Ngor He and Heng Chye Porridge

My parents have been very excited about feeding #2. My dad, especially, have a good track record in getting #1 and #2 to eat when others have failed. One of the staples for chinese babies in my generation and my children's generation is Ngor He and Heng Chye. In english, Ngor He is threadfin and Heng Chye is spinach. My dad would buy Balai Ngor He and baby Heng Chye. My mum will cook porridge for #2. #2 loves this porridge since she was 6 months old.

Here it is, My Dad n Mom's Ngor He and Heng Chye Porridge

1 spoonful of rice

hot water enough to cover up to 1 inch above the rice

2 fifty cent sized ngor he without skin n bones

8 leaves heng chye

sesame oil

salt

Cook rice with hot water in mini slow cooker for 4 hours.

Chop heng chye very very finely.

Season fish with 1 dab of sesame oil and 1/2 dab of salt

When porridge is done, add heng chye. Cover and cook for 20-30mins.

While this is happening, steam Ngor He til it is cook. This will take 5-10mins depending on the size and thickness of fish. Finely chop the Ngor He.

Add Ngor He to porridge, Mix, dish and serve.

Serves: 1 Baby for lunch and dinner

Time: 4.5hrs cooking, 30mins for preparation.

Macaroni and Cheese

I've always loved Mac n Cheese. So when the time came to test recipes on my picky eater #1, I decided give Mac n Cheese a go. First recipe test was Annabel Karmel's Macaroni & Cauli Cheese. #1 loved it, #2 was allowed a lick n wanted more. But the Daddy refused to touch it, calling it baby food.

So when Ina Garten started cooking her Mac and Cheese on TV, I thought "why not"? I've got the cheese (v expensive!) and #1 did say "I want cheese sauce" for dinner.

I followed Ina's method, added in Annabel's cauliflower and came up with a "Daddy thumbs up" recipe.

Here it is, my Macaroni Cheese with hidden Cauliflower.

250g macaroni (I used chifferi rigati)
handful of cauliflower, cut into florets
150ml milk
2 dessert spoon corn flour
2 dessert spoon butter for the sauce
1 dessert spoon butter for the bread crumbs (optional)
3 slices of white bread, crust removed (optional)
3 oz Gruyere, grated
3 oz Mature Chedder, grated
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
Water

Cook macaroni and cauliflower til al dente. While that is happening, grate the gruyere and chedder til you get 2 oz each.
Drain the macaroni and blend the cauliflower with a little water.
Add milk and cauliflower in a saucepan and heat (do not boil).
In a non-stick pan, melt 2 dessert spoon butter and add corn flour. Mix and cook over low heat for a minute. Pour heated milk into the butter/flour mixture and mix over low heat til it is slightly thickened.
Switch off the heat and add grated cheese, salt and pepper. Mix til cheese is melted.
Add macaroni and mix. Put macaroni in a baking tin if you are making the topping. If not, dish and serve.

For the topping, make bread crumbs by adding white bread to chopper/food processor. In a pan, melt 1 dessert spoon of butter and add the bread crumb. Mix and top the macaroni.

Put into oven and set it to grill on high for 2-3mins or til bread crumbs are golden brown. Dish and serve!

Serves: 1 Preschooler and 1 Hungry Daddy
Time: 45mins

Preschooler Rating: Thumbs Up
Hungry Daddy Rating: Thumbs Up

Links to Recipes that inspired me.
Annabel Karmel's Macaroni & Cauli Cheese
Ina Garten's Mac and Cheese