Although I am Pakistani by background….I am pretty much useless at times in the kitchen. *hangs head in shame*
So I was pleased to receive a copy of Zainab Jagot Ahmed’s ‘Easy Indian Supermeals’ to review.
‘Easy Indian SuperMeals for babies, toddlers and the family’ is the first of its kind – an Asian-influenced cookbook that supports parents on the journey from weaning to toddler meals and snacks, and post-school quick fixes, through to meals for the whole family to enjoy together.
A FOODIE FIRST: There are no other Indian-themed babyfood cookbooks on the market, which focus on cooking with aromatic spices.
SO what are ‘Supermeals’ I hear you ask? Taken from the book: ‘The ‘Super’ of SuperMeals refers to the extra health benefits associated with these meals over and above normal meals, due to the inclusion of carefully selected foods, SuperFoods and SuperSpices’.
Can’t really say no to recipes that have extra health benefits!
The recipes are in clear sections:
- Veggie Supermeals
- Fish Supermeals
- Finger Food Supermeals
- Sweet Supermeals
- Meat Supermeals
- Family Supermeals
- Quick Kids Supermeals
And within each of the sections it is made clear what stage the recipes are suitable for: ie 7 months plus and 10 months plus.
What I loved about the recipe book is the clear and personal introduction, which includes detailed information on spices and when spices are suitable for your child. What also made me like the recipe book is that each recipe comes with it’s own introduction, often citing what vitamins are in the recipe and the recipes health benefits.
Bee is past the weaning stage and pretty much eats anything so we jumped to the family meals section of the book. Although having a quick look at the weaning stage recipes, the recipes shared there are a lot more interesting then the ones I tried for Bee. And I wish I had had this recipe book when we were at the weaning stage. There are so many recipes in there that I would never have thought to try, for example the ‘Mixed Veggies in Coconut Milk’.
One of the recipes that caught my eye in the Family SuperMeals section was the Masala Fish Curry. Now I don’t know why but I am always wary of cooking with fish and the most I deal with is frozen fish fingers, or the masala fish from the local Asian butchers which hubby fries/bakes. So I thought I would be brave and try this out as it looked pretty quick and simple to make:
Simply marinate the fish for 30 minutes, make a sauce and then cook the fish in the sauce. Simple!
And the verdict…..in Bee’s own words it was ‘yummy’.
Munchkin is a bit of a fussy eater and it can be really hard to get her to like and enjoy new recipes…….but even she liked it and actually ate all of it without complaining. I could have fainted….literally! We made the recipe on Sunday and today (Wednesday) she was asking when I would be making it again!
I now can’t wait to try out some of the other recipes on Munchkin!
My favourite section has to be the Quick Kids SuperMeals. I like anything that is quick and makes my life easier! I currently have my eye on the Super Quick Bomaby Potatoes recipe and will be trying that soon along with the Mini Masala Omelettes!
Easy Indian SuperMeals (RRP £14.99) is available to buy from Amazon and also from Zainab’s online shop.
Disclaimer: I was sent a free copy of the recipe book in return for an honest review.
Oh delicious. We love Indian meals here, I was veggie for 14 years and they are so great
Jen aka The Mad House recently posted…Autumn/Fall leaves sticking activity for preschoolers
Anything with coconut milk in it gets my vote every time x
This sounds like a great book and that meal you cooked looks delicious x x
I’m so useless at cooking! But all that does look very tasty 🙂
Stephs Two Girls recently posted…Brownies. Would it be possible?
This looks so tasty, my hubby is a huge fan of Indian food. xxxx
Dont know much about this type of meals but do look good.
That would be a good book for me. i haven’t a clue when it comes to using spices!
I LOVE indian food, I also wish I could cook better! x
That looks delicious. I would love a book like that, sometimes i am overwhelmed with complex new recipes and prefer to “play it safe”.
TwinsplusTwo recently posted…Prejudice – it’s time to stop crisis managing the symptoms.
Looks a pretty unique book. I haven’t come across one with such recipes.
nessjibberjabberuk recently posted…Urban Green Spaces – The Winter Gardens, Sheffield
My hubby would love this, he is the chef in our house! x
You Baby Me Mummy recently posted…The List #3
Sounds like a great book for inspiring tasty family meals.
Sonya Cisco recently posted…Let’s make it a positive NO.
I’m pleased to hear that it was a hit! Sounds very tasty.
Sounds like something right up my street!
This looks brilliant – we love Indian food and would love to find family friendly way to cook it more often.
Globalmouse recently posted…Pyshechnaya, St Petersburg, Russia – a taste of the Soviet Union
The book does seem to fill a gap in the market. Great idea.
Oh i think I may have to buy this – I love introducing the kids to new flavours and textures – this looks ideal!
this looks great, I don’t eat meat or fish but would love to try out more indian meals
Polly recently posted…Cook it: Veggie Chilli and Cornbread
We have this book although I have yet to try any of the recipes yet