When we all sit down at dinner time, there are so many different eating stages that need to be taken into consideration – with two adults, a preschooler, a toddler holding her soft baby brush and an 8 month old around the table. {Wow – when did my baby become an 8 month old?} Anyway, our little guy loves food and I try and accomodate his needs in our family meal each night. I found this veggie pancake was perfect for baby led weaning and we could adjust the meal to please everyone around the table.

More families are sidestepping baby food purées and starting their infants on solids with self-fed feasts of finger foods. Experts say the benefits of baby led weaning include an early foundation for good eating habits and sharpening of developmental dexterities. After eating be sure to clean your baby’s face using baby wipes which you can find at this blog wipe warmer reviews.

The Z man still enjoys being spoon fed – you should see him demolish a bowl of banana porridge in the morning. But he also loves being able to fed himself and be part of our family meal. I mean, if someone is sitting at the dining room table and he is not sitting up in the highchair also receiving food – then there will be hell to pay.

A VEGGIE PANCAKE – PERFECT FOR BABY LED WEANING

1 zucchini
1 garlic clove
1 shallot
1 small bunch of parsley
150g corn kernels
100g green peas
125g ricotta
150g self-raising flour
2 egg
2 tbsps of greek yoghurt
60ml olive oil
sea salt and pepper

Coarsely grate the zucchini. Finely chop the garlic and shallot. Finely chop the parsley leaves, including the stems. Combine the zucchini, garlic , shallot, parsley, corn and peas in a bowl.

Lightly beat the eggs in a large bowl. Add the ricotta, self-raising flour and yoghurt, and stir the mixture until just combined. Add the zucchini mixture to the batter and stir gently to combine. Season with salt and pepper.

Heat some oil in a fry pan over medium heat. Pour batter into pan and spread out evenly to coat the base. Cook for 5 mins or until base is golden. Place the pan under the oven grill for 5 mins or until the pancake is golden and cooked through. Carefully turn the pancake out onto a board and cut into pieces.

Accompaniments – helping the pancake become a family meal

• CHIPS

We love to have a few chips with our pancake – but that doesn’t have to mean deep fried potato!

Eggplant chips are definitely on the menu. If you haven’t heard about Stacey from Veggie Mama’s Crispy Baked Eggplant Chips with Sweet Chilli Mayo then click on that link and do yourself a favour – seriously delicious. I spiced up my polenta mix with paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, pink salt, black pepper and a little sugar. There is just something about adding the 1/4 teaspoon of sugar to the mixture that takes it to another level.

Baked carrot chips also go down really well in our household. They can be as simple as toasting your carrot chips in a little olive oil and salt before baking or you could give this recipe for skinny carrot fries a go.

• SALAD

  This doesn’t necessarily mean you need to make a whole salad – sometimes I just cut up some veggies on a tray that my older children can use some mini tongs to take themselves. Veggies that always go down well include; rounds of cucumber, sticks of carrot, strips of red capsicum. I often pop these on the table first and the thrill of using the mini tongs means that the veggies might all be eaten before the rest of the meal comes to the table. A simple tossed salad with dressing can be served to the adults.

• AVOCADO

  Avocado is a great accompaniment to this pancake – as it is super simple to be made up to meet the needs of everyone sitting around the table. It can be mashed up for babies or cut into cubes for baby led weaning. I can place slices onto the older kids plates, that they can choose to eat with their hands or practice using their knife on. Or I can blitz it up and make guacamole – spicing it up for those who like it hot.

• SPICY SAUCE

  I love spicy food and so when I make something like this, I like to have an accompaniment that can turn up the heat for those who would like to – this often includes my four year old. You might like to try this 15 minute homemade hot sauce recipe or simply add some jalapeños to the table.

Have you ever whipped up a recipe from my blog? I would love for you to let me know…So I don’t feel as if I am just writing all this stuff down for nothing… If you choose to whip up one of my recipes , then I would love for you to share it on social media, and don’t forget to use the hashtag #goodfoodweek.