With cheesy beef and pasta for baby
I made this Winter Warmer after a long cold and wet walk in the Chilterns on a Sunday afternoon with the family. It was just what we all needed to warm the cockles: hearty, filling and full of flavour with its Moroccan spice blend and sweet cranberries.
Prep Time: 15 Mins | Cook Time 45 Minutes
Serves 6-8
Ingredients
Moroccan Spice blend
½ tsp Cloves ground with a pestle and mortar
1 tsp Cinnamon
½ tsp Cayenne
0.8 cm Thumb ginger minced
1 tbsp Brown sugar
2 tsp Smoked paprika
2 tsp Cumin
½ tsp Pepper
Pasta Dish
350g Penne / conchiglie pasta
500g Minced beef
2 Large carrots peeled and chopped finely
Rapeseed oil
1 Medium-sized courgette washed and chopped finely
1 White onion chopped finely
120g Mushrooms washed and chopped into small pieces
2-3 Garlic cloves minced
2 tbsp Tomato paste
100g Dried cranberries
75g Cheddar cheese grated (I use mature for the full flavour)
Few sprigs of fresh thyme
Garlic bread / crunchy rolls
Cheese Sauce
50g Unsalted butter
50g Plain flour
800ml Semi-skimmed milk room temperature
75g Cheddar cheese grated (I use mature for the full flavour)
Pepper
(For adaptations to the recipe see ‘Notes’ below)
Method
Preheat the oven to 180C fan/200C/373F/Gas Mark 5.
First, make your Moroccan spice mixture: add all ingredients under ‘Moroccan spice blend’ to a small bowl and combine well, set aside.
Set a pan of water to boil, once boiling add the pasta and cook for 6-8 minutes until it’s just al dente. Once cooked, remove and drain all but ½ tbsp of pasta and water for baby, return the saucepan to the hob and cook for a further 2-3 minutes until cooked through and soft. Rinse the drained pasta under warm water and set aside.
Once the baby's pasta is cooked, drain, rinse under warm water and place in a blender jug and set aside to cool.
While the pasta cooks, heat 1 tbsp oil in a large sauté́ pan. Once hot, brown the mincemeat for 2-3 minutes.
Add the carrots, onion and courgette and cook for a minute, then add the mushrooms and garlic and cook for another 2-3 minutes until it is all beginning to soften.
Using a small saucepan, add 50ml boiling water and 1 tbsp of the beef and veg mixture from the sauté pan and simmer on medium heat for a further 2-5 minutes for the baby. Once cooked through, spoon into the blender jug along with the cooked pasta and set aside to cool.
Reduce the heat for the sauté pan to low, then add the tomato purée and 1 heaped tbsp Moroccan spice blend and combine well. If it looks a little dry, add 100ml boiling water, stir and then leave to simmer for 5 minutes, adding a drop more boiling water if it gets dry. If you have any spice blend leftover save it in an airtight jar for another day, just remember to label and date it, this will last up to 6 months in a cool/dark cupboard.
Meanwhile, make the Cheese Sauce. First, melt the butter in a saucepan on medium heat. Once a nutty aroma is achieved, remove from the heat and stir in the flour to create a roux. Return to the heat and add the milk gradually with a balloon whisk, stirring constantly until the sauce begins to thicken (approx. 4-6 minutes). Don’t worry if it’s not very thick at this stage, the cheese will thicken up afterwards. Remove from the heat and stir in the cheese until it’s all melted and the sauce has thickened. Add a dash of pepper and combine well.
Spoon ½ tbsp of the cheese sauce into the blender jug along with the beef, pasta and veg and blend on high for a few seconds until a paste is achieved. If the consistency is too thick for the baby, add 25ml cheese sauce / boiled water and re-blend, repeating this step until the correct consistency is achieved. Allow to cool and serve to the baby.
Using a large oven dish, pour the beef and veg mixture into the base along with the pasta and ¾ of the cranberries and combine well. Follow by pouring the cheese sauce and place in the oven for 15-20 minutes until cooked through.
Remove from the oven and garnish with the remaining cranberries, cheese, and fresh thyme. Serve to children aged 8 months + accompanied with some garlic bread or a crunchy roll.
Notes
If you’re cooking for a family of 4, simply halve all the ingredients.
If your baby doesn’t enjoy savoury flavours alone, then simply chop and add ½ a pear or apple to the blender jug along with the beef, veg and pasta bake. Do try baby with the dish minus the fruit first though as recommended by Judith Calvin, our consultant paediatric nutritionist: “A ‘vegetables first’ approach is now thought to promote vegetable liking in childhood. Reducing sugar and reducing a preference for sweet foods in the first year of life is now a public health recommendation.”
8 Months +
This entire meal is suitable for babies from 8 months +. Just make sure to blend and chop well and allow to cool before serving. Cranberries can be quite sticky for babies and hard to chew so ensure these are chopped finely and fed sparingly but they will love the sumptuous, sweet flavour at this age!
NUTRITIONAL NOTES
By Judith Calvin from www.healthisgoodfood.com
This dish is packed full of flavour and nutrition. You can also make it as thick, smooth or lumpy as needed for your baby's stage.
The reason we need to introduce food at around 6 months of age is that formula and breast milk no longer provide all of the nutrition needed for a baby to continue to grow and develop, particularly from iron and protein. This dish fills this gap because of the iron and protein from the mince. Iron’s main role is to make red blood cells which transport oxygen around the body and protein help to build and repair body tissues and muscles.
Another major component of this dish is its milk and cheese content. This is one of the first allergens that should be introduced from 6 months because of its mineral content, particularly calcium and phosphorus which are important for bone development. Cheese also provides a good source of protein. As with all animal foods, dairy provides a great source of iodine which helps to make thyroid hormones important for the regulation of metabolism.
#recipeblogger #foodblogger #foodbloggers #familyrecipes #instamum #familyfoodtribe #mumssupportingmums #recipes #whatmummymakes #recipeideas #howtocook #onepot #oxfordshirefoodies #oxfordshirebusiness
#familyfood #babyweaning #babyfoodrecipes #babyfood #recipeshare #babyfoodideas #recipesharing #onefamilyonerecipe #cookbook #babybloggeruk #recipeblogger #foodblogger #foodbloggers #foodbloggerdubai #foodbloggerlondon #familyrecipe #familyrecipes #howtocook #instamum #familyfoodtribe #recipe #mumssupportingmums
Comments