I cook rice in broth (instead of water) with herbs and spices-- my kids like chicken broth, parsley, onion, tarragon, and thyme the best out of all the configurations I have come up with. Or you can try cumin, coriander, cayenne pepper, and paprika, with a spoonful of tomato paste to make red rice. (It's wonderful with black beans.) You can cook quinoa in broth too.
We don't really eat much pasta, but when we do, we like lemony sauces. I make a nice one with chicken broth, butter, lemon juice, garlic, black pepper, and basil.
We also don't eat barley, but why not put it in soup?
Broccoli is yummy with just plain butter and salt, or with cheese, or in tomato sauces, or in white creamy sauces, or with soy sauce and Asian spices (we like turmeric, ginger, and paprika).
But I'll admit I'm another one who is puzzled by the idea of cooking separate foods for a toddler. My kids always ate what I ate, spices and everything. We don't really eat plain, unadorned starch, so I wouldn't feed it to my kids.
