When I first had congee in Hong Kong, it was chicken based, like really good home made chicken broth with a ton of soft rice in it. It was delicious!

Pureed soups? Scrambled eggs?

The question is the six-year-old in question. What does she like? What I'd do is start with a recipe and adapt adapt adapt. For instance, here's a chicken congee recipe: https://www.madewithlau.com/recipes/chicken-congee

These are the ingredients:

Main Ingredients

• 1 rice cup white rice (a "rice cup" is about 3/4 of a standard US cup. Jasmine rice is preferred but any white rice will work!
  )
• 12 oz chicken (use any amount you want
  )
• 8 cup water
• 0.50 oz ginger
• 2 pieces green onion
• cilantro (to taste
  )

Chicken Marinade

• 2 tsp cornstarch
• 1 tbsp oyster sauce
• 2 tbsp water
• 0.50 tsp chicken bouillon
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil

Additional Flavor

• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp chicken bouillon

Chicken is pretty soft, and boiling it in porridge should make it softer, especially cut up small. But you could substitute firm tofu, or use proto-chicken (as I call hard boiled eggs) not so firm, or leave it out. Ginger is nice, but if she doesn't like it, maybe stick to the green onions, which kids seem to like. If she doesn't love cilantro, try tarragon or another herb. For the marinade, maybe a little Worcestershire if oyster sauce is too far afield, or a little sweet teriyaki sauce might appeal to a kid without adding too much actual sugar. Or you could even use the kid loved ranch dressing, thinned a little. .And I'd substitute rich, homemade nutritious chicken broth for the bouillon and water.

The congee doesn't have to be authentic. Just taste good!

Want to get adventurous? Make up your own! You could make PBJ inspired congee with a goodly dollup of PB in the cooking water. Add some preserved fruit or fresh berries or even jam, (though sugar) near the end. Or barbecue shrimp congee, with finely chopped shrimp in barbecue spices and a little bit of concentrated tomato paste as it all thickens.

I'm trying to avoid risotto type flavors here since you could just make risotto instead for those...

Colleenoz, right now we are all flying by the seat of our pants. You’ve given me an idea, however. Make congee with chicken broth and then add bits of chicken. To get the mushiest texture possible, I may use canned chicken (😝).

As to what she likes, she is a very plain eater, but believe it or not, more adventuresome than her twin brother! She has the same thing in the school dining room every single day…pasta with marinara. She told DD that today she had pasta and a tortilla…no sauce, no cheese, nothing else.

She has lost 15%-20% of her body weight in 2 weeks. To say the issue is worrisome is an understatement.

Plllog, she will eat peanut butter. I’m not sure if she will eat it mixed with rice. I was thinking rice pudding, but creme brûlée might be better. It has more eggs in it. But it is dairy heavy!

Risotto is not a bad idea. I may need to overcook it a bit so the rice is less al dente and more toward mush.

In googling for soft foods, I came across many references to pastina. Would it work like pasta with a drizzle of marinara sauce over it?

Where was it the other day that I read about some TV celebrity who made lunch for his kids. He cooked pasta. Then opened a can of cannelini beans and hit them with an immersion blender until they were smooth (can’t remember if they were drained or undrained). Poured the beans over the pasta, tosssed and topped with a little grated parm. Apparently it was a take on almost-non-dairy Alfredo. Sounds vile to me, but I hate beans! Whoever was reporting, said the kids scarfed it down.

Does your granddaughter like beans? If so, there's your magic answer. Beans and rice make a complete protein, whether together like Cuban Cristos y Moros (black beans and white rice stirred together with seasoning (Cuban doesn't have the hot chilis) or congee for breakfast and a tortilla with a goodly smear of refried beans for lunch.

Just for soft and slippery, there are all kinds of patés and terrines, vegetable and meat. My mother read a Julia Child recipe for paté and said she'd missed a step: feed the potroast (the meat you've prepared for the paté) to your family for dinner first, then grind it up. Any stewed or braised tasty dish can become a paté, such as chicken cacciatre, or lamb tagine. With a food processor, it's a whizz away. Since she can manage a tortilla, she might be fine with the paté stuffed into choux puffs (which are better for this kind of thing if left soft and eggy anyway, rather than baked all the way creampuff crisp), Or roll a log of it in puff pastry and bake. Or even just schmear on biscuits, again, pulled from the oven before they crisp.

As to pastina, IMHO they're too small to be good in sauce. Much better in soup/broth. You can make a regular pasta casserole and it should be soft enough, or just cook regular spaghetti a little extra, past al dente, and sauce it as usual. Or make buckwheat noodles until soft and toss with mild Thai peanut sauce. Little kids like cute foods, however, so if you want to do the pastina, try a simple olive oil and herbs, or something along those lines in flavors your granddaughter likes.

Oh, and for any kind of pudding, look at some of the newer grain milks. There are some oat milks that are supposed to work well in things like that.

Oh, and for any kind of pudding, look at some of the newer grain milks. There are some oat milks that are supposed to work well in things like that.

Thanks for the super ideas, plllog. I happen to have black beans and rice in the pantry. I can at least try to get her to eat some. I fear we are in a vicious cycle: she needs to eat to get better, but she feels so lousy she doesn’t want to eat.

You are right. Little kids like cute food. I may have to turn to Pinterest. 🙄

If she prefers simple foods, what about baked custard? I loved it as a kid - still do - esp. flan.

Buttered noodles are a kid favorite. I loved the tiny stellini and orzo. I also recall loving cream of wheat and cream of rice hot cereals.

Is her condition causing the lack of hunger? Could she have unsuspected allergies which make eating the things she doesn't want make her feel icky? A friend of mine has a little girl who had a dagerous case of didn't want to eat, without factors like your granddaughter's throat condition. Perhaps you need to slather her with calories? Just to get the juices flowing? Will she eat M&Ms? Pancakes? It's too bad about the dairy issues, because cream is great for that. My heart goes out to her. How terrible for her. And my heart goes to you and your kids, as well.

Rice is just white carbs.....and not particularly calorie dense. Will she drink from a straw? Can you make a dense shake? using dry milk and egg beaters and a source of safe protein? Chocolate? Maybe strawberry flavor?

bbstx, I wish a speedy recovery for DGD!

Here is a classic pastina recipe. You can also add peas if you think she can swallow them. And you can use a chicken bone broth instead of water for more nutrients. Omit the salt in the recipe if you use a broth, and I prefer Romano Pecorino over the Parmesan. Be mindful that both cheeses are also salty. The original recipe also calls for pepper, which I deleted for a 6yo.

This simple recipe for pastina with egg and cheese, otherwise known as comfort food, will make everything feel a little better!

INGREDIENTS

• 1/4 cup pastina
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1 teaspoon butter
• 1 tablespoon freshly grated Parmesan

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Bring one cup of water to boil in small saucepan.
2. Add pastina and salt and cook until most of the water is absorbed, 3-4 minutes or whatever the instructions on your box suggest.
3. Turn off heat and stir in egg, letting it cook in the hot pasta.
4. Add butter, cheese. Eat slowly out of your favorite bowl with your favorite spoon.
5. Feel much better.

If she likes pasta marina, maybe sneak in a little meat sauce for some protein? Or ravioli?

Also, have you seen baby food pouches? Here's a blog that compares brands, sugar content, etc... The Happy Baby brand is delish. I probably wouldn't use these exclusively, but they may serve your purposes for the short term. And the packaging doesn't scream "baby food".