Product Review of The Week: ThinkBaby Thinkster Sippy Cup

So remember my bib story and how I bought like 4 different types of bibs before I found the one and only? Same thing applies to my quest for the perfect sippy cup. I bought so many types of these ridiculous cups, that the “baby section” of my cabinet looked like I had 4 kids. Some people get lucky in the drinking department and their babies chug down water like its…water. For some weird reason my baby cringed when he drank water, it was like he was taking a shot of tequila. So I got the sippy cup with the nipple, the one with the bigger nipple thing, the trainer cup, the one with the spout, the one with the straight straw, the one with the bent straw, until finally I found one that worked.

Holy hell Halelluyah. Crisis averted.

If your baby DOESN’T DRINK WATER you will understand how I feel.

I introduce to you ThinkBaby Thinkster cup. The only sippy cup that my baby will drink from. Why? I don’t know. Maybe because the water doesn’t flow too fast, maybe because my baby can hold it easily, maybe he thinks opening and closing the cap is fun? Who knows and I really don’t care, it works. The feeling of watching your baby chug down water when you’ve been struggling to get drops down his throat is probably one of the best feelings in the world. This is what motherhood does to you. It makes you appreciate the small victories in life. 

The ThinkBaby Thinkster cup is made from smart plastic that’s completely free from Bisphenol-A (BPA), PVC, phthalates, nitrosamines, and lead. Did you know that when this company came to the market, 95% of baby bottle companies were making bottles with BPA, a chemical that disrupts the endochrine system. Learn more about what that means here http://www.thinkbabybottles.com/learn.html . Its information like this that really gets under my skin and aggravates me. Why poison our babies? Why don’t corporate a-holes care? Why is it all about profits? Ugh, im going to live on a mountain one day…mark my words.

Read more about the great company that is ThinkBaby here. http://www.thinkbabybottles.com/ourstory.html

ThinkBaby Thinkster Bottle available here.

http://www.giggle.com/eng/product/thinkster_bottle_with_straw/thinkster

Mamas Hungry: Raw Apple and Pear Crisp Bomb

 
A few weeks ago I was invited to dinner party at a friends apartment. Being the gracious friend that I am, I offered to bring an apple crisp. Of course I procrastinated until the last possible hour and settled on an allrecipes.com apple and pear crisp concoction which was chock full of crap, also known to the nutrionally unconscious as goodness.

Sugar, white flour, butter, more sugar…it was sinful.

But, I made it because I had no choice/was too lazy to look for another recipe and the 453 reviews assured me it was bomb.

Anyway, fast forward to my recent trip to my home away from home, WholeFoods, where a lovely lady named Kelly Jane was handing out samples of her insane apple crisp. I couldn’t believe it. Raw, no sugar, guilt free and bomb. I vowed then and there never to succumb to the sugar laden typical apple crisp that we all know. I'm not raw and don’t plan on ever being raw but this is really such an easy and seriously delicious recipe that is ready instantly. I quickly bought up all the ingredients and have been making batch after batch, night after night, time after time.

Filling:

• 2 Honeycrisp, Gala or Fuji Apples, cored and sliced
• 2 Pears, cored and sliced
• 1/3 cup dried cherries or cranberries
• 1/3 cup orange juice
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice

Topping:

• 3/4 cups Pecan Halves
• 3/4 cups Almonds
• 1/2 cup Pitted Dates, roughly chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon Real Vanilla Extract
• 1/2 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon Kosher Salt
• 1/4 teaspoon Ground Ginger
• 1 pinch Ground Cardamom
• 1 pinch Ground Nutmeg

1. Places apples, pears and dried fruit in a large bowl. Add orange juice and lemon juice. Toss to combine. Transfer to a 2 quart casserole dish.
2. In a food processor, combine pecans, almonds, dates, vanilla extract, ginger, cinnamon, kosher salt, cardamom and nutmeg. Pulse until finely chopped, but not paste-like.
3. Sprinkle nut and date topping over fruit filling and serve. 

Find the original recipe here.

  

Dairy Free Gluten Free Vegetable Lasagna

So here’s the deal. My family, as in my husband baby and I, have been trying out dairy free and gluten free for our own personal reasons and have found it works for us. Im not trying to change your mind about how you eat, this is just what makes us feel better. Its really is just as simple as that.

I have to admit I was a little worried about how this would come out, especially since real cheesy lasagna is such a hard dish to live up to. BUT, it was epic. Buttery, flavorful, decadent…it was pretty amazing. We finished the entire thing in a day and a half, baby devoured it and my husband asked if I could keep lasagna inventory in the freezer.

You can always use your regular noodles and real cheese for this dish.

Vegetable and Cheese Lasagna

 

1 Small onion chopped

1 ½ large zucchini cubed with peel on for nutrients

Half pint grape tomatoes halved

1 Pkg mushrooms peeled and sliced

1 10 oz frozen spinach package defrosted and drained well

1 Jar marinara sauce

1 Pkg rice lasagna noodles

1 Bag Daiya Mozzarella cheese

1 Big ass pyrex

1.     Saute the onion in olive oil until translucent.

2.     Add the zucchini, tomatoes, mushrooms and spinach.

 3.     Stir the veggies until they are coated in oil and simmer with cover on until all veggies are soft.

4.     Pour a layer of the marinara sauce on the bottom of the pyrex.

5.     Layer noodles. Keep it neat!

6.     Add sautéed veggies.

7.     Sprinkly cheese to cover.

8.     Add some sauce.

9.     Layer noodles, veggies, cheese and sauce. 

Call me if you get confused 917-583-4044.

   10. Finish with cheese.

Bake uncovered at 350 for about an hour.

Enjoy!

If you would like to know more about feeling better and taking control of your body and life you can start by reading (one of many books out there) Kathy Freston Veganist

Chia Seed Pudding

I don’t know about you but until recently I only knew of chia from those genius chia pet heads a million years ago. A few weeks ago I fell in love with chia seed pudding at the juice press (kind of obsessed with this place) and my baby and I loved it. I did some research and was blown away by the health benefits of this seed. I rarely eat fish and my baby is basically limited to salmon, mostly because I’m still wary of the effect of pollution on fish and all that radioactive stuff. So, when I found that chia seeds are crazy rich in omega-3s I knew I had to make this a staple in our diet. By weight, chia contains more omega-3 than salmon, is packed with antioxidants, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, manganese, copper, iron, and zinc.

Chia is a very diverse little seed. You can sprinkle ground or whole chia seeds on cereal, on yogurt, salads, eat them as a snack, or grind them and mix them with flour if you’re making muffins or other baked goods. Most of the time you wont even taste them and you’re packing your body with omega-3s.

My first experiment with the lovely chia is pudding.

Seriously so easy anyone can make it, it requires ZERO effort.

2 tbs chia seeds

½ cup almond milk room temp so it can get puddingish better
½ tspn agave

dash cinammon

whisk really well and let it sit in fridge for at least 15 min.

*** My version is not as good as The Juice Press. I will be working out the creaminess texture in the future and will notify you of all progress made. However I do believe this is a good start. Enjoy!

Song of the Week: Foster the People - Pumped up Kicks

Hi Ya'll.

No im not dead.

Just busy with LIFE.

Heres a bomb song that makes me happy as a clam.

Listen here.

Wouldnt it be nice

Would'nt it be nice if my nanny didn't disappear every few weeks? That way I could actually function, have a clean house and make dinner for my hungry hungry baby. Yes I said hungry hungry because this boy can eat! I swear he eats adult sized portions, i'm amazed at his eating skillz.

I have to admit since being stranded this week due to another nanny family emergency, I had to take my baby out for lunch. We went to this super healthy awesome vegan place called Candle in my hood and I got him the paradise casserole with a side of avocado. 

Let me tell you, the paradise casserole is aptly named. He devoured it. Its really so simple so im stealing the idea and making it for lunch tomorrow. Its a layer of millet, a layer of black beans and a layer of mashed sweet potato. Deeeeeelish!

Hopefully my version will come out just as good, if not you can meet me at Candle mon-fri 11:30 on the dot.

Candle Cafe

1307 3rd Avenue
New York, NY 10021-3301

(212) 472-0970

 

 

Back to Basics: Purees

When I started this bloggity-blog my baby was only eating pureed food. I had fun pureeing the guts out of fruits and veggies and just as fast as it came, the stage had passed. My baby sprouted some teeth and we were on to real foods. My sister in law is going through the puree stage with her baby now and asked for a few recipes. That got me thinking about how few purees I posted. Here are a few noteworthy concoctions that survived my label cemetery. Remember I used to freeze and label each container? I saved those babies to remind myself what I made. Yeah, im so smart!

Anyway, here are a few to try for those of you still on stage 1.

1.     Sweet potato, yellow squash, and peas.

2.     Zucchini, parsnip, and butternut squash

3.     Broccoli, butternut squash, and sweet potato

4.     Broccoli, kale, and sweet potato

5.     Spinach and banana

6.     Strawberry, peach and pear.

Puree Away.