Our First Foods

There's so much food out there and you want your little munchkin to love it all but where do you start? 

As I mentioned before we first started on purees and we're giving a different food every day. It wasn't until we had some digestive issues with fruit that I really started to think about what when and how I should be feeding Master Fox. 

Babies can be intolerant, allergic or just not used to some foods. Remember that until now all their bodies have had to digest is milk so it's not surprising to think you need to allow them time to adjust to processing new foods. It's therefore a good idea to start introducing new foods to their diet slowly, and in the morning if possible so you have time to notice any reactions to foods. The nhs website on food allergies in children can be found here http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/pregnancy-and-baby/pages/food-allergies-in-children.aspx. A general rule of thumb is to introduce a new food every 3 days so you can be clear what caused any issues, though this can be slow going. If you decide to give new foods quicker I would advise being especially vigilant with dairy, eggs and gluton and we certainly are leaving a few days between the introduction of these. 

So what did we start with? Root vegetables. They are a really great place to start as they are less likely to cause any reactions and are slightly sweeter vegetables for babies tastebuds.It's often   advised to start with veggies so babies don't get used to the sweet taste of fruit. This is certainly what we did and although I have no idea of its factual background it's not a bad principle. 

Remember that at around 6 months babies can't yet get at food from within their palms or grab small foods with a pincer grip so it's best to serve foods in chip shape segments. 

Root vegetables

The following root veg can be either steamed or boiled (though steaming will retain more nutrients). Alternatively, and this is our much preferred method, you can cut them into chips and roast them in the oven with a little olive oil for 45-50 minutes on around 150 degrees. 

Carrot

Sweet potato - this is our most favourite and we all love eating sweet potato fries. Try sprinkling any you make for yourself with smoked paprika.

Butternut squash 

Parsnip

Turnip

Honestly I've not heard of a lot of babies actually liking carrot and Master Fox was exactly the same when we offered as a purée. However since giving him steamed carrot chips he is quiet happy to chomp away on them. Maybe it just took him some time to get used to the flavour. 

Fruits

We are just starting on fruits and the following are good fruits to begin with:

Mango

Ripe pear cored

Apple - you might need to lightly cook if very crisp

Banana

Note that berries and pineapple are known as allergy fruits so I would introduce later and watch for any reactions. 

Vegetables

Cucumber - very good straight from the fridge on those painful gums

Avocado - we are yet to try this one, I'm not convinced he is going to enjoy it! 

Asparagus

Broccoli - I'm going to try tenderstem as they have long stalks great for little hands. 

Green beans

Corn on the cob or mini corn

We have also tried toast with olive oil margerine and chunks of mild cheese. I really want to get on to introducing eggs but that will be a few days yet.