Tag: food

27 Healthy and Adorable Snack Ideas for Kids

27 Healthy and Adorable Snack Ideas for Kids

Kids love new and exciting snacks, and even better, snacks that are already prepared! It’s time to move on from ordinary foods and make snack time fun with these 27 ideas for lunch box or after school bites. These can fit in most standard-sized lunch…

Activity | Reindeer Food + Crafts

Activity | Reindeer Food + Crafts

It’s Christmas Eve, and it’s time to leave the milk and cookies out for Santa. But what about the reindeer? Create a special treat for the kids to leave out as a way to say thank you to all of Santa’s hard-working helpers. Guide Rudolph…

BLW ‘Recipes & Meal Ideas’

BLW ‘Recipes & Meal Ideas’

These are a few favorites of my little babe and they are so easy and delicious for the whole family! The best part of BLW is being able to introduce various foods and tastes! Don’t think that just because you’re using “adult” foods that your baby won’t eat them! Our girl eats onions, peppers, spinach, kale, peas, you name it and she eats it without any grumping!

*Tip: Try to make larger batches of foods that will freeze well and store well (oatmeal, pancakes, waffles, diced veggies and fruits, etc). It is much easier and quicker to get a meal on the table for a grumpy baby when you can just thaw, warm it up, and serve!

All recipes shown have been created by me unless noted otherwise. They may be simple, but, if you plan on sharing these recipes, please credit me by mentioning my blog or by linking back to my site. Thanks 🙂

Breakfasts

Tasty Oats ‘n’ Apples

Ingredients
1/3 cup Coaches Oats (these are our favorite but regular oats work as well!)
1 cup water
Cinnamon (to taste)
Coconut oil (extra virgin unrefined)
Diced apples (a good handful is typically adequate)

Directions
Mix oats and water and microwave for 4 minutes on Power Level 7
After oatmeal is done, mix in a spoonful of coconut oil
Add some cinnamon (I typically add it until the oatmeal is a little bit brown in color)
Mix in the diced apples
Let cool a bit, then, serve!

*I make a couple of servings (see Coaches Oats bag for amounts) so I can have leftovers for a couple days. My girl LOVES cold oatmeal- I just take it out of the fridge, spoon out little chunks of it onto her tray and let her go to town!

Coco Baby Cakes

Ingredients
Pancake Mix (I use Krusteaz brand)
Coconut oil (extra virgin unrefined)
Any “add-ins” you/your kiddo want (blueberries, strawberries, bananas, etc.)

Directions
Mix pancake mix according to box directions
Cook pancakes in a small size that can be easily munched on!
After pancakes are done, spread a little coconut oil on them and let your kiddo munch away!

*If you make a full batch of pancakes, you can easily save the extras for another day or freeze them and thaw as needed!

Happy Breakfast Hash

Ingredients
Olive oil OR coconut oil OR avocado oil
Fresh spinach (organic if possible)
Diced sweet potatoes- cook beforehand, I steam them (organic if possible)
Diced red onion (organic if possible)
Diced breakfast sausage (Niman Ranch’s Apple Cinnamon is my favorite- it’s organic and natural!)
Eggs*- only if you know your kiddo is not allergic, preferably 1 year old+ (we use free range brown eggs but any will work)

Directions
Using the oil of your choice, sauté some diced onions
Add in fresh spinach and sauté until wilted
Add in diced breakfast sausage
Add in cooked diced sweet potatoes
If using eggs, add them into the pan and scramble into other ingredients until well cooked and incorporated
Let cool a bit then serve!

For most breakfasts, I also give my girl some cut up fruit like oranges, apples, grapes, or strawberries and her sippy cup full of water. She only gets juice (prune) when she’s a little constipated and needs help getting things moving. You could also give a sippy cup with breastmilk as well!

Squeezy Breezy Breakfast

I use the Infantino Squeeze Pouch System ALL.THE.TIME. It’s a huge help when you need something fast and easy for baby to eat, especially if you are out and about! This is one of my favorite blends! Even if you don’t have the squeeze pouches, this is a tasty treat for the little babes! Plus, it freezes well!

Ingredients
Apples (galas are our favorite but any variety will do- organic is even better!)
Strawberries (organic if possible)
Orange (organic if possible)
Bananas (organic if possible)
½ cup Chia seeds
*The amount of your ingredients used will depend on how large you want to make your batch- I just kind of eyeball the amounts and don’t use any real measurements!

Directions
Cut and juice orange
Place chia seeds in a separate bowl and mix with the orange juice you just made- let the chia seeds rehydrate into a gel-like texture
Peel and slice apples; steam until tender and able to mash or grind with a food grinder
Cut strawberries; steam until tender and able to mash easily
Cut and mash bananas
Mix apples, strawberries, and bananas together, then, mix in rehydrated chia seeds
If using squeeze pouches, fill pouches with mix- make sure to label and date them!
If not using squeeze pouches, fill some freezer safe containers (ideally smaller containers so you don’t have to thaw out more than you’ll need- don’t wanna waste it!)

Lunches & Dinners

Something Fishy

Baked Ahi
Cooked brown rice
Steamed broccoli
*Our girl LOVES wasabi mayo with her ahi and it’s so easy to make- mix wasabi paste (it is EXTREMELY spicy- do not give it straight to your kiddo) with some regular mayonnaise; you’ll want to use a lot more mayo than wasabi, just keep mixing, tasting, and adjusting until the spice is not as pronounced; the mix will have a very subtle green tint and should only have a tiny bite to it if you’re going to give it to your little one! If you want a spicier version for yourself to use, mix it separately and put it in a different container and make sure they are labeled clearly!

Finger Lickin’ Chicken

Baked chicken breast
Cooked pasta (rotini or penne is perfect) drizzled with olive oil
Steamed mixed veggies

Spaghetti Squash Sketti

Baked spaghetti squash
Pasta sauce (we make our own using tomato sauce, spices, and sautéed garlic and onions, cooked zucchini, and ground beef or turkey)
Veggie of choice
Parmesan Knots (recipe here thanks to Six Sisters)- you can just toss a few in olive oil and parmesan for baby and skip the seasonings

Bonita Fajita

Cooked and seasoned chicken (we use a McCormick taco seasoning that isn’t too spicy at all)
Sliced, sautéed bell peppers
Sliced, sautéed red onion
Cooked corn
Avocado slices
Rice & beans (I use leftover brown rice and warm it on the stove- mix in cumin, Himalayan pink salt, Mrs. Dash, onion powder, garlic powder, and a tiny bit of chili powder; drain and rinse black beans and then mix with brown rice; adjust seasonings to taste!)

Snacks

Apple A Day Sauce

Ingredients
Apples (galas are our favorite but any variety will do- organic is even better!)
Cinnamon
Chia seeds- optional

Directions
Peel, slice and steam apples until they are tender and easily mashed or grinded with a food grinder
If using chia seeds, rehydrate them by mixing with some water until a gel-like texture is achieved
Once apples are mashed, mix in some cinnamon to taste
Last, mix in the rehydrated chia seeds if you’re using them
Put into squeeze pouches or small freezer safe containers

Turn Up the Beet Sauce

Ingredients
Beets (organic if possible)
Apples (galas are our favorite but any variety will do- organic is even better!)

Directions
Wash, peel, and chop beets; steam until tender and easily mashed
Peel and slice apples; steam until tender and easily mashed
Once mashed without any large chunks remaining, mix beets and apples together
Put into squeeze pouches or small freezer safe containers