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With my first baby I was all about the homemade baby food. I spent hours and days cooking different foods and pureeing them into baby food. My baby had a wonderful and healthy diet full of fruits and vegetables. With my second I was flabberghasted when she wouldn’t eat ANYTHING with a mushy texture! I thought for a bit that she just wasn’t ready, but after we passed the 7 month mark I started trying some new things and figured out that she loved finger foods, she just wouldn’t eat anything mushy. With my first I didn’t do table food until much closer to one and so I really had to think to figure out what finger foods would be appropriate for a new eater.
When you browse down the aisle at the store they offer a multitude of baby finger foods in a can, but I just couldn’t justify feeding my baby a diet of puffs and the equivalent of baby cheetos. Some of the other issues I had besides health was that I needed something that was equally healthy and easy, and since we are constantly on the go I have to have something I can grab quickly and take with me just like you can a jar of baby food. After some trial and error we have found some great alternatives for for me to feed her that were 1. Healthy 2. Easy and 3. Portable. That made us both happy! So whether you are trying out baby led weaning or you are at the stage where you are moving from puree to more table food this is a great list to keep handy to keep it healthy and keep it easy.
Everything on the list below is EASY! Also, most of it can be prepped ahead of time and frozen so when you are on the go all you have to do pop a container out of the freezer and jet out the door. Freezer cooking baby style! I try to introduce a variety of healthy foods to help form a well rounded eater. Also, as we mentioned in our Easy and Healthy Toddler Snacks post, it can take up to 10 introductions for a kid to try a food, so don’t give up on healthy foods if they don’t like it on the first couple of trys! Also, Check out our post on Spicing up Your Baby Food to see how to incorporate new flavors for your little one! Remember that you should only offer your baby foods that are cool, soft, easily mashed and age appropriate. Also, babies should always be supervised while eating any food.
Freezer Friendly Foods:
- Cooked Carrots- I microwave baby carrots in a bowl covered with water and chop into small bites (16oz for 6-8 min)
- Cooked Peas- I use canned, no salt added because they are the most mushy
- Cooked Green Beans- I use canned, no salt added because they are the most mushy, diced
- Cooked Black Beans- I use canned, no salt added because they are the most mushy
- Other Cooked Beans- Anything soft, although if they are larger you might need to dice them as well
- Cooked Corn- I use canned, no salt added
- Cooked Broccoli- diced
- Whole Wheat Bread- diced
- Cooked Sweet Potato- Wash and leave in produce bag, microwave in bag for 4-6 min, diced
- Avocado diced
- Soft Cheeses- cheddar, mozzarella, colby jack, provolone etc diced
- Cooked Pasta- diced
- Cooked Butternut or Acorn Squash- Cut in half and microwave until soft, diced
- Eggs- scrambled and cut into bits
- Brown rice- cooked
- Very Ripe Pears- diced
- Very Ripe Mango- diced
Other Great Healthy Finger Foods:
- Banana- diced
- Blueberries cut in half or slightly mashed
- Kiwi- soft and ripe, diced
- Peaches- soft and ripe, diced
- Very ripe tomatoes, diced without skin
- Cheerios
- Baby Mum Mum
- Watermelon- diced with no seeds
- Other very ripe Melons- Cantelope, Honey Dew etc. Diced
- Graham crackers-very small pieces
- Organic Puffs
Since these finger foods are our main source of nutrition (outside of breast feeding), I like to fix myself ready to go packages of freezer foods. I can prepare a lot at once by freezing them in meal sized containers. I have quite a few of the plastic Gerber baby food containers saved that are perfect to use. Also, Glad and Zip Lock both make 4-8 oz reuseable containers which I used when I made baby food with my first and are also perfect for this. I prep all of my food then fill the containers with it so I can have a variety at each meal. I will put veggies mixed together in a container but obviously things like bread and cheese should be packaged by themselves. I use snack sized zip lock bags for this. If you need more ideas the Wholesome Baby Food website is a great additional resource on what to feed baby and your preparation options.
See… That was easy! Now to make it even better, here is a free printable sheet to stick to your fridge to remind you of all the healthy meal options available for baby. For more great posts on food for little ones and printables, check out Easy and Healthy Toddler Snacks and Spice Up Your Baby Food!
***UPDATE- This post has been SO popular I did a whole new post with even more ideas specifically for veggies you can use for baby finger foods! See the update here!
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Tracy says
LOVE this!!!!! I’ve already had to share this post with someone else I know had a baby that didnt like purées!
Kimber says
Thank you so much for sharing! I am glad it was so helpful. I had a hard time getting into finger foods and really had to find my groove. Crazy how easy it is to forget in two years time!
Jenny Walker says
I’m so glad you posted this. I have really been slacking on feeding Stella food. I think we will try some finger foods. She does pretty good with purée’s but I would love for her to try feeding herself.
Kimber says
She will love it! I think most babies really enjoy the process of self feeding and it is great for their motor skills! You will be surprised how quickly she gets the hang of it and starts gobbling up everything in sight!
Christie says
Thank you so much for this list and your spicing up baby food and toddler snack lists! I have a 9 month old and preparing his meals has felt like so much extra work lately! He loves to feed himself so I always need to have a variety of things he can do that with. I just had all of the foods separate in the freezer and I would steam as needed. I like the idea of mixing up different foods and freezing them together. I also appreciate your cooking in the microwave tips.
Kimber says
You are so welcome Christi! We are just thrilled that you love it! It is so nice to be able to get new ideas for baby especially in the food department! I know I get in a rut so easily! Stay tuned for more great baby tips!
Lauren says
I LOVED finding this! My 9 month old has started eating puffs better on his own and I can tell he really wants to eat on his own. Will only having 2 bottom teeth prevent him from eating some of this successfully? I’m a first time mom still figuring this all out! 😉
Kimber says
Lauren! Don’t worry! We have ALL been there! I’m on number 2 now and I still don’t know what I am doing half the time! If you have questions always consult your doctor, we are not experts, just speaking from our own experiences. With that said, my baby girl is 10 months now and has been eating all of these foods since she was 7 months and had absolutely no teeth! Just make sure things are super mushy when you cook them and cut them into very small pieces. Things like beans you can smash a bit with your fingers before you give it to them. Also, if it still makes you nervous put it into your mouth and see if you are able to break it up without your teeth and that can give you piece of mind that if you can they should be able to also.
Shannon says
Going to try doing this on the weekend. I was wondering if the canned vegetables need to be warmed up first or if they are already soft enough before you freeze them?
Thanks for the great ideas!
Chelsea says
Thank you for the posting this question! I have the same question – do the canned veggies need to be warmed up first before freezing them? Also, what do you do to defrost when it comes to meal time?
Jessica says
Good question! How do you reheat the food?
Kimber says
Hi Jessica! If I knew I was going to use a certain amount the next day, I would just pop them in the fridge the night before. Then I would heat them up just a tad in the microwave, although you have to be really careful to make sure there are no hot spots before giving to baby. I would also take them straight from the freezer to the microwave when I needed to. You could really heat it up any way that you prefer to heat your food.
Kimber says
Let me know if the two answers below answered all of your questions Chelsea! Otherwise I would be happy to clarify or give more detail!
Kimber says
I don’t warm them. I just prep them as I want them and pop them in the freezer. I find that canned veggies are really soft and easily mashed by babies gums where as the frozen ones can be a bit tougher.
Chelsea says
Thanks for your response! How long are these foods good for in the freezer?
Kimber says
You should be able to use standard freezer rules of thumb… 3 months in the regular freezer and 6 months in the deep freezer. Hope that helps!
Holly says
LOVE!!! I have been looking for ideas for finger foods, especially vegetables. So glad to see that others use canned veggies.
Kimber says
I am so glad it could be helpful for you! Thank you for commenting! I know you might get a bigger nutritional punch from frozen but at some point it is just worth the ease! I mean really, who is judging if your kids is eating veggies?!
Ksiu says
canned veggies. Not sure about it… There is zero nutrients and vitamins left. What is the point of giving it to your child? Would it be a better idea to cut up and steam some fresh veggies?. I know it is an extra step but it is 100 times better!
Kimber says
You are right that steamed veggies have more vitamins and nutrients. If I have time I love to make them this way. I don’t always have the time though so there are many times I do use canned. Also, both of my kids have preferred the texture of the canned veggies when they were learning to eat. In my opinion, if you are training them to like healthy food and feeding them a balanced diet, you are doing a great job as a mom whether it comes from a can or a steamer.
Nicole says
I agree!! And thank you my 10 month old just started refusing food until I figured he didn’t want me feeding him! Suddenly a mad dash for more ideas!! Especially as he tends to want to not chew and swallow what he can in big chunks! Great ideas! I do fresh when can also but can food is a life saver sometimes :0)
Kimber says
Thanks for leaving us a note Nicole! I totally agree and am so glad the list was helpful!
Jill says
thank you! great, helpful post!!
Kimber says
Thanks Jill! It can be so difficult to figure out everything you need for your baby sometimes so I was happy to pass along what worked for us!
Jenna says
So how would I prepare all this and get it ready to serve?! I’m knew to the finger foods and my baby hates jarred food. She’s 7 months old.