Help - easy recipes needed for 9 month old

[Lolski]

My DS is 9 months old and I am finding it so hard to feed him with fresh food. I have got the usual books on weaning recipes but they all seem so fiddly and long winded (especially for someone that can just about boil an egg !!). He seems to be having more and nore jars because I can't seem to find anything reasonably quick and easy to prepare that he actually likes. Any ideas ?? I really want him to have a healthy balanced diet and it is starting to worry me that he is not getting all the vitamins and minerals that he should be. I puree fruit and veggies and freeze them so mixing these with something is not a problem...it is just what !!!!

My 9mth old likes these - leek, mashed potato & cheese, (boil leek, add mash, grated cheese & some milk then either blend or mix up depending on consistancy req.) Chix cassorole (chicken breast in oven gas 6 for about 20min and cut up and add to vegatables which have already been boiled - parsnip, potato, swede & carrot, then blend etc) Spag bol - just what we eat. I do a batch and freeze them in pots so I just take on out and defrost each meal. Another quick one is baked potato insides with reduced salt & sugar baked beans & cheese or dairylea on toast. Hope this helps

any vegetables with a cheese sauce. Cheese sauce can be abit fiddly but you could do a huge batch & freeze. dd loves brocoli & cauliflower cheese sauce.

Lolski, at 9 months ds can probably be eating whatever you eat just blended to whatever consistency is right for him, as long as its low salt etc. DS2 is 10 months and loves chilli / spag bol / pasta & salmon in cheese sauce (in fact pasta and anything) / roast dinners etc.
Does he eat finger food, as at least then one meal a day can be pieces of cheese / meat / bread (sandwiches)/ fruit etc. Otherwise I agree with pesme about the anything in a cheese sauce idea. I will carry on thinking and post again later.

I second the cheese sauce. I do it in the microwave, it took me ages to get it perfect but I can whip up a mean and very quick cheese sauce now. My DD (10 months) loves the following meals:
Shepherds pie - I make a huge portion and freeze it in pots (have DS too so he can have it)
Boiled egg and soldiers
Scrambled egg
Mashed potato with veg and cheese/salmon and veg and cheese/tuna and veg and cheese/chopped chicken and veg/swede and cheese
I've started making soups (got the recipes off the BBC Food site) and they were very quick and easy eg broccoli, leek and potato.
I'm trying to do more tomatoey stuff eg spag bol as well.
Also macaroni cheese done in big batches and frozen to which I add veg or tuna or salmon etc.
I also have a finger food meal every few days which consists of pikelet or toast, pieces of cheese or hummus dip and a few bits of cooked veg (if she hasn't already had veg in the day). I too have the Annabel Karmel books and apart from the odd few things find the recipes far too fiddly.
HTH

Hi everyone. Thanks for all your suggestions. I will have a bash at them over the next few weeks. Can I ask a few divvy questions ??

1. How do you make a quick cheese sauce ??
2. If I make something like a cottage pie and freeze it what is the done thing for defrosting and re-heating it. Would I have to defrost it and then heat it to really hot and then let it cool down ? I am a bit wary of freezing and re-heating meat and fish as I am useless in the kitchen (in case you hadn't noticed !!)
3. If he has what you eat do you cook it and then puree his little bit and just leave yours to get cold and re-heat it later cos he eats a few hours before us.......you can tell that I am first time mum can't you !!

Thanks again for all your help.

Sorry...just thought of another one:
Is lamb mince or beef mince better or no difference ?

Thanks

Cheese sauce. Get a big blob of butter 50g or so. melt in saucepan. add 2 desert spoons of plain flour very gradually and stir like a woman possessed. stop add flour when in a big lump. gradually add about 3/4 pint of milk with more stirring like a demon. the lump will become more lump like at first then start being liquidy. add milk until quite runny then allow to come to boil (it should thicken at this point) and simmer for minute. add cheese to taste. hope this helps, my mum does an easier one in the microwave with cornflour will try and get it for you.

I alway use beef mince cos I don't like lamb!! If I was make cottage pie for us to tea. DS would have something out of the freezer at say 4.30pm we would eat cottage pie later but I would put some aside for DS to puree and freeze in pots. For later on in the week. I personally put pot without lid in microwave for 1 min then transfer to his bowl and heat and keep checking until right temp. He has been ok so far . I don't make cheese sauce. I just chunk bits in with cheese and milk and blend. So can't help with that one.

I do a cheese sauce as pesme, and if you have a hand mixer you can always blitz out any lumps. As for defrosting / heating, very rarely I remember to take out food in the morning for ds2 and will then defrost in the fridge, usually I defrost in the microwave just before I need it. Then I microwave for a minute and leave to cool.
If ds doesn't eat at the same time as you I would feed him the meal that you had the day before, then you get a fresh, hot meal.
As for lamb or beef, it just comes down to taste preference I think. I usually use beef, but always use lamb for meatballs for some reason!

Cheers everyone. Have made a note of all of your tips and am going to be a whizz in the kitchen from now on !!! My DS will not know what has hit him (nor will my saucepan by the sounds of it with that cheese sauce!!!!).

Thanks again - will keep you posted.