Best solid food for 6 month baby

The Best First Foods for Babies 6 to 9 Months – Happiest Baby

By Happiest Baby Staff

You've spent the first six months of your baby's life making sure that they are nourished with breastmilk or formula. As they grow and thrive, you might notice that your little sprout shows you some signs that they are ready to graduate from the bottle or breast to solid foods. If your baby can sit up and hold their head up, that's a great first sign! What's more, if they bring objects to their mouth and show an interest in what you are eating, your curious kiddo might be ready to start eating solid foods.

But what should you feed your baby? Here’s a list of perfect starter foods for your baby from ages 6 to 9 months.

Best Baby Foods at 6 Months

At 6 months, babies may be starting to chew. Though this skill won’t be mastered just yet, they are typically ready to get messy with some mushy, pureed eats—helping them learn about flavor and texture. At this age, the goal is not to satiate your baby with full meals of solid foods but rather to get your child curious and excited about their culinary options.

Because babies are growing so fast, their needs for iron are high to prevent iron-deficiency and support their overall health. Offer your little one iron rich foods like—infant cereal (read up on why you may want to skip rice cereal), well-cooked meat, poultry, mashed beans, and lentils. To keep your baby safe from choking, avoid adding solids like cereal to baby bottles.

Here are some great first foods for Baby to try:

Infant oat, grain, or barley cereals mixed with breastmilk or formula and spoon-fed to your baby
Sweet potato puree
Squash puree
Pea puree
Carrot puree
Mashed banana
Mashed avocado
Mashed or pureed beans
Mashed or pureed lentils
Pureed meats (beef, chicken, or turkey)
Soft, falling apart meats (salmon, beef, chicken, turkey)

Check out more of our favorite first food purees. Or, if purees aren’t your thing, read up on how to start baby-led weaning.

Best Baby Foods at 7 Months

By 7 months old, your baby will probably be eating more solids but not enough to replace breastmilk or formula as their primary source of food. The goal for this month is to keep introducing solid foods to your baby. What's fun is by 7 months, you can get more creative with mixing flavors and adding textures.

Here are a few nutritious and delicious food combos to try with your baby:

Peas pureed with breastmilk (or formula), sweet potatoes, or squash
Kale pureed with blueberry, squash, potatoes, sweet potatoes, peas, pears, or bananas
Apples pureed with cauliflower, carrots, pears, prunes, or beets
Beef pureed with broccoli
Chicken pureed with carrots and potatoes
Chickpeas pureed with bananas, apples, or sweet potato
Sweet potatoes pureed with red bell pepper

Seven months is also the perfect age to start giving your baby a plate, bowl, and plastic utensils so they can begin to practice feeding themselves. If your baby is teething, you can place frozen chunks of fruit in a sieve feeder/mesh bag that allows them to gnaw on the fruit without choking. Learn more about helping your baby use a fork and spoon!

Best Baby Foods at 8 Months

By 8 months, your baby is likely eating more solids and relying a little less on milk as a primary meal (though it’s still where they get the bulk of their nutrition!). And they’re probably having lots of fun learning how to use their hands to feed themselves. Something else to consider: Babies should be exposed to potential allergen foods (like peanuts, tree nuts, eggs, and fish) before their first birthdays to help prevent future food allergies. Starting at 6 months of age, peanut butter is safe to introduce as long as you are comfortable giving it to your baby.

In fact, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans says that babies can begin having these foods when they start eating solids. But many families often feel more comfortable waiting to introduce these foods until around this age. Of course, consult with your little one’s pediatrician if you have concerns about potential allergen foods.

Here are some foods to add to your repertoire:

Whole eggs, scrambled
Nut butter thinned out with water and mixed with cereal (nut butters are sticky and can cause choking)
Fully cooked fish, like salmon or tuna
Full-fat yogurt

Here are some preparation ideas:

Well-cooked (think over-cooked until falling apart) pasta such as elbows or alphabet shapes
Mashed meat with mashed or ground vegetables such as peas and potatoes or kale and squash
Rainbow on a plate: Using tiny pieces of soft, strained, pureed, and mashed food options, look for a variety of colors to offer. Some fun options could include banana, avocado, sweet potato, peas, blueberry, raspberry, cheese, and chicken.

Best Baby Foods at 9 Months

Though there’s a greater variety of foods babies eat now, formula or breastmilk continues to be their primary source of nutrition until age 1. At 9 months old, babies get more comfortable with self-feeding and eating the foods their families enjoy. After all, eating solid foods is a sensory wonderland of texture, smells, and tastes. Not to mention all that fun making messes with those adorably curious fingers.

As you begin to focus on meal planning for your baby, there are few things to keep in mind:

Babies need four to five servings of fruits and vegetables a day. A serving size for a 9-month-old is less than a quarter cup.
"Eat the rainbow" is excellent advice because it gives your baby exposure to lots of different fruits, vegetables, grains, and starches.

Here are a few menu ideas to help meal plan for your baby…

Breakfast Ideas for Babies

These morning meals pack a nutritional punch—and don’t forget to check out all of our favorite breakfast ideas for babies:

Soft fresh fruit cut up in small pieces (think: banana, raspberries, or blueberries)
Whole-grain waffles or pancakes
Unsweetened oatmeal made with breastmilk or formula combined with cut-up and cooked apples and pears or banana slices. (It is essential to steam the apples or pears to make them soft enough for your baby to mash with their gums.)
Full-fat yogurt mixed with mashed or pureed berries such as blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, or raspberries
Soft scrambled eggs
Veggie frittata

Lunch Ideas for Babies

Spread hummus on soft crackers or bread
Grilled cheese sandwich with cooled tomato soup
Macaroni and cheese with cooked veggies like peas and carrots mixed in
Pizza bites with chopped bits of spinach in the sauce and melted shredded cheese
Quesadilla made with pureed spinach, squash, or beans

Snack Ideas for Babies

Babies this young won’t likely need to snack too much (remember, breastmilk or formula will provide the majority of your little one’s nutrition). Still, it’s not a bad idea to have snacks on hand for when your mini muncher needs something to eat that’s not quite a meal. A few baby snack ideas:

Apple and carrot slaw
Cheese slices
Full-fat plain yogurt
Hard-boiled egg
Avocado slices
Muffins made with fruits, veggies, and/or whole grains
Fruit and veggie pouches
Sugar-free, whole-grain cereal, like plain Cheerios

Dinner Ideas for Babies

To help your baby get and stay excited about eating solid foods, serve a version of whatever the family is having for dinner. Remember to steam or mash, grind or chop foods into appropriate softness and sizes to prevent choking. Some baby dinner ideas:

Pasta with softened vegetables
Well-cooked rice, soft veggies, and chicken
Baked sweet potato with butter or cheese
Beans or lentils served with rice and veggies
Flaky fish served with steamed zucchini

There are endless variations on what you can serve your baby for dinner. As long as your baby is safe and happy, try to encourage lots of food exploration!

You must not feed any child under the age of 1 year honey, cow’s milk, juice, hard foods like candy, raw vegetables, popcorn, or sticky foods like peanut butter, as these each present choking hazards.

Learn more about feeding your baby:

The Happiest Baby Feeding Guide
The Benefits of Homemade Baby Food
The Best Store-Bought Baby Food

***

REFERENCES

Unlocking Opportunities in Food Design for Infants, Children, and the Elderly: Understanding Milestones in Chewing and Swallowing Across the Lifespan for New Innovations. Journal of Texture Studies, August 2017
Complementary Feeding: A Position Paper by the European Society for Paediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition (ESPGHAN) Committee on Nutrition, Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition, January 2017
Infant Formula Feeding Practices Associated With Rapid Weight Gain: A Systematic Review, Maternal & Child Nutrition, July 2018
Solid Food Introduction and the Development of Food Allergies, Nutrients, November 2018
US Department of Agriculture: Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2020-2025

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Have questions about a Happiest Baby product? Our consultants would be happy to help! Connect with us at [email protected].

Disclaimer: The information on our site is NOT medical advice for any specific person or condition. It is only meant as general information. If you have any medical questions and concerns about your child or yourself, please contact your health provider.

First Foods For Baby Made Easy – Happiest Baby

Starting solids with your baby is an exciting time…that requires patience, creativity, and an open mind! How—and what—you feed your baby today will establish benefits that can last a lifetime. But before you bust out the blender, grab a bib and spoon, and get pureeing, here are some tips and tricks to make sure your baby's culinary journey is a safe, successful, and delicious one!

Is your baby ready for solid foods?

Before you even think about Googling any baby puree recipes, it’s essential to know if your baby is actually developmentally ready to eat solids. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends starting solids once your infant is around 6 months old, though some babies may show signs of readiness earlier than this. No matter what, solids should not be introduced before your little one turns 4 months old. Some common signs of readiness include sitting up solo with good head, neck, and trunk control—and showing interest in gobbling up what’s on your plate. But remember, breastmilk and/or infant formula still should take up 95% of your infant’s nutrition. By 9 months, it’s about 75% and it only reaches 50% by your bub’s first birthday.

Stage One Baby Food Facts

Allergies: The AAP now recommends introducing high-allergy foods (like egg whites and mashed peanuts) between 4 and 6 months to help prevent future allergies. If your child has eczema, consult with your physician beforehand.
Iron: While breastmilk doesn’t have a ton of iron, what it does contain is very well absorbed. When babies start solids, however, that absorption dwindles. To help, pair iron-rich purees with those that contain vitamin C, which will enhance iron absorption.
Rice cereal: Don’t believe the infant cereal hype! Even when fortified with iron, baby rice cereal is still mostly starch and often tinged with arsenic. It's a better idea to stick with oats, barley, millet, farro, or amaranth.
Fruits vs. veggies: There’s zero evidence that your little one will wind up disliking veggies if they taste fruit first!
3-day rule: Introduce just one food to your tot about every three days. That’ll help you determine the cause of any possible reactions, like diarrhea or rash.

Things to Consider When Making Baby Purees

While it’s tempting to dive right into your produce drawer and start blending, there are some guidelines you may want to follow. For instance:

Sometimes it’s better to buy organic

It’s true that shopping organically can be a bit pricey. But if you’d like to incorporate some organic produce into your baby’s purees, it’s smart to choose ones that tend to contain the most pesticide residue. These include:

Apples
Cherries
Celery
Grapes
Green leafy vegetables
Nectarines
Peaches
Pears
Peppers
Strawberries
Tomatoes

Make purees using healthy liquids

Blend foods into purees using healthy and safe liquids that help to thin out new-to-baby foods.

Water
Breastmilk
Prepared formula
Low sodium meat or vegetable broth

Don’t add these to baby food purees

Babies don’t need salt or sugar added to their foods! After so many months on a 100% milk diet, babies are just now learning to appreciate the natural taste of foods. However, as your baby progresses with their eating, consider shaking things up by adding new, natural flavors to purees, such as small amounts of non-spicy herbs and spices like cinnamon, thyme, nutmeg, cilantro, and garlic.

Stage One Baby Food Puree Ideas

Single-ingredient purees are the safest options for young babies. This’ll help you quickly spot any possible food allergies. (Offering mixed foods can create confusion on what ingredient caused your bub’s reaction.) Other hallmarks of stage one purees: They’re thin, smooth, and easy for your baby to swallow.

Sweet Potato Puree

This easy-to-cook, high-in-fiber root vegetable will ensure your baby gets plenty of vitamin A to support the healthy development of their eyes. (It’s also rich in vitamin C.) Try piercing your sweet potatoes and roasting at 400 degrees Fahrenheit (200 degrees Celsius) for 45 minutes for a nummy caramelized flavor. (Cool before peeling and pureeing.) When Baby is ready, add a pinch of cinnamon or nutmeg to change up the flavor and broaden your baby’s developing palate.

Banana Puree

The potassium-rich starter food requires zero cooking. Score! Ripe banana puree is a tasty, convenient, affordable baby food that takes nothing more than a bit of fork-mashing. Baby will surely love it on its own, but will likely adore it when mixed with other fruit purees down the road. (Remember: Only single-ingredient purees to start!)

Avocado Puree

Babies' brains and bodies grow by leaps and bounds in their first year of life, and that growth needs to be supported by adequate nutrition. You know what’s great for that? High-calorie avocados, which are bursting with essential healthy fats. Avocados don’t need to be cooked or blended. A simple fork-mash will do. You'll know your avocado is baby-ready when it's soft to touch without being mushy and its inside is a lush, bright green.

Oatmeal Puree

Fiber- and iron-packed oatmeal is a great first food for Baby! Iron plays a crucial role in making sure your baby’s body is well supplied with oxygen. And good ol fiber keeps your little one’s digestion moving. Add 1 cup of old-fashioned oats to 2 cups of boiling water and simmer for about 5 minutes. After it’s cooled, puree in the blender or food processor for 1-2 minutes, adding liquid as you go.

Chicken Puree

Many parents worry about offering meat to babies. But pureed meats, like iron-rich chicken, are totally safe—and healthy. Chicken is not only a good source of lean protein, it’s packed with zinc, a mineral that helps your baby’s immune system function at its very best. FYI: You’ll need a powerful blender and a decent amount of liquid to puree your cooked, chopped, skinless breast meat into yummy baby food.

Stage Two Baby Food Puree Ideas: Combination Purees

After trying single ingredient foods, your baby may be ready to graduate to purees with more than one ingredient. Stage two purees are slightly thicker than stage one and can include a mix of fruits, veggies, grains, proteins, and yogurt.

Pea and Pear Puree

This constipation-fighting blend is rich in fiber from both the peas and pears. Peas also contain iron, calcium, and choline, an underrated nutrient that’s necessary for brain function and memory. Along with fiber, pears are teaming with potassium and vitamin C. Simply peel and dice your pear and steam them along with peas for about 8 to 10 minutes. Once cool, blend away.

Avocado and Pineapple Puree

Pureed avocado and pineapple offer your baby a creamy tropical taste that’ll surely excite their taste buds! Avocados are full of omega-3 fatty acids, which are essential for your baby’s healthy brain development. And pineapple is stuffed with calcium, folate, and vitamin C…making it a sweet addition to your baby’s palate. Toss one avocado and about two-thirds cup of fresh or thawed frozen pineapple into the blender or food processor and puree.

Salmon and Sweet Potato Puree

Omega-3-rich salmon is soft and easy for babies to eat—and high in protein, calcium, and vitamin D. All important nutrients for Baby. And sweet potatoes are packed with potassium, fiber, folate, and more. To make this blend as easy as can be, go ahead and use canned salmon adding as much liquid as you need to come up with the just-right texture for your baby.

Lentil and Mango Puree

Lentils are fully loaded with lots of nutrients to support your ever-growing baby, including fiber, protein, iron, zinc, calcium, potassium, phosphorus, and folate. Sweet and juicy mangoes, on the other hand, offer lots of vitamins C and A, both necessary for a healthy immune system. (Mango’s vitamin C helps Baby absorb iron from the lentils. ) Peel and chop your mango before giving it a quick steam and tossing it in the blender with your lentils. While most lentils need to soak before cooking, red lentils are an exception. Just boil them before you puree.

Quinoa and Beef Puree

Protein-packed whole grain quinoa and red meat provide B vitamins necessary for Baby’s brain to function and keep your little one’s skin, hair, and nails healthy. Try cooking up (and draining the fat from) ground beef and blending it with an equal amount of already-made quinoa, which becomes naturally soft when cooked. Add veggie stock as needed to get the proper texture.

Yogurt, Blueberry, and Flaxseed Puree

Plain, unsweetened whole milk yogurt is full of calcium and makes a great source of protein for your baby. Blending in some blueberries will add vibrant color, antioxidants and vitamin K. Bled up some flaxseeds to provide omega-3 fatty acids, fiber, and even more protein to their nutritious meal.

Apples and Peanut Butter Puree

Take apple puree to the next level by blending it with peanut butter to provide your bub with a healthy dose of magnesium, protein, and choline. (Remember, the AAP now recommends offering potential allergy foods like peanuts to babies to reduce their future risk, even noting that waiting can increase the likelihood of a reaction.) Peal, dice, steam your apples and blend once cool. Next, scoop some smooth, natural, sugar- and salt-free peanut butter into a bowl and mix with warm water until you’ve got a uniform texture. Bring both blends together for some yum! (If you feel your infant may have a food allergy, always consult with your infant’s pediatrician.)

Craving more baby meal ideas?

Best Foods for Babies 6 to 9 months

Best Foods for Babies 10 to 12 months

Baby-led Weaning Ideas

Peanut Butter How-Tos

About Gabrielle McPherson

Gabrielle McPherson, MS, RDN, LDN is registered dietitian in Missouri who specializes in community and pediatric nutrition. Gaby is passionate about encouraging families to eat well in simple, practical ways that are realistic...and delicious! When not working, Gaby loves cooking, baking, and making messes and memories with her sous-chef/preschooler Charlotte.

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Have questions about a Happiest Baby product? Our consultants would be happy to help! Connect with us at [email protected].

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