Recipes for babies and toddlers

[Lªuren]

These recipes are intended for those following the Traditional Weaning approach of spoon feeding, and can be adapted for BLW by offering your LO a pre-loaded spoon for self feeding.  Please check each recipe for suitability for your own child dependent on age and stage of feeding.

If you have any questions please post to the main board rather than here so that readers can access the recipes and tips without a lot of chit-chat to wade through.

Please continue to share your wonderful ideas, recipes and tips for baby and toddler recipes or meals which are easily adapted for the whole family.
Thank you 

(with thanks to Lauren for originating this thread)


Creamy mascarpone and tomato risotto

Vegetarian
Good source of betacarotene, B vitamins and vitamin C

50g risotto rice

300ml water

1 small courgette, grated

2 tomatoes, skinned and seeded

50g mascarpone cheese

1-2 basil leaves, very finely chopped

Cook the risotto in the boiling water until soft. Drain. Return to the pan and stir in the courgette, continuing to heat gently for a minute or two. Meanwhile finely chop the tomato and stir into the rice along with the mascarpone and basil. Serve at once.


Chicken and coconut korma

Good source of B vitamins
Excellent source of iron

1 tsp oil

1 small chicken breast (or turkey steak)

Half tsp korma paste

100ml reduced-fat canned coconut milk

2 tsps mango chutney

Heat the oil in a non-stick pan. Gently fry the chicken breast for 10 minutes until tender. Add the remaining ingredients and heat for another 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, cool slightly and blend to a suitable consistency.


Pork balls with rice and pineapple

Good source of B vitamins and vitamin C
Excellent source of iron

Half an onion

1 clove garlic

200g lean pork mince

1 dessertspoon olive oil

150g pineapple (canned in juice and drained), diced into small pieces

100g beansprouts

1 heaped tsp cornflour

100ml juice (drained from pineapple)

1 tsp wine vinegar

1 level tsp brown sugar

Place onion and garlic in a processor and blend until fine.
Add the pork and blend to mix. Dampen hands and make 18-20 small balls. Heat oil in a pan, and gently fry the balls until lightly browned, turning occasionally for 10 minutes. Add the pineapple and beansprouts, stir and lower the heat. Allow to cook gently for a further 6-7 minutes. Mix the cornflour with the juice, vinegar and sugar and pour over the pork balls. Heat until the mixture thickens and serve at once with boiled rice.


Cauliflower and pasta cheese

This can be enjoyed by all the family, just remove a portion for a baby and blend.

Vegetarian
Good source of vitamin C, calcium and B vitamins

50g pasta shapes

2-3 florets of cauliflower

250ml full-fat cow's milk

15g sunflower spread

15g flour

50g cheddar cheese, grated

Boil the pasta in unsalted water until tender, steaming the cauliflower over the pasta in the last few minutes. Meanwhile make a white sauce with the milk, spread and flour and, when thickened, add the cheese. Stir. Drain the pasta and cauliflower, and place in blender. Pour over the sauce and blend to a suitable consistency.


Baby cheese colcannon

(4-6 portions)

Vegetarian
Contains iron
Good source of vitamin C and calcium

2 medium potatoes, peeled and quartered

4 cabbage leaves, washed, and finely chopped

20g (a handful) fresh spinach

40g cheddar cheese, grated

Boil the potatoes until tender. Steam the cabbage and spinach over the potatoes in the last few minutes of cooking time. Drain and mash the potatoes, and mash in the cabbage and spinach. Mix in the grated cheese and serve at once.


Chickpea and tomato salad with pitta bread fingers

Vegetarian
Contains iron
Good source of vitamin C and calcium

2 tbsps of canned chickpeas, drained and well rinsed

1 tbsp plain full-fat yogurt

Pinch of freshly chopped or dried mint

Few fingers of cucumber

3-4 cherry tomatoes, washed and quartered

Pitta bread, toasted and sliced into small fingers

Mash the chickpeas together with the yogurt and mint. For babies who can manage to eat finger food, serve with the cucumber and tomato. For babies who prefer to eat everything from a spoon, finely chop the tomato and cucumber and mash into the chick peas. Serve with pieces of pitta bread.


Lamb with pasta

Excellent source of iron
Good source of vitamin C and B vitamins

200g minced lamb

1 small red onion, finely chopped

3 tomatoes, peeled and chopped

4 button mushrooms, rinsed and sliced

Half tsp thyme

150ml water

30g baby pasta, or broken spaghetti

Cook the mince in a non-stick pan until browned, breaking up the pieces. Drain off any surplus fat, then return mince to pan and add the onion. Fry together for 5 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, mushrooms, herbs and water. Stir, cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the pasta and cook for another 10 minutes.


Baby carrot pancakes

Vegetarian
Contains iron
Good source of calcium and betacarotene

100g flour

150ml milk

1 egg

1 tsp olive oil

50g grated carrot

Make the pancakes by beating together the flour, milk, egg and oil until you have a thickish batter. Add in the grated carrot, and stir well. Heat a little vegetable oil until hot then drop the batter, a dessertspoon at a time, into the oil. Once browned, turn over and cook the other side. Cook until all the batter is used up. Serve with some soft cheese, and slices of fruit or tomatoes.


Tuna and thyme fishcakes

Contains iron
Good source of B vitamins

1 small can of tuna, drained and mashed

2 tbsps fresh breadcrumbs: white or brown

Half tsp thyme

1 small egg, beaten

A little grated lemon rind

Mix all the ingredients together well, and form into small patties. Heat a little oil until hot, and gently fry the fishcakes until golden brown on both sides. Serve with some mashed potato and quartered cherry tomatoes.


Salmon, broccoli and potato pie

Contains omega 3 fatty acids
Good source of vitamin C, calcium and betacarotene

1 large salmon fillet, skinned

Strip of lemon rind

250ml full-fat cow's milk

2-3 potatoes, peeled, and quartered

1 tsp butter (or margarine)

15g margarine

15g flour

2-3 large broccoli florets

Place the salmon, lemon rind and milk in a saucepan and poach for 10 minutes. Then remove the salmon, flake and place into an ovenproof dish. Strain the milk. Meanwhile boil the potatoes until tender, then mash with the teaspoon of butter and a little milk if necessary.

Melt the 15g margarine in a pan, stir in the flour and make a white sauce with the milk from the salmon. Steam the broccoli florets until tender and chop roughly. Lay over the salmon. Pour over the sauce, and top with the mashed potato. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 200 degrees C (gas 6).



http://www.babycentre.co.uk/baby/startingsolids/weaningrecipes/ninemonths/

[Lªuren]

Homemade Recipe - Tuna Pasta in Tomato Sauce (from 7 mths)
Ingredients

6og (2oz) alphabet pasta (check ingredient list), or chopped vermicelli
20ml (4 tsp) olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
90g (3oz) carrots, peeled and grated
60g (2oz) frozen peas
33og (11oz) tinned tomatoes
240ml (8 floz) water
90g (3oz) tinned tuna, drained and flaked
1 tbsp tomato purée
1 heaped tsp oregano



Method
Cook pasta for 3 minutes in boiling water. Refresh in cold water and drain.
Heat some oil in a saucepan, add the onions, and sauté for 2 minutes until soft.
Add the grated carrot and peas, sauté for a further 2-3 minutes, stirring over a medium heat.
Add the tomatoes, water and flaked tuna. Stir until simmering.
Add tomato purée and oregano. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Add pasta and cook for further 5 minutes.
Blend if required.

[Aly Mac]

I just made this for Lilly and I had it for bfast too. It's from Robin Barkers - Australian Baby and Toddler Meals.

Baby Muesli
1/3 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup wheatgerm
3/4 cup apple juice
1 tablespoon orange juice
2 tablespoons fruit puree
sprinkle of sugar or cinamon

*Combine rolled oats, wheatgerm and apple juice in a container.  Cover and leave in fridge overnight.
* next morning, stir in orange juice, pureed fruit and sugar or cinnamin
* Blend to desired texture (depend on age) and serve.

I didn't add the pureed fruit until I was serving as I froze the rest in icecubes and then I could change the fruit if I wanted to.  I also found that it is quite sweet so didn't need the sugar.

[Cornish smiler]

I tried a lentil moussaka last night and it went down very well (I loved it too, as did my husband!).  Here's the recipe from one of the ladies on babyledweaning.com:-

Aitch's Slightly Made-up Vegetarian Moussaka-ka-kaaaa
by Aitch on Mon 14 May 2007 11:59 PM BST
Make this, honestly, just make it. It's sooooo nice. And this recipe generally makes too much sauce so there's always some to freeze and serve to the baby with pasta shells on those days when the take-away menus are winking at you and you'd rather open your wrists than cook another family meal...

Okay, first things first I am a bit rubbish with measurements. What we're aiming for with the sauce is a bolognese-y type consistency and apart from that I make this recipe when I find myself with a big tub of plain yoghurt to use up. It's all storecupboard stuff. It looks like a lot of work but it isn't, it's just that I'm useless at writing recipes. 5 mins prep of the sauce and 30 mins cooking. Then walk away and leave it in the oven for 40-ish.

1/2 a pack of Puy lentils, (which I reckon is about 250g)
1 onion
2 cloves garlic
1 or two carrots
1 or two sticks of celery
Some spices. Cinnamon or mixed spice is the type of thing. A good couple of heaped teaspoons
One can of plum tomatoes
Slosh of red wine, Marsala or Port, whatever's in the cupboard.
Tablespoon of tomato puree
1 red pepper
1 aubergine
About half a big tub of plain yoghurt, (which again I think should be about 200-300g's worth so a couple of wee tubs will also do the trick)
1 egg
Some mature cheddary cheese, if it's mild it'll taste a bit bleh in my humble opinion.

First make your bolognese-ish sauce, so chop and sweat your onions and garlic in a bit of olive oil, add the chopped carrot and celery and cook down a bit. Then add the spices and gently, gently, gently fry. Add more olive oil, be generous if you want to, it's not like the rest of the recipe is high in fat. Rinse the lentils and fling them in, along with the tomatoes and good covering of water and simmer. I sometimes add a bay leaf as well if I remember.
 
While the sauce is cooking, stick a fork into the stalk of the red pepper and whack it onto the gas burner, turning it every so often as it blackens a bit. Put it in a plastic bag so the skin will steam off a bit and then rinse off the skin under a cold tap. If you can be bothered roasting it properly you could do that, but remember it doesn't really need to cook, just sweeten a bit, as it's going in the oven later.

It generally says on the pack that the lentils take 20 or so minutes to cook so at that point I taste the sauce and add the tomato puree and the booze to taste. I reckon another ten minutes or so makes the sauce nice and sludgy. 

Meanwhile, finely, finely slice your aubergine and preheat your oven to 180 degrees. You can thickly slice it if you prefer but the bugger will take all day to cook.

I use a square dish about 30cm x 30cm and I lay out, not particularly neatly, a layer of aubergine and one of the sauce, with a few bits of pepper on it, then aubergine then sauce with pepper etc, finishing with a layer of aubergine. I reckon I normally get about three layers and have sauce left over.

Mix your yoghurt, egg and a good few handfuls of grated cheese and pour it onto the top of the dish and whack it into the oven for 40-45 mins or until the topping looks delish and a knife goes easily through the aubergine. The topping will slightly souffle up a bit and taste Amazing, I promise. It freezes well and is one of those things that tastes even better the next day as leftovers.


 

[Lilah'sMommy]

Here's one I threw together today:

Avocado Egg Salad

hardboiled eggs or just the yolks if you haven't introduced the whites yet (I did it this way for DD2 today)
avocado
mayonnaise

(proportions can be adjusted to your preference.  I do about a 1/4 of an avocado to two eggs, and just a teaspoon or two of mayo-- the avocado helps hold it together)

Put everything in a bowl and mash!  You can take some out for the baby/toddler and then add chopped green or red onion, minced parsley, salt, and pepper for yourself.

Yummy!

Then spread it on toast (or don't-- DD2 likes it off my finger.)

[Cathy_D]

LENTIL SHEPHERDS PIE

It's not strictly 'finger food' in the sense that you have to grab handfuls of it is you don't use a spoon/fork yet. But my BLW DD wolfed it down the first time she tried it, with very little mess.

The recipe claimed to be 6 adult portions, but DH and I polished off about half between us. Am freezing the other half in DD-sized portions,

110g (4oz) brown lentils (I used greeen and it worked fine)
900g (2lbs) potatoes, roughly chopped
40g (1.5oz) butter
3 tbsp olive oil
3-5 tbsp milk
8oz onions or leeks sliced
4oz carrots, small slices
4oz parsnips, small slices
8oz mushrooms, roughly chopped
3-4 sticks celery, sliced
2 tbsp tomato puree
225g (8oz) chopped tomatoes
1tbsp soy sauce - I used Worcestershire Sauce instead. It's a UK thing. Don't know if you get it elsewhere.
sprig of Rosemary, finely chopped
1tsp dried oregano
1 bayleaf   
Instructions

1. Cook the lentils in stock or water until they are tender (about 1 hour).

2. Cook the potatoes in boiling salted water. When tender, drain and mash with the butter and milk to obtain creamy (not sloppy) mashed potatoes. Season to taste.

3. Meanwhile saute the onions, celery, carrots and parsnips with a small amount of olive oil, until almost tender. If they are slow in cooking, add a bit of water, cover and cook until the carrots are tender.

4. Add the mushrooms and continue to cook until they are softening. Then add the lentils, tomatoes, tomato puree and rosemary and cook for a few more minutes. Season to taste with soy sauce and salt and pepper.

5. Spread out in an ovenproof dish. Cover with mashed potatoes about 2cm thick. Use a fork to decorate the top if you like. Bake at 200C (375F, gas 5) for 30-40 minutes, until the top is ncely browned. Your grill may be used to brown the top.

[kmccrindle]

CHICKEN WITH GRAPES AND ZUCCHINI
The addition of grapes to this recipe gives the chicken a little sweetness, which babies love. I also try use organic and fresh ingredients only.

Ideal for babies from 6 to 9 months

Makes 3 to 4 portions.

1 chicken breast
150 ml water
8 white grapes peeled and seeded
1 zucchini trimmed and sliced
couple sprigs fresh oregano or 1/4 teaspoon dried
1 tablespoon baby rice


Cut the chicken into small pieces. Put all the ingredients except the baby rice into a small saucepan, bring to the boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Purée to the desired consistency and thicken by stirring in baby rice. You can also thicken it with normal rice or baby pasta for older babies.

Is pretty easy and my LO loves it.

This is a variation of an Annabel Karmel recipe, from her book "The New Complete Baby and Toddler Meal Planner"

[Lemonthyme]

The beef recipe I posted today is fine for this age group:

http://mamacook.blogspot.com/2011/10/beef-stew-for-babies-toddlers-and-whole.html

You can make it more coarse by pureeing the meat with some of the veg and leaving some finely chopped veg in the mix or if you're baby led weaning the soft meat might be an option for even gums to chew.

[cath~]

I just made a kind of carrot and lentil dahl for Harriet (7 months) based on what I had left in the fridge and she loved it so I thought I'd share.

Ingredients
- 3 spring onions, chopped
- 3 carrots, finely chopped
- 1/2 tsp of garam masala
- 2 medium tomatoes, chopped
- 2 tbsp red lentils
- two cloves
- 4 tsp of natural yoghurt

Method
- fry the spring onions in some oil until soft
- add the carrots and garam masala and fry for a minute
- add the tomatoes and fry for another couple of minutes
- add the lentils and cloves and top up with boiling water (or you could use chicken/vegetable stock but I didn't have any to hand) so everything is just covered
- simmer gently for around 15 minutes, checking every so often to see if you need to add more water/stock at all
- when the carrots are soft and the lentils are cooked, remove from the heat, remove the cloves and stir in the yoghurt

I pureed this a bit for H but for older babies/toddlers you wouldn't have to.

You could also add some fresh corriander leaves at the end.

It would work well served with chapatis (or pitta bread) torn/cut into strips.