Leeks are a fantastic vegetable, but can be a bit stringy. Our friends at Piccolo have the perfect recipe to help introduce these green vegetables to your little one’s diet through slow cooking and pureeing them into a tasty new texture!
Take advantage of peak season for leeks, spring, with this warming and cheesy leek and potato pie perfect for before the warmer weather really kicks in.
Makes: 4 portions
Suitable for: Mums in every stage of pregnancy. Babies from 10 months
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking: 30 minutes
Suitable for freezing.
Cheesy Leeks
- 2 leeks, trimmed, roughly chopped and cleaned
- 1 medium potato, peeled and roughly chopped
- 15g butter
- 15g plain flour
- 100ml milk
- ½ tsp Dijon mustard
- 50g Cheddar cheese, grated
- 1 tbsp dried white breadcrumbs
- Preheat the oven to 200C Fan/Gas Mark 7. Lightly butter a shallow baking dish, or 4 separate ramekins.
- In a medium saucepan, add the chopped leaks and potatoes and cover with boiling water.
- Cook for around 8 minutes until the leeks are tender and a knife slips easily into the vegetables. Drain, reserving the cooking liquid.
- To make the sauce, return the empty pan to the heat and add the butter and melt gently. Stir in the flour and cook for around 10 seconds, continuously stirring. Gradually add the milk and a ladleful of the cooking liquid. Stirring or whisking between each addition of liquid until all the flour is incorporated and you have a smooth sauce.
- Add the mustard and half the cheese and continue simmering for another minute or two, stirring constantly.
- Add the cooked leeks and potatoes to the sauce and blend briefly with a hand blender until you have the consistency you want. Once babies are older you can just add the leek and potato pieces in without blending.
- Add the vegetable mix to the buttered baking dish and sprinkle the remaining cheese and breadcrumbs on top. Bake for 10-12 minutes until golden on top. Allow to cool before serving.
Piccolo Organic makes healthy (and very tasty) baby meals, cooking products and snacks to help you get the balance right every day. The brand is partnered with City Harvest and Little Village, and gives 10% of its profits to charity. Available in all major retailers and its online store. www.mylittlepiccolo.com
