Baby Led Weaning Foods
It was Gill Rapley, writer of Baby Led Weaning: The Essential Guide to Introducing Solid Food, that first introduced the term and it became super popular throughout the following decade.
The feeding approach known as baby-led weaning is a style of feeding infants that allows them to feed themselves right from the start. In other words, baby-led weaning facilitates the development of age-appropriate oral motor control while maintaining eating as a positive, interactive experience. Baby-led weaning allows babies to control their solid food consumption by "self-feeding" from the start of their experience with food. The term weaning does not imply giving up breast milk or formula, but simply indicates the introduction of foods other than breast milk or formula.
Benefits of Baby-led Weaning (BLW)
One of the many reasons that people are starting to opt for this style of feeding more and more is because it’s easy. In many cases, you can modify foods you’re already making to share with your baby and there’s not always a lot of separate cooking involved. It also allows a baby to have control over what goes into their mouths, which sets a good precedent for letting them eat intuitively from the start.
BLW helps build your baby’s confidence and independence with food,
You don’t have to make special purees as babies eat the same as the rest of the family, as long as it’s cooked suitably,
Babies join in with family mealtimes from the start,
It can encourage chewing and hand-eye coordination skills,
Not enough long-term research has been done around BLW yet, but some evidence suggests that BLW may reduce fussy eating and childhood obesity.
Introducing Solid Foods in your Baby’s Diet
Babies are ready for the next big step when:
They’ve doubled their birth weight.
They can hold their head up well and are starting to sit up unsupported.
They show signs of being interested in food, such as watching you eat, reaching for food when you’re eating.
When you feed them, they are able to move the food around in their mouths, rather than spit it right out.
You can check out more about Babies’ Nutrition here.
Tips for Baby-led Weaning
Make sure your baby has hit the milestones listed above to let you know that he or she is ready to start.
Remember that solid foods are not a replacement for breast milk or formula, so don’t put that aside and continue feeding your baby with it.
Get the highchair ready and adjust the straps and footrest as needed. Choose a highchair that allows them to sit up straight and has foot support.
Plan to introduce water when you start solids. You can use a sippy cup or a small open cup.
Choose one food to start with and plan to offer only one food at a time, every 3 or 4 days. You should start first with vegetables, then fruits and finally proteins.
When offering food to your baby, cut them into small pieces, but not small because your baby can chock. Specifically, cut foods the size of a finger, about a 4-inch stick.
If your baby shows signs of not wanting more food, such as starting to fuss, turning the head around, or any other, don’t force them.
Understand the gag reflex. Gagging is different from choking and is most often a sign that your baby is learning to move food around in their mouths and to get it out of their mouths, which is a much-needed skill.
Gagging vs Chocking
As mentioned before, gagging and choking are similar which make some parents confused and worried about their baby. However, here’s some helpful guidance:
Make sure your baby is able to sit steadily and sits upright when she’s eating. Ensure she can use her hands and arms freely,
Cut fruit into little pieces, even small fruit such as grapes. Grapes are often a favourite food of babies, but are known to be a choking risk if not chopped up,
Remove any stones or cores from fruit and vegetable,
Explain how baby-led weaning works to anyone caring for your baby,
Don’t let anyone except your baby put food into her mouth,
And never leave your baby alone with food.
Foods to Avoid
Anything hard, sticky, or crunchy – like raw apple or carrot, whole nuts, crackers, seeds, or a big spoonful of nut butter.
Added salt and Added sugar – your baby doesn’t need it since it has no nutrients.
Cow’s milk – because is difficult for kids under 1 to digest. However, plain yoghurt is fine.
Honey – studies show that honey can bring a risk of botulism to your baby.
Liver.
Super slippery foods that would be hard for baby to hold – which can cause your baby to feel frustrated.
5 BABY LED WEANING FOODS RECIPES
1) Baby Led Weaning Foods: Oven-roasted Veggie Sticks
Ingredients: 750g mixed vegetables, such as carrots, parsnips, or sweet potatoes,
1 whole red pepper,
1 whole yellow or orange pepper,
2 tbsp olive oil.
Directions: Preheat the oven to 180C/ Gas Mark 4.
Wash the root vegetables vigorously, peel or scrape and cut into long chunks. And peel and de-seed the peppers, then chop into chunky sticks about 1.5cm wide.
Spread the root vegetables out on a greased baking tray and brush them with the olive oil until evenly coated.
Roast in the oven for 30 minutes, then add the pepper sticks and continue roasting for a further 10 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender when pierced with a fork.
Serve as a portion of finger food for toddlers or mash the roasted root vegetables for babies.
2) Baby Led Weaning Foods: Sweetcorn and Spinach Fritters
Ingredients: 1 x small can no-salt sweetcorn, drained,
small handful baby spinach leaf,
1 small garlic clove, crushed,
1 spring onion, chopped,
50g plain flour,
½ tsp baking powder,
1 egg,
50ml milk,
1 tsp rapeseed oil, for frying.
Directions: Pulse all the ingredients except the oil in a food processor until fairly but not completely smooth.
Heat a little oil in a frying pan until hot and dollop four spoonfuls of the mixture into the pan leaving space around them. Fry for just under 1 minute on each side until lightly golden. When you flip the fritter, flatten with a spatula to ensure even cooking the whole way through. Cook in three batches, placing the cooked fritters on a plate covered with kitchen roll. Serve warm.
3) Baby Led Weaning Foods: Herb-buttered Baby Carrots
Ingredients: 80g butter, softened,
1 tbsp finely chopped tarragon,
1½ tbsp finely chopped parsley,
½ tbsp wholegrain mustard,
1kg baby carrots.
Directions: Mash the butter in a bowl with the tarragon, parsley, and mustard, as well as some seasoning. Cover and chill until needed.
Trim the long green tops off the carrots and wash under cold running water, scrubbing them with a clean scourer to get rid of any dirt. Halve the carrots lengthways so they're all the same size, and put in a large, microwave-proof bowl with 3 tbsp water. Cover the carrots with a microwaveable plate or lid and heat on full power for 8-10 mins until just tender. Drain, then toss with the herby butter and serve straightaway.
4) Baby Led Weaning Foods: Salmon and Sweet Potatoes Muffins
Ingredients: oil, for greasing,
1 lightly smoked salmon fillet,
1 small sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1cm cubes (about 125g),
4 eggs,
a few chives snipped,
Directions: Heat the oven to 200C/ Gas Mark 6 and grease a baking tray and six holes of a muffin tin. Put the salmon on the tray and cook for 10 mins or until cooked through. Allow to cool enough to handle, then flake the fish, removing any bones and skin.
Meanwhile, put the sweet potato in a steamer over boiling water and steam for 8-10 mins or until tender. Drain.
Beat the eggs with a little black pepper and the chives. Stir in the salmon and potato and spoon the mixture into the muffin tin. Bake for 10-12 minutes until the eggs are set. Leave for a minute or two and then use a knife to carefully remove the muffins.
5) Baby Led Weaning Foods: Chicken Meatballs
Ingredients: ½ celery stick, cut into small chunks,
1 small carrot, cut into small chunks,
500g boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into chunks,
a few chives snipped,
olive oil, for greasing.
Directions: Heat the oven to 200C/ Gas Mark 6.
Blitz the celery, carrot, chicken, and chives in a food processor until finely chopped. You may need to use a spatula to scrape the sides of the bowl a few times.
Shape into small meatballs. If freezing, space out on a tray and put in the freezer. Once frozen, transfer to a freezer bag and take them out when needed. Defrost thoroughly in the fridge before cooking.
To cook, put on a baking tray lined with greased foil and bake for 10 mins or until browned and cooked through.
Serve with steamed broccoli.
