Braised Beef with Butternut Squash and Thyme Weaning Recipe

  This hearty beef dish with butternut squash and thyme is high in iron and rich in vitamins, making it the perfect weaning recipe for these colder months. Both garlic and thyme have antiviral properties to keep those winter sniffles at bay! This dish has a long cooking time to tenderise and soften the beef, but will give you at least 8-10 portions to make this worthwhile. Simply serve what you need then portion out and freeze the rest. You will need a casserole dish with a lid.  

Ingredients

300g lean beef braising steak 1 medium onion 1 clove garlic ½ medium butternut squash 3 medium carrots 1 large potato 15ml sunflower oil ½ teaspoon fresh or dried thyme leaves 450ml beef stock (fresh or made with baby stock cubes)  

Method

1)    Cut the beef into chunks, trimming off any visible fat, and peel and chop the onion and garlic. 2)    Peel the butternut squash, scoop out and discard any seeds and cut into chunks. Peel and thickly slice the carrots and peel the potato and cut into chunks. 3)    Preheat the oven to 150C. 4)    On the hob, heat the casserole dish then add the sunflower oil. Add the beef, onion and garlic and sauté, stirring occasionally, until browned (approximately 4 minutes). 5)    Add the butternut squash, carrots and thyme and stir to combine. 6)    Pour in the stock and scrape down the bottom and sides of the dish with a wooden spoon. This will incorporate the caramelised juices of the beef and onion. 7)    Add the potato, stir to combine and then cover the dish with its lid. 8)    Place in the oven and cook for 2 hours. 9)    Allow to cool slightly before blending with a hand-held blender to desired consistency. For an older baby you could simply mash by hand as the beef will be soft and tender. If you like this recipe, take a look at the other weaning recipes we have available.