100 Years + Bean Curd Rolls

Friday

It was a glorious morning for us all. Miklós slept in for a change, the construction didn't start until 7:30 or so, and was much less noisy, and Arthur slept in as late as I did, until 10 to 8 or so! Ok, Miklós reported that he woke up at 6:30 and 7:00, but both times fussed for just a couple of minutes before going back to sleep. So he got a good chunk of sleep as well.

The past two days we've had beautiful weather, and Arthur got quite a lot of walking (ok, being walked) in to enjoy it. And he managed to work up an appetite; he was hungry for his afternoon snack. We started off with more of the apple-pear purée. This time, I served it to him via spoon rather than from the pouch, and seasoned it with a bit of cinnamon. I have no idea whether it was the change in serving style, the cinnamon, or a big appetite, but Arthur was much more enthusiastic about the fruit this time! We followed it up with an entire cheese wedge (Arthur grunted and kicked his feet whenever he didn't have cheese in his mouth) and some mashed sweet potato for dessert. It's pretty amazing how much his appetite has grown since he started solids; at the beginning, we were lucky to get in a couple of baby spoons. Now, he probably eats a quarter cup or so at once!

I tried to give Arthur an extra big portion of solids at dinner as well, as he was going to be having formula for his liquid nightcap; I was having a shot of advocaat to toast Omi! She's 100 today, which is pretty amazing - I really hope Arthur and I inherited those genes. So while his parents drank their eggs, Arthur got some in scrambled form, the rest of the batch from the previous day (cooked with garlic and onion powder in olive and sesame oil). He happily wolfed it down, and still had an appetite, so he got something new after that! Or something with a new ingredient. It was some oatmeal I had cooked up earlier in the day, but I had mixed chia seeds in there while the oats were cooking, something he'd never tasted before. I also added a bit of soy milk (Lidl has a really nice one with only soy, water, and salt as the ingredients) because I've been slacking on that allergen. And he seemed to like it as much as he always likes oatmeal, so that was great. Plus, a much less stinky way for him to get in those omega-3s!

So, on Friday, Arthur ate:

• apple

• pear

• cinnamon

• cream cheese

• sweet potato

• egg

• sesame oil

• garlic powder

• onion powder

• olive oil

• oats

• soy milk

• chia seeds (new food!)

Saturday

It was another multi-wakeup morning for Arthur: first at 6:30 (Miklós let him fuss a bit and then fall back asleep), then again a little after 7:00. He was a bit grumpy in the morning, even after his first nursing session, but got a nice long nap in during his second one, and was in better spirits to help me do some morning grocery shopping.

At afternoon snack time, Arthur started off by finishing off the rest of the pear-apple purée. It took him a couple of bites to get into it, but once his appetite was stimulated, he was a bottomless pit! I was cooking with coconut oil, so I melted some and mixed it into some more of the chia-soymilk-oatmeal I had made the previous day. It didn't seem to impact his enjoyment of the oats! When he finished that serving up, I gave him some more with a bit of homemade yogurt mixed in. He made a face at the tanginess at first, but then demolished that as well. At which point, I decided to call snack time quits, and got to investigate a poop full of chia seeds.

For his dinner, Arthur finished off the chia-soymilk-oatmeal, which I seasoned with cinnamon and mixed with walnut oil to get some more allergens in. He ate quite a bit, but was getting tired and restless by that point, so the dinner quickly devolved into tears until we took him out of his high chair.

Anyways, that brings Arthur's Saturday intake to:

• apple

• pear

• oats

• soy milk

• chia seeds

• coconut oil (new food!)

• yogurt

• walnut oil

• cinnamon

We had takeout for Friday’s dinner, but on Saturday, I tried something new: bean curd rolls! I had picked up bean curd sheets from the Asian store the last time I had been there, after seeing several recipes online that looked tasty and intriguing, not to mention high protein. It seems like you can just fill them with whatever you like, so I went ahead and used what was on sale and sounded good. This version was really tasty, but I want to experiment with other fillings as well, and maybe try air frying them another time, too! Here’s how I made them:

Spicy Ginger Garlic Bean Curd Rolls (serves 2)

Ingredients

• 4 dry bean curd sheets (mine were crescent-shaped

• 100g bean sprouts

• 25g dried shiitake mushrooms

• 180g extra firm tofu

• 450g stir-fry veggies of choice (I used a “nasi” veggie mix)

• ~ 2 tbsp ginger, grated

• ~ 2 cloves garlic, minced

• ~ ½ cup soy sauce, divided

• MSG, onion powder, garlic powder, chili flakes, sweetener, vinegar to taste

Instructions

1. Make “yummy tofu” a night or two before (recipe previously posted) or do the lazy version (which I opted for) by slicing tofu into small pieces and marinating them overnight in a mixture of soy sauce, water, white vinegar, sweetener, garlic powder, chili flakes, and MSG.

2. Rehydrate the shiitake mushrooms the night before by placing them in a bowl and pouring water on them until they are submerged, holding them down with another bowl or plate if necessary to keep them fully submerged.

3. Rehydrate the bean curd sheets by placing them in a large bowl or pot of water for 30 minutes or so.

4. In a nonstick pan, simmer the tofu in its marinade until it is fully evaporated

5. Take out the shiitake mushrooms, saving the broth, and sauté them over medium-high heat with the bean sprouts and veggie mix in a mixture of soy sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, and MSG. Cook for about 10 minutes.

6. Add the tofu to the veggies, and cook for another 5-10 minutes.

7. Remove from heat and let cool fully.

8. While the mixture is cooling, make a sauce by mixing the leftover shiitake marinade with ¼ cup soy sauce, the ginger and garlic, and optionally some more chili flakes, MSG, and sweetener if desired.

9. Once the veggies and tofu are cool, stir thoroughly and drain any remaining liquid (I wrung it through my hands in handfuls to really squeeze out any moisture).

10. Remove the bean curd sheets and squeeze gently to drain the water

11. Layer two on top of each other, and fill with half of the veggie/tofu mixture.

12. Roll it up like a burrito, tucking the ends in so that the filling will not come out.

13. Repeat with the other two skins.

14. “Steam” the rolls by placing them on a large plate or bowl with the the sauce poured over them, and microwave for about 10 minutes, until warm.

15. Serve hot.