I’m a huge quinoa fan and given the chance I would eat it everyday!

I’m lucky that H also loves it, so I make it often.  Sometimes served as a meal, like this roasted pumpkin quinoa salad could be, and other times I will just season it and have it as an accompaniment to another dish.

I have also forgotten about it on the stove and turned it to mush, so it becomes porridge for the following morning…

So back to the recipe: the pumpkin is roasted with red onion, cumin, coriander, fennel seeds and maple, its delicious and you could totally eat it like that as a side dish.

The quinoa is dressed with are lots of herbs and spices; mint, coriander, sumac, lemon and its all topped with pomegranates, pepitas and hazelnuts – whats not to love…

Some other quinoa favourites: Quince, pumpkin, eggplant quinoa salad,    A big bowl of green goodness,

Spiced peach quinoa porridge,      Quinoa granola,      Spiced lamb quinoa pilaf,     Quinoa congee

• 1/4 medium kent pumpkin, or your pumpkin of choice (about 3 cups of chopped pumpkin)
• 1 red onion, cut in to small wedges
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp maple syrup

• 1/2 cup quinoa
• 1 big handful mint
• 1 big handful coriander
• 1/2 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 lemon, juiced, or to taste
• 1 tsp sumac

• 2 tbsp pomegranate seeds
• 1 tbsp dry roasted pepitas
• 1 tbsp dry roasted hazelnuts, roughly chopped

1. Preheat oven to 220 degrees C (425 degrees F).  Cut pumpkin into chunks and place on a lined baking tray with the onion  Add the remaining ingredients and toss to coat. Spread out in a single layer and roast for 25 minutes or until cooked through.  Cooking time will vary depending on the size of your pumpkin chunks. Once cooked remove and set aside. 

2. Wash the quinoa and add to a small saucepan with 3/4 cup of water. Cover and bring to the boil.  Once boiling turn the heat to as low as possible and allow to cook for 10 minutes.  Once cooked fluff with a fork and add to a large bowl. Set aside and allow to cool slightly.

3. Finely chop the mint and coriander add to the quinoa along with the olive oil, lemon juice, sumac and salt and pepper.  Add the pumpkin and toss gently.  Add to a serving plate.

4. Garnish with pepitas, pomegranates and hazelnuts.  Serve.

To dry roast the pepitas and hazelnuts.  Add separately to a frying pan and cook over medium heat until golden.  Add the hazelnuts to a tea towel and rub with your hands to remove most of the skins. Then roughly chop. 

If you make my roasted pumpkin quinoa salad, be sure to take a picture and upload to Instagram with the hashtag #littlebigh so I can check out your creation. xx

Make your own gut healing bone broth at home.

So why bone broth?

It’s great for your gut, your skin, your hair, your bones, your immune system, plus much more…

Simply warm and drink as is or use anytime a recipe calls for stock.  If you suffer from any gut issues it really is a miracle food.

 It’s also great for babies, I gave it to H from about 8 months old in small amounts.  He still loves to have a little bowl of it on chilly morning – or anytime, and it’s great to have on hand when he is sick and off his food.

I use a slow cooker but it also works well in a pressure cooker and on the stove – time permitting.

Simply add your leftover chicken bones from last nights roast chicken (try my quick lemony chook or this roast chicken with sage) in a pot along with a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar – an important step as it helps to extract all the goodness from the bones.  Also add a chopped carrot, celery, a bunch of parsley stalks (optional), bay leaves, peppercorns, salt and almost fill it with water.

Cook on low for 24 hours in a slow cooker, strain and you will end up with a beautiful clear stock.  Adjust seasoning and store in the fridge for a couple of days.  I like to freeze half in individual containers so I can defrost just the right amount.

• Bones from 1 whole chicken, preferably organic ,roasted *see notes
• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 2 carrots ,chopped in 3
• 2 celery stalks ,chopped in 3
• 1 bunch parsley stalks
• 1 onion ,halved
• 2 bay leaves
• 5 black peppercorn
• 1 tsp salt

1. Add all ingredients to a slow cooker and fill with water.  Cook on low for 24 hours.  Allow to cool slightly and strain.  Adjust seasoning.

2. Store in the fridge or freeze for later. 

If not using bones from leftovers, buy organic bones from your butcher and roast in the oven beforehand. 

Using the bones from 1 chicken will produce a stock that is slightly jelly like once cooled.  I sometimes use the bones from 2 chickens. This will produce a stock that sets like jelly once cooled. 

Super easy to make and super convenient to have on hand, Lebanese flat bread is the ultimate convenience food.  

Use them as a quick pizza base, sprinkle them with my homemade nutty dukkah, slice and dip into homemade hummus and other dips or top with leftovers for a delicious meal – think slow cooked meat, veggies, etc…

I like to make a large batch of Lebanese flatbread and freeze what I don’t use for another day.  I freeze them individually and then allow them to defrost on the bench.  Once defrosted, put them back in a hot pan for a few minutes to crisp up again. 

• 2 teaspoons dry yeast
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 3/4 cups warm water
• 5 cups plain flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 2 tablespoon olive oil
• Plus extra oil for frying

1. Add the yeast, sugar and water to a large bowl and combine well. Add half the flour and combine. Cover and let stand for about 30 minutes or until the mixture appears to froth up a little
2. Add the remaining flour, cumin, coriander, salt and oil. Knead the dough until smooth. I used a kitchenaid with a dough hook, alternative knead by hand for about 10 minutes. Place the dough in an oiled bowl and cover. Allow the dough to doubles in size – about 1 hour
3. Give the dough a quick knead and divide into 8-12 pieces (it depends how big you want them). Roll into balls and rollout. Allow the rolled out dough to rest for about 30 minutes on a flour dusted bench. It will puff up again slightly.
4. Add a small amount of oil to a frying pan and add the dough. Allow to cook for 3 minutes and then flip, cover and allow to cook for an additional 2 minutes. Repeat. Serve or allow to cool completely before freezing.

Wrap in cling film and freeze what you don’t use for another day. Allow to defrost on the bench and add to a frying pan with oil to crisp up again.

Adapted from www.bestrecipes.com.au

I have two weaknesses when it comes to food, chocolate and ice cream.  I often enjoy a bowl of ice cream of an evening, and up until recently I would serve myself ice cream and H natural yoghurt – sneaky but brilliant right 🙂

But at 2.5 years old, H is now totally on to me.  ‘Me ice-cream mummy’.  My trick is up!  

I’m still trying to avoid sugar as much as possible, particularly before bed, so I was inspired to come up with a healthy alternative (for both of us), that tasted great and was smooth, creamy and of course delicious.  This avocado lime ice cream is just that (also approved by a non avocado fan), so I’m sure you and any suspicious children will agree.

When you are done hang on to the avocado seed and grow a tree from it on your kitchen bench, the kids will love watching it grow.  My instructions are below.

• 2 ripe avocados (ripe but not over mushy)
• 1 can (400ml) coconut milk
• Juice and zest of 1 lime
• 1/4 cup honey or maple syrup or your sweetener of choice

1. Remove the flesh from the avocado and place in a blender with all the other ingredients; blend until smooth. Taste and adjust sweetness to suit. I found it it tasted sweeter the next day so don’t over sweeten.
2. Churn in an ice cream maker as per your machines instructions. Add to a freezer proof dish and sprinkle with the lime zest. Serve as a soft serve or freeze until you are ready to use.

This ice cream freezes really well and doesn’t get super hard – the perfect consistency.
Keep the seed and make an avocado tree from it. See my instructions below. The kids will love watching it grow.

To grow an avocado tree from your seed all you will need is: a seed, 3 toothpicks, a glass of water.  

The pointy end of the seed should face up.  Push the toothpick into the seed so you can suspend it over a glass of water.  Don’t let the seed dry out, water well, the seed should be partly submerged.  

After a few weeks you will notice roots sprout and a few more weeks a stem and eventually leaves.  H has loved watching it grow.  It’s almost time for us to plant it outside.  We have another three growing on our kitchen bench now.

Forget boring and tasteless rice cereal as babies first food.  Offer real food instead!  Avocado and banana make wonderful first foods.  (Try individually to check for any allergies, then mash together for a wonderful tasting puree)

Bananas’ high enzyme content (namely, amylase) means that they can digest themselves and thus, there’s less work for your baby’s digestive system to do. Ripe brown-spotted bananas are best – they taste the sweetest and are easiest to digest.  Avocado is a great source of monounsaturated fats and contains the enzyme lipase, which pre-digests the avocado’s fat as it ripens – great for your babies developing digestive system.  K Erlich, M.D, K Genzlinger.  Super Nutrition for Babies. (Fair Winds Press, 2012), 61.

• 1 Organic Banana (ripe spotted is best)
• 1 Organic Avocado (not too hard, not to squishy is best)

1. Add equal parts banana and avocado to a bowl and mash with a fork until the desired consistency is reached. Add cooled boiled water, milk or formula to thin mixture if required.
2. The obtain a very smooth mixture – use a spoon to push mixture through a sieve.

For older babies and children, spread mixture on toast or a sandwich

Beautiful Berry Coulis – sugar free

Chicken with Apples and Thyme –  such as great combination

Delicate white fish with fennel and grapes

I’m very excited to be sharing my very first guest post with you all, on a great blog called  Never the Same Spice Twice.  I have 3 new recipes suitable for babies 6 months plus.  

Check it out here…

Welcome to Little Big H.  My hope when starting this blog was to share and encourage parents to make their own baby food at home, to be adventurous with their cooking and to help raise adventurous eaters that appreciate a wide variety of good food.  It has since evolved to include healthy food for the whole family.

I believe that by exposing your child to complex flavours and a wide variety of food early on, you will be well on your way to avoiding a fussy eater. This is the approach I took with Harry (aka Little Big H) and he will happily try most things I put in front of him.

My recipes are simple to make, and kid friendly in that they are nutritious, low in sugar and salt, and all other nasties and are therefore suitable for the entire family.

Please note that I am not a Doctor or Nutritionist so please consult your health professional if you have any concern about introducing certain foods to your little one – particularly if you have a history of allergies in your family.

P.S:  I’m also not a chef, writer or photographer and this is my first time blogging! I’m hoping to learn along the way.  Feel free to contact us, I’d love to hear your feedback.

Energy balls, bliss balls, apricot balls, whatever you want to call them, are delicious little things that are perfect for lunch boxes and a quick snack.

My energy balls contain hemp seeds which have a rich nutrition profile with high levels of antioxidants, fatty acids, minerals, and vitamins.  They also contain oats, chia seeds, unsweetened coconut, dried apricots and coconut oil.

Because these energy balls contain dried fruit they are high in natural sugars, so treat these like any treat and serve them occasionally.

My hemp seeds and apricot energy balls are nut free so I can include them in H’s lunch (it’s a nut free school). You could however add nuts in place of the oats if you wish.  The recipe is flexible. If you don’t have all the ingredients try adding something else.

• 1 cup dried apricot
• 1/2 cup traditional oats
• 1/4 cup desiccated coconut ,unsweetened
• 2 tablespoons hemp seeds
• 2 tablespoons chia seeds
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil ,melted

1. Add all ingredients to a food processor.  Process until the mixture resembles a fine crumb.  

   Press together with your hands to see it will stick together once rolled.  

   If its too dry add a little extra coconut oil. 1 teaspoon at a time. 

2. Roll into 1 tablespoon sized balls and coat in extra coconut, hemp seeds or chia seeds.  

Best kept in the freezer.

Looking for other energy ball inspiration?  Try the recipes below 🙂

Berry Bliss Balls – also nut free         Raw Halva Truffles

Bliss Balls with dates, cashews, chia , cocoa         Macadamia Bonbons with chocolate toffee

If you make my hemp seed and apricot energy balls, be sure to take a picture and upload to Instagram with the hashtag #littlebigh.  I’d love to see your creation. xx

This recipe makes a large batch so you can freeze what’s left.  They defrost really well and are perfect for unexpected visitors or as a starter or light lunch.  The lamb filling has lots of spices along with mint and crumbly feta – really delicious.  I served it with a little golden kiwi fruit salsa (golden kiwi fruit, mint, drizzle of olive oil, salt & pepper).

The little dude thought they were pretty good, but he likes everything I make – bless him…

Enjoy xx

• 4 sheets puff pasty
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 1 onion; diced
• 1 clove garlic; minced
• 500 grams lamb mince
• 2 teaspoon turmeric
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1/4 cup stock (or water)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup mint; roughly chopped
• 200 grams crumbly feta;
• Egg white from 1 egg and a little water; as a wash for the pastry.

1. Add oil to a frying pan and sauté the onion and garlic until tender. Add the coriander, turmeric and cumin and stir for a minutes or so. Lower heat to medium-high and cook the mince, add the stock and stir through. Once cooked turn off the heat and stir through the mint and feta.
2. Pre-heat oven to 200 degrees C (400 degrees F). Cut the pasty into 9 squares. Hold the pasty square in your hand and add 2 teaspoons of the filling. Add a little water to the edges of the pastry and fold the corners together so you have a triangle. Using a folk, crimp the edge well. Repeat until all the pasty is used.
3. Add to a baking tray and brush with the egg white and water wash. Cook for 10 minutes or until the pastry is lovely and golden.

Suitable to freeze. If you plan on freezing some I would recommend cooking them until barely golden. When ready to use, take out of the freezer and place in the oven and cook until heated through and golden brown.

It has been quite some time since I’ve posted a true baby food recipe, so I thought I would post this old favourite.  It is a recipe that I grew up on and still love, although we always had it with sugar, and lots of it.  

It is amazing how things change when you have children and start thinking about nutrition, and how harmful sugar is for us.  Harry is very much anti anything sweet, which is a blessing.  He has never had food sweetened with sugar until quite recently, and even then it is only ever a taste of a piece of cake or a taste of my dessert.  

When I do make something that I know H will be eating, and that requires sweetening, I try to use whole foods such as mashed banana or cooked apples, dates, or otherwise maple syrup and honey.  He has never eaten a lolly or chocolate and it’s not because I’m keeping them from him, he’s just not interested.  He never had sweetened food as a baby or toddler, and has never developed a taste for it…

My mum often has jars of lollies on the table and H will go for them (they are pretty tempting for kids – mostly the bright colours and interesting shapes) but he will only try to feed them to me. He does give the odd one a little lick, but turns his nose up every time.  

I mistakenly bought flavoured yoghurt the other day and H wouldn’t touch it.  He has only ever had sugar-free natural yoghurt, and he could smell something was wrong before he even tasted it – he stuck his little tongue out, just a fraction, and had the teeny tiniest little bit, put the spoon down and pushed his bowl away.  

Basically what I’m trying to get at is, you don’t miss what you haven’t had and haven’t developed a taste for.  I know in years to come it may be a different story but for now I will keep the sugar to a minimum…

• 500 ml (2 cups) milk
• 1/4 cup of brown rice (you could also use white but brown is more nutritious)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste (or you could use extract)
• 1 small cinnamon stick
• Honey or maple syrup to drizzle – suitable for babies 12 months plus

1. Combine milk, vanilla bean paste, cinnamon stick and rice in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Cover with a lid; lower temperature and simmer for about an hour to an hour and a half. (brown rice will take quite a bit longer than white rice).
2. It is ready when most of the liquid has been absorbed, keeping in mind it will thicken up quite a lot once cool. Serve warm or cold on it own, or drizzle with honey and top with fresh fruit

To sweeten naturally try adding a mashed banana once cooked and cooled
For little babies, add to a blender and puree until smooth. Try adding a date when pureeing for another flavour with added natural sweetener