Babies need a lot of fuel from the age of 9 months to 2 years. They have a lot of growing to do during that time, so steady nutrition is a must!
But it’s about more than providing nutrition – you can also begin helping your child build healthy eating habits.
Snacks can help with that. If you start your child on healthy and nourishing snacks early on, you may discourage him from developing a taste for junk food later.
And before you start worrying about the work involved, you can still do this with pre-packaged snack foods. You just have to vet your selections first with a fine-toothed comb.
What to look for in baby snacks
Nutritious baby snacks have to meet two criteria:
Offer real nutritional value (like meeting a good portion of your baby’s daily quota for a nutrient)
Be palatable to your baby (because good luck getting your little one to down it otherwise!)
As mentioned earlier, you can technically find some prepackaged options for this. Just don’t take claims to be “kid-friendly” or “nutritious” at face value. Investigate first.
Check the ingredients list of the snack, for instance. Does it have a high amount of added salt or sugar? Perhaps too much high-fructose corn syrup?
Even snacks that may look otherwise healthy can be affected by unnecessary additives. Say you’re looking at yoghurts (yes, you can give 9-month-olds dairy yoghurt!), for example. You’ll probably find some with artificial flavouring or too much sweetener.
So, be careful and read the labels when making your decisions on prepackaged items. And, of course, look out for potential allergens!
Simple and healthy baby snack ideas
Want to serve your child snacks you’ve made yourself? Try these healthy baby snack recipes for a start. They’re as nutritional as they’re easy to whip up.
1. Baby omelette fingers
Here’s a super-quick snack that offers a good balance of protein and fibre. Here’s what you need:
● Eggs
● Butter
● Water
● Greens or veggies like spinach and potato
Chop and dice the greens or veggies, then saute them over medium heat with butter until soft. Mix the eggs with a bit of water in a bowl, then pour that over the pan with the veggies.
Swirl the pan to make sure all veggies are covered by the egg mixture. Cover and let it cook for 1 to 2 minutes, then remove the omelette from the pan and cut it into fingers (strips).
Pro-tip: Note that this is a great way to introduce veggies to your baby early. Broccoli and zucchini, anyone?
2. Frozen fruit popsicles
If your baby is teething, these will be an absolute treat. The cold can soothe aching gums, plus the popsicles taste good too! Here’s what you need:
● 200 g of your baby’s favourite fruit
● 60 ml of water (or apple juice)
Freeze the fruit in chunks, and then put them in a blender with the water once frozen. Put the blended mixture into popsicle moulds.
Pop those in the freezer again for about 3 hours. Pop each one out to serve.
Pro-tip: Make sure the moulds are not too big for your baby! Ones made specifically for babies are sized for their hands to fit properly on the accompanying handles.
The nutritional benefits for these obviously depend on the fruit you choose. Strawberries offer Vitamin C and antioxidants, for instance, while apples provide fibre and pectin. Try combining different fruits!
3. Berry or raisin banana oatmeal muffins
This is another easy snack to make. It’s also something most kids love even later, once they’ve grown up!
● Yoghurt
● Ripe bananas
● Rolled or quick-cook oats
● A bit of vanilla extract for flavouring
● Raisins or your berry of choice
● Honey if your child is 1 year old or above, maple syrup otherwise
To make the muffins, throw everything except the fruit in a blender. Once thoroughly mixed, pour the mixture into a muffin pan that you’ve already greased with olive or coconut oil spray.
Sprinkle your fruit over the mixture in the pan. Pop the pan into an oven you’ve preheated to 180 degrees Celsius.
Bake for up to 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean after poking them. Don’t forget to let them cool for at least 15 minutes before serving!
Pro-tip: Remember that you can also make a dairy-free version of this with soy yoghurt. Just keep in mind that soy can be an allergen for some children, so test it first.
4. Sweet potato (or banana) and apple pancakes
Give your child a cafe experience at home with their very own sweet potato pancake stack. Soft and sweet, it’s a big hit with little ones.
● Eggs
● Butter
● Vanilla extract
● Unsweetened applesauce
● Mashed sweet potato (bake sweet potato at 180 degrees Celsius until it’s mashable) or mashed bananas if you don’t want to prebake the main ingredient
Whisk all ingredients together in a bowl until you make a batter. Drop dollops of this batter into a pan with butter over medium heat to make baby-sized pancakes. Flip the pancakes over to cook both sides.
Pro-tip: They may take time to bake (usually 40 minutes or so), but sweet potatoes are rich in nutrients like Vitamin B6, Vitamin C, Calcium, and Iron. Putting them in these pancakes is great for your baby’s palate and health!
5. Fruit and yoghurt bowl
Fruit provides great natural sugars that are better than food pouches. Add yoghurt and you make it an even better snack for your child.
● The plain (unsweetened) yoghurt of your choice
● Soft fruit like sliced bananas or kiwi, or diced strawberries or mango
Just toss the fruit into the yoghurt and you should be good to go. Ensure the fruit is cut up (or even pureed) to avoid choking hazards.
Pro-tip: It’s often best to use dairy yoghurt because of the fats it offers, which are great for early brain-building. However, if your child is not allergic to them, even soy yoghurts can work.
Get more tips for your little one!
That wraps up our list of the top recipes for healthy baby snacks. Think you have one that should be on this list? Why not join our community and share it with other mums?
In fact, joining the Mummy Guru community may help you discover more recipes from others too. Our community is always happy to share tips with one another. Don’t forget to check other guides and articles on our blog, which often come from what our awesome mums tell us!
Comentarios