With these simple pureed baby food recipes, discover which delicious fruits and vegetables you can introduce to your baby.
Remember to apply the four day rule as you introduce each new food to your baby, in order to identify any potential allergies or digestive problems.
To puree food for your baby, you can push it through a sieve or use a blender. The Magic Bullet Hi-Speed Blender/Mixer #7712 is very popular with many parents and is incredibly versatile - meaning you can continue to use it even after your baby is past the puree stage! (Click here to see all our recommended baby food processors, mills and grinders.)
Alternatively, consider using a hand blender (my favourite option) - you can simply puree the food in the pot you cook it in, plus hand blenders are easy to clean up afterwards!
If your puree doesn't come out with the consistency you'd intended, then don't miss our tips for thickening or thinning baby food purees. PLUS - learn how adding wheat germ to your baby's purees provides a huge nutritional boost!
NOTE FOR OUR INTERNATIONAL VISITORS: British vegetable names are used in these recipes - if these are not familiar to you, the following translations may be helpful!
This has to be my all-time favourite first baby food. All my children have loved it, probably because of its subtle sweetness. And it is, by far, the easiest vegetable to prepare.
Preheat the oven to 375 deg F or 190 deg C. Simply take one large sweet potato. Scrub it and prick it with a fork. Bake for about 45 mins, until it feels soft. Once cooked, all you need to do is split the potato and scrape out the flesh with a spoon. Hey presto - instant baby food, which doesn't even need pureeing! Just mash it lightly with a fork and you're ready to go. One large potato will give you about 3 or 4 portions at this early stage. Bake a few at a time and you've got a fortnight's supply!
Alternatively... you could peel the potato, then boil or steam it in cubes. But really, what's the point in giving yourself extra work when baking it in its skin is so much easier?
One point to consider - one of my daughters loved sweet potato so much that I fed it to her a little too often - her skin took on an orange hue! It actually looked as if she had a healthy tan - so much so, that I considered trying the sweet potato diet for myself! So be careful not to over do it.
Another simple-to-prepare vegetable, with a taste that babies love. You could also use acorn squash.
Preheat the oven to 400 deg F or 200 deg C. Cut the squash in half and remove the seeds. Place the squash in a baking tin, face down in about one inch of water. Bake for about 40 mins. Keep an eye on the water in the pan - add a little more if necessary. The squash is done when it feels soft. Remove the flesh from the skin and either puree it, or mash it lightly with a fork.
One of the most popular first solid foods for baby - and possibly the cheapest! It makes you wonder why people are prepared to pay so much for jars of prepared foods, when you see how economical these are to prepare at home!
Choose large, older carrots - these are actually richer in nutrients than baby carrots. Just trim the ends and slice. Then steam, boil or microwave and puree to perfection!
Pureed Baby Food Recipes - Tasty Courgettes
Courgettes puree to a very thin, almost watery consistency. Introduce them on their own at first (as per the four day rule), then mix them with other vegetables that may otherwise be a little too "stodgy" in texture.
Simply wash the courgettes, remove both ends, then slice. You can boil, steam or microwave them until tender, then puree them as usual.
Pureed Baby Food Recipes - Superb Swede
Swede is often neglected as a food for babies, yet it has a lovely, earthy flavour that my children have all enjoyed.
Simply peel the swede, cut it into chunks and then boil, steam or microwave until tender. It is very easy to puree to a wonderful, smooth consistency.
A real treat for baby - and easy to prepare! Just trim the ends, cut into 2 inch pieces, then steam until tender. A gourmet delight for your discerning little diner!
Pureed Baby Food Recipes - Wholesome Baked Potato
Standard potatoes can be peeled then boiled, but I prefer to bake them in their skins. Use the same method as for sweet potatoes, but increase the cooking time to around 1 1/2 hours. You should just need to mash the potato with a fork and maybe add a little formula or breastmilk to give a smooth consistency. I wouldn't recommend pureeing this type of potato - it ends up like glue!
Plain potato can be a bit bland for baby - I always preferred to "partner it up" with another vegetable, rather than serve it on its own.
Pureed Baby Food Recipes - Other Vegetables To Try
Green beans - top and tail, remove any strings, then steam, boil or microwave.
Parsnips - follow the preparation method for carrots. Babies love the sweetness of parsnips.
Green peas - use fresh shelled peas or frozen peas.
Aubergines - peel, then steam or bake.
Broccoli - wash, then boil, steam or microwave the florets. Don't cook the stems - they can give babies wind!
Pureed Baby Food Recipes - Tasty Vegetable Combos
Once you have safely introduced these different types of vegetables, then it's time to "mix 'n match". You can mix any number of vegetables in any combination you choose, but these are some tried and tested favourites of mine-
Parsnips and grean beans Mashed potato and carrots Sweet potato and squash Sweet potato and carrots Courgettes and mashed potato Swede and carrots Green beans and peas Carrots and parsnips
Pureed Baby Food Recipes - Vegetable And Rice Delight
You will need -
cooked brown rice broccoli carrots green beans squash
Use the quantities of each vegetable that best suit your baby's preferences - this can be a good way of getting him to eat a vegetable that he has previously refused!
Prepare the vegetables, then steam them. Start the carrots off first, then the squash, as they take the longest to cook. Once cooked, mix the vegetables with the rice, then puree to the desired consistency.
Healthy and delicious, fruits make wonderful first foods for babies. Not all fruits are suitable at this stage, though - see
pureed baby food recipes - foods to avoid
, for more information.
Pureed Baby Food Recipes - Brilliant Bananas
I've never come across a baby who doesn't like bananas, perhaps the most nutritious of all the fruits. The taste, texture and ease of preparation makes them ideal for baby's first food.
The method of preparation is so simple, there is no method - just mash a ripe banana and baby's meal is ready!
For very young babies, you can add a little formula or breastmilk for a runnier consistency.
Pureed Baby Food Recipes - Juicy Peaches And Plums
Wash the fruit well, then cut an "x" into the side of the skin. Place the fruit, "x" side down, into about an inch of water. Simmer until soft. It is then easy to remove the skin and stone, ready for pureeing.
Pureed Baby Food Recipes - Apples And Pears
Take a dessert apple, or a ripe pear. Peel, core, then quarter the fruit. Slice very thinly, then simmer gently with about 1 tbsp of water, until soft. Apples and pears can be easily pureed by passing through a sieve. Pears tend to be very runny in texture once pureed. So after you have safely introduced then to your baby, they are best used in combination with another fruit ... or vegetable!
Avocado pear is highly nutritious, creamy in texture and a perfect baby food.
Choose a ripe avocado, then simply peel and remove the stone. You can then mash the fruit with a fork - the consistency is similar to banana, so you won't need to puree it any further.
As with baby's first vegetables, you can combine different fruits to create new flavours that your baby will adore. My children all enjoyed these combinations -
Peaches and pears Pears and plums Apples and pears Avocado and banana
If you're in a hurry, you could use tinned fruit instead of fresh. But make sure that the fruit is in its own juice, and not a sugary syrup!
Another idea is to stir a little fruit puree into some pure, non-flavoured natural yogurt (here's a recipe to make your own). It's best to use a sweet fruit for this, as the yogurt itself is quite "tangy". But don't be tempted to sweeten the yogurt with honey. Honey can be extremely dangerous for babies under one year of age. See
foods to avoid
for more information.