Toddler Lunch: Samo rice with Sweet potato...

This sweet recipe is for my sweet friend in Louisville...she had requested me for posting some toddler recipes as both of us sail in the same ship...we have sons who will be turning 2 yrs old within 3 months and we are always in search of great toddler recipes...

so here is the great healthy and nutritious recipe for toddlers of 1 year and above...

I like to think that healthy eating is as simple as feeding your Toddler a Rainbow every day!

Think of the colors of the rainbow and then think of the vegetables and fruits that match those colors! Granted, it will be very hard to feed your Toddler "blues" and "purples" every day however, the general idea of following the rainbow should be helpful.
Red - Apples, Cherries, Strawberries, Watermelon, Tomatoes
Orange - Oranges, Peaches, Sweet Potatoes, Carrots
Yellow - Bananas, Summer Squash, Pears
Green - Avocado, Green Beans, Zucchini, Mango, Papaya
Blue - Blueberries
Purple - Grapes, Eggplant

This recipe goes in category of orange color.Basically it is tricolor...white one-samo seeds,orange is sweet potato and green is very little chilly to taste.

Samo seeds or mario seeds popularly known as bhagar in india are seeds of a grass namely echinochloa colonum that grows amongst the rice paddy as it requires damp and moisture laden soil.With digestible fibers, high nutritional content and excellent nourishment, samo is immensely popular amongst the indian majority.

It is similar to rice in taste and texture.It resembles semolina and daliya.It has a rich source of minerals and vitamins, providing essential ingredients.It is proved very much helpful for baby as it is excellent source of calcium.

In fact in India it is eaten in every spiritual fast.It is also called as Samo rice, Samak rice, Varyacha tandul, Vari Tandul, Bhagaror Kodri, jungle rice,varai bhat etc It provides the nourishment and energy that rice does and it forms a heavy and a filling meal.

Also sweet potatoes has loads of nutrients in them.They are high in vitamin B6,are a good source of vitamin C,contain Vitamin D and iron,triggers white blood cell production, provides resistance to stress, enhances proper immune functioning, and plays important role in metabolizing of protein.

Sweet potatoes plays an important role in building our energy levels, moods, and helps to build healthy bones, heart, nerves, skin, and teeth, and it supports the thyroid gland.

Sweet potatoes are a good source of mag­nesium, which is the relaxation and anti-stress mineral. Thus they are too much helpful.

so try this recipe for your toddler he will surely like it as toddlers get bored eating same food everyday and like change in food...Always there is question what is to be made? Whether he will like or not?
but do try this may be your child will love it...

This will be proved as an easy idea for lunch of your Toddler.  Feel free to substitute any ingredients you feel may be inappropriate for your Toddler! Because you yourself better knows what exactly your baby likes and what he/she hates...dont ever force feed your baby...he/she may eat sometime later...you yourself only knows how much quantity is required for your baby...try this,,, may be change is food leads to increase in appetite of your child at that particular time at least.

This one goes for the event "Healthy food for healthy kids"-Toddler Lunch" hosted by Priya...thanks for the amazing theme dear...Being a mother of 20 month old toddler I loved the theme as Iam always in search of new recipe with new experiment...Nice event Nithu..I loved it...

SAMO RICE WITH SWEET POTATO

Ingredients:
Samo Rice (Variche Tandul, Bhagar, Kodri) – 1/2 bowl
Green Chilly (Mirchi) – 1 (cut into very big pieces..as food is for toddler and here green chilly is used for color enhancement only)
Cumin Seeds (Jeera) – 1/2 tspn or cumin powder as generally babies hates entire cumin seeds.
Clarified Butter (Ghee, Tup) – 1 tbsps
groundnut powder-1 tsp
Salt to taste
cooked and mashed sweet Potato  – 1/2 one or 3 tbsp or as per you desire initially add little slowly increase the quantity as your baby likes it.
You can replace sweet potato with potato/batata-but it becomes less nutritious then as compared to sweet potato but tastes good.
Water as needed (approximately boil 3 cups of water as they generally swallow and gulp food but never chew and also prefer food in semi liquid form)
sugar is not required when you add sweet potato but yes if potato is used then you add as per your taste.

Method:
First of all roast samo seeds in pan for a little while as you do for rava while preparing upma and keep it aside.
On one side keep 3 cups of water for boiling.
Heat clarified butter or homemede ghee in a skillet or a non-stick pan
Add samo seeds to it and fry it nicely
Now add cumin seeds or cumin powder and chillies; saute for a minute.
Stir fry mashed potato or sweet potato in it.
Add salt and groundnut powder to it.
stir fry samo rice for few mins continuosly on a medium to high flame.
Add more than half boiling water to the skillet and mix well and cover it with a lid.
Check after 2 mins, if the water is soaked and samo is still raw then add some more water.
Now after 5 to 6 min samo will be puffed and cooked.

Please feel free to drop a comment...if your toddler enjoys it...I will be most happiest person to learn that your baby enjoyed it!