Puree Monday - Banana Beet Oatmeal

     As fall approaches and winter waves in our direction it’s time to start thinking about hearty warm breakfasts.  The kind that make you want to start your day and head out into the world no matter the weather.  And what could be better for that than oatmeal?!  For this recipe, I no longer run the oats through the food processor first, Bebe B is used to the chunky texture now.  One of her favorite ways to have this recipe is if I swirl in the pink puree or draw a heart with it in her oatmeal.  I recently made this recipe in my First Tastes: Adventures in Baby Food Making class and pureed the cooked oats, banana and cooked beet all together: which is another great way to make this recipe for bebes just starting out with solid food, new tastes and textures!

Banana-Beet Oatmeal - 8 Months+

Ingredients:

1 medium beet

1 banana (peeled and sliced)

1 cup Rolled Oats (plain)

½ tsp nutmeg

2 cups water

Preheat your oven or toaster oven to 400 degrees F.  Wash the beet well and place on a baking sheet (I suggest covering it in foil-beets stain).  Bake for about 50-60 minutes.  The beet should be very tender so it will puree easily.  Depending on the size of the beet I find cooking times vary so more baking time may be needed.  Allow the beet to cool, then remove the skin off the beet, sometimes a knife or vegetable peeler is the easiest way to get the skin off.  Next run the rolled oats through a food processor, coffee grinder or the Beaba babycook for a smoother consistency. In a saucepan, bring water and nutmeg to a boil.  Stir in the rolled oats and reduce the heat to medium low heat.  Once the oats begin to simmer turn the heat off and cover.  Allow the oatmeal to stand about 15 minutes while you prepare the rest of the recipe. Next puree the beet  and banana together in a food processor or babycook until you have a smooth consistency.  Keep in mind beets often take a bit longer to puree then other steamed/ baked vegetables so keep pureeing until you get the desired consistency.  Lastly mix in the beet and banana puree into the oatmeal.  Serve warm.  This recipe will keep up to 3 days in the fridge or 3 months in the freezer.  It will fill about 3 ice cube trays (15-30 servings)  

This recipe is vegan, dairy-free and can be gluten-free, be sure to check your oats to be sure they are gluten-free (many oats are contaminated with gluten but gluten-free oats are available for sale).