dkMommy Spot

I make guacamole about once a week, and I’ve found that my son is especially fond of it. He also loves whole wheat pita bread, so I squish a little guacamole in small pieces of pita to make him his own tiny sandwiches. Fun finger food, and so healthy too. Avocados have the good fats you need, omega 3′s, and nearly 20 other essential vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients! Babies can eat plain smashed avocado from a very early age because it’s easy to digest. (I used to mash one with banana when my son was first trying new foods.) And avocados aid in the growth and development of the central nervous system and the brain. My, what a smart food.

Here’s my favorite way to prepare guacamole. The added ingredients are also wonderful for growing toddlers.

2 Haas avocados (I look for slightly soft ones with a reddish color)

1 or 2 finely chopped garlic cloves

2 – 3 Tbs. finely chopped onion

1/2 finely chopped tomatojuice of 1/2 lemon

fresh chopped cilantro (a powerful mercury remover, by the way) – about 1 – 2 Tbs.

sea salt to taste (optional)

***For adults, you can add 1/2 finely chopped jalapeño. Naturally, you don’t want to add that if children are eating it.

Run a knife the long way around an avocado, then twist it. Pop out the pit, scoop out the green stuff, and smash. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Enjoy!

One of my biggest concerns in feeding my son a mostly vegan diet was where he would get his calcium.   I grew up eating a pretty standard American diet with plenty of dairy products, so it has been hard sometimes for my mind to shift gears.  Like most Americans, I had no idea calcium was found in fresh fruits and vegetables.  In fact, if you tell most people they can get all the calcium they need just from eating their veggies, there’s a good chance they’ll think you’re kidding.I ran a check on many of the vegetables I feed my little man, and I’m happy to see that with the variety he receives each day, his needs are being met in the calcium department, as well as other important nutrients.   Check out NutritionData.com to run your own checks.   I had a lot of fun there, and I’m sure I’ll visit the site a lot more in the future.Since the vegetables that tend to be higher in calcium are usually the dark and leafy green ones, there are all sorts of things you can do to make these foods more interesting to the discriminating child.   Here’s one I do, which is great for babies and young toddlers because it’s very mushy.  Substitute any leafy green you choose:2 – 3 shredded leaves of kale, minus the middle tough part, steamed or boiled until soft (retain a little cooking water)1/2 cored applebaby cereal, enough for desired consistencyPut the cooked kale and the apple into the blender and blend until smooth, with a little of the reserved cooking liquid.  This makes a nice mush.  Add cereal until you get the desired consistency.  The apple adds a nice flavor, and the cereal is a recognizable texture for babies, so getting them to eat it is pretty easy.  Adults can try eating kale sauteed in a little olive oil with garlic and toasted sesame seeds.  Yummy!Another option is to put these leafy greens into smoothies, as discussed in one of my former blog entries on green smoothies.  This is even healthier, since the vegetable is eaten raw.

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