Pears and yogurt

• 4 ripe pears
• 200g Greek-style yoghurt
• 1 dessertspoon sugar
• 50g butter or margarine

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4.
2. Peel pears, cut in half and remove cores.
3. Put the pears hollow side up in a baking dish, sprinkle over sugar and dot with butter or margarine.
4. Put a spoonful of yoghurt on top of each pear half.
5. Bake for 10 minutes.
6. Serve. Broccoli bake (serves four)

Chicken Curry

• 3 tbs vegetable oil
• 1 tbs chopped garlic
• 4 boneless chicken breasts
• 2 tbs mild curry powder (less if you wish the curry to be milder
• 2 bay leaves ( remember to remove after cooking)
• 1 tbs ground cumin
• 1 tbs ground coriander
• 1 chopped onion
• 2 peeled, chopped carrots
• 1 tomato, chopped ( or tin)
• 2 tbs tomato puree
• 2 tbs lemon juice
• 1 pint chicken stock
• rice ( a cup per person)

1. Heat oil in a heavy saucepan. Add garlic and chicken; saute over medium heat, till the chicken skin is browned.
2. Add curry, bay leaves, cumin, and coriander, stir a few minutes.
3. Add onion, carrot, tomato, tomato paste, lemon juice, and stock
4. Bring the mixture to boil.
5. Place a lid on the pan and simmer for 30-40 mins stiring occasionally.
6. Serve with warmed rice.

Try your child with this, some kids don't like it till they are a little older but you never know

Foods that should not be given to babies under 12 months

• Honey, this is due to a bacteria that can be present in honey that can cause Infant Botulism. After a baby is a year old, the intestine matures and the bacteria is unable to grow.
• Salt, you should never add salt to baby’s meals, it puts a strain on their kidneys and causes dehydration.
• Sugar, there is really little need to add sugar unless you are using a fruit that is very sour. Adding sugar can increases the risk of tooth decay when your baby’s teeth start to come through.
• Unpasteurized cheeses, as there is a risk of listeria infection.
  Fish and shellfish, many babies can have allergies to shell fish and there is a slight risk of food poisoning from fish so it is recommended that you do not give them before six months.
• Nuts and seeds, Peanut butter or any nut spreads should not be given to babies and in fact it is recommended that it is not given to children under three, provided there is no history nut allergy in the family. Nuts are not recommended before the age of five due to the risk of choking.

Weaning outline

This outline gives you a very basic idea of the types of things to give at the various ages, always remember every child is different, if you have any concerns speak to a medical professional.

• 0 - 5/6 months - Breast Milk or formula, the department of health suggests that babies should be fed milk exclusively till 6 months, but every child is different
• 5 - 6 months - baby rice, semi-liquid purees of things like apple, pear, carrot, potato etc.
• 6 - 7 months - chicken, dried fruit, apricot, melon, peas, leek, dairy products, peach etc.
• 7 - 8 months - minced or mashed foods which may include citrus, berries, sweetcorn
• 8 - 12 months - you can now introduce other meats and start varying things a bit more, its good to start giving your child a chunkier texture, by not mashing or puréeing as vigorously

Is your child ready for solids?

It can be difficult to know when to start feeding your baby solid food but in most cases your child will tell you that they need more to eat, the signs of this are that

• your child is still hungry after a full milk feed, often crying after a feed
• they start to demand feeds more often
• they start to wake up during the night for a feed when they would usually have slept straight through.

If you are in any way unsure about whether to introduce solids or not get advice from a medical professional.

Vegetable Pasties

• 100g dried brown lentils
• 275ml water for cooking lentils
• 3 medium carrots, diced1 stick celery, finely chopped
• 220g potatoes, diced
• 150g peas, tinned or fresh
• 2 tsp yeast extract
• 1 tbs tomato puree
• 450g shortcrust pastry (home-made or frozen)
• Milk to glaze

Wash the lentils and then boil them in water with the celery for approx 40 mins until tender, drain well.

Steam or boil peas, carrots and potatoes until tender 15 to 20 mins dependant on the size of the chuncks.

Place all ingredients except pastry in a bowl and mix thoroughly. Allow to cool.

Roll out pastry and cut out rounds to make pasties, a small scone cutter is great for this but a small glass will do to cut round if you don't have one make sure they are small so the child can easily hold them.

Place spoonful of filling in middle of pastry round and moisten edges with milk. Bring edges together and press firmly to seal.

Brush with milk and poke holes with fork to allow hot air to escape.
Bake for 15-20 mins at 200C, 400F or gas mark 6. Remove from oven when brown on top.

Allow to cool.
May be served hot or cold. Great for picnics

Fish Rissoles

• 500g (1lb) potatoes, cut into chunks
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 30g (1oz) butter
• 200g (7oz) fresh white or pink fish such as cod or salmon, bones and skin removed, or a tin of salmon or tuna in oil or spring water, drained
• Milk for poaching
• 6 spring onions, trimmed and chopped
• Ground black pepper
• A little flour to prevent sticking
• 1 egg
• 2 tbsp milk
• 90g (3oz) fresh breadcrumbs (stale bread works best or you can buy them ready made)
• 3 tbs vegetable oil

Cook the potatoes in a pan of boiling water until soft, usually about 12-15 minutes depends on the size of chunks. Drain, and mash with lemon juice and half the butter.

If you are using fresh fish, poach it in a pan of milk; add enough milk to cover the fish, bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the fish is no longer translucent, about 5-10 minutes. Drain the fish and chop into small pieces, check that there are no bones left.

In a separate pan, fry the spring onions in the remaining butter until soft. Add the spring onions, fish and pepper to the potato mixture and combine. Divide the mixture into 8, and pat into burger shapes with floured hands.

Beat the egg and milk together in a bowl. Coat each rissole first in the egg, then in the breadcrumbs.

Heat half of the oil in a frying pan over medium heat, then turn the heat down to low and add 4 rissoles. Fry, turning once, until golden brown, about 5 minutes on each side. Drain on kitchen towel and keep warm. Add the rest of the oil and repeat the process with the remaining rissoles. Serve with salad if you like.

Makes 8, so you can feed the family or they can be frozen when cooled, but should be used within a week