Broccoli pesto

So I sit here eating Ryvitas for lunch because I don't want to eat yet more bread (I had toast for breakfast). On top of that its a pasta dinner of spaghetti Bolognese, so all in all its going to be a carb-tastic Friday!

As with many kids, Finn is a BIG fan of pasta, and given that pasta is such an easy option its something he eats frequently.  Up until recently I always felt guilty about giving him quite so many pasta-based meals, that was however until I started doing some research...  I was very pleased to discover that children aged between 3 and 5 need around four portions of carb-goodness every day, so each meal and maybe a snack or two should consist of either pasta, bread, rice, spuds, sweet potato or sweet corn, or a combo of them all.

Now the trick is to combine something more nutritious with those foundation ingredients and build from there. Say some cauliflower mixed into mash potato, or some cucumber in their favourite sandwich.

So how to go about it? One of the most important things to take into consideration is how you cook the veg, regardless of how you're going to serve them. Over 70% of the vitamins and nutrients in vegetables are lost if you boil them, this is because most vitamins are water soluble, so unless you are using the water they are cooked in for something like soup, you'll lose most of the good stuff down the plug hole! Now if you're going to go to all that trouble to get goodness into your child, it seems a shame that what they end up eating has lost most of its benefits...  

So my advice is - get steaming! You don't need anything more complicated than a pot, a little water in the bottom, a sieve which needs to sit just above said water, a lid and whatever you had planned to boil... One thing that is important to consider is to not let all the water evaporate as its easy to ruin your pot if it does. 

Make sure that the water in the bottom of the pot isn't discarded, you can use some of it later to help mash the veg down. Whilst you do lose some nutrients through steaming (around 15%), you lose a lot less than boiling!

This brings me onto recipe number 2 - broccoli pesto! Its a great option for lunch or dinner and with the addition of a bit of seasoning is great for adults too!

Broccoli pesto

Broccoli seems to be tolerated on occasion by Finn, often the last thing eaten on his plate if served in its tree-like formation - it’s a hit and miss veg at best. It is however one of those so called 'super foods' that does deliver. Broccoli is a great source of vitamin C, A & K as well as calcium, beta-carotene (good for the eyes and immune system) as well as other anti-oxidants - all great things for your little sweetheart.

Within this recipe, I've also added some dairy for calcium, fruit for vitamins, and some beans for extra protein. It does sound odd I know, but go with me on it...

A tip is not to over-do any one single flavour - remember that those intense tastes that you and I love are exactly the flavours your kiddies can find overpowering and a turn-off. When it comes to young palates, simple flavours are often a good thing.  

This pesto freezes for up to a month and can be added to hot pasta from frozen, so a great time saver... 

Ingredients

• 100g broccoli
• 50g apple peeled and cored
• 50g cream cheese
• 25g grated Cheddar or Emmental cheese
• 50g cannellini beans
• Sprig of fresh basil
• 100ml rapeseed/olive oil

How to do it

1. Start by steaming the broccoli for about 3-4 minutes, or until the stalk is 
    starting to feel a little soft and then add the apple and steam them both         until really soft.

2. In a bowl, add the beans, cream cheese, grated cheese, broccoli and apple (whilst still hot) and mash into a pulp

3. Chop the basil, add with the oil and a little water from the steaming pot and blend with a hand blender until nice and smooth.

4. Mix into some of your kid's favourite cooked pasta and serve!