Buttered Prawn Bisque Couscous

As I was removing the prawns' heads & shells to prep for a prawn omelette, I noticed how fresh the heads were with their bright red roes. It would have been such a waste to throw them away & so I decided to keep them for subsequent use as a soup base. The following day, an idea came to me! I've always loved prawn or crab bisque so maybe I could try replicating them at home. It sounds complicated, right? But it's actually pretty easy peasy to prepare.

Ingredients (serve 1 toddler):

10 prawn heads

4 peeled prawns

1/4 cup of Origins organic couscous

1 cup of water

A handful of peas

2 stalks of organic leaf lettuces

1 tbsp of unsalted butter

Directions:

1. Bring water to boil & add in the prawn heads to cook for 15 minutes.

2. Pour in the prawns & cook till they start to turn red. Remove the prawn heads then add in couscous followed by lettuces & peas. Simmer till the water has been absorbed by the couscous which should only take between 2 to 3 minutes.

3. Remove from heat, stir in the butter then serve immediately. 

I tried a mouthful & it was yums! I must make a mental note to cook more for myself the next time round. Sinful but worth every bite of it ;P'

Beneficial Combination:

Peas + Prawn = Enhance body's immunity

Beef Bolognese ala My Style for my 16M27DO BB

Ingredients (serve 1 toddler & 1 adult):

100g of organic minced beef

2 handfuls (about 20) of organic cherry tomatoes, cut into halves

1 small yellow onion, cut into halves

1 clove of garlic, chopped finely

1 dried bay leaf

1/2 tsp of MasterFoods Spaghetti Bolognese Blend

2 stalks of romaine lettuce, torn into halves

1 cup of organic fusilli pasta

Directions:

1. Cook pasta in a pot of simmering water as per instructed till al dente. Drain & leave aside.

2. Steam the rest of the ingredients, except lettuce, for 10 minutes (I'm using my Avent Combined Steamer & Blender).

3. Add in the lettuce & steam for another 5 minutes.

4. Remove lettuce to cut into smaller pieces. Remove & discard bay leaf then blend the rest till desired consistency (I like mine a bit more chunky with bits of beef). Pour over cooked pasta & serve immediately.

Note: I usually cook the pasta & prepare the sauce concurrently to save time.

Beneficial Combinations:

Garlic + Lettuce = Prevent bleeding gums & vitamin C deficiency

Garlic + Onion = Detoxifiy & anti-cancer effect

My 3 Dishes + 1 Soup for BB's Dinner

Beet, corns with onions soup: Cut 1 beet & 2 corns into quarters. Cut 2 yellow onions into halves. Add all the ingredients to 2 litres of water & bring to boil. Then, simmer in low fire for 2 hours.

The following were cooked simultaneously in my Tecno 3-Tiers Electric Steamer.

Organic ten multi-grains (Simple Natural brand found at most Cold Storage outlets): 4 tbsps soaked for 7 hours in 1/2 cup of water. Steam for 35 minutes.

Steamed kampong egg with free-range minced pork: 40g of pork marinated with some extra virgin coconut oil. Beat 1 egg (approximately 50ml) with 100ml of water (I've tried 50ml before but found the texture too firm but too soft this time round so I'll try 75ml the next time). Halve the pork & put each portion into the bottom of 2 chawanmushi bowls (mine are from Diaso) then pour half of the egg mixture into each of them. Steam for 20 minutes

Steamed threadfin with wolfberries: 1 piece of threadfin fillet & a small handful of wolfberries. Steam for 10 minutes.

Basil organic cherry tomatoes & lettuces: 3 stalks of lettuces torn into smaller pieces & 6 to 8 cherry tomatoes cut into quarters. Sprinkle dried basil sparingly over the vegetables & drizzle some extra virgin olive oil. Steam for 5 minutes.

BB ate half of the rice, fish & egg but finished the vegetables. Being the soup lover he is, he asked for another serving of soup & drank up every drop of it ;)

The Good, The Bad & The Evil

I remember I used to marvel at the soup bases that mummies shared on the 'Healthy Food for My Baby' Facebook group when I was prepping myself for BB's weaning. So many ingredients were used in preparing the soup base & they would add in even more ingredients when they use it to cook porridge for their lil' ones. 'The porridges will definitely taste delicious!' was the thought that went through my head.

As I was following the 3/4 days rule for BB, it seemed to take forever to introduce new foods to him. Gradually, I was able to add in more ingredients to his porridge after he passed the respective allergy tests. Unfortunately, my parents weren't too supportive of it eventhough I was only using no more than 3 to 4 vegetables then. They were concerned that some of the combinations may bring more harm than good. Despite me explaining to them that a lot of mummies are doing the same or even more than me, they still weren't convinced. To put their mind at ease, I told them that I'd do more research on it. I then decided to look for a book shared by one of the mummies which shows foods with a list of other foods which when consume together, will either bring about some health benefits or harmfulness. To my dismay, it wasn't carried by Popular. While continuing my search for it, I chanced upon a similar book at a small book sale in Bedok Mall's FairPrice Finest so I bought it. 

After reading through the book, I realised that my parents were indeed right. For example, ABC soup, a very common soup cooked by mummies, usually contains carrots, corns, yellow onions & potatoes. However, carrots should not be eaten together with onions / corn & corn should not go with potatoes as illustrated in the following 2 pictures. I've since formed a habit of referring to this book before cooking any meals for BB. 

For mild cases, nutritional values are reduced or indigestion may develop. For examples,

Tomato + Zucchini = Reduce nutritional values

Beef + Rice = Indigestion

For more serious cases, diarrhoea or vomitting or even adverse health effects in the long run may be experienced or in worst cases, even poisoning! 

Prawn + Pumpkin / Kiwi + Milk (especially for mummies who eat overnight oats) = Diarrhoea

Chicken + Sesame = Possibility of poisoning if consume frequently

Without a doubt, the soup or soup bases will be very sweet & flavourful by adding more ingredients. However, in this context, more doesn't always necessarily mean better. On the contrary, some foods actually complement each other so do try to pair them up. For examples,

Chicken + Mango = Increase nutritional values

Apple + Corn / Cabbage + Carrot = Boost immune system

Cod + Pumpkin = Prevent flu

Lettuce + Pork = Energise 

Moving forward, I'll indicate at the bottom of each post the nutritional benefits, if any, for the dishes I've whipped up. I'll also add them on for those recipes that I've already posted previously. Cheers to healthy eating!