Most babies become familiar with the taste of simple fruit and vegetable purées within a few weeks of starting weaning and then it’s time to move on to:
Puréed meat or chicken
Purées of rice, very soft cooked pasta
Full-fat dairy products such as fromage frais, yoghurt, and small amounts of cheese in meals
Introducing textured meals
Your growing baby will also welcome meals that are more textured and chewy than the smooth purées you prepared at the start of weaning so use your Braun MultiQuick hand blender to purée food on slower speeds and for shorter times to provide a thicker, chewier texture. Chewing food helps the muscles of the mouth to develop and this in turn can help your baby’s speech development.
Mealtime adventure: fingerfood
Although breast or formula milk remains an important part of a small baby’s diet, by this stage the quantity of solids will be increasing and three meals a day will be taken. By now most babies like well cooked, soft pasta pieces. Puréed sauces are also particular favourites and go well with so many other vegetables.
By around 8 months, babies are happy holding food and love ‘finger foods’ like sticks of soft fruits and cooked vegetables. Roasted vegetable sticks are especially tasty. Remember children must be supervised at all times when eating in case of choking.
Does it have to be organic?
Some mums prefer to offer only organic meals, others mix and match. It all depends on what you want to eat and what you can afford. Whatever you choose, it is important to make sure you wash fruit and vegetables thoroughly and observe good standards of hygiene in the kitchen.
Baby’s regular milk plus simple, soft pureés made from one or two fruits or vegetables, baby rice and lentils.
Baby Nutrition | Stages of feeding
9-12 months
Less milk, thicker purées, more chopped foods, cheese and eggs, more finger foods like chopped soft fruits and vegetables, toasted bread, with dips, soft sandwiches.
