No prep, nutrient dense first foods
I hope I hooked you at these two little words: No. Prep.
As much as I love spending time preparing food from scratch (that sounds sarcastic but really I do love it!), occasionally I just need something for by 7 month old to eat. Like, now.
The thing about no prep foods is that they aren’t usually up-to-par nutritionally (I’m thinking of most ready to eat snacks like cookies, chips, granola bars, etc). But that isn’t always the case.
Nutrient density is a term you often hear dietitians throw around and it refers to the amount of nutrients present in a food relative to its weight. A food that is nutrient dense has a lot of nutrients packed into every bite no matter how tiny, something that is super important for babies. Why?
Babies have small bellies and fill up quickly
Their nutrient needs are high
Babies don’t always want to spend a lot of time eating, so every bite counts
Fruits, veggies, and grains are definitely a source of important nutrients, but they don’t compare to animal foods when it comes to nutrients important to little ones such as heme iron (the most easily absorbed form of iron), zinc, and fat. There are however a few veggies that pack in special benefits for little ones in the list below. For more on important nutrients for babies, check out this post.
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No-Prep, Nutrient Dense First Foods (babies 6 months and older)
Plain, whole milk yogurt: Rich in fat that babies need, in addition to calcium and vitamin D. Offers probiotic bacteria and introduction to a sour flavor.
Pumpkin puree: High in plant based, non-heme iron. Iron from plants is not as easily absorbed as iron from animal foods (more on iron here). Pumpkin is also a great source of soluble fiber and can work wonders for preventing constipation.
Sardines, mackerel, oysters, or canned salmon: One of the most nutrient dense foods you can offer little tums. All of these varieties are low in mercury and typically wild caught. They are also less expensive than their fresh or frozen counterparts. Along with naturally occurring vitamin D and calcium, canned fish is also high in DHA, an omega-3 fatty acid that may be especially important to babies due to its role in brain development.
Avocado: One of my favorite veggies (actually a fruit but it feels wrong to call it that) for baby. Fat needs for babies make up about 50% of their daily caloric intake! It is one of the most important nutrients to focus on along with iron and zinc.
Serenity Kids pouches: After doing months of research on designer baby foods for a presentation, I was shocked to find that only ONE brand offers pouches containing bio-available (easily absorbed) sources of iron and zinc. All of the brands discuss these nutrients and their role in brain development, one of the brands is even named after the brain, but none of them offered iron-rich animal sourced (heme) iron. I am a big fan of BLW or making your own purees, but if you reach for a packaged puree option, this is the best one out there.
To try Serenity Kids for 15% off, use my code MORTON15 at checkout.
