Food Ideas for My 11 Month Old

Hi C.. Ahhhh...the joys of mealtime with our lil' one's. Our son is now 18 months and well, his likes and dislikes continue to come and go. Just when we think we have it down, he decides differently : ) We too started with all veggies first, then meat, then fruits. Wanted the bland tastebuds to kick in before anything sweet, even if it's natural sweet in fruit. We avoid any processed sugars or carbs...no fruit juice, no french fries, let alone much of anything out of a box. I am a health educator and well, want to ensure we are doing our darndest to start our son off on the right track. Granted, there are special occasions where a sweet does enter the picture, but I am a firm believer in moderation and consideration. And yes, I do understand that raising a family is a busy time, yet there are some truly easy and healthy menu ideas...and fun for the whole family!

Breakfast ideas: polenta with diced tomatoes, whole grain waffle with YoBaby yogurt vs. syrup, scrambled eggs with minced veggies (i.e. brocoli, cauliflower, tomatoes), fruit smoothies (any time of day) and of course, the good ol' cereal with fruit. Lunch: cottage cheese mixed with avocado, tortilla with humus or cream cheese, whole bread, tuna or egg salad, and of course, fruit and/or veggies. Dinner: I cook a lot of ground chicken or turkey. This goes great with marinara sauce. I also like to sautee any kind of veggies and then spread over brown rice with the ground meat and marinara. Marinara sauce is a great flavor to add to veggies, meat, or pasta.

Of course, our children are different in age, but once our son turned one, I just ensured I kept a mental or written track of any new foods just in case he developed an allergy. I have yet to give anything peanut related...I am indeed holding off until at least 2 years of age.

As for some cookbooks, here are some I have found lots of great ideas...and here is a website that I used all of the time during the initial stage of introducing solids. Hopefully you will find some good ideas. Have fun!!

http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/ --- A great site that breaks food into categories, what foods are good to introduce first along with consistency levels, age, and recipe ideas. Loved this site!

Toddler Menus - A mix-and-match guide to healthy eating by Penny Preston --- fun book. The only thing I don't like is the dinners seem to always include pasta. Granted, pasta is not a bad thing, but well, some kids get the taste and that's all they want. Again, moderation and consideration. Oftentimes, I will just eliminate the pasta and only serve with the veggies or meat. There is always room to be creative with menu planning and recipes.

C is for Cooking, Recipes from the Street (Sesame Street) by Susan McQuillan, RD -- my lil' one picked this one out because he saw the puppets on the cover : ) There are some fun ideas especially when children truly begin helping out in the kitchen.

Deceptively Delicious, Simple Secrets to Get Your Kids Eating Good Food by Jessica Seinfeld --- just picked this one up and started to stock my freezer with purees. There are some really great recipes and well, easy. This is indeed for toddlers and above (even us parents to enjoy!) to ensure when children are being fussy or picky, we as parents know they are getting proper nutrition. Just remember, sneaking in veggies is okay, yet we still need to teach our children that veggies can be cooked in a variety of ways...because we all know, veggies are not presented within food in the real world if you know what I mean. If you pick up this cookbook, it has a thorough introduction along with the do's and dont's.

If you have any questions or want to discuss more, feel free to PM anytime. I love this stuff!!! Take care and have fun!

PS> Make cooking easier, we have a mini-kitchen aid chopper, Magic Bullet, mini-food processor, and of course, blender. I also use a steamer. I absolutely love my mini-chopper and Magic Bullet...making purees or minced fruit and veggies has never been easier!

I am also starting to cook more after having my daughter. My daughter ate almost anything at 11 months (except citrus fruit, peanut butter, nuts and honey). My daughter has cheerios and fruit every breakfast. I also add in waffles, pancakes, english muffin with strawberry jam, yogurt, cereal bars, raisen bread (which is her favorite) and eggs. I don't really monitor food allergies like I used to anymore. She still doesn't eat nuts or citrus yet. Lunch /Dinner- I usually do sandwiches (ham or turkey), quesadillas, chicken nuggets, mac-n-cheese, leftover casseroles/lasagna, raviolis, steamed vegetables, fruit, chicken breasts, crockpot roasts/tri-tip, rice. For dinner she usually eats whatever we are eating unless we pick up fast food then I make my daughter something healthier.

you never really stop watching for food allergys when you are trying new things my son was fine with milk till about 13m then we had to start doing lactoce free ... morning foods when you get the ok from you doc to do eggs go for it my son loves having an egg with a little ham in it in the mornings just think when you go out what do you like and then how can you make it ok for your son ... my son is now 20m and he even gets small bites of my salid when i fined a good bite for him ... fill free to PM me im more then happy to help with more ideas

For breakfast we give my daughter blueberry's and cheerios, eggs (although she's 1), toast with pured baby food, or banana's on it, waffles, etc.
As for lunch, most days she gets what i left over from dinner. Or just veggies and ground beef...wow, I'm not sure what we feed her for lunch =o) We often give her veggie burgers, black beans, kidney beans, those dehydrated fruit snacks. We try to give her tons of fruits and veggies.
I hope that helps. I know my daughter gets tired of things really easily...this week it's squash she won't eat. Give it a break for a couple weeks and I'm sure he will go back to the foods he use to like.
Oh yeah, the baby yogurt is TONS of fun and she LOVES it!