This blog post is brought to you in partnership with our friends at Canada Beef and their Think Beef program. As always, all opinions are our own.
Food Synergy
We are big fans here at Happy Healthy Eaters in the movement to include your baby at the table with you while you eat your meals. While it provides an obvious benefit of the built-in opportunity for babies to put their observational learning skills to use and see how you, as the parents, have honed your eating motor skills, there are some “hidden benefits” as well.
It has to do with food synergy!
In general, family meals provide a well-rounded balance of nutrition. Think of Canada’s Food Guide, which promotes a balanced plate of protein, grains, and produce. Not only do you get a variety of nutrients in one go, they actually work together to help your body use them more effectively!
In particular, this Sofrito, Beef, Beans, and Rice capitalizes on two powerful food combos.
MFP is the real MVP
Take the meat, fish, and poultry factor, for instance. A really cool synergistic effect occurs when plant-based food sources of iron are eaten at the same time as either meat, fish, or poultry (MFP).
When MFP are eaten along with non-heme iron (the type found in plant-based foods), the total amount of non-heme iron absorbed increases up to 150%.
In one study, researchers fed 7-8 month old infants either a meal with veggies + non-heme iron or the same meal with the addition of lean beef.
Here are the results:
- 9.9% of the non-heme iron was absorbed from the veggie meal
- 15% of the non-heme iron was absorbed from the veggie+beef meal
This doesn’t include the iron that was also absorbed from what is found in the beef!
We capitalized on this phenomenon by including both ground beef and pinto beans (a source of non-heme iron) in this recipe!
Vitamin C, another partner in iron absorption
Another cool food combo is when a food containing Vitamin C is paired with a food containing non-heme iron.
In the acidic environment of the stomach, the Vitamin C changes the chemical structure of the non-heme iron to a form that’s easier for the body to absorb.
This action occurs in a dose-dependent fashion. In other words, the more Vitamin C consumed, the more iron is absorbed!
Bell peppers are a fantastic source of Vitamin C, which is why we intentionally chose to include them in this recipe – to help with the absorption of iron from the beans!
What else is there to love about this baby friendly beef, beans, & rice dish?
- You’re a parent, we know you’re busy and time is of the essence. If you need one more reason to love this recipe, here it is: it’s a one pot meal. We’re not sure about you, but that means a lot to us…since we have plenty of messes to clean up around the house thanks to the children we adore!
- This dish is also incredibly flavourful–we know that when babies are exposed to a variety of textures and tastes, they grow up to be more adventurous eaters!
- Okay sorry, not sorry, there’s another reason. This recipe contains all the components that make up a balanced baby meal–if you’ve taken our e-course, you know the drill: fat, iron and vitamin C is the perfect trio and you get all of this in Sofrito Beef, Beans and Rice.
How to adapt the sofrito for your baby’s age and stage
Puréed Texture: Place beef mixture into a blender or food processor. Blend until you reach a consistency that suits your baby’s ability, adding water, breastmilk or formula if necessary.
Handheld: Place a couple of tablespoons of the mixture in your hand. Squish it to form a log shape. You can then pass this to your baby to hold and explore!
Chunky Mash: Place beef mixture into a bowl. Mash with the back of a spoon or fork until you reach a consistency that suits your baby’s ability, adding water, breastmilk or formula if necessary.
Toddler Finger Foods: Place beef mixture in a bowl. Allow your child to choose their toppings.
Recipe FAQs
Are there any top allergens?
This recipe does not contain any top priority allergens. However, if you choose to sprinkle cheese on your baby’s bowl, that would be considered dairy (cow’s milk).
I don’t have pinto beans!
No big deal – kidney beans, black beans, and even cooked green lentils would work beautifully in this recipe.
FREE Recipe Booklet!
Want more baby friendly beef recipes? You’re going to love this Baby at The Table resource from our friends at Canada Beef and their Think Beef program!
Watch how to make this recipe:
Sofrito Beef, Beans, and Rice
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef
- ½ cup finely diced bell pepper
- ½ cup finely diced onion
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- ½ tsp each chili powder ground coriander, ground cumin, oregano, sweet paprika, onion powder
- 1 can 540 ml/19 oz pinto beans, drained and rinsed (or 1½ cups cooked pinto beans)
- 1 can 14 oz/398 mL tomato sauce
- ¾ cup basmati rice
- *salt to taste optional
To Serve
- Chopped fresh cilantro
- Fresh lime juice
- Shredded cheese optional
Instructions
- Cook ground beef, sweet pepper, onion and garlic over medium heat in a large skillet, stirring often and using the back of a spoon to break up meat into small chunks, for 5 to 7 minutes or until beef is browned. Drain, if necessary.
- Stir in chili powder, ground coriander, ground cumin, oregano, sweet paprika, onion powder and *salt (if cooking for baby omit salt at this stage); cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Stir in pinto beans, tomato sauce, rice and 1 cup (250 mL) water; bring to a boil.
- Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer for about 15 to 18 minutes or until the rice is tender and the liquid is absorbed. Let stand for 5 minutes.
- To serve for Baby/Toddler, see modified textures (above). For the rest of the family, stir in salt to taste. Garnish with cilantro, lime juice and cheese (toddler/adult) as desired.
Video
We hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we’ve enjoyed making it on repeat! Here are some other baby-friendly recipes that capitalize on the MFP factor!
Inside our e-book, Whole Food Recipes for Your Baby:
- Apple, quinoa, and beef mini meatloaves
- Basil beef kabobs
- Salmon and sweet potato cakes
On the blog:
