Lil Helper is pleased to welcome Anne Marie to the blog this week to share some incredible Baby Led Weaning recipes! For more of her delicious meal ideas, you can find her on Instagram @babyledweaning2021.
BLW is a weaning method I very much believe in and has worked very well for us over the past 7 months. Keiran has explored over 100 foods and BLW has also saved me a lot of time preparing separate meals for him. He is able to eat the same meals as the rest of the family. It has changed our diet as a family to a healthier one and so for us it really has had all-round benefits.
My top 3 baby led weaning recipes are raspberry coconut balls, avocado pasta and pizza pinwheels. I love these recipes because they are so easy to make and very baby and toddler friendly and great for the rest of the family too
Raspberry Coconut Balls
The raspberry coconut balls are one of my favourite breakfasts to make! My son absolutely loves them! We include chia seeds in this recipe - a very good source of protein, and also packed with fibre! They are very soft and easy to make - easy for small mouths to chew and take less than 5 minutes to make. A very healthy start to the day!
Ingredients 1 cup rolled oats 1 cup raspberries (I used frozen, let them thaw for about 30mins) 3 tbps desiccated coconut 2 tbps raisins 1 tbps chia seeds
Method 1. We simply put all the ingredients in the food processor and blended until smooth, then rolled into balls. 2. We then simply formed balls and put them in the fridge, then took them about 30mins before serving not to be too cold.
Creamy Avocado Pasta
The creamy avocado pasta is rich in fibre and healthy fats which are very important to support babies digestion and brain development.This meal can be introduced from 6 months, so is perfect if you are new to baby led weaning, and can be an easy lunch or dinner for all the family!
Ingredients 2 avocados 1 tub of ricotta (250g) 1/3 cup milk 1/2 tsp lemon pinch of chili peppers
Method 1. We simply blended all together in a blender. Once the pasta was done, we mixed the creamy sauce with the pasta.
Pizza Pinwheels
Pizza pinwheels are a fun meal to make with puff pastry. Adults, children and babies all love this recipe. It only takes about five minutes to make and just requires some basic ingredients - mozzarella, tomatoes, puff pastry and any pizza toppings you love. It’s a great recipe to make and get older children involved with too.
Method 1. We rolled out the sheet, and spread a thin layer of tomato sauce. 2. We then sprinkled grated mozzarella and basil on top. 3. We rolled it and cut the roll it into 1 inch pieces. 4. We then placed them on a greased oven dish for about 15mins at 180C.
Baby led weaning has helped us as a family make healthier meals with no sugar and salt. We love having our meals together as a family. If you would like more recipes, please check our blog babyledweaning2021.
Ready to give one of these delicious recipes a try? Grab your smocket or biggie bib and tag us on social media! We would love to see the results!
About the Author
Anne Marie is a regulatory reporter and juggles a busy job with looking after a baby. She has always been interested in exercise and nutrition and so it was a natural next step to start a BLW blog.