Anonymous wrote:My DD loves refried bean quesadillas. I just spread the beans on the tortilla and sprinkle on some cheese. You can either mic it or heat it in a pan. Serve it with guacamole and plain yogurt.

We also do quesadillas. I cook up the beans with onion and garlic. Mash up some avacado. Spread a thin layer of avacado. Spread a thin layer of beans. Sprinkle with lots of cheese. Toast in toaster oven. Both of my kids (and I!) love this.

My 12 month old loves plain butter beans.

My DD loves refried bean quesadillas. I just spread the beans on the tortilla and sprinkle on some cheese. You can either mic it or heat it in a pan. Serve it with guacamole and plain yogurt.

Anonymous wrote:My 16 month old loves the veggie chili I make in the slow cooker with 3 types of beans and corn. She has been eating this for several months now. Very easy: 1 chopped onion and about 3 minced cloves of garlic, 1 can of chick peas, 1 can of black beans, 1 can of kidney beans, 1 can of corn, 2 cans of diced tomatos, 2 cups of broth (chicken or veggie if you want to keep it vegetarian), 1 tablespoon or oregano, 1 tablespoon of chili powder, 1/2 tablespoon of cumin, salt and pepper to taste. Dump it all the crock pot and set on whatever setting works for your schedule (high for 4-6 hours or low for 8-10 hours)

Not the PP, but I like this. Will try it. Thanks.

My sister-in-law came to visit for a long weekend when our twins were 1 year old and we were exhausted. She helped out by doing a lot of cooking (including a little stocking of our freezer). She made this which one of my toddlers loves and the other is lukewarm on. I also love it. I usually make a double batch and freeze half. It freezes well. I also get 2-3 medium red peppers and cut up myself instead of the bagged pepper strips. Sometimes instead of fresh red peppers, I'll get a large jar of roasted red peppers, also works and adds a nice flavor to the stew. I also move the corn from the second part to the first part so that you have roasted corn. I find that it brings out a better flavor from the corn. The barley has a good bit of protein, so this should help.

LENTIL BARLEY STEW
Single batch:
1/4 cup olive oil
1 onion, chopped
celery - several stalks - chopped
1 bag pepper strips (Trader Joe’s has)

Heat olive oil in large pan and brown onions, celery and pepper strips until soft.

Then add:
1 large jar crushed or stewed tomatoes (approx.2.5 cups)
2 cups water
½ cup lentils
1/3 cup barley
4-6 carrots, peeled and cut into “coins”
1 bag frozen corn

Let stew for 1-2 hours on low. It’s worth making a double batch. Double all ingredients except for pepper strips and corn.

Thank you so much for all the ideas, PPs! I think the bean and guacamole dip or the bean and sweet potato stew might work, as they'd be the consistency I think he would be most likely to eat (and he loves sweet potatoes). I'll look up some recipes for those.

It's been tough with foods - rice, quinoa, bulgur, pasta don't seem to work well; he pushes them all out with his tongue. He also gags on anything that has big chunks in a smooth/liquid base. He does great with smooth purees and great with soft solids he can easily gum (fruits, sweet potatoes, peas, etc.), but if I give him a stage 3 food with chunks of veg in it, he doesn't seem to know to gum before swallowing.

I cannot.wait. until he can just eat everything normally!

We eat a lot of beans and DS likes
- beans and cheese quesadillas
- bean and guac dip
- mushroom and French lentil soup
- red beans and rice
- black bean and sweet potato stew made with coconut milk

My toddler loved this one: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/quinoa-and-black-beans/

Meatballs? (Not beans, I know, but if you are looking for protein that can be eaten without a lot of chewing, might be useful)

Before he got completely fussy and stopped eating anything but bread, DC loved this: http://www.marthastewart.com/332312/spicy-black-bean-cakes It has eggs (and dairy, if you use the sour cream), but I imagine you know of some workarounds or can just omit them.

I would just make plain beans. Start with a pound of dried beans. Soak them for 8-24 hours (overnight is fine.) In the morning, drain the beans and put in slow cooker with 6 cups of fresh water. Cook on high for most of the day. About halfway through cooking, add 1 tablespoon of salt.

Let them cook until really soft. Then serve! My family all love these plain beans on rice and its the foundation of many dinners.

Black beans are good, but our favorite kind of the small red beans from El Salvador. You have to go to a latin american store to find them.

Thanks for the chili recipe, PP! We still can't do corn either (grrr), but I'll try it without. If he won't eat the whole beans from it, I could probably purée a bit with an immersion blender, yes?

He has also had hummus before and seems to like that when it's not too garlicky, I was just looking for something a bit more solid-like. I should try to do a chunky one though, maybe with white beans in addition to the garbanzos?

My 16 month old loves the veggie chili I make in the slow cooker with 3 types of beans and corn. She has been eating this for several months now. Very easy: 1 chopped onion and about 3 minced cloves of garlic, 1 can of chick peas, 1 can of black beans, 1 can of kidney beans, 1 can of corn, 2 cans of diced tomatos, 2 cups of broth (chicken or veggie if you want to keep it vegetarian), 1 tablespoon or oregano, 1 tablespoon of chili powder, 1/2 tablespoon of cumin, salt and pepper to taste. Dump it all the crock pot and set on whatever setting works for your schedule (high for 4-6 hours or low for 8-10 hours)

Make a bland hummus?

12 month old still has food intollerances to dairy, soy and eggs, and I'm feeling like we're short on good protein foods to give him that don't require chewing with the teeth he doesn't yet have. I'd love to do beans, but he doesn't seem thrilled with the texture (even when I mash a bean with my fingers first) and just pushes them out of his mouth. I don't really like beans myself, and so am not used to preparing them. Does anyone have a good, reasonably healthy recipe for baked beans, refried beans, or something like mashed or smashed beans?