One of the challenges you'll face as a new mom is what to feed your child once she grows past breast milk or formula and simple purees. Below is a list of a variety of different meals and snacks that are easy to make for Mom that baby will love!
Baby –
2 years:
Fruits
– avoid those that are tough to chew as they till pose a choking
hazard. Oft fruits like oranges, peaches, watermelon, kiwi, pineapple
and tomatoes. Harder fruits like apples or pears can be diced and
mashed.
Vegetables
– raw veggies need to be steamed until tender before serving.
Steaming helps maintain the high nutritional content while making
them easier to chew. Carrots, peas, zucchini, squash, sweet potatoes,
broccoli and cauliflower are all great options. Pay attention closely
to the first few times serving veggies to see how your child can
handle chewing them.
Protein
– follow your doctor’s orders on when it’s appropriate to add
cow’s milk based dairy products. Until you are sure – soy options
are very nutritious. Other healthy protein sources include boneless
fish, finely diced meats, soft cooked beans and eggs.
Grains
– expand your horizons beyond the rice cereal you have been feeding
your baby. Now you can entertain options like whole wheat pastas (cut
up), whole wheat bread wedges, wheat crackers and other whole grain
cereals.
Fats
– introduce healthy fats to your child like those found in fish,
avocado or oils that you cook with
Follow
the 3 day rule:
allow at least 3 days before introducing a new food into your child’s
diet to rule out a possible allergy.
Breakfast
Apple-Cinnamon
Oatmeal
Oats,
unsweetened applesauce, small apple chunks (optional) and cinnamon
Pumpkin
Pie Oatmeal
Oats,
almond milk, pumpkin puree, cinnamon, pumpkin spice
Fruity
Parfait
Plain
yogurt, blueberries and mandarin oranges. Drizzle honey and sprinkle
cheerios on top.
Sunrise
Cottage Cheese Cup
Cottage
cheese with diced peaches and or pineapple chunks.
Steamy
Creamy Eggs
Scrambled
egg yolks/whole eggs with avocado and diced tomato
Lazy
Banana Pancakes
Ingredients:
1 or 2
ripe bananas (not overly ripe or mushy bananas)
Pancake
Batter (try whole wheat varieties)
Directions:
Slice
bananas into coins or diagonally
Coat with pancake batter
Lightly
fry in pan until golden brown
Serve as Baby Finger Foods for snack
or at breakfast time
Mini
Bagel Bites
1 whole
wheat mini bagel, lightly toasted or untoasted
Add thin
layer of cream cheese and top with natural fruit preserves.
Snacks
Banana
bites
Two
slices of banana
Peanut
butter (and jelly if desired)
Put in
freezer
Fun-Size
Sandwich Shapes
Make
sandwich of choice and use cookie cutters to make fun appealing
shapes
PBJ
sushi
One piece
of whole wheat/grain bread, crusts removed. Spread all natural peanut
butter on one half and jelly on the other. Roll up and cut into equal
parts
Peanut
Butter Crunchies
Mix all
natural peanut butter and cornflakes/rice crispies in a bowl. Shape
into small balls and roll in crushed graham crackers
Sweet
Potato Fries
Ingredients:
2 medium
to large sweet potatoes
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees (F)
Scrub sweet potatoes,
clean and/or peel them. Cut the sweet potatoes into sizes that will
suit your needs or, cut into strips that you may then cut down after
baking.
In a
large bowl, add about 2 Tbsp of olive oil.
To this you may add
cinnamon, ginger, a pinch of brown sugar, etc
Toss the
cut up sweet potatoes into the bowl and stir so that the potatoes are
coated in oil mixture.
Dump
mixture onto a baking. Bake for approx 30-45minutes or until tender.
When
removed with oven, sprinkle with a pinch of sea salt.
Tofu
Tid-Bits
Ingredients:
1 package
firm tofu
1/4 cup wheat flour (more or less)
2 egg yolks
1
cup fine dry wheat bread or wheat cracker crumbs (mixtures are fun)
1
teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1 dash or a few
grinds of pepperDirections:
Preheat
oven to 350 degrees F
Cut tofu into your favorite configuration
(my toddlers like fingers)
Spread flour on a small plate or flat
dish.
Beat egg yolks in a shallow dish.
Mix remaining
ingredients in shallow dish.
Coat each piece of tofu in the flour
to cover, then into the egg, then crumbs, and then to the
rack.
Chilling will help to set the coating, but you can just bake
right away.
Bake at 350 degrees F for 15-20 minutes until crisp.
Quinoa
Nuggets
1
cup cooked quinoa (we used a mixture of red and regular quinoa, but
either will do!)
2 small eggs, beaten
2 tbsp chopped fresh
parsley
pinch freshly ground black pepper
1/2 onion, finely
chopped
2 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
1 clove of garlic,
crushed
1/2 cup fresh whole wheat bread crumbs
olive oil
Combine
all the ingredients in a large bowl and allow to rest for 5 minutes,
to give the bread crumbs a chance to soak up the liquid.
The
mixture will still be very damp and loose – this is what you want.
Do not allow it to be too dry, as the mixture dries out significantly
whilst cooking. With your hands, form into around 16 loose
patties.
Heat a little olive oil in a non stick pan over a medium
heat.
Add the patties to the pan. Press down on them lightly.
Cook
for around 5 minutes until golden, then carefully turn and repeat on
the other side.
Baby
Friendly Humus
1
can chickpeas (or the equivalent amount of chickpeas you have cooked
yourself)
2 tbsp tahini (omit this altogether if you prefer)
2
to 3 tbsp lemon juice
2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
2
to 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
If
these flavors are too strong for your baby, lighten up on the garlic
and lemon and omit the tahini. As the age you can incorporate more
flavors.
Simply
drain the chickpeas (if using canned) and combine all the ingredients
in a food processor.
Blend
on a low speed for several minutes until the hummus is completely
smooth. If the mixture seems very thick, add extra olive oil or water
to loosen it up. The resulting hummus should be nice and creamy.
Hummus
is best served as soon as it's prepared, but you can store it in the
fridge for up to 3 days.
Try
serving with whole wheat pita wedges!
Kelly O'Hara, R.D.
