moments). The meat went down better when they were a bit bigger and I could serve little bits of it. They still do not like it much and prefer tofu over it.

-- Please oh please do not buy a food processor specially made for making baby food. If you have a food processor, it's all you need to puree anything you want. Seriously. Baby food-specific ones are cute and colorful, but a waste of money.

-- While I did not make any food that was "burn your mouth hot," I did and do use spices. Be not afraid of spices! If you like stuff three-alarm hot, keep your favorite hot sauces around and spice up your serving.

Now the bad news: both my children are just as picky as your basic toddler. Ah well. They get what we get, eat it or not; that is our motto.

Bonnie Benwick: Thanks for sharing the advice. They won't be picky for long, having had a taste of the real world. They'll come around.

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Dessert challenge help: It's been a while since I submitted a question, but I always love your advice and appreciate your knowledge!

I want to make a dessert that incorporates peanut butter and I'd rather not bake a huge cake as this is for two people. I don't want to make peanut butter cookies, but I was thinking maybe cupcakes with a peanut butter frosting? How would I go about making such a frosting? Would you recommend chocolate cupcakes?

Or should I go in an entirely different direction?

Thank you!

-- peanut butter lover

Bonnie Benwick: The filling in a recipe for Peanut Butter Chocolate Cake (from Mary Lee's Desserts of Vienna) is so delicious that we were eating it as a dip. You could use it to frost or fill cupcakes:

1/2 cup unsalted butter, just softened

8 ounces cream cheese, just softened

2/3 cup creamy peanut butter, preferably not natural/organic

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted

In the bowl of a stand mixer on medium speed, combine the butter and cream cheese, beating for 1 to 2 minutes, mixing well. Add the peanut butter and beat until smooth. Add the vanilla extract, mixing to incorporate, then reduce the speed to low and gradually add the confectioners' sugar, beating for about 2 minutes or until the filling is quite light and fluffy. Cover and refrigerate for about 1 hour.

But you also might want to check out these recipes on www.washingtonpost.com/recipes: Peanut Butter Globe Globs, Peanut Butter Banana Dark Chocolate Smoothie, Chocolate-Dipped Peanut Butter Balls, Banana-Peanut Butter S'mores Icebox Pie (and plenty more savory recipes for a 'nut fan like yourself).

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Washington, D.C.: As someone who is about to have a baby, I have noticed advertisements from companies like Williams-Sonoma for really high-tech, baby-food making devices (they seem to cut up as well as cook food). But the food examples you gave this morning don't seem to require special gadgetry. What do you think, could I make my own baby food with the standard devices I already have in the kitchen, or do you think these special gadgets are worth it (maybe time-saving)?

Bonnie Benwick: The general consensus of chatter posts so far today seems to be: Use the devices you have on hand (assuming blender/food processor and/or food mill).

I do think those little BPA-free Baby Cubes containers are worth getting for storage. They hold 2 ounces and can go from freezer to microwave. (After the baby-food testing, I'm now using them for vinaigrettes and chutneys.)

Nina Planck: The total special equipment I bought for Julian (and this over time - none of it before about 7 months) was this:

-- A few bibs (but he was a summer first-eater and most of that was shirtless, much easier).

-- A chair (the tray is very handy -- easier to clean up than the hook-on-the-table number we also tried) Svan chair, goes from baby to age 5, economical.

-- Small cups for home.

-- A BPA-free kind of sippy cup -- but it's not totally spill-proof, like a true 'sippy' as I understand the term, for when he's out and about.

That's it. At one he began to use a plastic plate we were given. More toward two he started to use utensils seriously.

I already had various tiny bowls and spoons, but I bought a few more for nothing in Chinatown.

I used ONCE and gave away a plastic baby food mill. We pureed nothing we don't eat pureed ourselves.

When Julian wants a smoothie, he gets its the way I do: from our blender.

We have a small apt. I was already appalled by the amount of baby-related equipment we ended up with. Several carriers to suit his size and my physique and needs. At 7 months, a stroller (for jogging)and a portable cheap crib. Later, a real crib. Toys. I wasn't about to further clutter our kitchen.

As for the shopping list, I conceded a few things to Julian: frozen organic peas. I love 'em and pea season is so short. Small bags of frozen ground beef (made from a pound of grass-fed ground). Crackers, closest to whole wheat and not-too-sweet we can find. A big concession, one I'd hoped to avoid. But indispensable, I found. Can't always make a piece of real toast, just can't.

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Cured Meats: Taylor, on H St. NE! Or, of course, Eastern Market,

Joe Yonan: Taylor is fab -- what sandwiches!

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Philadelphia, Pa.: Any great ideas for Granny Smith apples? I got them to put out with cheese fondue at a party and completely forgot. I could of course just eat them, but thought I'd see if you have anything cleverer or more compelling. You generally do.

Nina Planck: In our house a good apple and some cheddar cheese, preferably a good aged cheddar, plus nuts or oat cakes is a regular snack.

Joe Yonan: How bout Apple Chips? This recipe calls for just 1 apple, but it's eminently scale-up-able.

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Washington, D.C.: Thank you for the wonderful roast lamb recipe in last week's Food section. I made it for Easter dinner and it was a big hit.

My only problem is that my partner purchased a bone-in leg of lamb (which was fine for the roasting), but now I am left with a 14" lamb bone covered in yummy roast lamb goodness. It seems too good to throw away (although the dog seems to be lobbying for it...), but I do not know what to do with it: Stick it in a pot of beans? Make lamb stock?

Thanks for your help.

Bonnie Benwick: Real Entertaining columnist David Hagedorn says: Sticking it in a pot of beans is a good way to go, especially on a day like today. Or barley, for a soup, otherwise known as Scotch broth. You could also make a secondary stock from it as you suggest, but I'd use beef broth instead of just water to bump op the body of the stock. One thing for sure you should not do is let your dog eat that bone.

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Silver Spring, Md.: I know that Passover is almost over, but do you have a recipe for light, fluffy Passover rolls? Katz's, when it was around, made them for Passover, but I haven't seen them at Koshermart, which took over the location. I have a recipe from my husband's grandmother but everyone in the family calls them "hockey pucks." They're not that bad, but they are pretty dense, and I would prefer something more fluffy, if possible. I can't tell if the recipe you have on your website is fluffy or not, but it doesn't sound like it is.

Thanks!

Bonnie Benwick: The recipe on our site is really good, but I'd say it makes a roll that is closer to the texture of a gougere -- light and airy on the inside, crisp on the outside. I made 2 batches last week, and now they'll be on the permanent roster.

Chatters, do you have any Passover-friendly fluffy roll recipes out there?

Bonnie Benwick: fyi, our Passover Rolls.

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Burke, Va.: I'm trying to balance distance and my needs from farmers markets and am not really sure how. All winter, I've been alternating between Arlington (we moved from Arlington recently), Falls Church, with occasional trips to Dupont, but soon the Burke market will open up. I'm already aware that my yogurt vendor doesn't come there and I'm not sure about other dairy or meat vendors because it isn't year round. Suggestions, or is anyone familiar with the Burke market vendors? It might put my mind at ease to know that I will be able to get meat, etc., there.

washingtonpost.com: Farmers Markets 2009 (The Washington Post, April 15, 2009)

Joe Yonan: I just rang up the coordinator of the Burke market, whose contact info we list in the section today, and if I hear back in time I'll post. Otherwise, you might reach out yourself!

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Annapolis, Md.: I work full-time and make my own baby food -- and I'm no supermom. It's really easy. I just do one thing a day. Like, one night I'll cook an acorn squash, mash it with a potato masher, put it in ice cube trays. The next night I'll pop all those out into gallon freezer bags, then bake some sweet potatoes, mash up, into the ice cube trays. Lather, rinse, repeat. Eventually you'll get lots of gallon bags in your freezer and you only have to do one or two things on the weekend to keep up. And you don't even cook frozen fruits -- just thaw and whirl in the Cuisinart. I use canned baby food when we're out and about -- or did. Now my son's progressed past the all-puree point and just eats what we eat. Last night he picked all the bacon out of his spaghetti carbonara and ate it first, which to me just indicates he's a prodigy. But, really, if you're cooking diner already, adding a veggie and mashing it is no big deal.

Bonnie Benwick: He's brilliant, obviously. Gets it from his mother.

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wdc: Re: baby food: Wild nettle risotto?? Pear with maple and vanilla sauce? This is crazy. Who has this kind of time or money? I made ALL my daughter's baby food (she's now 18) based on a book called "Mommy Made (and Daddy too"). A couple hours of shopping/cooking every other weekend, froze the purees in ice cube trays (perfect serving size!), then moved them to plastic bags and kept them in the freezer. This enabled me to keep my job during the week. No spices, sugar, etc. in her baby food. The book moves through baby-stages and introduces new foods at appropriate ages. She's now a tall, strong, healthy person, and has always been a very adventurous eater, especially with vegetables. BTW, my pediatrician was TOTALLY against this idea -- she thought I was nuts, and was endangering my daughter.

washingtonpost.com: Baby, That's Good: Homemade Food Has Practical Appeal (The Washington Post, April 15, 2009)

Nina Planck: There's no need to plan the baby's risotto.

If you're cooking for yourself, feed the baby that. But I didn't bother, and don't recommend, making lots of purees and I don't have the inclination to freeze them.

Don't stint on the fat, spices, or salt. Babies like all of them and a little bit of the latter two is no harm at all. What do you think Vietnamese and Indian babies eat?

There's no need to clock baby-stages, food-wise. First fruit, then vegetables, then beef - there's no science in it. The only concerns are high-quality fat and protein (breast milk isn't made of pureed carrots, so it would be odd to wean to plain vegetables) for growth and development; a touch of salt for flavor and brain cells (glial); not too many big starches (e.g. wheat) until one or so, when the baby is making enough amylase (breast milk contains it).

To avoid allergies, avoid industrial soy (a common allergen), breast feed as long as possible (it's wondrous for the developing gut and immune system), and DON'T avoid common allergens such as dairy or citrus. The latest study (endnoted in my book, Real Food for Mother and Baby) indicates that delaying introduction of common allergens doesn't reduce food-related intolerance and other troubles (e.g. with cats or dogs). It appears that the stomach prefers exposure to protection.

P.S. My favorite and stand-by dessert for Julian is creme fraiche with maple syrup.

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Richmond, Va.: I had to buy a turnip for a chicken stock recipe, and since it came in a bag of four I now have three turnips that I have no idea what to do with. Ideas?

Nina Planck: I like roasted turnips with half olive oil, half butter. Or boiled and mashed with butter, or half potatoes. or boiled with potatoes and made in the blender with a little milk and cream into a one-person bowl of soup.

Bonnie Benwick: Steam them and put them through a ricer; add to mashed potatoes next time you make them. They add a lovely sweetness. Or you could roast them with olive oil, salt and pepper, maybe with a mix of other vegetables. Or you could parboil them whole, hollow out a core and fill with a vegetable or meat mixture.

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Random ingredients: Hi all -- I love your chat! I was spring cleaning (though it sure doesn't feel like spring) my pantry and came across some random ingredients that I would love to use, but am not sure what I could do with them.

1) Pumpkin butter spread -- I'd rather not merely spread this on toast. And importantly, is one allowed to eat pumpkin and its derivations only in autumn?

2) Assorted Caribbean island liquers (e.g. guava, passion fruit) -- a present from a friend. I don't make too many drinks, but would love ideas for a dessert.

3) Jaggery -- I have used this in Indian recipes. How could I use this sugar in non-Indian dishes and recipes?

Bonus points if you can incorporate all these items in one recipe!

Joe Yonan: At the risk of encouraging others to put multiple questions in one post (we would prefer one per in case one of us has a good thought on something and another on something else), here we go.

1. Pumpkin butter spread: How bout layering it with yogurt and, since they're on the brain now, Graham crackers or another cookie for a parfait? It also could go nicely with the right cheese: a tangy chevre, for instance.

2. Liqueurs: Thin with a little water and use them to brush on layer cakes instead of rum. (I'd do just one flavor per cake).

3. Jaggery is known by many other names throughout the world. In Latin America, it's piloncillo (or panela or panocha), so how bout this

vinaigrette

perfect for a scallop salad? Or this

Mexican coffee

? You could also use it in place of palm sugar, a common ingredient in Southeast Asian cooking. See a selection of ideas

here

.

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Graham is not Garam!: Garam flour is chickpea flour. Graham flour is whole wheat based. Googling Graham flour shows me that Bob's Red Mill makes it, so it should not be that difficult to find.

Bonnie Benwick: Right you are.

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Peanut Butter Chocolate Cake: OMG! Mary Lee's cake is the most amazing cake! It is SOOO good! It's not hard, but it takes time (cake, filling ganache thingie). I must have me some now.

Bonnie Benwick: We second that emotion.

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Woodbridge, Va.: We're hoping to move over the summer (fingers crossed!), but I'd like to plant some tomato plants and herbs. My toddler son loves tomatoes and I want to continue to encourage that, so is it feasible to plant cherry tomatoes in a large pot on a porch? The porch gets great morning sun, but I could also move the pot to a spot further in the yard where there's longer afternoon sun. If it's necessary, I could just plant the tomatoes.

Bonnie Benwick: Adrian Higgins, the Home section's Gardening columnist, says "Cherry tomatoes are extremely vigorous. I would recommend a globe, determinate variety for container culture."

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Another on baby food: My mother says she just used to mash up what ever they were eating because it was easier and cheaper than dealing with jarred baby food. We plan on doing this when we have kids, but is a contraption that steams the food and then purees it good for this as well?

Nina Planck: Unnecessary. A handheld potato masher will do it. Or a fork! Speaking of which, a boiled egg yolk fork-mashed with olive oil and a bit of salt is a good baby food. Don't forget: most places want to sell you equipment! You probably don't need it.

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Clifton, Va.: Do you know of any place within a 50-mile radius that sells unpasteurized, unhomogenized organic milk? I am aware of the rare potential health hazards, but want to try it anyhow.

Nina Planck: On my SHOPPING LIST are some places to buy real food, including real milk.

www.NinaPlanck.com

If you can't find or get raw milk, the best is local/regional, grass-fed, unhomogenized, gently-pasteurized milk. No hormones.

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Silver Spring, Md.: I am feeding my 8 month old baby and all he wants are carrots and sweet potatoes. He HATES green beans (I tried twice), and I still have about 12 more servings that I had made and frozen. How can I get him to like green beans and other vegetables without mixing them with applesauce or other sugary foods?

Nina Planck: Eat them yourself and forget about it! It's too easy to get too involved in what your child likes or doesn't. The phase of the selective eater is so very normal - and can be long, age 1 to 5 or longer! - that we should worry less. Try also to avoid commentary (eat this, good job, try one, etc). Easier said than done, but worth it.

I made apple sauce for Julian -- apples, skin, cinnamon -- from the beginning. He never liked it and doesn't today. Nor apples. I stopped offering. Around age two he ate an apple -- when a guy he loves offered him pieces. It happens when it happens.

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Preparing for ANZAC day April 25: I hunted online for an Anzac biscuit recipe. The one the WP ran in December 2007 (as a holiday cookie recipe) was among the top Google hits, so that's the one I made.

Joe tested the recipe so maybe he remembers, but did this really yield 48? I got 24 reasonable-sized cookies and they baked for the amount of time suggested (i.e., they were not under-baked because they were too large).

Also, all Australian-based recipes call for desiccated coconut, but the shredded, sweetened, easy-to-find stuff called for in this recipe worked out wonderfully.

I'm not gunning for the giveaways this week, but wonder if you have any insight. Thanks!

Joe Yonan: I love Anzacs! It has been awhile since I tested those, but we check the yields, so it must've been right. You did see that it calls for heaping TEASPOONfuls, not tablespoon, right? That could explain the difference. But it doesn't matter if you liked em, does it?

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Charcuterie: Two fab places on King Street in Alexandria: the new store next to Brabo, the Butcher's Block (1600 King) has lovely wine, beer, cheese, olives, and tons of charcuterie and lots of other meats, delicacies. The other is, oddly, the Fromagerie (1222 King), which has a lot more than cheese.

No, I am not connected to these, just a fan. My wallet and hips are not happy, but my taste buds are.

Joe Yonan: Excellent. Thanks!

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Vienna, Va.: I would love the buy all my produce at farmers markets, but I work full time, Monday to Friday, like most normal folks. Farmers market timings are so odd that I can never make it to these markets in time. Why can people not choose more reasonable time to hold farmers markets? Or maybe over the weekend? There are very few markets that get held over the weekend.

Joe Yonan: Seriously? Go to our interactive map, click on SAT or SUN, and see how wrong you are about the lack of weekend markets.

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Honey for Infants: I'm sure you're getting feedback on this, but I had read in a medical mysteries style column in Discovery magazine a few years back a case of infant botulism that was finally attributed to honey. I realize that this is hardly a call for alarm; however it is not reasonable to say that there are ZERO cases unless this column was entirely fictionalized. Which I find more difficult to believe than that honey-caused botulism is rare but real.

Buy some agave nectar, for cri-yi. Honey is not so irreplaceable as to risk botulism.

Nina Planck: Botulism does sometimes appear in honey, as in many canned gods and the dirt itself. If you would prefer to avoid it, there's no harm in a baby never touching honey for one year. (Sorry I can't point to the study right now -- I have it on another computer.)

A baby under one doesn't need sweets, anyway -- although yogurt is pretty sour straight.

However, it does seem rare, so I wouldn't be too excited about it. Maple syrup is a good choice. Buy grade b, which is darker, more flavorful, and has more minerals.

I don't care for agave syrup or stevia. To me they taste off, artificial. Better, I think, to learn to appreciate natural sweetness (ripe bananas), to save desserts for occasional treats, and to exercise moderation in portion size.

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re: Pav bhaji: Your very own WP food blogger Kim O'Donnel had a recipe for this -- I think around Oscar time. She's very good (I think) about carefully describing the process. I never tried it, but it sounded yummy.

Thanks for ALL the eggplant recipes -- spring is really here now.

Joe Yonan: Yes, she did. Link coming.

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washingtonpost.com: Kim's recipe for Pav Bhaji

Joe Yonan: There you go.

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Chocolate Mint -- mint juleps!: Rinse a generous handful of mint leaves. Put in a small saucepan with about a cup of water and a cup of sugar. Heat to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves and mint is slightly bruised. Boil a couple minutes, stirring; take off the heat and let cool to room temperature. Strain into a jar and keep in the fridge.

Combine syrup and bourbon over crushed ice for a wonderful mint julep -- the extra-smooth sweetness of chocolate mint works really well.

Bonnie Benwick: Nice.

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FFHH: I think the rule here, like everything else, is to practice moderation and think about what choices are best for you.

Here's what I mean by that: you ask "Why substitute corn syrup for fat?" Well, in my case, it's because I can't eat much fat. I had my gallbladder out a year ago and have issues with GERD, so if I'm making a white sauce I'm much more likely to use a mix of evaporated skim milk and FFHH. I understand from a weight-loss POV that it may make more sense to treat yourself once in awhile and otherwise abstain, but that doesn't work for everyone -- "treating" myself to full-fat white sauces means stomach upset afterwards.

I like whole foods, I cook a lot, and I tend to keep on top of what I eat. However, I think a lot of the hand-wringing about "manufactured foods" is overdone and reminiscent of every other "evil food" fad -- fats being evil, carbs being evil, etc. Practice moderation, know what your body needs (in my case, artificially fiber-supplemented foods can be helpful), and realize that options you find distastefully artificial may be helpful to others.

Joe Yonan: Yes, everybody has to figure this out for him/herself. Thanks.

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Mocktails: Thanks for the mocktails column -- I'm currently on meds where I'm not supposed to drink and it's been a boring series of Diet Cokes!

I do think it's funny that the WSJ had a dismissive column about mocktails earlier this month. I would like to point out that some self-respecting adults DO order Shirley Temples!

Jason Wilson: Glad to be of service, to help you get away from the Diet Cokes once in a while. There are obviously lots of serious reasons people don't drink alcohol -- including of course being the designated driver. So it's pretty irresponsible to be dismissive about mocktails or alternatives to cocktails.

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Burke Farmer's Market: There is generally someone there selling bison/buffalo meat products along with some free-range pork. Also, another vendor does sell excellent beef in various cuts as well as the occasional free-range chicken.

Joe Yonan: Thanks!

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Richmond, Va.: A granny smith apple idea: my most recent favorite breakfast is to lightly toast slices of multigrain bread (the dense kind with lots of grains and seeds), spread peanut butter on top, then top with thin slices of the granny smith apple. So tasty! The other day I ran out of apples and I needed to use up the bread, so I started slicing grapes in half and putting those on top.

Joe Yonan: Yum.

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Pumpkin butter: Stir it into oatmeal. Yummmmmm.

Also, for the mama whose son hasn't liked the green beans: keep trying. Repeated exposure will normalize them.

Joe Yonan: Natch!

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Request/suggestion: May I make a request or suggestion for a future chat? How about having Adrian Higgins as your guest chatter, to discuss growing culinary herbs, kitchen gardens, etc. Thanks for your consideration.

Joe Yonan: Absolutely. Adrian's going to join our blog once a week with a special veggie-growing report, and we'll get him on the chat, too.

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D.C.: Thank you!! I just love eggplant. I eat it whenever I see it on a restaurant menu, but almost never cook it at home because of the oil and bitterness. (I've even had a recipe for Imam Bayildi that I've wanted to try for years but never did because of the oil content.) Two questions:

I'm skeptical of the claim that the "modern" eggplant isn't bitter. I don't have that experience when I'm cooking at home. Am I especially sensitive? Or should I be buying bigger/smaller, riper/less ripe eggplants? (And how do you tell when an eggplant is ripe?)

Also, I just love Thai and Chinese dishes that have eggplant -- it seems to taste like an almost completely different vegetable than in European and Middle Eastern preparations. Is the flavor of the Asian eggplant that different, or is it the cooking style? Do you have any recipes for yummy Asian dishes that highlight eggplant?

Thank you!

Bonnie Benwick: Andreas hasn't joined us yet, so I'll send along this recipe. As for ripeness, you want to choose an eggplant that is firm but slightly yielding, with unwrinkled skin. Sometimes removing the peel will keep eggplant from tasting bitter.

Japanese Eggplant With Haricots Verts and Thai Red Curry

4 servings

Eggplant takes on a meltingly tender texture when thinly sliced and stir-fried over high heat. It also acts as a sponge for whatever the seasoning, in this case a mildly spiced curry sauce. If you prefer, you could add a handful of thinly sliced onion.

From a recipe in the September 1997 issue of Bon Appetit.

1/4 cup peanut oil

3 small Japanese eggplants (about 10 ounces total), unpeeled, cut into strips about 3 inches long and 1/2 inch wide

About 8 ounces haricots verts or thin green beans, ends trimmed

4 teaspoons minced garlic

2 teaspoons minced, peeled fresh ginger root

2 teaspoons yellow miso* (fermented soybean paste) mixed with 1/3 cup water

1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce

1 teaspoon Thai red curry paste*

In a wok or large skillet over medium-high heat, heat the oil until hot but not smoking. Add the eggplant strips and toss to coat with the oil. If using green beans instead of haricots verts, add them now. Stir-fry until the eggplant begins to brown, about 2 minutes. Add the haricots verts and stir-fry until eggplant strips are tender and haricots verts are still crisp but beginning to turn tender, about 1 minute. Add the garlic and ginger and stir-fry for 10 seconds. Add the miso mixture, soy sauce and curry paste and stir until the mixture thickens, about 30 seconds. Serve immediately.

*Note: Miso and Thai red curry paste are available at most Asian markets and some grocery stores.

Per serving: 163 calories, 2 gm protein, 9 gm carbohydrates, 14 gm fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 2 gm saturated fat, 349 mg sodium, 3 gm dietary fiber

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Petworth: I do not want to eat graham crackers made with gram flour, as that is chickpea flour.

Chapati flour may be what the poster is thinking of? But while it is whole wheat flour, it is not quite the same as graham flour. The textures are different.

Joe Yonan: I get you on the difference, but actually, I'd certainly try a chickpea cracker!

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Silver Spring, Md.: Love the baby food article! Unfortunately, my 8-month-old baby seems only interested in orange foods: sweet potatoes, squash, carrots. He tried zucchini and ate it two times but wouldn't eat it a third time. Two questions:

1) How can I get him to try other foods while keeping it positive/not forcing him, etc. With red pepper and green beans, he turns his head to the side at the mere smell of them. He even made little fists.

2) heard that it's dangerous to make carrots for babies because they might have nitrates, whereas baby food companies are able to test for nitrates. Is this true?

Thanks!

Bonnie Benwick: Studies show it can take many, many tries before a baby willingly takes on a new food -- it's not necessarily a sign that it's off the menu for good. Don't make it an issue, as you're well aware already. (Then again, I just started eating red bell peppers about 2 years ago.)

The carrots/naturally-occurring nitrates warnings (from the American Academy of Pediatricians) I think are for feeding babies younger than 3 months old, right? I'd check with specific baby food manufacturers about their testing; it's not a given.

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Weekend Market Goer: I'm not sure where you live but there are multiple year round markets on Saturdays and Sundays, and once the seasonal ones get started, my only issue is going to only one or two -- which is less of an issue now that many of the same vendors have stands at multiple markets.

Unless you sleep until noon on the weekend -- and then I can't help you.

Joe Yonan: Even then, you can still make it to some: in the city, there's 14th/U, Mount Pleasant, New Morning on Saturdays till 1, Ward 8 on Saturdays till 2, Dupont on Sundays till 1, and Bloomingdale and Brookland on Sundays till 2. I may have missed a couple in there. But the point is, going early is great for selection, but going late can be great for deal-making -- when the farmers want to get rid of the last stuff and not have to haul it back.

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baby food machine: No personal experience with them, but the one reason I would think about getting one of those cute green machines from Williams-Sonoma is that they seem to steam and puree both in the same teeny container. As an experienced cook with no kids I certainly have time to steam things on the stove and then move them to a food processor as needed, but if I were bouncing a baby on one hip and the pot on the stove took a while to heat up and I hadn't slept more than two hours at a stretch for three weeks and all the bowls were dirty... yeah, I'd definitely want a little $100 gadget to make life easier. Just my two cents.

Bonnie Benwick: So, do any of our chatters use these contraptions? I guess you could add it to the baby registry gift list.

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Allentown, Pa.: The tale of the imam inspired me to try imam bayildi. Can you suggest what to serve along with it? Also what wines work with eggplant? I'm aiming for not fainting, but perhaps swooning with delight. Thanks.

washingtonpost.com: Eggplant, Without All the Oil. Slick. (The Washington Post, April 15, 2009)

Joe Yonan: The first thing that comes to mind to serve with the Imam Bayildi would be a rice pilaf, such as one of these. As for a wine, Dave McIntyre says this:

"I'd select according to the cooking method and sauce or seasoning. For example, for the recipes in today's section, the steamed eggplant w/sherry vinaigrette suggests a fino or manzanilla sherry, such as La Gitana, or a crisp white such as a Spanish Rueda (especially if served with ham). The garlic in the eggplant caviar - as well as its casual nature as a great patio nosh - suggests a dry rose. For the tomatoes in the eggplant parm or imam bayildi, a good hearty Italian red - hmm, let's see, I Avola name of one Nero the tip of my tongue ..."

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Granny smith apples: Slice thinly. Toss with a bit of sugar and cinnamon. Top with some sugar, cinnamon, chopped nuts, and butter. Bake in whatever size dish looks about right. Yum! Great with raisins too.

Joe Yonan: Also good on squares of store-bought puff pastry, given same treatment.

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Arlington, Va.: I made a good bit of my first child's baby food (the second one, well...). I'd take whatever we were having, minus any high-allergen ingredients, and toss it in the food processor -- instant baby food. One of my daughter's favorites was a Cooking Light recipe for chicken and pears with wild rice.

I bought a number of ice cube trays with lids from Bed Bath and Beyond and used them to freeze the baby food I made in easy-to-thaw baby-sized portions. It worked exceptionally well and was far cheaper than any of the products marketed as "homemade baby food" storage. (Similarly, any blender or food processor works just as well as the fancy baby food makers.)

While I'm past the stage of needing mocktinis and baby food recipes, I will definitely pass along today's articles to my family and friends who are currently expecting their first children.

Bonnie Benwick: Thanks, Arl.

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Arlington, Va.: I had my first yeasted waffle a couple of weeks ago, made from a Williams-Sonoma mix I would never actually shell out the money to buy. Got any recipes for homemade ones?

Bonnie Benwick: A quick search finds our cupboard bare. But we'll work on that. They sound too good not to try.

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Graham flour - Silver Spring: Several of the natural food companies make and distribute graham flour; Hodgson Mill is the best I have used.

Available at the usual suspect stores such as MoMs.

Graham flour came out on top of one of those macho Cooks Illustrated tests of whole wheat flour once.

Joe Yonan: I love that you categorize Chris Kimball's magazine as macho.

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Annapolis, Md.: Question for Nina: Hello! I am trying to drop a few pounds healthfully -- cutting back on concentrated carbs at dinner, lowering the fat. I eat very little processed foods. I found something I love but cannot fathom that it is a healthy non-artificial food: Better'n Peanut Butter. 2 TB have 100 calories and 2 g fat. I have healthy weight kids but don't like regular peanut butter and all the junk it contains.

Nina Planck: Sounds like a sound plan for eating and losing.

What's in Better-than that's not peanuts? That'd be my question. A Southerner once told me, when I noted that Jiffy contains (I forget) sugar and vegetable oil, 'Jiffy is not peanut butter. Jiffy is a recipe.' So I can dig that. Just not that recipe.

To us peanut butter (and almond butter etc) are ground peanuts.

We don't eat low-fat foods - I don't mean peaches, but foods engineered to be low-fat.

Yours

Nina

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Chapati flour vs graham flour: Chapati is less dark, and often includes durum. I've found it less useful than graham flour for non-Indian cooking.

Joe Yonan: Thanks!

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Dumfries, Va.: Hi there! Since we're talking about kids today, I have a question regarding food allergies. My four year old is allergic to eggs, and although I have lots of great egg-free recipes (I highly recommend "Bakin' Without Eggs" by Rosemarie Emro), I get stumped on how to substitute eggs for others. For instance -- meatloaf, meatballs, lasagne, etc. How necessary is egg to those recipes? Is there another binder I could use instead? I would also love suggestions for a recipe for fresh egg-free pasta, if such a thing even exists.

And as a caution to other parents -- I would avoid feeding your child eggs until they are at least one year old (and peanuts should wait until 3-4 years). We have no history of allergies in either family, and found out about our son's the hard way!

Bonnie Benwick: Fresh egg-free pasta shouldn't be hard to find or make. Semolina flour, water and salt, right? Have you tried rice stick noodles, udon or soba noodles?

Nina Planck: I can't comment on egg-free cooking although I know a lot of serious people make great stuff without 'em and I don't knock it.

I can say that eggs are a very common first food in traditional diets (and yes, in the traditional American diet), and that egg yolks, lightly cooked, are, chances are, a terrific baby food for your kid. I don't think there is good science to justify an egg ban and the latest (large) European study (Aug 08) found no reason to delay 'common allergens'.

But my sympathies, and hats-off, to parents who handle food intolerance. It's not easy.

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Peanut Butter dessert: My mom used to make a dessert where she whipped some peanut butter into either vanilla pudding or plain yogurt (don't remember which) and layered with strawberries and graham cracker crumbs in a parfait glass. I remember really enjoying it, and until now had completely forgotten about it.

Joe Yonan: Nice, thanks!

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Arlington, VA S: I have a yeasted pancake batter recipe. Are the batters usually the same? I could share in a day or two -- don't have the recipe at work...

Bonnie Benwick: send to food@washpost.com and we'll check it out. thanks!

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Joe Yonan: Well, we've collapsed slightly, then cooled and been cut in half lengthwise, so you know what that means -- we're done!

Thanks for the great questions, and thanks to Nina Planck and Jason Wilson for helping us with the answering.

And now for the giveaways: "Preggatinis" goes to the Reston chatter who used the word "sprogging," causing me to rush to a dictionary. And Nina's "Real Food for Mother and Baby" goes to the Silver Spring mom of an 8-month-old green bean hater.

Until next week, happy cooking, eating and reading...

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