Dear Past Stefanie,
Remember spooning soupy rice cereal into baby Andy’s chubby cheeks? Remember dreading the mess as you wiped cereal off his face and clothes? Remember thinking, “I can’t wait to feed Andy real food”?
Yeah…
You should have savored the puree and cereal days.
Love,
Your wiser, older self
PS Don’t even get me started on how eager you were for Andy to walk.
Feeding a toddler is a humbling experience. You assume they’ll love what you cook, but often a lovingly prepared dinner ends up on the floor and leaves both of you frustrated. As a home cook and food blogger, I take pride in my meals. It’s one thing cooking for someone content with mac-and-cheese and cut hot dogs; it’s another to feed his mini-me.
That said, I haven’t given up. I keep offering healthy foods in different forms, and slowly he’s warming up to them. I like a challenge — I want this kid to enjoy veggies and salads like I do. I’ve even caved and used cheese to make vegetables more appealing, which was one thing I swore I’d never do before becoming a parent.
Surprise: everyone loves cheese. Even Mike dives into this creamy kale side. So sure, Andy might have a hot dog and sweet potato fries sometimes, but he’s getting a generous scoop of this kale goodness too.
Garlic-Lemon Creamed Kale
Ingredients
-
1
Tablespoon
Olive Oil -
½
Cup
Diced Yellow Onion -
2
Cloves
Garlic
grated -
16
Ounces
Chopped Tuscan Kale - Zest from ½ Lemon
- Juice from ½ Lemon
- Big Pinch of Salt
-
¼
Teaspoon
Black Pepper -
Small Pinch of Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
optional -
1/8
Teaspoon
Grated Nutmeg -
8
Ounces
Cream Cheese
cut into cubes -
½
Cup
Plus 2 Tablespoons Grated Parmesan Cheese
Instructions
-
Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).
-
Heat olive oil in a medium-large skillet over medium-low for about 30 seconds. Add the diced onion and sauté until translucent, about 4 minutes. Add grated garlic and cook for another minute.
-
Lower the heat and add the chopped kale. Cover and cook about 5 minutes, then uncover, stir, and add half the lemon zest and the lemon juice. Season with salt, pepper, nutmeg, and red pepper flakes if using. Cover again and cook about 10 more minutes until the kale is fully wilted.
-
Remove the lid and add the cubed cream cheese. Allow it to soften and begin to melt, then stir to evenly coat the kale.
-
When the cream cheese is melted, stir in ½ cup grated Parmesan and turn off the heat. Transfer the kale to a small baking dish (a 6-inch round or 3-cup rectangular dish works well). Sprinkle the remaining Parmesan and the rest of the lemon zest on top, drizzle lightly with olive oil, and bake 10–15 minutes until golden.
-
Let the dish rest for about seven minutes before serving.
Recipe adapted from Shutterbean’s Best Creamed Spinach recipe.