To think I am missing something

[monkeymamma]

Bought Annabel Karmel recipes as everyone seems to rave about them. For the life of me I cannot follow them to save myself. They all seem incredibly fiddly (more so than anything I make for me and DH). But I am desperate as ds2, like his brother before him, hates and despises anything I make myself (eg mushed veg and meat or even just mushed veg).
I'm making her one pot chicken now and just burned the onions before I'd even begun. No more onions in the house so I've picked off the blackest bits and forged ahead with the recipe. It doesn't look very appetising though.

I am not a great cook but muddle though (am sahp) with spag Bol, risotto etc.

I really want to not be a shit mum and raise ds on Ella's kitchen but it's so, so hard.

Secretly quite pissed off when people say 'oh we just give the baby what we eat'; as ds2 is still waking at 2hour intervals through the night (as he has done, apart from the dark days when he woke hourly, fr the last 9 months) and I am exhausted, ready meals and takeaways are getting us through :-(

I cannot do blw as the mess makes me freak out and also ds is a huge lad (99th centile) so chewing/sucking on the odd bit he is able to hold just won't fill his boots I'm afraid :-(

Ps not knocking blw btw, just explaining my choice probably in a shit and sleep deprived manner (as I seem to do everything these days).

If anyone has any wisdom what to do with the horrid purée I'm making that would be appreciated (chuck the lot in the bin maybe?).

Some of annabel karmels recipes are full of shit anyway, I looked at a few for my toddler. Feed your DS pouches if it's easier, he will survive. I gave up with puree and went straight to solids but if the purees are not very appetising or too faffy maybe switch to food you can all eat but is naturally smooth if you see what I mean? Soup, or a pasta sauce (he just has sauce, maybe with those tiny baby pasta shapes eventually), jacket sweet potatoes - scoop his out and mash it

How about making thick soup the easy way, but use less water? Peel & chop a load of veg, at least one starchy one so it thickens, eg sweet potato, butternut squash or pumpkin, add water, simmer until veg is soft, blend until smooth! Easy peasy and no need to pre-cook the onion. I used to make soups this way all the time (before DS arrived and I had time to spare!!)
We're doing BLW because I think it's fun and don't mind the mess, but totally understand your POV!

Enter supermarket.
Find baby food aisle.
Purchase jars of puree.
Feed.

Doesn't make anyone a shit mum to use prepared food btw.

I found the Ellas kitchen book - the purple one better than the AK one, but I only used them as inspiration when I ran out of ideas and often changed bits and pieces to suit what I had in the fridge, or to cut down on sugar/salt.

I see what you're saying about the 'just what we eat' thing, but perhaps think about cooking something you all like a couple of times a week, but cooking slightly more than usual and freezing the extra portions for dc.

I loved pouches. It was only when we had 2 children munching through 8 a day between them that we realised we had to either start selling body parts or up our feeding game (to something cheaper). We weren't ONLY feeding pouches, btw - just the little ones that you get in the multi boxes.

OT, but aren't pouches a great idea for cats? Not Ella's Kitchen. Whiskas. The smell of cat food was one of the grimmest bits of having a cat before they invented pouches.

DS1 was a puree baby and loved all sorts of crazy mush. DS2 refused and would spit out anything I attempted to cook for him, so he moved onto BLW with whatever we ate. The mess bothered me, too, but weirdly of the two of them, DS2 is the less-messy eater. And the less-picky too.

Also, shit Mums fed their kids nothing. Ellas Kitchen is fine if it's what you and he both want and need. Don't get caught in the trap of thinking anyone else has a clue; they don't. Everyone's winging it underneath the glossy, calm exterior.

Ella's kitchen are pretty tasty - I tried them myself and DS loved them.

Annabel Karmel is a bit of a pompous twat IMO.

Jars or pouches are FINE. Seriously. If you happen to be eating something child friendly, bung him a bit of that too, if not, don't worry. Job done!

I used Annabel Karmel when I was weaning my DCs. I agree she can be a bit faffy. Don't hesitate to simplify her recipes if you like. Maybe just use her to give you ideas?

You don't need to be a gourmet cook - most kids like simple stuff. Bolognese and risotto is a great start!

Have you got a slow cooker? You can buy small ones quite cheaply. It's nigh on impossible to burn anything in them and they're ideal for making baby-mush as they kind of turn everything into mush anyway!

If you're finding that book fiddly, try some others. Jamie Oliver's ministry of food is good and straight forward, as is Nigella's How to Eat. Both of them don't have stacks of faffy ingredients and are aimed at people who struggle to cook for whatever reason.

Where's your DH/DP in all this? Can he share the cooking load?

I have both Annabel Karmel and Ella's Kitchen books and EK is so so so much more appetising. AK is so fucking bland in comparison. You can actually make most of the EK recipes for the whole family and just whizz up a portion for baby.
And jars and pouches have their place in the world, just like dummies and other "evil" things :)

Ella's kitchen book is waay better then AK...much tastier!

Or just use pouches/jars...theyre perfectly fine and most certainly does not make you a shit mum!!

Your DS is only going to have a few months at most of not being able to get enough food into his own mouth. For the sake of what is really only weeks of stress, just give him the pouches and any finger foods he will eat (maybe fruit pieces, small sandwiches/crackers, cubes of cheese), maybe also spoon in a bit of yoghurt, hummus or porridge as well as pouch, plus his usual milk(breast/formula) and then you'll have passed this bit with a full-up baby and have a different feeding situation.

www.eatliverun.com/make-your-own-baby-food-chicken-with-kabocha-squash-and-broccoli/

An easy recipe I swear by!

And thus (search Bubblelush curry if the link doesn't work)

And this (search Bubblelush curry if it doesn't work)

DS refused to eat any of my lovingly sourced and home-cooked organic vegetables. And ate disgusting gloop from jars and pouches like there was no tomorrow. So I decided not to waste time and energy and just feed him gloop. He survived.

Best time to learn to cook is when there is no deadline for it. Follow a new recipe at leisure on a weekend when there may be another pair of hands to help with children.

I have AK recipe book from years ago and I do still make her spag bol and chilli recipes but I batch cook them. I use a food processor to chop onions, grate carrot etc, and I use a massive deep sided pot to cook it in. Makes 24 individual portions, or 6 lots of family portions. Decant into tupperware and freeze.

I love my slow cooker, look on YouTube for "crock pot" recipes (what Americans call it) and take some inspiration.

Yesterday I made jambalaya, which involved sticking 2 tins of tomatoes into the slow cooker at 11am along with frozen diced onion, frozen sliced peppers, pre cubed chorizo, paprika, chilli powder, cayenne pepper, and then submerge 3 frozen chicken breast in the sauce.

Put it on high for 1 hour then low for a further 5. Shred chicken with 2 forks (proves it is cooked, it basically falls apart) I am sure I got that recipe from YouTube.

With young children variety is the best way to go, not necessarily cooking from scratch. I do that now and have for a long time but did feed both of my children from jars some days.

DD was an AK baby insofar as I'd look at a recipe and simplfy it beyond recognition.

Basically, feed them what they'll eat, and as long as it has the main food groups in relatively sensible proportions, don't worry about it. The less you worry about food, the less they'll worry about it, and the more you'll all enjoy it. Also, you'll have more mental energy to spend on other things.

Meant to add, look at "freezer meals" either on YouTube or Pinterest.

Nothing shit about using EK or jars at all.

I remember once being stood in a large Boots store and seeing a Mum gathering lots of baby jars off a shelf and furtively putting them in a basket. You would have thought she was buying heroin by the way she was behaving!

I started off trying to make lots of stuff for my DS when first weaning. He refused them all. Out of desperation I gave him an EK sachet and he had the whole lot.

You sound knackered. Go and buy a week or two supply of EK or similar and use the time you are spending cooking to sit down with a cuppa. When you are a bit less exhausted you can worry about cooking.

I got a few nice recipes from Gina Ford weaning book (rented from library). Thick carrot and lentil soup is a firm favourite.

Chicken peach casserole
From.gina Ford weaning

Chicken-peach casseroleThe addition of peaches to this casserole is a lovely twist to an all-time favourite dish!Makes 6-8 servingsIngredients2-3 skinless, boneless chicken breast fillets, cubed1 tbsp unsalted butter
1 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, peeled and chopped
2 small carrots, peeled and diced
1 small green pepper, deseeded and chopped
8 cherry tomatoes, halved
150ml ( 0.25 pint) home-made chicken or vegetable stock, or filtered water
200g (7oz) can sliced peaches in natural juiceMethodWash the chicken breasts under cold running water and pat dry with kitchen towel.Heat the butter and the oil in a large frying pan, add the chicken and fry for 3-4 minutes or until brown. Transfer the chicken pieces to a casserole dish.Sweat the onion, carrot and green pepper in the remainder of the oil and butter for approximately 7-8 minutes, then add the tomato halves and the stock and bring to the boil. Pour the peaches and juice or extra stock or water lover the chicken. Cover the casserole and cook for 30 minutes.Serve mashed or finely chopped with rice or pasta.

Tips

Rather than canned fruit, use 125g (4oz) of ready-to-eat peaches, cut into strips and an extra 150ml ( 1/4 pint) of water or stock.Serve with easy-cook brown rice or tiny soup pasta for extra texture.