Gerber baby food spinach

Photo: Depositphotos.com. Author: morozv.

It is said that an error in the description of its composition contributed to the extraordinary popularity of the plant. Denoting the iron content, the researcher incorrectly put a comma, increasing the amount of a valuable microelement at times. But even after the discovery of inaccuracies, the hype among adherents of a healthy diet has not ended. Spinach has entered the recipes of many cuisines of the world and has taken its rightful place in the composition of industrial baby food.

In central Russia spinach is grown as an annual plant. A native of the Middle East looks like a sorrel. Rosettes of delicate bright green leaves appear at the beginning of the growing season immediately ready for use.

Contents

• What is good for the child?
• At what age should you start dating?
• The appropriate combination of products
• and fresh, and frozen
• recipes for children of the first year of life
  • Soup pure
  • Omlet with greens
  • Steam souffli with chicken
• Actings

What is useful for the child?

Spinach without exaggeration can be called a storehouse of vitamins important for a growing organism - A, B2, D, C, B6, K, E, PP. No less impressive composition of trace elements involved in the growth of all cells of the baby and strengthening the child's body as a whole. These are selenium, magnesium, phosphorus, calcium, zinc, copper, iodine, iron, manganese.

Greens are rich in flavonoids and antioxidants, dietary fiber and the carotenoid lutein. In terms of protein content, it is second only to legumes.

Spinach in baby food, due to its unique composition, contributes to:

• normalization of all types of metabolism;
• prevent rickets and build strong bones and teeth;
• strengthening the body's defenses;
• treatment of anemia;
• relief from constipation.

Antioxidants counter the damaging effects of free radicals and prevent cancer. Dietary fiber cleanses the intestines and creates a comfortable environment for the growth of beneficial microflora. Lutein boosts immunity.

And manganese, according to the director of the Center for Health Culture, nutritionist E.V. Shchetinina, is responsible for metabolic processes in the brain and has a positive effect on intelligence.

The advantages of spinach include its low calorie content and easy digestion due to the stimulation of the salivary glands and the activity of the pancreas.

At what age should you start dating?

On the shelves of specialized baby food departments there is a wide range of purees with the addition of these greens.

The German brand "Humana" recommends giving its products "Potato and Spinach" and "HiPP" "Spinach with Potatoes in Cream" to children from 4 months of age. Manufacturers Gerber (USA) Rabbit stew with spinach and Organicstar (Slovenia) Spinach, rice - for children from 8 months of age.

The availability of greens in fresh or frozen form allows you to prepare a healthy puree for your baby on their own. Such a product can be introduced into the infant's diet from 7-8 months in the amount of 50 g.

• Fresh rosettes of greens with a uniform saturated color are suitable for baby puree. Faded or yellowed leaves are of no nutritional value and must be removed.
• During heat treatment, some of the useful substances are destroyed. Therefore, the cooking time is limited to a few minutes. For the same reason, spinach is added to vegetable stews and soups at the end of cooking.
• The leaves are rich in oxalic acid. Milk or cream is added to neutralize it.
• Frozen greens do not lose their beneficial properties and do not differ much in taste from a fresh plant. But during heat treatment, frozen spinach should be added to dishes a few minutes earlier.
• In the diet of an infant, spinach can appear no more than 2 times a week.
• Only freshly prepared food is allowed to be offered to the baby. During storage, this nutritious green releases harmful nitrate salts.

From the age of 2, the child's menu can include fresh leaves of the plant, which have reached 5 cm in length. They are added to salads at the rate of 50 g per 200 g.

The right combination of products

Spinach is versatile and goes well with vegetables and meat. But in its pure form, due to the lack of a pronounced taste, it is often rejected by kids.

Does not require a long cooking time. It is added to an almost ready dish after 5 minutes of stewing in a small amount of water, after passing through a sieve.

An obligatory component of all children's dishes with spinach is milk or cream. These products are designed to neutralize oxalic acid and eliminate, perhaps, the only drawback of the product.

Vegetable and meat purees and soufflés with spinach are prepared for babies, they are added to puree soups.

Older children willingly meet in the menu bright omelettes with herbs, pies, salads and simply spinach leaves with delicious fillings: cheese, liver and egg pate, pieces of baked fish with vegetables.

Both fresh and frozen

There is no significant difference in health benefits between frozen and fresh spinach. Greens retain their rich composition even after defrosting. After the freezer, the product is immediately placed in hot water, that is, it is introduced into the dish being prepared. In this case, the loss of vitamins will be only 5%. Whereas pre-thawing in cold water will increase nutrient loss by up to 35%.

Fresh leaves are more in demand during the season. Since 2-3 small green rosettes are enough to prepare small children's portions, leftovers can be saved. To do this, spinach wrapped in a damp cotton napkin is placed in the vegetable compartment of the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Stock up on tender vitamin leaves for the winter by freezing them. Divided into small portions, frozen greens are convenient to add to different dishes for the baby over the next 3 months.

When cooking, be guided by the following proportions: frozen spinach should be taken 2 times less than fresh (according to the recipe).

The content of ascorbic acid in the leaves of the plant is not constant. In the morning, in 100 g, its amount does not exceed 85 mg, and at noon it reaches 110 mg. Therefore, it is better to harvest spinach for future use from your own beds in the afternoon.

Recipes for infants

Spinach leaves over 5 cm long can be used to prepare simple, beautiful and healthy dishes. They are thoroughly washed under running water, and the harsh stems are cut out with a knife. Next, the leaves are crushed - chopped with a knife into small squares or strips. The product is ready for heat treatment, for which 5 minutes will be enough.

The main processing method is steam. To do this, use a double boiler, slow cooker or an ordinary deep frying pan with a lid. Then the greens are thrown into a colander and, when it cools down a little, they grind. It turns out a dark green puree, which can be safely included in the children's diet.

Puree soup

Ingredients:

• 0.5 l chicken broth;
• 4 rosettes of spinach;
• 2 tbsp. l. butter;
• 50 g cream;
• 2 tbsp. l. flour;
• 20 g hard cheese.

Preparation:

1. Melt the butter in a saucepan and fry the flour on it until golden brown.
2. Pour the broth into the flour, bring to a boil, add the cooked (steamed) spinach, cream and salt to taste.
3. Bring the contents of the saucepan back to a boil and remove from heat.
4. Pour some soup into a child's bowl. You can add dill and a pinch of grated cheese.

Herb omelet

Ingredients (per serving):

• 1 egg;
• ¼ cup milk;
• incomplete tsp butter;
• 2.5 tbsp. l. water.

Cooking method:

1. Spread sliced ​​spinach into a heated frying pan with butter, add water, cover with a lid and simmer for five minutes.
2. Whisk the egg until foamy with milk and salt, pour it into a frying pan, cover with a lid.
3. 10 minutes on low heat and a delicious children's breakfast is ready.

Chicken Steam Soufflé

This delicate soufflé is designed for little gourmets who are not yet ready to chew on pieces of food.

Ingredients:

• 1 rosette fresh or 1 tbsp. l. frozen spinach;
• 1 egg;
• 30 ml milk;
• ½ cup boiled chicken meat, cut into small pieces and chopped in a blender;
• pinch of salt;
• incomplete tsp butter for greasing the mold.

Cooking method:

1. Defrost frozen spinach in a covered pan over low heat. Simply steam fresh herbs in a frying pan with the addition of a small amount of water.
2. Egg yolk, salt on the tip of a knife and milk are added to the minced chicken meat, beaten thoroughly.
3. Separately, beat the egg white until foamy and add, stirring gently, to the minced meat.
4. Grease a baking dish with butter and fill 2/3 full.
5. Soufflé can be prepared in a double boiler by covering the contents of the form with oiled paper, and only then with a lid. There is another way: the mold is placed in a larger container filled with water, and all together they are sent to the oven for half an hour (at a temperature of 180 ° C).
6. It remains to cool the soufflé and carefully remove it from the mould.

Steamed spinach soufflé can be made with veal, fish, courgettes and Brussels sprouts. And for an afternoon snack, the option with cottage cheese is perfect.

Precautions

Tender green spinach rosettes are not as safe as you might think. In some cases, the plant is deceitful and causes an allergy in a child. The reason is the high protein content. Characterized by the appearance of pain in the abdomen, loose stools and vomiting, while skin rashes fade into the background.

It is not recommended to introduce spinach into the baby's diet on its own if close relatives are allergic to this plant.

The second important thing to keep in mind is the presence of oxalic acid in the greens. By binding with calcium, it forms hardly soluble compounds - oxalates, which impede the outflow of urine in diseases of the kidneys and urinary system. In the presence of indicated ailments, spinach is contraindicated in the child's diet.

At what age can a child be given parsley?

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Author: Yakusheva Tatyana

Spinach puree: composition, useful properties

Description

Spinach is one of the most useful vegetables in the world. Therefore, it is not surprising that mashed spinach has become associated with a healthy diet, and also entered the list of products recommended for children. This product is a rich source of vitamin A and calcium, elements that are essential for the healthy growth and development of babies. In cooking, spinach puree is used as a base for making soups, sauces and creams.

Interesting! The popularity of spinach and its products among children was facilitated by the release of comics, and later the animated series about the adventures of the sailor Popeye. This lovable hero became extremely strong by eating a can of canned spinach.

Origin

Persia (modern Iran) is considered to be the birthplace of spinach. This product owes its appearance in Europe to the Moorish conquests in Spain, as well as to the campaigns of the crusaders. The Spanish monks were the first to appreciate the beneficial properties of spinach, and this vegetable began to be grown in monastic gardens.

In the 16th-17th c. spinach is becoming a popular delicacy in many European countries: it was added to bread, juice was used to decorate dishes, and pureed soups were prepared with the addition of other vegetables.

As a baby food, spinach puree was prepared at home until the middle of the 20th century. The Industrial Revolution ushered in a baby food market that became associated with convenience. The leading manufacturers of spinach baby puree are HJ Heinz Company, Nestle, Nutricia, Organix, Humana, etc.

Preparation

Spinach puree is easy to make at home. To do this, it is important to follow a few tips:

1. You can puree fresh or frozen spinach. When choosing fresh spinach, it is necessary to give preference to not sluggish leaves of a dark green color without inclusions.
2. Rinse fresh spinach leaves with plenty of water and pat dry with paper towels. Don't let spinach soak in water, as this can reduce the amount of nutrients in the product.
3. It is recommended to steam spinach in boiling water to reduce acidity. To do this, you can use a colander, place the washed leaves in it and dip in boiling water for about 1 minute.
4. Steamed spinach leaves are puréed in a food processor or blender. To achieve the desired consistency of the product, add a little water to it.
5. Spinach goes well with many vegetables and other foods. When preparing spinach puree, boiled carrots, potatoes, chicken, fish, rice can be added to it.

Important! Most pediatricians recommend introducing mashed spinach to babies no earlier than 8 months of age, and then only if home grown spinach is used.

Composition

Fresh spinach is rich in vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients. In the process of making puree, some of them are destroyed, but this product continues to be a good source of useful trace elements.

For example, one cup of spinach puree contains: 213 mg vitamin A, 3 mg pantothenic acid, 2.1 mg nicotinic acid, 0.1 mg riboflavin, 0.1 mg thiamine, 16.9 mcg folic acid, 151 mg phosphorus , 81 mg potassium, 42 mg calcium, 19 mg sodium, 2.1 mg magnesium, 1.5 mg iron, 30 mg selenium, as well as small amounts of copper, manganese and other elements.

Curious! Although mashed spinach contains iron and calcium, these nutrients are not well absorbed by the body. This is prevented by the oxalates contained in the product.

Useful properties

Eating spinach puree contributes to:

• regular replenishment of the diet with vitamins and minerals, prevention and treatment of beriberi;
• increasing the body's resistance to various infectious diseases;
• strengthen blood vessels;
• to cleanse the blood, increase hemoglobin and fight anemia;
• development and strengthening of bone and muscle tissue.
• improvement of vision, prevention of many eye diseases;
• normalization of the functioning of the pancreas, improvement of digestion;
• the establishment of carbohydrate metabolism in the body;
• cleanse the body, as it has a slight laxative effect;
• Spinach products have a mild sedative effect, provide healthy sleep and relaxation, help overcome fatigue, help treat various disorders of the nervous system.

Precautions

The benefits of mashed spinach are significant, but there are a few things to keep in mind:

• spinach products contain a large amount of oxalic acid, so their abuse can lead to the development of diseases of the liver, kidneys, gallbladder and duodenum or exacerbate existing diseases of these organs;
• large amounts of mashed spinach thin the blood and are inconsistent with certain medications such as warfarin;
• spinach products increase the risk of gallstones and kidney stones because they are high in oxalates;
• spinach is a vegetable that can accumulate pesticides as it grows, which can cause serious disturbances in the functioning of the body.

How to choose and store

When choosing spinach for puree, it is advisable to give preference to a vegetable grown in natural conditions. It is important that the spinach leaves are young and fresh. Old spinach leaves contain less nutrients and more oxalic acid. Spinach leaves should be washed just before mashing.

Homemade spinach puree cannot be stored for a long time. It is best to consume it completely as soon as it is cooked. As a commercial baby food, this product should be kept within the expiration date printed on the package.

When buying baby spinach puree, it is important to pay attention to the integrity of the container, as well as the composition of the product. It should not contain chemical dyes, preservatives and other food additives.

Calories 16kcal

Energy value of the product (ratio of proteins, fats, carbohydrates): Proteins: 2.0g ( ∼ 8 kcal)
Fat: 0.1g. ( ∼ 0.

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