Lentils for Everyone (Cauliflower Lentil Salad)

Saturday

Arthur woke up early again, around 6:30. Miklós tried to keep him placated with some sweet potato purée, which he wolfed down, crying for more - clearly the little dude was hungry. So it was once again a mix of huge gulps and falling asleep during his first nursing session of the day. I'm really hoping this early wakeup thing is just a phase, and not his new normal.

He had numerous naps on me during the day to make up for it, though. During one of them, he was even giggling during his sleep, so apparently the guy was having some good dreams! He drank quite a lot, but still had a very good appetite for his solid snack in the afternoon. I feel like his appetite for solids is growing by the day, and he now eats a decent amount in each sitting. I'll have to measure it next time.

His majesty approves of soygurt

Anyways, Arthur had some more cumin-spiced lentils with ghee to start off with, which he happily ate. He was still hungry afterwards, so we tried out a new food: soy yogurt! I had made a batch for myself the night before, and the soy milk I used to make it, though from Lidl, doesn't have any added fillers or weird ingredients - it's just soybeans and water (and maybe a little salt? I have to check). So I felt fine giving him some of the yogurt, and while he made a face at first, he seemed to really like it, and kept grunting for more! I guess I'll have to make another batch now that we have two hungry soygurt fanatics in this household.

His appetite was just as big at his solid dinner; Arthur ate an entire Weetabix biscuit (reconstituted with breast and soy milk combined), and fussed for more afterwards. In the past, a biscuit would have lasted him at least three feedings, so he's come quite a ways. But it does mean he's getting in a good amount of iron! He still loves the stuff, even when soy milk is added in, but then again, we now know he's a little soy boy.

So, Arthur's Saturday solid intake came to:

• sweet potato

• red lentils

• ghee

• soy yogurt (new food!)

• Weetabix

• soy milk

Sunday

Arthur slept in until 7:00 on Sunday, so at least his wake-up trajectory is moving in the way I want to see. He's been babbling up a storm lately, and Sunday morning was no exception. It's usually variations on abu, abo, aba. Miklós thinks he's trying to say apu but I can tell it's a hard b in there, and he's clearly referencing his favorite band, ABBA.

Now that he's getting better at being upright, we decided to try out the adapted sitting version of Arthur's stroller, and converted it into more of a seat for him. This way, he could look out at the

The coolest little bluebeary out there

world in front of him, which we figured would be a nice experience. He gets more sun exposure in this setting, so we rubbed some baby sunscreen on his face, stuck on his sunglasses, and took him for a walk. It was a beautiful day for it, and Arthur seemed pretty happy in this new stroller modification. Miklós extended the walk after I went home, and said Arthur was babbling away like crazy as they strolled by the river.

Arthur finished off the lentils for his afternoon snack. I mixed them with ghee again, and some peanut butter to bulk them up and get some allergens in. After a few faces, he was happy to devour the batch!

But oof, his poop afterwards...ok, the feces themselves weren't terribly offensive, although he did manage to get them quite a bit up the side of his leg. But then he put his hand in them while Miklós was changing him. It was really lovely, but I had to remind myself that this is probably on the beginning of Arthur's excrement exploration.

For his own dinner, Arthur had a new premade baby food purée. This one was an organic couscous with mixed vegetables, and consisted of carrot, zucchini, fennel, wheat, red lentils, tomato paste, and rapeseed oil. He seemed to really really like this purée, quite a bit more than the spaghetti bolognese one, and ate half the 200g jar quite quickly. I guess this one will be a repeat!

All that brings Arthur's Sunday solids to:

• red lentils

• ghee

• peanut butter

• carrot

• zucchini (new food!)

• fennel (new food!)

• wheat

• tomato

• rapeseed oil

As usual, Sunday supper was Miklós’s prerogative, but Saturday was mine! Since cauliflower florets were on sale, I opted to make a recipe I’d made once before and quite liked: a cauliflower lentil salad. As usual, I changed it a bit from the original recipe; here’s how I made it:

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Tahini Caramelized Onion Lentil Cauliflower Salad (serves 2)

Ingredients

• 400g cauliflower florets

• 1 cup dry green lentils

• 3 cups water

• 1 medium onion, any color

• ½ tbsp olive oil

• ¼ cup tahini

• 2 garlic cloves, minced

• 3 tbsp lemon juice

• ¼ cup chopped toasted walnuts (I’ve also used hemp hearts here - any sort of nut/seed is good)

• spices, to taste: salt, pepper, thyme, bay leaves, MSG (optional)

Instructions

1. Pre-cook lentils in a pot with the water, MSG, and a couple of bay leaves until the water is absorbed. Remove bay leaves.

2. Toss cauliflower with salt, pepper, and thyme, and bake in a pre-heated oven at 250 degrees Celsius (with the fan) for 30 minutes or so, until it is crispy on the edges.

3. Meanwhile, chop onion into long thin strips and caramelise in the olive oil by cooking over low heat for around 30 minutes, stirring every 5-10 minutes.

4. Make the sauce by whisking together the garlic, lemon juice, tahini, and a bit of salt & pepper. Add warm water as needed to get the consistency you want (I used 3 tbsp).

5. Once the cauliflower, onions, and lentils are all done, mix them together with the sauce in a large pot or bowl (I used the same pot I cooked the lentils in).

6. Plate the salad and top with the walnuts. Enjoy warm or cold!