Whole wheat banana, raisins, and chocolate muffins

Don't let the unassuming looks of this simple muffin put you off from trying it. This one is not just full on nutrition but is also extremely moist for something that doesn't have refined flour, eggs, or butter in it. To top it all, it's a breeze to cook up and stays soft for upto 4 days. Here we go,



Whole wheat flour - 2 cups
Fresh banana puree - 2 cups (really ripe, squishy bananas)
Baking powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Baking soda (Soda bi carbonate) - 1/4 teaspoon
Soft brown sugar - 3/4 cup (if you don't have demerara/brown sugar in hand, use plain white, powdered)
Unsweetened cocoa powder - 1 heaped teaspoon
Black seedless raisins - a handful (washed well, soaked in hot water for 15 minutes, and ground coarsely)
Soy milk (optional)- 2 dessertspoons (20 ml)
Extra virgin olive oil - 1/4 cup
Vanilla powder or essence - 1/4 teaspoon (I used powder since I couldn't find propylene free essence)



I used 5 medium sized bananas for the 2 cups puree yield. Use a hand blender or your regular mixie jar to blend all ingredients together. Dont over whisk. Preheat oven at 200° for 10 minutes. Line a muffin tray with cases and pour in batter to half full.Bake at 150° for 20 minutes. Pierce a fork or knife to check if done, if not cook at 120° for another 10 minutes. The lovely aroma that fills your kitchen will be your best guide to the cooking time.

Black Raisins health booster

8 months and above (toddlers love it even more)

This is an easy and totally yummy way to get your little one's iron and calcium levels upto the mark; boost respiratory health; prevent constipation; and improve general physical well being.

Black raisins - 100 gms
Rock candy (rock sugar/mishri/kalkandam) - 50 gms ( I use only the unrefined variety)
Water - 1 cup

Wash the raisins really well to remove sediments. Soak in warm water for about 1/2 hour. Rinse the rock candy and remove superficial dirt. Boil water with candy in it till it dissolves. Strain. Pour into a thick bottomed skillet and add in the raisins. Simmer on gentle fire stirring once in a while to prevent burning. Keep it on till the mixture reaches a thick jam like consistency. Cool and store in an air tight glass container. Give your baby a liberal spoonful everyday as a superdelicious treat cum health tonic.

PS: I use unrefined rock candy which is traditionally attributed with a better nutritional profile.

Adjust quantity given according to baby's age. Mine started on her spoonful from her 9th month. Start by giving a smaller quantity if your baby is not used to raisins.

Carrot, raisins, and dates porridge

6 months and above

A very simple, highly nutritious, and totally yummy treat for your little one.

Carrot - 1 small (cleaned thoroughly, skin scraped, and roughly chopped)
Dates - 2 Nos(deseeded)
Raisins - 5-6 Nos(washed well and soaked in warm water for about 10 minutes)
Milk - 1/2 cup

Place everything together in a bowl. Cover and pressure/steam cook till done. In a pressure cooker 3 whistles on high flame will do the trick. Let cool a bit. Blend to smooth puree. Feed baby when it is just a little warm.


Post script:

1. Any kind of raisin can be used in this recipe. Back home in India black raisins are touted for their medicinal benefits and are used to prevent/cure constipation in babies.
   
   


2. If you do not want to add regular milk to your baby's diet as yet, steam the ingredients in half a cup of water and add baby formula/breast milk during blending. Do not add formula while cooking since heating beyond a prescribed temperature affects the nutritional profile of the formula.
   

Nutrition information

Dates - are superfood! Rich in antioxidants, iron, potassium,essential minerals, the B vitamins and so on. In short a couple of these will go a long way in ensuring health and preventing nutritional deficiencies.

Carrots - full of beta carotene and vitamin A

Raisins - iron rich and full of other micro nutrients