Edamame, Courgette & Potato Croquettes

Almost as soon as I’d finished taking the shot of these little beauties, a small hand reached out and grabbed one, devouring it before I even had a chance to offer them round. That was my 3 year-old, who completely adores these. It later turned out they are also a big hit with the baby. Well, who doesn’t love a bit of fried potato!? Fortunately these are also packed full of fresh green goodness and the edamame beans add a protein punch, making them a complete mini-meal in themselves.

These are so simple to make and are a perfect baby-led weaning food. They’re just the right size for little hands to grab, and the use of polenta for coating is a much softer and gluten-free alternative to breadcrumbs. We’ve also discovered that they’re a delicious accompaniment to an adult meal! If you’re opting for weaning with purees, then the mixture of potato, edamame and courgette blended together, without the other ingredients, is also rather fantastic, so you can always get your baby used to these flavours and then introduce the croquettes at a later point – win, win!

In our house, Edamame beans (also called soya beans) have been affectionately named ‘peas in pyjamas’, which has probably encouraged our obsession with them somewhat. The unshelled beans are great fun to give to older toddlers and children, but would be a little tricky for babies and younger tots. Also, some varieties are packed pre-salted, so try to avoid these. So if you’re using frozen edamame, we suggest using the ready-shelled, unsalted ones for this recipe!

Ingredients

Method

1. Peel and cube potatoes and steam until soft
2. While the potatoes are cooking, dice the courgette and fry with edamame beans in a dash of oil (we suggest cold-pressed rapeseed) until soft and browning slightly
3. Once cooked, drain the potatoes and add the cooked courgette, edamame, and butter
4. Mash with a potato masher (do not use a stick blender!) until combined but still has some texture (for young babies make sure the edamame are well mashed)
5. Stir in the chives and flour
6. Allow to cool until able to handle. Take dessert-spoon sized balls of mixture and roll into small sausage shapes.
7. Sprinkle polenta on a plate and roll each croquette through the polenta until coated evenly.
8. Heat a little oil in a pan. Add the croquettes a few at a time, frying gently until golden brown. During cooking, carefully turn the croquettes occasionally to ensure even cooking.
9. Leave to cool slightly or fully before serving to babies and young children.