Читать книгу Truly Scrumptious Baby: My complete feeding and weaning plan for 6 months and beyond - Holly Willoughby, Holly Willoughby - Страница 7
ОглавлениеWHEN TO START AND HOW TO KNOW IF YOUR BABY IS READY
Now before we embark on this journey together, the one thing I must stress is that there is no ‘correct’ time for you to begin the weaning process. Every baby is different, after all! And there is no rush to start your baby on solids. Equally, you should be mindful of not leaving it too late, as learning to eat solids is an important factor in your baby’s motor and speech development. Plus, you might end up with a very fussy baby on your hands if you delay weaning for too long!
The most-up-to-date NHS advice recommends exclusive breast- or formula feeding up to six months, with no solids being introduced at all before that time. There are two important factors to bear in mind here. Firstly, breast milk and formula contain all the nutrients your baby needs for healthy development during the first six months of life (see here). And, secondly, before four months your baby’s intestines and kidneys simply aren’t mature enough to filter out potentially harmful substances and absorb the good bits. It’s generally best to wait until six months, otherwise weaning can be harmful, leaving him at risk from infection and developing allergies. If you have a strong family history of food allergy, it’s even more important you don’t begin the weaning process too early, as your child may be more at risk than most.
Having said that, babies do develop at different rates and so if you believe your baby is showing all the signs of being ready (see advice here) then do visit your GP and get their advice. In rare cases, weaning from as early as four months can be beneficial. My GP recommended I start introducing solids to Chester from about four months, because of his severe reflux. I started him on a little baby rice for breakfast and I think the fact that it was more solid, and therefore heavier than milk, definitely helped him to keep it down. He had been in so much pain after a feed as the milk came back up, bringing the acid burn with it, I think he almost started to dread feeding, even though he was so desperately hungry. I found that splitting (and eventually replacing) some milk feeds with a portion of baby rice definitely helped him through those painful few weeks. On the flip side, pre-term babies can be advised to wait between five and eight months after their birth date before starting weaning, as their internal development may be slower and therefore more immature at 4–6 months than for a baby born at full term.
In my experience – and excuse the pun – listen to your gut! You’ll know if your baby is ready. All babies are different and develop at varying rates, so you are the best person to assess whether your child is ready to move on to solids. And if you feel even the slightest bit uneasy about your decision, particularly if your baby is younger than six months, then ask your GP or the health visitor for their thoughts on your individual situation. Together you’ll get it right.
SIGNS THAT YOUR BABY MIGHT BE READY
Once your baby is six months old, there will be signs that he is ready to start weaning. I remember Harry and Belle just staring at me intently when we were all sitting down together at the table, watching my fork move from plate to mouth. They were completely transfixed by the action of eating – all but drooling. There are a few key signs that your baby might be ready to take to solids. They should be able to do all of these things to some capacity before you embark on weaning. Remember, though, that NHS guidelines state that milk alone is enough to sustain a baby up to six months old, so these might just indicate that he’s in need of a bit more sustenance to get him through a growth spurt!
Tongue-thrust reflex
All babies are born with the tongue-thrust reflex, which prevents them from choking when they are really young. If you put something they aren’t used to on their tongue, you’ll see them push their tongue straight out to expel the foreign object rather than pulling it back to swallow. From about four months, this reflex starts to diminish and he’ll start taking food into his mouth rather than just automatically pushing it out – this is a good sign. However, it’s worth bearing in mind that even when he does start taking food into his mouth, swallowing is the next step, which might come slightly later and which is why some babies might gag initially. They don’t have teeth, so they’re not chewing but sucking or grinding the food between their gums until it is small enough to swallow. This is why smooth purées are among the best first foods.
Sitting up
To sit up in a feeding chair, your baby needs strong neck and head control. If you think about it, up until now you’ve cuddled your baby during his breast- or bottle feeds, so introducing solids while he’s sitting up in a chair is a far less intimate experience for him. It’s crucial that he’s strong enough to hold himself upright and that he’s sitting comfortably before you begin.
Reaching for food
Babies love to imitate. If you find your little one is starting to reach for things you’re putting in your mouth, the chances are he’s ready to have a go himself. Offering soft sticks of food is a great way of allowing him to start exploring food for himself at his own pace. See if his motor skills are developed enough for him to grab and aim the food into his mouth. (Letting your baby take the lead is the approach taken throughout baby-led weaning – see here.) If you’re spoon-feeding, you might find your baby takes more if you give him his own spoon to hold so he feels as if he’s feeding himself.
HOW TO START
The secret to the whole weaning process is (where possible) to make sure the conditions are right, and this includes the feeding environment. First and foremost, brace yourself for mess! When they start weaning, babies are constantly throwing stuff on the floor and at you. You can always guarantee that the moment you do manage to get a fully loaded spoon into their mouths, they decide to sneeze it all over the table. It’s a messy business, but it doesn’t last for ever and, with a pack of wet wipes at the ready, rather than dealing with Armageddon in one hit at the end, you can sort it out in controlled stages.
FEEDING ENVIRONMENT
Feeding chair and adjustable harness
Whether you choose a Bumbo or high chair with its own table, or one that pulls up or fixes to the dining table (see here), the most important thing is for it to have an adjustable harness. It’s imperative your baby is comfortable and well supported. If he’s slouching, or there’s any pressure on his tummy, it can affect feeding and lead to discomfort.
Indestructible bowl!
Any bowl that’s not going to smash if it gets swiped to the floor – which, believe me, it will at some juncture! If you can bear to, allow messy play to let your baby explore for himself. Let him handle food, feel the texture and try to put it in his mouth. (For more on weaning bowls and spoons, see here.)
TIME OF DAY
Try to make sure your baby hasn’t had too many milk feeds throughout the day, so he’s hungry enough to eat. On the other hand, it’s important that he’s not starving when you sit him down for a meal, as he won’t get the same quick fix his desperate tummy needs from a teaspoon of carrot purée as he would a bottle of milk, and the whole situation may deteriorate into a hot mess.
You need to pick a time of the day when you aren’t in a rush, and most importantly when your baby is contented. With all of mine, their first ever taste of solid food was a breakfast of baby rice. I’d begin the process first thing in the morning after waking. I’d make up the usual morning bottle and a small amount of baby rice, using some of the milk from the feed. It’s important to use that milk rather than additional milk, so as to avoid overfeeding. Then I’d hide the bottle from hungry little eyes, make baby comfortable in the feeding chair and offer a sip of water from a sippy cup, followed by a spoonful or so of baby rice. I’d only keep going until their interest waned and then would finish up with the usual morning bottle.
How much they eat depends entirely on your baby, but you should start to see them taking more as the days go by. Remember, it’s a new and strange sensation for them, so keep the process as relaxed as possible. It’s important to be guided by your baby as to how much solid food he wants and how much milk. Babies know when their tummies are full and learning to stop when they’ve had enough is a useful life lesson.
HOW MUCH TO FEED YOUR BABY
When you are finally sitting face to face with your baby, who’s had just enough milk to appease his rumbly tummy, be prepared to melt as that first teaspoon of solid food touches his lips. There’ll be a lot of gurning, tongue pushing and grimacing for the first few goes until he realizes that it’s quite nice really.
At this stage, don’t even expect to get more than a teaspoon’s worth of food into your baby. And even that will be delivered via half a dozen spoonfuls with the tiniest amount on the edge of the spoon. Just be patient. It’s all about building up your baby’s confidence, taste buds and capacity for food, and it will take time for him to learn. Remember, at the earliest stages, weaning is predominantly about getting your little one familiar with food.
Texture
Initially, purées should be smooth and not too thick – about the same consistency as double cream. Start with one or two single-ingredient vegetable purées (see here), and once your baby accepts those, then slowly introduce others. You can dilute with the vegetable-cooking water to maximize the nutrients, or with your baby’s regular milk to produce something with familiar back notes.
Once you get going, you’ll get a sense for what’s the ideal consistency for your baby. Stick to super-smooth for the first couple of weeks, then gradually start to thicken to a consistency that doesn’t quite pour off the spoon, but rather sticks to it. Think more of a mush/mash than a purée. And I mean gradually. If you try to change too soon, before he’s ready, you risk a meal being rejected altogether. If your baby looks like he’s starting to move the purée around his mouth, as if he’s trying to chew, then it could be a sign he’s ready for thicker textures. Harry loved really smooth purées; it took him longer to eat foods with lumps in it. The bottom line is not to rush it but do remember that moving on to thicker textures is important because it’s good for their digestive system. Also the longer you linger on a texture the more reluctant your baby might be to move on.
Some babies will be eager to hold food and feed themselves from six months of age, while others will need a bit more encouragement. If you’re allowing your little one to experiment with sticks of soft veg or fruit, the texture should be adjusted as your little one develops and they’re ready for something slightly firmer and sturdier.
Breastfeeding/milk
Up until approximately six months, your baby’s exclusive source of nourishment is milk (whether breast, formula or a mix) and so long as he’s drinking well, keeping most of it down, and his weight is going up nicely on the scales, you can be confident he’s getting all the nutrients he needs. Breast milk by its very nature is bespoke to the nutritional requirements of your baby, and the milk formulas on the market today are so highly developed, they’re as close to Mum-made as possible.
It can be trickier to move an exclusively breastfed child on to solids, simply because you are removing that mother–baby intimacy, which can be a bigger wrench than for bottle-fed babies. It’s a good idea to start by cutting out one of the least ‘cosy’ feeds and replacing it with a solid feed. Distraction is the name of the game! Don’t attempt to spoon-feed your breastfed baby on your lap, as he’ll immediately associate it with breastfeeding. You need to try to gradually diminish breast association as you continue to cut the milk feeds.
To begin with, your milk feeds won’t change. A six-month breastfed baby will continue feeding on demand. A six-month bottle-fed baby should be having 4–5 formula feeds with a total of 840–960ml/29fl oz – 11/2 pints during the course of 24 hours. Once you start weaning your baby, the most important milk feeds of the day are the waking feed and last feed before bed, so make sure your baby takes full bottles at these times.
WEANING MYTHS
There are a fair few myths associated with moving your baby on to solids sooner rather than later, and I’d like to dispel them!
‘The quicker you start him on solids the quicker he’ll sleep through the night.’
Babies – just like adults – wake for all sorts of reasons, and it doesn’t necessarily mean they are hungry. Their tummies are so tiny in the first few months, you can’t possibly hope to stuff them full enough to keep them going for hours on end. It’s also worth noting that weaning coincides with a huge number of new things your baby is experiencing in his first year of life: growth spurts, teething, sitting up, crawling, walking, etc. You can put sudden changes in sleep/waking patterns down to any or all of the above. Sadly, weaning isn’t a miracle cure for any of these.
‘She’s a big girl for five months. She needs more than milk to fill her up.’
‘That baby needs to put some weight on! Give him some solids.’
‘That’s baby’s so hungry, she’s chewing her hands off! She should have some solids!’
During the early weaning stages, milk is and should still be the main source of nutrition for your baby. Whether breast or formula, milk has more calories in it than the limited amount of solid food a baby’s tiny stomach can hold. Between four and eight months, weaning is more about the introduction and exploration of food and getting your little one used to the physical act of eating, rather than satisfying hunger and aiding development. If your baby appears starving at four months, try an extra milk feed before introducing solids if you feel it’s too early. It might just be the top-up he needs for the moment.
VERY FIRST FOODS
At six months, keep offering the usual milk feeds. Food is merely a complement at this stage, rather than any sort of sustenance, so your baby still needs the calories and nutrition in milk.
Once you start weaning, you’ll need to start giving your baby a little water at mealtimes. It’s a good idea to get him used to a sippy or free flowing cup at this stage. This is a beaker with a lid and a hard spout (see here). It’s the first step to getting your baby used to drinking from a normal lidless cup, so what better time to start than at a meal.
The following are some ideas for first foods you can try:
Baby rice
These fine, powdery flakes of rice, which you mix up in a bowl (never add to your baby’s bottle) with breast milk or formula, are the perfect first taste of food. As a first solid, it’s not too big a leap from what your baby will be used to flavourwise as you’re mixing it with his milk. It’s also gluten-free, so allergy safe, and is fortified with vitamin B1, which helps little bodies turn the carbohydrate into energy. In the first few days, he might not take any rice down, but day by day you’ll notice him take a little more, building up to a few teaspoons and maybe rejecting a milk feed completely.
Baby Cereal
Baby cereals are fortified with vitamins and minerals, and most are low in sugar and salt, although be careful to check the label. In fact, be careful when selecting cereals for your children in general. It would be healthier to give them a doughnut for breakfast for all the sugar that’s in some!
Vegetable purées
All the vegetables included in the recipes in Chapter 1 (see here) are jam-packed with health-boosting nutrients. They are all excellent first foods, and most are naturally sweet and appeal to young palates. You can experiment by mixing two vegetables together, then thicken with a little baby rice or thin with your baby’s usual milk, which will give it a familiar flavour. And if you’re struggling with certain vegetable flavours, you can try adding a dash of apple purée or another sweet combination. This might just take the edge off any bitterness. But remember that, generally, it’s best to get your baby used to vegetables before introducing sweeter, often more appealing, fruit.
Fruit purées
Babies love fruit purées (see here). Fact. They have a naturally sweet tooth and will be drawn to all the deliciously sweet flavours. Just be careful not to overdo the fruit! It can result in a few upsets – upset tummies and the rejection of blander, savoury vegetable flavours, which is the last thing you need! Always start with a veggie purée over a fruit one.
no-cook purées
There are some fruit and veg that you don’t have to cook before serving – they make wonderful first foods and are super-easy to mush up for families on the go! I’m talking about things like ripe banana, avocado, cucumber and melon. (See here and here for a few easy no-cook recipes.) It’s a good idea to offer these even if you’re not on the go to get your baby used to different textures and temperatures. You might not always have the facilities to make your baby a hot meal, so get him used to eating cold foods to avoid fussiness further down the line.
SINGLE FIRST FOODS
I’ve put together a few sample feeding routines for you, starting from six months. If you are weaning before then, consult your GP or midwife about what’s appropriate for your little one. How you proceed safely will depend on your baby’s age, weight, whether they were premature or late, etc. It’s best to get medical advice, if only to confirm your gut feeling that your baby is ready.
WEEK 1
When weaning day arrived for each of mine, I tried a little baby rice at breakfast to get them started. I’d wait for them to wake up – usually around 7am – leave them with Dan for Daddy cuddles, then go to the kitchen and make up their usual morning milk feed. I’d stopped breastfeeding by six months with all of my babies, so when it was time to start weaning, they were all on formula.
Mid-morning, I’d mix up a little baby rice in a bowl, using some of the milk from the bottle, so as not to go over the quota for that feed, and prepare a sippy cup of water. For the first week, just a couple of teaspoons of baby rice is enough. When I had everything ready to go – AND HIDDEN THE BOTTLE OF MILK from hungry little eyes – I’d put them in their high chair, give them a sip of water to quench their new-day thirst and offer a little baby rice on a spoon. Not all of my children were immediately receptive to the baby rice, and I made sure I caught on camera every delicious face they pulled, but every day their interest grew, to the point that by the end of the first week, they would all manage a full teaspoon or so, before being offered the rest of their mid-morning milk feed via the bottle.
After mine got the hang of their morning baby rice, I tried a single-ingredient purée (preferably vegetable – see here). Mine seemed to take particularly well to Pea, Broccoli and Sweet Potato flavours (see here, here and here). For the first week or so, it’s a good idea to mix the purée with a little of their milk feed so that it tastes vaguely familiar. I always found my children were more receptive to trying new flavours after their main nap, that is, at lunchtime. At 3pm, they’re not tired and they are full of beans, bursting to see what new adventures you’ve got lined up for them that afternoon. As with breakfast, keep a sippy cup of water at hand to quench their thirst. You don’t want to show them their milk feed until after they’ve had a little taste of solid food. Then, when their interest grinds to a halt, you can give them the rest of their milk feed.
SAMPLE MENU
| Breakfast | Sip of water followed by baby rice and morning milk feed (175–225ml/6–8fl oz) | |
| Mid-morning | Baby’s usual milk feed (175–225ml/6–8fl oz) | |
| Mid-afternoon | Sip of water followed by a single-ingredient purée (see here) mixed with a little of the mid-afternoon milk feed or cooking liquor, followed by the remainder of the milk feed (175–225ml/6–8fl oz). Pea or Carrot (see here) are good ones to try first | |
| Bedtime | Baby’s usual milk feed (175–225ml/6–8fl oz) |
WEEK 2
What happens in Week 2 all depends on how well your baby got on in Week 1. If you didn’t get much past the morning baby rice, then now’s the time to start introducing his first vegetable purée. If your baby wolfed down two meals a day for most of Week 1, then you can think about adding another meal. You can also try adding an extra layer of flavour at a meal by following a purée up with some plain full-fat live yoghurt or a sweeter single-fruit purée, such as Pear, Apple, Peach or Banana (see here). By the end of Week 2, if you are sitting him down twice a day, morning and afternoon, for solids and working in another meal around the mid-morning feed, you’re well on your way to achieving three meals a day.
Be totally guided by your baby and what he can manage. If he’s grouchy and fed up when you sit him down and has no desire to eat from a spoon one day, then leave it. Try again the next day. It’s all about trial and error and what works best for you both.
One thing I would say is that you should try to introduce different flavours quite quickly. You can still repeat flavours, but if you’re managing three sessions a day, try to make sure one of those includes something new.
SAMPLE MENU
| Breakfast | Sip of water followed by baby rice mixed with some of the morning milk feed, then top up with the usual morning milk feed (175–225ml/6–8fl oz) | |
| Mid-morning | Sip of water first, then a single-ingredient vegetable purée (see here), followed by some plain full-fat live yoghurt. Top up with the usual mid-morning milk feed (175–225ml/6–8fl oz) | |
| Mid-afternoon | Baby’s usual milk feed (175–225ml/6–8fl oz) | |
| Teatime | Sip of water first, then a single-ingredient vegetable purée, followed by a single-ingredient fruit purée (see here). Try to give a different purée from the one at lunch, if possible, to encourage a varied palate | |
| Bedtime | Baby’s usual milk feed (175–225ml/6–8fl oz) |
VEGETABLE PURÉES
For these first purées for your baby, it’s best to start with single foods so that you can spot an allergy immediately. If there is no reaction to one kind of vegetable, then you can try another, to expand the range of different nutrients and flavours. These can also be mixed with baby cereal and/or your baby’s usual milk. In addition, full-fat cow’s milk can be introduced from six months as an ingredient, but not as a drink on its own in the first year. It’s preferable to provide your baby with mainly veg, rather than fruit, to avoid encouraging a sweet tooth, but don’t overdo the ‘windy’ veg, such as sprouts and cabbage.
PEA
Makes 160ml/51/2 fl oz | Suitable for freezing (8 ice cubes)
125g/41/2oz frozen peas
Put the peas in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat, cover the pan and simmer for 6–8 minutes or until tender. Drain over a bowl, saving 3 tablespoons of the cooking water. Place the peas and the saved water in a food processor, or use a hand blender, and purée until smooth.
PARSNIP
Makes 160ml/51/2 fl oz | Suitable for freezing (8 ice cubes)
125g/41/2oz parsnip, scrubbed/peeled and cut into 1cm/1/2in chunks
Put the parsnip in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat, cover the pan and simmer for 10 minutes or until tender. Drain over a bowl, saving 5 tablespoons of the cooking water. Place the parsnip and the saved water in a food processor, or use a hand blender, and purée until smooth.
CARROT
Makes 120ml/41/2fl oz | Suitable for freezing (6 ice cubes)
1 large carrot (about 100g/31/2oz), scrubbed/peeled and cut into small pieces
Put the carrot in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat, cover the pan and simmer for 10 minutes or until tender. Drain over a bowl, saving 3 tablespoons of the cooking water. Place the carrot and the saved water in a food processor, or use a hand blender, and purée until smooth.
BROCCOLI
Makes 160ml/51/2fl oz | Suitable for freezing (8 ice cubes)
100g/31/2oz broccoli florets, cut into small pieces (stalks and all)
Put the broccoli in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat, cover the pan and simmer for 5–7 minutes or until tender. Drain over a bowl, saving 3 tablespoons of the cooking water. Place the broccoli and the saved water in a food processor, or use a hand blender, and purée until smooth.
COURGETTE
Makes 160ml/51/2fl oz | Suitable for freezing (8 ice cubes)
1 courgette (about 200g/7oz), sliced (and peeled, if you like)
Put the courgette in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat, cover the pan and simmer for 3–5 minutes or until tender. Drain – as the courgette is quite watery, there is no need to save any of the cooking water – and purée until smooth in a food processor or using a hand blender.
BUTTERNUT SQUASH
Makes 200ml/7fl oz | Suitable for freezing (10 ice cubes)
225g/8oz butternut squash, peeled, deseeded and cut into 1cm/1/2in chunks
Put the squash in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat, cover the pan and simmer for 10–12 minutes or until tender. Drain over a bowl, saving 2 tablespoons of the cooking water. Place the squash and the saved water in a food processor, or use a hand blender, and purée until smooth.
SWEET POTATO
Makes 200ml/7fl oz | Suitable for freezing (10 ice cubes)
200g/7oz sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1cm/1/2in chunks
Put the sweet potato in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat, cover the pan and simmer for 10–12 minutes or until tender. Drain over a bowl, saving 3 tablespoons of the cooking water. Place the sweet potato and the saved water in a food processor, or use a hand blender, and purée until smooth.
GREEN BEAN
Makes 160ml/51/2fl oz | Suitable for freezing (8 ice cubes)
100g/31/2oz fine green beans, trimmed and quartered
Put the beans in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat, cover the pan and simmer for 8–10 minutes or until tender. Drain over a bowl, saving 2 tablespoons of the cooking water. Place the beans and the saved water in a food processor, or use a hand blender, and purée until smooth. (You may need to press the purée through a sieve for a smooth consistency.)
POTATO
Makes 200ml/7fl oz | Suitable for freezing (10 ice cubes)
200g/7oz potato (such as Maris Piper), peeled and cut into 1cm/1/2in chunks
1. Put the potato in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat, cover the pan and simmer for 12–15 minutes or until tender. Drain over a bowl, saving 3–4 tablespoons of the cooking water.
2. Transfer the potato to a bowl, then gradually add the saved water and mash between each addition until smooth. It’s best to mash the potato with a fork, rather than puréeing it, as it has a tendency to become really sticky and glue-like when blended.
FRUIT PURÉES
As with the vegetable purées, start with single fruits to check for an allergic reaction. If there is no adverse reaction to one fruit, then you can try your baby on any of the purées here, and also mix them with baby cereal and/or your baby’s usual milk. At this stage, be mindful of introducing citrus fruit and berries slowly as they can cause an allergic reaction.
PEAR
Makes 80ml/3fl oz | Suitable for freezing (4 ice cubes)
1 small ripe pear (about 100g/31/2oz), peeled, cored and cut into small pieces
1. If the pear is very ripe and juicy, simply purée it until smooth in a food processor or using a hand blender. You could add a splash of cooled boiled water to loosen it, if needed.
2. Alternatively, put the pear in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat, cover the pan and simmer for 5–8 minutes or until tender. Drain over a bowl, saving 1 tablespoon of the cooking water. Purée the pear until smooth, adding the saved water if needed, in a food processor or using a hand blender.
PEACH
Makes 80ml/3fl oz | Suitable for freezing (4 ice cubes)
1 ripe peach
1. To remove the skin, put the peach in a heatproof bowl. Pour over enough just-boiled water to cover and leave for 1 minute for very ripe fruit (or up to 5 minutes if the peach is slightly firm). Using a slotted spoon, remove the peach and rinse under cold running water until cool enough to handle. Peel off the skin, cut in half and remove the stone.
2. Purée the peach until smooth, adding a splash of cooled boiled water if needed, in a food processor or using a hand blender.
APPLE
Makes 120ml/41/2fl oz | Suitable for freezing (6 ice cubes)
1 eating apple (about 100g/31/2oz), peeled, cored and cut into small pieces
Put the apple in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat, cover the pan and simmer for 8–10 minutes or until tender. Drain over a bowl, saving 3 tablespoons of the cooking water. Place the apple and the saved water in a food processor, or use a hand blender, and purée until smooth.
PAPAYA
Makes 80ml/3fl oz | Suitable for freezing (4 ice cubes)
1 ripe papaya, peeled, halved and the seeds scooped out
Purée the papaya until smooth in a food processor or using a hand blender, adding a splash of cooled boiled water, if needed.
BANANA
Makes 60ml/21/2fl oz | Suitable for freezing (3 ice cubes)
1 small ripe banana, peeled
Using the back of a fork or a hand blender, mash the banana until smooth, adding a splash of cooled boiled water, if needed.
AVOCADO
Makes 80ml/3fl oz
Flesh of 1 small ripe avocado
Using the back of a fork or a hand blender, mash the avocado until smooth, adding a splash of cooled boiled water, if needed. This purée is best made just before serving as the avocado is prone to lose its colour if prepared too far in advance.
COMBINING FIRST FOODS
WEEKS 3 AND 4
By Week 3 and certainly into Week 4, you will hopefully be going great guns. If you think your baby is coping well with the smooth purées, you can start to think about thicker, combined ones. For thicker purées, you can use less of the cooking water or your baby’s milk, or a little more baby rice.
In an ideal world, the quicker he learns to manage thicker textures, the less fussy he’ll be further down the road. Here you’ll find some of my favourite combined purées, such as Parsnip and Pear (see here) and Garden Veg (see here). Mixing ingredients together like this will help your baby get used to flavour combinations. And don’t forget to try some no-cook purées, such as Avocado and Pear (see here), as this will add more texture variants to your baby’s diet.
One of the main pieces of advice I can give you at this stage is to move your baby through the stages quite quickly – ideally, he’ll be moving quite large but soft lumps around his mouth by about seven or eight months. My sister, who didn’t do this, found it much harder to get her daughter to progress from smooth purées as she panicked every time Lola appeared to gag on a lump. They all do it; it’s part of the learning process. Just as they learn to ‘gum’ the lump a bit smaller next time, to help it go down. Moving them through the texture changes is a case of gentle perseverance. Don’t force the issue, but keep trying! They’ll get there.
