Great Grains

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The more moms I talk to, the more I realize that the most common first food is rice cereal.  Dylan's first taste of "solid" food was Gerber Brand baby rice cereal.  To be honest, at the time, I never even realized that making rice cereal was an option, I just assumed that it had to come from a box!  The more I read, and the more I studied natural solutions for baby food, I quickly learned that baby grains didn't have to come from a box and it was just as easy as making yourself a bowl of whole oats.

Instant baby cereals are processed, precooked and then dehydrated.  They are often made from grain that has been processed and then milled into a flour.  Although commercial baby cereal is definitely more convenient then making it from scratch, the cooking and processing leaches the nutritional value from the grains. 

You can make your own single gain cereals.  Try 1 cup brown rice, oatmeal, or barley pulverized in the food processor or coffee grinder.  When preparing oatmeal do not use instant or quick oats.  Add one cup boiling water and stir continuously for 5-10 minutes.  Add breast milk or formula until you reach the consistency you like.  Never boil breast milk or heat breast milk in the microwave.  Boiling or microwaving will damage the valuable vitamins, minerals, and antibodies in the milk.

Great 1st Grains:

• Brown Rice 
• Barley
• Wheat
• Oats

Now that Dylan's eating finger foods, I have also introduced Quinoa (pronounced /ˈkiːnoʊ.ə/ or /kwɨˈnoʊ.ə/).
Quinoa contains a balanced set of essential amino acids, making it an unusually complete protein source among plant foods. It is a good source of dietary fiber and phosphorus and is high in magnesium and iron. Quinoa is gluten-free and considered easy to digest. Quinoa has a light, fluffy texture, and has a mild, nutty flavor.

Preparation: You will need to rinse and soak the Quinoa grains.  I soak them overnight.  I cook it in the rice cooker, but you can cook it on the stove.  Bring 2 cups of water to a boil and add one cup of Quinoa, cover and let simmer for about 15 minutes.  I have also substituted water for vegetable stock...gives it extra flavor! add cheese, veggies, and/or seasoning and you have a great option for lunch or dinner!

Baby rice cereal doesn't have to be baby's first food.  Read the link below:
http://www.pediatricnews.com/article/S0031-398X%2809%2970296-6/fulltext

Veggie Tales

My son started eating pureed veggies at 6 months which is the current recommendation from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).  I knew he was ready for solid foods because he was constantly eying whatever was on our plates.  If he was sitting on my lap while I was eating he would open his mouth as I brought the food to my mouth...very cute until he started grabbing for the plate, fork, spoon or anything within reach.  The first puree he had was peas.  The pediatrician gave me a list of least allergic foods to start with and they consisted of peas, carrots, butternut squash, sweet potatoes, avocados, bananas, pears, applesauce, and peaches.  Luckily we don't have any real allergies in our family except my husband gets this weird rash on his forehead when he eats tomato sauce and I get tingly lips when I eat pineapple...but other then that, we are allergy free.  So I was pretty confident that Dylan would be o.k. when it came to introducing new foods.  I always observed the 4 day rule when starting a new food, and always gave the new food in the morning because I figured if he had an allergic reaction, I didn't want it happening in the middle of the night.

Once I knew Dylan could tolerate all single ingredient purees, I started mixing things up...literally.  He went through a stage where he only wanted bananas, so in order to get him to eat his veggies I mixed in bananas.  Sounds gross I know, but if that's what it took to get him to eat spinach, then that's what I did.  He really loved avocados and banana.  You wouldn't think that would taste good, but surprisingly it isn't that bad.  The nice thing about this combination is that you don't need to pull out the food processor...both ingredients are soft enough to mush with a fork and you can just mix in breast milk or formula to thin it out.  See recipe below.

The other veggie that my son loves is sweet potatoes.  They are high in beta carotene and contain vitamin B- 6, which helps the body use carbohydrates, protein, and fat needed for healthy skin, nerves, and circulation. I serve it to him pureed, but now that he is 8 and 1/2 months I just steam it and give him small chunks mushed with a fork.  He really likes picking it up with his fingers and feeding himself.


Avocado Banana Mush
1/2 Ripe Avocado
1/2 Ripe Banana
~2-3 oz. Breastmilk or formula
1 Tsp. Gerber Baby Oatmeal, Barley or Rice Cereal (optional)
Mash with fork and mix in liquid until you reach the desired consistency.
**You can prepare your own grains or rice cereal, but they need to be pulverized and then mixed with boiling water before use.  I like the Gerber brand grains because they mix instantly with warm or cold liquid.