Proteins are important building blocks for a growing child. They are required for growth, maintenance and repair of body tissues. Different kinds of specialized proteins also perform many important functions like carrying oxygen in our cells and fighting infections. In a recent Ask the Expert column, dietitian Emma Stirling wrote about protein power and offered tips on getting enough protein in your child’s diet. Children 1-3 years old need about 0.5 g of protein per pound of body weight, which comes to about 13-16 g of daily protein. In most cases, it is not a problem to get this much from a typical American diet. But if you have a picky eater, or if you are following a strict vegetarian diet, you need to pay a little extra attention to your child’s protein needs.

In this week’s Five for Fridays, I want to highlight 5 vegetarian sources of proteins. We routinely include them in our meals using many of our simple recipes. Even if you are not a strict vegetarian, you can try them occasionally to bring variety to your diet.

Lentils

Source: Wikimedia

Lentils are dry seeds of a pulse crop. They are rich in protein, iron, dietary fiber and B vitamins. More importantly, they are rich in the essential amino acids (there are 9 essential amino acids our body cannot produce). Sprouted lentils provide all of the 9 amino acids. On a 100 g dry weight basis, lentils provide 26 g of protein! Just like whole grains, soaking lentils  in water removes phytates which allows better mineral absorption in the GI tract.

One of our favorite recipes is a lentil soup which we often eat with basmati rice.

Chick Peas

Source: Wikimedia

Chickpeas, also known as garbanzo beans, have been around for a long time! You will find them in almost any cuisine around the world, especially in the Middle East, Mediterranean and South East Asia. They are super rich in protein, vitamins and minerals like calcium, iron, phosphorus, magnesium and zinc.

Here is one of our recipes with beef and chickpeas. There are many different ways to cook chickpeas without any meat.

Red Kidney Beans

Wikimedia Commons

There are many different types of beans, but our favorite are red kidney beans. They provide a lot of protein, iron, calcium, B vitamins, magnesium and zinc. Soaking them in water overnight reduces cooking time and removes complex sugars that would otherwise cause indigestion and gas.

Red kidney beans with olive oil is one of our favorite recipes.

Nuts

Source: Wikimedia

Unlike vegetables, nuts are actually dried fruit. If your child does not have any allergies to nuts, they can offer a good balance of calories from fat, carbs and proteins. Our favorites are almonds, walnuts, pecans and hazelnut. We like to soak almonds overnight in water then peel the skin off before eating the soft white core. We use walnuts in salads and pecans in some of our recipes like the steak and vegetables with pecans casserole. Nuts also provide healthy fats such as monounsaturated fats and omega 3 fatty acids.

Quinoa

We discovered quinoa not too long ago, and since then it has taken up a regular place in our kitchen cabinets. Quinoa is really the unrecognized superfood because it is not so common in America. It is beginning to be more available now in some stores, so check it out! It is low in glycemic index, and although it is not a grain, it can be a nice replacement to rice with your entree. It is a good source of protein, vitamins and minerals.

One of our favorite recipe is chicken with quinoa. And for the strictly vegetarian, here is our quinoa with vegetables.

Enjoy these recipes and let me know what is on your mind!

©2010 Littlestomaks.com

Greetings! Hope you have had another wonderful week in this new year and you are still on track with your resolutions (or priorities as I like to call them). I am saddened by the tragedy in Haiti. Every time I see a photo of an injured child waiting to be treated, I feel sad. It is encouraging to see an outpouring of support from the world community and I hope and pray that things will soon improve for the people of Haiti.

For this week’s Five for Fridays, I have compiled 5 excellent posts on recipes and tips from several blogs I follow. These are great bloggers and I encourage you to check their blogs out if you haven’t already done so.

Mushroom Rice Pilaf on KidAppeal

This is a very simple recipe, but more importantly, I like the way Jenna of Kid Appeal mixes nutrition information and tips on getting your kids involved in the cooking project. Kids love to make believe, and creating a plot involving the ingredients is a cool, creative way to get them engaged and learn about the good, the bad and the ugly of foods. As the article correctly points out at the end, this strategy is far better than the conventional “try one bite, it is good for you and you need to eat more”!

Tips for Homemade Yogurt on The Nourished Kitchen

If you are interested in making yogurt at home, this collection of practical tips will come in handy. Recent research is showing the health benefits of probiotics for all kinds of conditions. Yogurt is a great source of bacteria that are good for your system, but it is difficult to find products with low sugar. That is why homemade yogurt is such a great idea – not only can you save money, but you can also control what goes in your yogurt.

Vitamin D is often lacking from many yogurt products. This intrigues me because most milk has added vitamin D these days. Making yogurt at home using the milk in your refrigerator will ensure you get this vital nutrient in addition to the other benefits of yogurt (calcium, probiotics etc.)

It has been quite a while since I had homemade yogurt. We have gotten used to the convenience of buying different kinds of yogurts from the supermarket. Every week, we get a box of plain yogurt, about half-dozen small jars of fruit yogurts and kids yogurts. I am seriously considering trying the homemade option even if it means setting aside a few hours on the weekends to prepare it.

Feel free to share your tips if you make yogurt at home!

Gallo Pinto on A Life Less Sweet

Caty of A Life Less Sweet is one of my favorite bloggers not just because she is on a crusade against HFCS and a PhD Chemical Engineer, but also because of her very practical common-sense driven approach to food and nutrition. This recipe appeared in her Meatless Monday column, which is a great resource for those trying to cut down on meat from their diets.

Gallo Pinto is a dish made with cooked black beans and rice mixed with spices. This is an excellent – and an inexpensive way – to get a full supply of proteins in your diet. The recipe is very easy to make. I think you can also try it with red kidney beans, although we like to cook the beans and rice separately. Our favorite is Basmati rice, but you can also use brown rice.

Okra and Dal on Chow and Chatter

Rebecca of Chow and Chatter is the queen of simple but tasty Indian (South Asian) recipes. She also happens to be a Registered dietitian and a guest blogger on here, so you can be sure she knows her food!

This is a combo recipe to celebrate one of South India’s major festival called Pongal. Okra we all know, dal is basically a dish made from pulses (dried beans, lentils). These are simple and flavorful recipes which go very well with rice or naan, the Indian version of oven baked flatbread.

Okra recipe can be tricky to make because okra can very easily turn into a soft mush. If done right, the okra in this recipe should be crispy and relatively dry. Wash the whole okra prior to chopping it, and pat dry with a paper towel before you cut it.

Broccoli Parmesan on Raising Healthy Eaters

Broccoli is not a favorite of most people, us included. But I liked this recipe from registered dietitian Maryann Jacobsen because it is so simple and fast to make. I also like that the broccoli comes out crispy, and also the fact that they were a hit with her little daughter. Nothing like proven success to try it out yourself!

One of the recipes TwinToddlersMom makes is a sauted mix of broccoli with Salmon mixed with a few spices. Again the broccoli comes out crispy and flavorful. We will post it soon after we make it next.

I hope you will enjoy these recipes and share your thoughts in the comments section. Also, visit these blogs for other great kid-friendly recipes!

Photo Source: Crystl on Flickr
©2010 Littlestomaks.com

Ask The Expert is a weekly column on Littlestomaks.com. The idea is to have a reader-submitted question answered by a nutrition expert or a pediatrician. Feel free to submit your question in the comments section below.

This week, Registered Dietitian Rebecca Subbiah offers advice on how to get your little one to develop a taste for multinational ethnic foods at an early age.

Question: How can I introduce my child to ethnic foods?

Answer:

First let me introduce myself, I am Rebecca of Chow and Chatter. I am a Brit married to an Indian living in America. We have a one-year-old daughter, and as a family we love to travel and try new foods. In fact every time we visit a big city like New York we look up new cuisines to try. I am a dietitian and love picking up healthy cooking tips and recipes from around the globe.  So it would only be natural to introduce our daughter to all the amazing food from different countries and broaden her horizons.

When she was 7 months old we went on a trip to Europe, the first week we were in the UK visiting my family where she got to try Great Grandmas chocolate cake and ground Sunday roast. Then we went to France for a week where she chewed on fresh French bread, petit flors yogurts and tried small amounts of food off our plates.

Then during our last week of vacation we visited Italy where she ate pasta, I was truly amazed at how at such a young age she managed spaghetti eagerly sucking it up. She also had fresh fruits and gelato. We purchased the local baby foods from each country and I even found pastini pasta for babies in Italy. She adores pasta now maybe this early introduction and being spoilt in Italy with good food set the scene.

But you don’t have to travel to offer multinational cuisines, simply adapt the dish you are cooking to have less salt and spice and to be the correct texture depending on the age of the baby.
Here are some examples:

1. If you are making Indian dal, add the lentils, tomato, onion and garlic and a vegetable – I often use spinach – pressure cook then set aside for baby. With the remainder add the desired spices for Mom and Dad.
2. For homemade soups make your own broth or use low sodium version from the market.
3. For Chinese or Vietnamese stir-fries add onion, garlic, and a splash of soy sauce with veggies for baby then add spices for Mom and Dad.
4. If your making meat curry have a separate pan for baby with the meat, onion, garlic, and tomato. The two dishes can easily be cooked at the same time.
5. Pasta’s and polenta dishes can be the same for baby and parents.
6. Poached fish with mashed potato and vegetables are a great family meal

Don’t be afraid to offer cuisines from different countries and ask people from those places for suggestions. The more varied and adventurous your little ones diet is at a young age the better it is for life. On a final note have fun and lead by example.

©2009 Littlestomaks.com. All Rights Reserved

Disclaimer – Information provided in Ask The Expert column on Littlestomaks.com is intended to give you general guidance on a question related to toddler nutrition. It is not meant to be treated as medical advice. You are welcome to contact this expert for a detailed consultation on your specific situation to determine what actions, if any, you should take regarding nutrition and health of your toddlers. We do not recommend you to take any action based solely on the information presented in this column. Experts have agreed to provide their professional opinion on toddler nutrition related questions on a voluntary basis and no compensation is offered to them by Littlestomaks.com.

Ask The Expert is a weekly column on Littlestomaks.com. The idea is to have a reader-submitted question answered by a nutrition expert or a pediatrician. Feel free to submit your question in the comments section below.

This week, Registered Dietitian Preethi Rahul explains how to gradually wean a toddler by introducing different types of solid foods.

Preethi Rahul Registered Dietitian, Diploma in Clinical Nutrition & Dietetics, Graduation in Nutrition, Food Service Management and Dietetics. Two years of rich experience in the field of nutrition, currently working with a Multinational Corporation Expertise in the field of Child nutrition and Diabetes LinkedIn Profile Contact: via email

Question: My nursing toddler does not eat solid foods. What should I do?

Answer:

Weaning foods need to be introduced in the child’s diet.

Now what do I mean by weaning?

Weaning is the stage when the child undergoes a transition from having only breast milk to semi solid foods; followed by a solid diet.

Need for weaning..

At birth, mother’s milk alone is adequate for the infant. Requirements of all the nutrients progressively increase with the infant’s growth. Simultaneously, the breast- milk secretion in the mother comes down with time. Thus, infants are deprived of adequate nutrients due to the dual factors of increased nutrient requirements and decreased availability of breast milk. Usually, these changes occur at about 4-6 months of age. Hence, promotion of optimal growth in infants, calls for introduction of adequate food supplements in addition to continued breast feeding, from the age of 4-6 months onwards.

When to start weaning..

There is no set rule about the age for weaning. As a general principle six months and above is considered as the ideal age. Weaning is a personal decision. In short, when one or both members of the mother-baby relationship are ready, it’s time to wean.

First foods..

Many of you would be wondering as to what kind of solids to start feeding your child with? It is very important to take food allergies into consideration here. So you have to start weaning foods that are generally least allergic and then move on to more complex ones. Generally foods high in protein are introduced last.

You could start by giving them

• Vegetable purees: just boiled carrots, beans, cauliflower, pumpkin, sweet potatoes etc. You need not add sugar or salt. Just boil them and make a puree but it is not necessary to strain it as by straining all the fiber content is lost. Green leafy vegetable water can be provided to infants which will be excellent sources of vitamins and minerals. Green Leafy vegetables are more fibrous than other vegetables and hence can lead to loose motions in infants if not cooked and pureed well.
• Try fruit purees next: It could be stewed apples, bananas or mashed pear, muskmelons or pears. Try avoiding strongly citric fruits like orange, berries, pomegranates as they are too strong for the delicate stomach lining.
• Move on to cereals: If your toddler has tolerated vegetables and fruits well, move on to cereals. It is best to start with well cooked, mashed rice. Try not to include wheat and refined flours initially as they may contain gluten, which may not suit some children.
• Weaning foods based on cereal:pulse combinations will provide good quality protein, adequate calories and other protective nutrients. Since infants cannot consume bulky weaning food in sufficient quantities, energy- rich foods like fats and sugars should be included in such preparations.
• Next step is to introduce lentils: Try giving simple ones like green gram and then move on to more complex ones like Bengal gram and rajma (kidney beans) after child completes the age of one.
• Finally Egg yolk and meat soup can also be included to increase the protein content in the child’s diet.
• At about one year of age, the child should share the family diet.

Amylase rich foods…

• Flours of germinated cereals, which are rich in the enzyme alpha amylase, constitute Amylase rich foods. Even small amounts this type of foods liquefy and reduce the bulk of the cereal- based diet.Thus ARF helps in increasing the energy density of weaning gruels and in reducing its bulk as well.
• Mothers can add ARF to increase the digestibility of low- cost weaning recipes prepared at home.

How to feed a todder..

Infants cannot eat large quantities of food in one sitting at a given time. So, they should be fed small quantities at frequent intervals (5-6 times a day). The food should be of semi-solid consistency which is easy to swallow. When such semi solid foods are offered initially the infant tends to spit it out. This should not be mistaken as a dislike for that food. The young infant cannot achieve full coordination needed for the act of swallowing, and hence, brings out the food by movements of its tongue. Physiological maturity of swallowing the semi-solid food develops when the food is regularly given every day.

In case child is still fussy about having solids..

• This is a period of change for the child and it is quite natural for there to be resistant. Have patience.
• Do not get obsessed with a particular food item – avoid it for a few days and then try again.
• Do not force-feed the child as whatever little the child has started eating by force, the child would avoid.
• Try innovative recipes and ways of presentation so that it will make your child eat better..

Hygiene practices to be adopted while preparing weaning foods

• Vegetables should be washed well to remove parasites, pesticides, contaminants before cutting.
• At the time of preparation and feeding of the recipes mother should observe proper personal hygiene.
• The utensils used for cooking should be thoroughly washed and sterilized.
• As feeding is likely to be time consuming, the cup or the plate from which the recipe is being fed to the infant should be kept covered to protect from flies.

©2009 Littlestomaks.com. All Rights Reserved
Disclaimer – Information provided in Ask The Expert column on Littlestomaks.com is intended to give you general guidance on a question related to toddler nutrition. It is not meant to be treated as medical advice. You are welcome to contact this expert for a detailed consultation on your specific situation to determine what actions, if any, you should take regarding nutrition and health of your toddlers. We do not recommend you to take any action based solely on the information presented in this column. Experts have agreed to provide their professional opinion on toddler nutrition related questions on a voluntary basis and no compensation is offered to them by Littlestomaks.com.

Happy Friday! Check out these interesting nutrition related articles and drop a comment if you would like to share an opinion.

Carrots are boring but what about X-ray vision carrots?

It appears that giving veggies interesting and creative names might work if you would like your kids to try them more. In a recent study, 4-year old preschoolers ate twice as many carrots when they were presented as “x-ray vision carrots” compared to just “carrots”. That is amazing! I guess it might work with fruits too although they were not included in this study. Creating an experience of fun with veggies worked for @MommyMellie, who wrote in her guest post on this blog about how carrots, broccoli  and finger paint got her child to tolerate veggies and even like them. So, let your imagination go wild and have fun with fruits and veggies. Here are some more tips on helping your kids eat more of them.

“Organic” stamp does not mean food safety

Remember the recent outbreak of salmonella from the peanut plants in Texas and Georgia? Turns out, they also had the “organic” certification from the USDA according to this article in the New York Times! This is a good time to remind ourselves that organic certification does not imply food safety, even though you may expect it because you pay top dollar for these foods. Just like every other government program, the process of getting and maintaining the organic certification has become a beuareucratic mess. It took the private certifier for the Peanut Corporation of America nearly 7 months to report the problem to the USDA. By then, several people had been infected and many foods were on the recall list. In my opinion, these inspectors should also lose their license!

Does it mean you should give up on buying organic? Certainly not. However, it is probably a good idea to understand what the label means and not make any assumptions.

Getting a blood test for food allergy? Watch out for misdiagnosis

Seems like a lot of people are getting a blood test for detecting food allergies in their children. And in a lot of cases, kids and adults alike are getting diagnosed with allergies they don’t really have. In one case according to this article, a young boy was put on feeding tube because blood tests indicated he was allergic to everything! After doing a food challenge, doctors were able to introduce 20 foods into his diet. This is an extreme example for sure, however there is an increase in the number of misdiagnosed food allergies when blood tests are used. A 2003 report in Pediatrics reported that positive result on a blood allergy test correlated with less than 50% of real food allergy. If the blood tests show a huge positive allergy response, it is best to contact a specialist. Introduce new foods slowly and watch of any allergic reactions.

Do you have any experiences with food allergies in your kids?

Open your eyes to healthy eating habits

March is “Save Your Vision” month sponsored by the American Optometric Association (AOA). Most people already know that carrots are good for eyes because they supply the beta-carotene needed for night vision. There are several other key nutrient for long term eye health which are not that commonly known. Accordinng to AOA’s  Diet and Nutrtion website, researchers have now linked nutrients such as lutein, zeaxanthin, vitamin C, vitamin E, essential fatty acids and zinc to reducing several eye diseases. Foods such as spinach, kale, citrus fruits, nuts, whole grains, fish and supplements can provide all of these nutrients. This is a good reminder to try various foods with your toddler so he can get a balanced diet. Most toddlers are picky eaters, so you can also consider a daily multivitamin supplement.

Enjoy lentil soup

Our twins have now developed a taste for lentil soup. Check out our simple lentil soup recipe! Hope your toddlers find it as appealing as ours.

Enjoy your weekend!

Image source: orangeacid on Flickr
©2009 Littlestomaks.com

8 toddler servings, 4 adult servings

Ingredients

1. 1 cup red lentil
2. 2 medium sized potatoes cut in small cubes
3. 4 – 5 baby carrots, grated
4. 1 small onion, cut into small pieces
5. 1 teaspoon butter (optional)
6. 1 teaspoon flour
7. A pinch of turmeric (optional)
8. 6 cups warm water

Method

Wash lentil with cold water in a 1 quart saucepan. Pour off the wash water. Add about 4 cups of warm water to the washed lentil. Add grated carrots and potatoes. Make sure there is enough water in the pot to cover the lentil and the vegetables. Cover and cook on very low heat for about 30 – 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Do not increase the heat otherwise it will boil over and spill off the pot. Keep adding warm water as needed. Once cooked, the potatoes will soften and the lentil will turn yellow. Add more water to desired consistency. Add flour, butter, turmeric and mix gently. When fully cooked, add the mix to a food processor and blend at medium speed. Serve with a piece of bread. Make sure it is not too hot for your toddler.

Sometimes, we also add chopped cilantro right after blending and let it simmer for a little while.  It adds a nice smell and flavor to the soup.

About Lentils

Source: Wikipedia Commons

Lentils are a very good source of protein (about 26%); therefore they are a very important part of a vegetarian diet. They come in a lot of different colors such as red, yellow, green, brown and black. They are also very rich in fiber, minerals, iron, folate and vitamin B1. We like the red lentils because they are easiest to cook. You can also make a lentil curry and serve it with Basmati rice.  There are many recipes on the web; I found one here that looks quite good. Also, there are a few interesting variations on GreenLiteBites, a site you can find on my Links page.