Fruit and Vegetables - First Tastes

Apple
Choose a sweet variety of eating apple. Peel, halve, core and chop 2 medium apples. Put into a heavy saucepan with 4-5 tablespoons water. Cover and cook over a low heat until tender (7-8 minutes). Or steam for the same length of time. Puree. If steaming, add some of the boiled water from the bottom of the steamer to thin out the puree.

Apple and Cinnamon
Simmer 2 apples in apple juice or water with a cinnamon stick. Cook as above; remove stick before pureeing. MAKES 5 PORTIONS.

Pear
Peel, halve and core 2 pears, then cut into small pieces. Cover with a little water, cook over a low heat until soft (about 4 minutes). Or steam for the same length of time. Puree. After the first few weeks of weaning, you can puree ripe pears without cooking. Apple and Pear together makes a good combination. MAKES 5 PORTIONS.

Banana
Mashed banana makes ideal baby food. It is easy to digest and rarely causes allergic reactions. Choose a ripe banana and mash very well with a fork to make it as smooth as possible. Add a little boiled water or baby milk if it is too thick and sticky for your baby to swallow
If your baby is suffering from diarrhoea or a stomach upset, a diet of mashed banana, cooked apple puree and baby rice for a few days is a good remedy. MAKES 1 PORTION.

Papaya
Papaya is an excellent fruit to give a very young baby. It has a pleasig sweet taste which is not too strong and blends within seconds to a perfect texture.
Cut a medium fruit in half, remove all the black seeds and scoop out the flesh. Puree, adding a little formula or breast milk if you like. MAKES 4 PORTIONS.

Cream of Fruit
Combining a fruit puree with baby milk and baby rice or crumbled rusk can make it more palatable for your baby. In the next few months, when your baby may start eating some other exotic fruits like mango and kiwi fruit, this method of 'diluting' the fruit puree with milk will also make them less acidic.
Peel, core, steal or boil and puree the fruit as described and, for each 4-portion quantity or prepared fruit, stir in 1 tablespoon unflavoured baby rice or half a low-sugar rusk and 2 tablespoons baby milk. MAKES 3 EXTRA PORTIONS.

Three-Fruit Puree
This is a delicious combination of three of the first fruits that your baby can eat.
Mix 1 dessertspoon each of pear and apple purees (see above) with half a banana, mashed. You could also use a half a raw ripe pear, peeled, cored and cut into chunks. Puree this and the half banana in a blender until smooth. the mix together with the dessertspoon of cooked apple puree. MAKES 4 PORTIONS.

Carrot or Parsnip
Peel, trim and slice 2 medium carrots or parsnips. Place in a saucepan of lightly boiling water, cover and simmer for 25 minutes or until very tender. Alternatively, you can steam them. Drain, reserving the cooking liquid and puree to a smooth consistency, adding as much of the reserved liquad as necessary.
The cooking time is longer for small babies. Once your baby can chew, cut the cooking time down to preserve Vitamin C and keep the vegetable crisper. MAKES 4 PORTIONS.

Sweet Potato, Swede or Parsnip
Use a large sweet potato, a small swede or two large parsnips. Scrub, peel and chop into small cubes. Cover with boiling water and simmer, covered, until tender (15-20 minutes). Alternatively, steam the vegetables. Drain, reserving the cooking liquid. Puree in a blender adding some liquid if necessary. MAKE 4 PORTIONS.

Potato
Wash, peel and chop 400b potatoes, just cover with boiling water and cook over a medium heat for about 15 minutes. Blend with some cooking liquid or baby milk to make the desired consistency. Alternatively, steam the potatoes and blend with some waterfrom the steamer or your baby's usual milk.
Avoid using a food processor to puree potato as it breaks down the starch and makes a sticky pulp. Use a mouli instead.
You can bake potato or sweet potato in the oven. Preheat to 200 for 1-1 1/4 hours or until soft. Scoop out the inside and mouli or mash with a little baby milk and a knob of butter. MAKES 10 PORTIONS.

Cream of Carrot
A creamy puree can be made with many different vegetables by adding milk and baby rice. Make a puree with one large carrot (approx. 85g). This should make about 100ml carrot pureee. Mix 1 tablespoon unflavoured baby rice with 2 tablespoons of your babys usual milk. Stir the baby rice mixture into the vegetable puree. Half a low-sugar rusk crushed and mixed with milk will also make a creamy puree. Allow the rusk to soften in the baby milk before mixing it into the vegetable puree of your choice. MAKES 2 PORTIONS.

Butternut Squash
Butternut squash has a naturally sweet flavour that is very popular with babies.
Peel a butternut squash weighing about 350g. Deseed and cut the flesh into 2 1/2 cm cubes. Steam or cover with boiling water and simmer for and 15 minutes or until tender. Transfer the squash to a blender and make a puree with a little of the cooking liquid. MAKES 6 PORTIONS.