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Favorite baby food flavors


10 Popular Baby Food Flavors, Ranked Yummiest To Grossest By A Mom

When a not-so-little-anymore little one reaches the exciting phase of starting solids, parents are usually a bit more excited about this new phase than their little ones. But trying new things can be an exciting experience for everyone involved.

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And with all the first food options it can be a little tough to pick just one flavor for a baby's first solid. But, since moms know their little ones and the look on a baby's face at the first taste of his or her first solid food is kind of priceless, take a look at this list of yummiest to grossest solid foods for a little food-spiration.

10/10 Bananas

Call mom crazy, but bananas seem to be the yummiest choice for baby's first solid food. They are sweet and soft enough for toothless mouths, pretty bright in color and they smell nice. What's not to love? With so many choices of baby food on the market it may be hard to choose just one but judging by the faces babies make, bananas is one of the safest options he or she is sure to love.

9/10 The Orange Root

If mom is feeling more veggie-friendly for baby's first solid, think carrots. They are high in beta carotene which is great for helping your little one develop great eyesight, not to mention that they are sweet tasting yet really healthy. If jarred goods aren't really mom's thing, try steaming the real deal for a while until they're soft. For an extra kick, they can even be mixed with baby's milk of choice.

8/10 The Saucy Apple

Apple sauce is such a fun "big boy or girl" choice for baby's first solids. Also, the added spices in apple sauce, like cinnamon, are great to expose your little one to at an early age, not to mention cinnamon's natural antibacterial properties which are great for fighting off yucky illnesses young babies are prone to getting before their immune systems are fully developed.

7/10 Super Food Avocado

When it comes to a baby's first, avocado, depending on the season and availability should be one of the first. The creamy texture and numerous health benefits is bound to make the famous super-food, avocado a crowd-pleaser. Some moms have found that on occasion babies don't care for the taste, while other babies grin and eat it up, which is why it's ranked in the middle of our list. So give it a try, and let your little one decide.

6/10 The Sweet Potato

For an iron-rich, fiber-intense, baby food, check out the sweet potato. Most babies really like the earthy nature of the sweet potato and of course the sweetness which is not too overpowering.

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Most stores carry sweet potato as a baby food option, but if you're feeling adventurous steam the potato and mash it up for baby to try. This is lower on our list so mom makes no guarantees that he or she will love it, but of all the baby food flavors available this is by far one of the better choices.

5/10 Boom! Splat! Squash!

For the coolest onomatopoeia that also doubles as a vegetable, try squash for baby's first solid. Enjoy making a squashing sound while he or she is eating. There are at least 8 types of common squash mom can find around town, most commonly during Autumn, it's hard to go wrong with this as a baby food. Consider erring on the sweeter side for firsts, however. Think: butternut squash or pumpkin to start. Again this isn't all baby's cup of tea so you never know.

4/10 Rice Cereal

Mom isn't sure if it's the texture or just her tots that enjoy frowning up his and her faces at the sight of rice cereal, but this one is definitely ranked grosser on the list of common baby foods.

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To be fair, there are many different kinds of cereal on the market, which is not to say that your little one will dislike all of the types of rice cereal available, but from mom's perspective the consistency needs to be just right and tricks, like adding milk instead of water or mixing off the heat, can really make all the difference.

3/10 The Pea Sized Vegetable

Peas! Okay if we're being honest it can be difficult to find any child, from baby to pre-adolescent that gets excited about eating their peas. Unfortunately for moms who are looking for a first baby food, that same sentiment applies. Many babies just do not care for peas. Perhaps it's the pea skin that slips off when mashed, or maybe it's just the way they taste, but many babies spit out their servings of peas.

2/10 Spinach

If it was good enough for Popeye why not good enough for the baby? Well, for the jarred baby food spinach in the grocery store, sometimes there is a strange smell, one can't be entirely sure if this is the reason little ones shy away from the leafy green, but it's certainly off-putting to mom.

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For the real deal, i.e. the non jarred stuff, it's almost impossible to get the strands ground up into a creamy texture, suitable for a first baby food. Some add cream to make this a non-factor. Either way, most babies frown up and do a hard pass on the stuff.

1/10 Beans

Yuck! Okay maybe not yuck entirely, but, many moms have found that their little ones do not like beans at all for a first form of solid food. Sure, they can be mashed and made baby edible, but beans are far from being baby's first choice of food. Although there may be hundreds of varieties of beans very few are on the sweeter side, which generally is baby's preference since they are somewhat born with a sweet palate. Happy first solids!

NEXT: 10 Things To Know About Babies & Food Allergies

What Are the Different Flavors of Baby Food? (with pictures)

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M.C. Huguelet

Whether one buys baby food or prepares it at home, there are many different flavors that can be offered to babies at mealtimes. Understanding the different flavors of baby food can make it easier for caregivers to decide which ones to choose for their babies. The most common flavors of baby food generally fall into one of five categories: fruits, vegetables, meats, meals, and desserts. When deciding which flavors of baby food to choose, it is important to note that a flavor’s suitability may depend on a baby’s age. Finally, some health experts suggest avoiding store-bought baby food from the meal and dessert categories, as they may contain unwanted ingredients.

Many common flavors of baby food fall within the fruit category. Some fruit baby food consists of a single fruit, such as apples, bananas, peaches, or mangoes, that has been cooked and then strained or pureed. Other fruit baby foods contain two or more types of fruit that have been blended together.

Vegetable baby foods are also popular. As with the fruit category, many vegetable baby food flavors consist of a single ingredient, like carrots, peas, or sweet potatoes, that has been cooked and then mashed, strained, or pureed. It is also possible to buy or prepare mixed vegetable baby foods, which feature a blend of two or more vegetables.

Some flavors of baby food are modeled after adult meals, but with a milder taste and a softer texture that babies can enjoy. For instance, it is possible to buy or make macaroni and cheese, chicken and rice, and ham and peas for babies. After they are cooked, the ingredients in these meal-style baby foods are usually pureed to a smooth texture.

Certain flavors of baby food can be classified as desserts. Like meal-style baby foods, these foods are intended to mimic adult desserts, but with a mild flavor and a smooth consistency. Examples of baby food dessert flavors include banana pudding and apple cobbler.

Caregivers who are overwhelmed by the many different flavors of baby food available in stores may find it helpful to know that not every flavor is suitable for every baby. Foods that consist of a single, well-pureed ingredient are generally best for young babies. Conversely, baby food flavors that contain multiple ingredients that are a bit “chunkier” in texture tend to be better for older babies. Usually, a baby food’s label indicates which age group it is most appropriate for.

Some nutrition experts caution that store-bought meal-style and dessert flavors of baby food should be avoided. This is because these foods can contain high levels of starch as well as added ingredients that may not be healthful, such as sugar and corn syrup. Caregivers who wish to feed their babies these types of baby food might want to consider preparing them at home.

Fruit purees: what are

Reviewer Kovtun Tatiana Anatolievna September 15, 2021

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The first stage of complementary foods has been successfully completed, and your baby has already got acquainted with the whole variety of vegetable purees and cereals. And he may even have favorite flavors. Now is the time to please the baby and invite him to take a journey into the world of sweet and delicious fruit purees. About what they are, we will talk with you.

Fruit purees, like vegetable purees, are single-component and multi-component.

For the first acquaintance, you should choose one-component, that is, those fruit purees that consist of one type of fruit.

Remember how, when choosing a vegetable puree, you gave preference to hypoallergenic vegetables: zucchini, broccoli and cauliflower? The same rule applies when choosing fruit. Experts advise starting fruit complementary foods with apple and pear puree, as they cause allergic reactions less often than others.

Puree rules

The rules for introducing fruit puree into the baby's diet are the same as for the rest of complementary foods:

  • We offer a new product for the baby in the first half of the day, optimally - in the second morning feeding.
  • First serving - ½ teaspoon.
  • During the week, the portion increases to the recommended age norm.
  • After introducing your baby to apple and pear puree, peach, plum, banana or apricot puree can be offered.

Multi-ingredient purees

And then you can already offer multi-component fruit purees:

  • Fruit and berry.

    Fruit and berry puree is an opportunity to introduce your baby to berries. He can gladly feast on apple-blueberry puree or any other similar. Multi-component fruit and fruit and berry purees are an excellent option for an afternoon snack for a child after 6 months, when the baby can already be given fruit puree with cookies - it is satisfying, tasty and healthy.

  • Fruit and cereals.

    There are also fruit and grain purees on the market. Their composition, as a rule, includes cereals: oatmeal, corn and wheat.

  • Fruit and milk.

    And, of course, we should also talk about fruit and milk purees: apricot with cream, peach with cottage cheese, and so on. Fruit and milk purees are very nutritious due to the milk component.

Food diary is not an empty phrase

And it's not just a possible allergic reaction. Each baby develops individually, which means that at 6 months one baby may be ready to consume multi-component fruit purees, and it is too early for the second to introduce such a product. So there is no need to rush and it is better to wait.

And one more important point: it often happens that the baby's body simply does not accept this or that fruit. There is no rash, other obvious allergic reactions too, but the baby bites, he starts colic or loose stools. This is an occasion to temporarily abandon the fruit puree, which is currently being introduced into the baby's diet. It is necessary to carefully study the food diary of the crumbs and seek the advice of a specialist.

Fruit purees are an excellent product for the baby and for the mother. Little gourmets eat them with great pleasure, and a mother can always take fruit puree in a soft package with her and not worry about a healthy snack for her baby. It won't take long for your baby to demand a whole apple or peach. In the meantime, what do you have for an afternoon snack today: mashed pears or apples?

What to look for when choosing puree

    When choosing baby fruit puree in the store, you should definitely pay attention to:

  • The puree was appropriate for the age of the child.
  • Puree was free from preservatives, thickeners and any other food additives.
  • Puree packaging has not been deformed.
  • The packaging of the puree must have the manufacturer's marking and the expiration date.

Fruit purees contain natural sugars (fructose, sucrose, glucose), organic acids and vegetable fibers. In addition, they are rich in minerals (mainly potassium) and vitamins (C and beta-carotene).

Reviewer Kovtun Tatiana Anatolievna

Scientific Advisor to PROGRESS JSC, Candidate of Medical Sciences

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Homemade baby puree: recipes

Homemade fruit and vegetable puree: cooking secrets

Vegetable and fruit puree is often the first meal of the baby after breast milk or formula, so many mothers prefer to prepare it themselves. Although modern manufacturers convince us that baby food is devoid of preservatives and harmful additives, fresh vegetables and fruits are much healthier, especially when it comes to infant nutrition. Yes, and cooking baby puree at home is not so difficult.

Vegetables or fruits?

Let's try to make baby puree for our beloved baby. Despite the fact that pediatricians of the last century recommended starting complementary foods with fruits, it is better to first introduce the child to vegetables - modern doctors and nutritionists have come to this conclusion. Boiled vegetables do not irritate the gastrointestinal tract, are better absorbed, satisfy hunger, do not cause allergies and increased gas formation. In addition, vegetables do not contain fructose, which irritates the pancreas. And one more weighty argument in favor of the fact that it is better to start with vegetables - fruits are tastier, and if the baby tries them first, he will refuse vegetables, because they will seem to him more insipid.

How to prepare baby vegetable puree

What can baby puree be made from? The ideal puree for the first feeding is from cauliflower or zucchini. A little later, you can introduce pumpkin, broccoli, carrots, potatoes and green peas. Before cooking, vegetables are washed well, peeled, cut into pieces and cooked - steamed, in the oven or in the usual way, in water. The first two methods are preferable because oven roasting and steaming preserve the vitamins, minerals, nutrients, and natural color in the vegetables. And most importantly - such vegetables are much tastier. Some nutritionists recommend boiling vegetables with their skins on before peeling them, so choose your own cooking method.

If you do have to boil vegetables in a saucepan, use an enamel pot, add less water, and lower the vegetables into boiling water. Boil until soft, but do not overcook vegetables and fruits, otherwise they will become tasteless and lose a lot of vitamins. Ready vegetables are chopped with a blender until smooth and slightly diluted with water, vegetable broth, breast milk or mixture to a gruel state, since the child does not yet know how to digest thick food. Small pieces of vegetables in puree sometimes cause the baby to refuse to eat, so the knives in the blender should be well sharpened, and if there is no technique, you can grind the vegetables through a sieve. Salt and spices are usually not added to baby vegetable puree, and if the baby is more than 6 months old, you can put a little butter in the puree.

A few rules for making baby puree at home

  • Use only fresh vegetables and fruits.
  • Water for cooking vegetables must be filtered or bottled.
  • If you are using frozen foods, choose only whole fruits and vegetables as they retain the most nutrients.
  • All utensils for preparing baby food should be perfectly clean, so if the knife falls on the floor, it should be washed well. Also, the presence of pets in the kitchen during the cooking process is not allowed.
  • Do not include high nitrate vegetables and fruits in infants' diets such as spinach, lettuce, beetroot, melon and watermelon.
  • Store-bought vegetables are recommended to be soaked in water to remove nitrates: 1-2 hours for this, up to 24 hours for potatoes.
  • Mix sour-tasting fruits and berries with sweet fruits - for example, blackcurrant goes well with banana or pear. Sour puree is unlikely to please the baby.
  • Give your child only fresh food, but yesterday's puree from the refrigerator is better to eat yourself.

DIY fruit puree for children

Children are more likely to eat fruit puree, as fruits are tastier and sweeter. Fruits contain a large amount of vitamins, minerals, trace elements, fiber and antioxidants, so they are very useful for a growing organism. However, fruits are strong allergens, especially berries, bananas, pomegranates and apricots, so they should be given with caution, watching the child's reaction. The most low-allergenic fruits are apples and pears, so it is better to start complementary foods with them, and then introduce all other fruits. First, the baby is fed with a one-component puree made from only one product, and then you can mix different vegetables and fruits, and not only among themselves. Very tasty combinations of fruits and vegetables, such as apples and zucchini, pumpkins and pears.

Fruit must be of good quality, without damage, ripe and juicy, and the rules for preparing fruits do not differ from the rules for cooking vegetables. Naturally, fruit puree is not sweetened with honey and sugar - the later the child learns the taste of sugar, the stronger his health will be.

Aromatic pumpkin puree

Babies love to eat pumpkin because of its pleasant sweetish taste, besides pumpkin is very healthy. It contains a whole storehouse of various vitamins, including vitamin T, which normalizes the metabolism in the body. For pumpkin puree, small pumpkins are suitable, since large fruits are not as tasty and difficult to peel.

Cut the pumpkin in half, and then into small pieces, one or two of which (depending on the appetite of the crumbs) cut into cubes. Boil the pumpkin in a double boiler or in water for 20 minutes, while warm, beat with a blender to a smooth puree and dilute if necessary with water or a mixture. Add oil and salt depending on the age of the child.

Gentle Broccoli Puree

One of my favorite homemade baby puree recipes is broccoli. This cabbage is extremely useful because it contains potassium, iron, calcium and other valuable substances. It has much more vitamin C than lemon, and the reason for its nutritional value is its high protein content.

Separate the broccoli into florets, wash thoroughly and steam for 20 minutes. Cabbage cooks faster in water - fresh broccoli will take 7 minutes, and frozen - about 15 minutes. Broccoli puree does not need much water, it should lightly coat the vegetables. After the cabbage becomes soft, chop it in a blender or pass through a sieve. If you're mashing for kids older than a year old, be sure to add butter - the little ones will gobble up broccoli on both cheeks!

How to make baby pear puree at home

Pear is a very delicate, tasty and healthy fruit that rarely causes intolerance. In addition to the high vitamin value, the pear has other beneficial properties - it facilitates digestion and removes toxins from the body.

For baby food, choose green pears to reduce the risk of allergies, which are rare among babies. Peel the fruits from the peel and core with seeds, and then stew the pear in a bowl with a thick bottom in a small amount of water for 15 minutes. Let the pear cool slightly and puree it in a blender with a little of the remaining pear broth. For large kids, fruits can not be boiled, but add half a teaspoon of natural honey to the puree.

Zucchini and apple puree

Little gourmets will love this delicious puree, besides, zucchini is considered the most hypoallergenic vegetables, which, due to their high potassium content, have a beneficial effect on the heart. Apples contain iodine, iron and phosphorus, and due to the high concentration of vitamin C, apples help in the prevention of colds and viral infections.

Wash the zucchini and apples well, de-seed them, cut into pieces and cook in a pot for about 20 minutes, considering that the zucchini cooks 5 minutes faster. By the way, apples are steamed for 15 minutes, zucchini - 10 minutes. Next, vegetables and fruits are chopped in a blender, mixed and brought to a boil. For allergic children, this is the best side dish!

Exotic mango

Sometimes you can pamper your baby with exotic fruits - for example, make mango puree. This is a very delicate fruit with an original taste, containing 12 amino acids and improving sleep.

Choose only ripe fruits that are soft and reddish-yellow in color. Peel the mango from a thick skin and a large bone, put the pulp in a blender, add 2 tbsp. l. water and mash it, and then heat it in a saucepan for several minutes. For a baby up to a year old, it is better to give mashed potatoes with heat treatment to facilitate digestion, and older children can be fed raw mangoes.

Carrot-Potato Puree

Make normal potato puree without oil. Peel the carrots, grate them and stew them with butter and vegetable broth - about 1 tsp is required for 200 g of carrots. butter and 150 g of broth. When the carrot becomes very soft, wipe it through a sieve, and then put it on a plate, put mashed potatoes on the second half. Let the child choose whether to mix two types of puree for him or eat separately!

Pumpkin and apple puree

This sweet, sugar-free pumpkin-apple puree, cooked in a double boiler, is suitable for children who are already accustomed to “adult” food and are able to perceive a new unusual dish. It is better to take a pumpkin with a gray or green skin and with bright pulp - such fruits contain more vitamins and other useful substances. Apples are green because they have fewer allergens.

Cut pumpkin and apple flesh without peel or seeds into pieces, place in a steamer and cook for 20 minutes. Grind pumpkin, apples and raisins in a blender or by hand with a pusher if the child has already learned to chew. They say that this puree is very good for skin and hair, and you can check the truth of this statement yourself if you start feeding this dish to your baby.

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