I can't fill him up!

[ZacsMumme]

I'm struggling to fill Tom up!
He's not really wanting his bottles but I've managed to keep him drinking b adding a drop of vanilla to his bottles (neocate) all my drs/peads can't believe he is still taking it as they say most LOs just refuse it...but he needs it!

So ... Food. He is hungry. Here is a typical day. I think I feed him a LOT!

WU and 4-6 oz
Breakfast - sometimes a piece of he special toast. Or a mini banana bread muffin I make.
Then small banana on own or mashed into fruit purée with a little baby rice or millet cerial
Snack - raisins, rice cakes, sometimes banana if not earlier, or muffin or chickpeas.

Lunch If on 1 nap day he has 1/2 lunch before it and has some steamed veges with beans or chickpeas in it. Often he has his meat at lunch too - either lamb, or pâté on his special bread.
Bottle after nap 4-6 oz
Rest of lunch (see above)
Dinner - veges usually. Sometimes some meat in it. He can have these 100% small chicken sausages I brought from the markets and he will chow one down. He also likes homemade potato fries etc.
Bottle at BT 6oz or so.

He sometimes wakes in the night for milk and he will drain 4-5 oz. I offer water a lot, t he is slow to take to it.

One other thing I can make is custard with coconut or rice milk.

Any ideas on how to fill him up more? - I have limited time to cook. No wheat, soy, egg, dairy or nuts

[becj86]

At this age, L would eat 2-3 mini-sausages... maybe just more of the same?

I know its tricky with such a limited range of food that is safe for him. Can he have avocado?

Could you do drinks like banana smoothie with oat milk rather than water with a meal/snack to add some extra calories?

Do you do a PM snack before dinner? Could you do porridge or something similar as a 'desert'/supper before BT?

Veges are good for vitamins, minerals, etc. but it seems like he could be lacking fats in his diet - keep in mind he's still insulating those nerves til he's 2

[ZacsMumme]

What's some good fat I can add
He won't eat avocado unless it's in a Heinz organic banana, avocado and apple pouch (gross!)

Haven't tried oats yet. They are on my list to try. There is a chance they could upset him.

I was thinking of smoothies...I can use coconut milk...

[Papaya]

I would go with the coconut milk, Sara - I used it a lot with F, it's filling and good fats. Coconut meal in baking maybe too? Can he have olive oil? I used to just drizzle that over veges for F, to get fats into her.

[ZacsMumme]

Hi Nuala!
What is coconut meal?
Yes, I cook all his veges if not steamed in olive or coconut oil.

[Papaya]

I think it's just finely ground dried coconut -the same as coconut floor maybe, but not the highly processed stuff. I don't think it's as high in fat though, maybe because of the drying process? It's not brilliant in baking because it's so dry, you'd usually add eggs to help things hold together, but it might be ok if you used it in banana muffins or similar.

I would also just add coconut milk or cream to any sauce with rice. In smoothies of course, and mixed half with oat milk for drinking (when F was older). She still has olive oil on bread/toast in place of butter.

[becj86]

I have heard that avocado is handy in a smoothie for creaminess (and obviously added calories). Not sure as I haven't tried it myself

Can he eat chicken thighs? He might like that with coconut cream-based sauce and rice... and they're fattier than the breast.

[creations]

Wow how did T get to be 11 months already!

Those mini muffins, DS would eat 4 or 5 in one go so perhaps like pp said you can just increase meal sizes with more of the same.  I'd def do an afternoon snack and at 12 months I introduced an after dinner supper too!
Maybe sausages for breakfast (you can cook them the night before, pop in the fridge and serve cold if you don't have time to cook in the morning), protein will help to fill him and if he knows there is a hearty breakfast on the menu he may not be so willing to break his night sleep for food.  Remember it isn't what they eat at dinner that gets them through the night it's what they take throughout the day.
You could also offer pre-cooked and cold veggie wedges for morning snack, more filling than raisins and I tend to think of rice cakes as a bit of an 'empty' food (bulk not fat/nutrition) although I realise you are limited on what he can have.
Also agree with the chicken (or turkey) thigh meat, it's also very high in iron - almost as high as beef and lamb - where as the breast meat is not so high.
Is the water in a sippy cup?  Have you tried a straw cup or bottle with water just to make sure he isn't thirsty?

[ZacsMumme]

I have bigger muffins so ill give him one of them for now I need to make mother batch.

One thing he loves is pumpkin, chickpea and coconut milk. I blend them up and add to other veges. So maybe I could do this more runny (or just coconut milk and pumpkin) like a sauce over everything with rice.

Bec I never thought to put avocado in a smoothie!

I like the idea of olive oil on toast. I hadn't thought of that! Does she just have it brushed on, or do you buy a spread? I assume I can brush on...

Creations. Good idea with the sausies. Never even thought about for breakfast. I have some special spaghetti I want to try him on. If he can eat that ill put the sausages in it too.
He has a sippy, straw one and straw sucky. He drinks water, just not a lot. I have to keep at it because he gets constipated easily.

We eat chicken thighs here a LOT - great ideas...tonight I think I might do pad Thai and take some out for T before putting ay sauce in, then add some of his sauce. I think he an tolerate rice noodles. They are just water ad rice

Nuala. Thanks - ill keep an eye out for coconut meal!

Anyone know a good falafel recipe? The ones I've tried I can never get right.

[becj86]

Bec I never thought to put avocado in a smoothie!

Me neither, but apparently its really good... who knew? Could be worth a try.

Can he eat fish? L wolfed down grilled fillets of mackerel at that age but I'm not sure if T can eat that. 

What about dips for veges?

[ZacsMumme]

I give salmon, but DH and Z hate fish and it is pricey really for just T and I. (Salmon is my exception because I love it!) I 'could' try sardines? They are good for you aren't they?

I just did a HUGE batch of roast veges drenched in olive oil. And then ate a bunch for lunch
I have lots of boneless skinless chicken thighs all ready to go now too

Did any of you give your LOs quinoa? T has a little bit but I'm wondering if anyone has good recipes for dinners, I tend to just use the vege purees or broth.

[becj86]

You can get quinoa flakes - perhaps a porridge for brekkie (or muesli bar/slice type thing for snacks) with that?  I've seen quinoa salad recipes but TBH, I'm not a fan of quinoa in general, so haven't tried those

Not sure about sardines... probably are good but prefer bigger fish myself - we were lucky getting lovely fresh fish in Airlie. We don't eat so much fish now we've moved.

[creations]

I love fish but really not keen on sardines at all - yes they are very good for you especially if you eat the bones, it's the bones that give the calcium.  I prefer white bait or sprats, when fried they bones are crunchy rather than bendy so much much easier to eat (IMO). DS loves sprats, but not been able to get hold of any for about a year!

I did have a falafel recipe but can't find it now

Were you able to try chicken liver pate yet?  Another good source of protein and iron, handy for a snack or supper maybe on the rice cake or special toast/bread just to make it a bit more filling.

[ZacsMumme]

I haven't made pâté (I just don't have the time) but I got some brought stuff. He loves it on his special bread

So I'm struggling with 'on the go food' other than muffins with special everything what else can I offer him out ie in a buggy/car, park etc.

[creations]

How about plain beans, like kidney or chick peas?  Just cooked and cooled (or in my case drained and rinsed from a can) and eaten cold.  Canned sweetcorn too.  Left over home baked fries/wedges?  Cold sausages?  Mine likes raw capsicum or cucumber, at a push I can stop off in a shop, buy a capsicum, deseed it in a carrier bag and just hand it to him.
It's hard to think of things on the his limited diet isn't it?  I'm sure it will get easier as his foods increase, most kids don't seem to mind quite a limited number/variety of foods - I think it's more us that want them to have lots of different things.