A Dip As Dinner (Toddler Friendly Saag Paneer)
What counts as “comfort food” may appear to vary across the world–different dishes, different ingredients, different flavors–but there are throughlines to homestyle cooking that are rather universal: think creamy, hearty, and probably cheesy. The sort of thing that goes with any starch: rice, bread, pasta, et al.
Kind of sounds like exactly what a small child likes to eat, right?
Which, with some smart remixing, makes all kinds of cuisines and dishes available and amenable to the infant and toddler palate. Take this one: it’s a rich and richly-spiced cheese and spinach curry, a saag paneer by any other name; the flavor profile has merely shifted a bit west toward the mediterranean, with plenty of flexibility when it comes to seasoning and cheese. Is it authentic? Maybe (not). Can you make a meal out of it for your kiddo and you with just some crackers (and, fingers crossed, raw vegetables) or rice or sandwich bread? A great one, actually! It’s that kind of comfort food.
Ingredients
Instructions
Prep
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Drain the tofu. Set aside.
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Dice the onion into small pieces. If not already washed, clean and dry the spinach.
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If using, prep your rice or pasta per package directions.
Cook and Assemble
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Heat a small pool of oil in a large pan on Medium. When hot, throw in the onions and cook until soft and translucent, roughly five minutes. Add spinach to the pan one handful at a time, waiting a minute between handfuls to allow each pile to soften and shrink; repeat until all spinach is in the pan.
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Throw in a spoonful of garlic ginger paste, tossing the spinach and onions until paste is fully mixed in. Allow to cook until all spinach is wiled, roughly one more minute. Turn off heat and allow to cool for a few minutes.
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Pour the juice of the lime, the coconut milk, and a splash of soy into a blender jar; add in spinach and onion mixture into a blender on top, along with generous amounts of cilantro and your seasoning choice. Blend for a minute, or until ingredients have formed a thick paste, then add tofu and a hunk of soft cheese, if using, and blend again until smooth. If mix is too thick and/or not breaking down, add some coconut water or water and try again.
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Place contents of blender into the pan you initially used to cook the spinach and onion; set heat to Low. Add in all of your crumbly cheese and a scoop of your soft cheese; blend with the spinach mix. Heat for roughly five minutes, continuing to mix occasionally, or until the cheese has softened and the contents have thickened. Remove from heat.
Serve
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Place rice or pasta on a plate or bowl, then top with several spoonfuls of the spinach mixture; add a squeeze of lemon lime over the top. If your child shows any reluctance or disinterest, or does not care for rice or pasta, try first spooning the spinach mixture onto a cracker–can highly recommend matzoh or anything thin and very crispy here–or bread to ensure he/she is willing to try it out.
Adapt
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When I first starting experimenting with and serving this dish–at roughly 18 months–spices were not part of the equation: some dried green herbs–chives, oregano, and a lot of cilantro–and some citrus, sure, but not much else. As my child got older, I sharpened the profile: zaatar came into the mix, as did a little bit of cumin, turmeric, and paprika–went Middle Eastern before South Asian, as you can see. By about 28 months, I was ready to start adding a masala spice mix, favoring something a blend with more warm notes–cinnamon, say–and/or by adding a bit coconut milk; I have gradually increased the amount and presence of spices since.
If you want bolder or spicier flavors, there’s an easy way to level up the dish that won’t mar your child’s portion(s) and can be done quickly. In a small pan, heat a bit of vegetable or avocado oil (or ghee, if you have it) on Medium for roughly one minute, then toss in your desired mix of minced garlic and/or ginger, chili powder, warming spices (i.e., cinnamon, cardamom), and/or leaves and seeds (i.e., bay leaves, fennel seed) and remove from heat. Allow to sizzle in tge pan for 30 seconds, swirling a few times. Pour oil mixture over spinach-rice bowl when ready.
