Meal Ideas for My Almost 9 Month Old

Hi A.,

Try waffles and pancakes with fresh fruit. Trader Joes sells some great frozen ones - made without wheat. Also try yogart with fruit, mini-bagels, english muffins topped with fruit spread, dried fruit,and sunflower and pumpkin seeds. You can make a great hot and quick breakfast cereal with quinoa (high in protein), and top it with dried fruit - the recipe is on the side of the box. Good luck and have fun experimenting! L. S.

My little one likes waffles, I get the whole grain/low fat ones by Eggo. I also mix up combo fruit bowls for him with a variety of items like one will have plain yogurt, applesauce, wheat germ and chopped raspberries, another might be cottage cheese, strawberries (chopped or from a baby food jar), some blueberry jelly and mixed grain baby cereal. These things offer him different flavors and textures, which he seems to like. Sometimes I'll toss in some of his puffed rice or wheat for extra crunch. I buy the basic ingredients like the applesauce, yogurt, jelly and cottage cheese (all can be found in all-natural and/or low fat/no high fructose versions)in large containers so it's pretty inexpensive overall. We'll also pick up random boxes of cereal for variety, he seems to enjoy ones with granola chunks, and loves something called 'Puffins'. We also offer him a bowl with a mix of puffed rice, wheat, corn and O's, some days he'll pick out his favorite bits, other times he just grabs handfuls and stuffs it in!
Hope this helps!
-L.

my daughter had teeth at 5 mos and by 9 mos had 8 teeth... so she was well on her way to solid foods.

mini waffles, pancakes, bagels were great for breakfast - depending on how many teeth she has - she may even like to eat them still frozen for her gums.

yogurt - the yobaby brand is fine... but i found yopliat kids works better - still has the same nutritional values (not any more sugar than yobaby) but the yogurt is a bit thicker and easier for baby to try to spoon herself.

dinner - fish sticks, chicken tenders, Costco has these breaded spinach bites breaded - which she LOVES.

even keep the same foods - but give her her own spoon to use.... she might not be that successful at first but atleast she'll feel more independant and maybe more cooperative while eating.

my daughter is very active too - walking at 10 mos - by 18 mos she's been able to get her own bib out of the basket i keep them in, crawls up into her seat, does her buckles by herself. she's 21 mos now and last night she actually brought her plate to the sink (with direction). She is a very active little girl and i find she's more manageable if you give her jobs to do, and let her help. i know 9 mos is a bit early... but just something to keep in mind.

I would recommend the book "Feed Me, I'm Yours!" It has lots of great ideas.

I recommend the book Mommy Made and Daddy Too. It gave me so many great ideas when my boys were little.

Hi A., it sounds like you have a baby with a very healthy appetite! My son was (and still is) the same way. My chopper & blender were my best friends. Instead of the baby brand oatmeals & cereals, I would buy a large cannister of plain oatmeal and add things - fruit, brown sugar or syrup. I would also take sugar free vanilla pudding (they didn't have baby yogurt when he was little) and blend in fruit. And I did similar things that you are doing with chicken soup - I would blend beef stew - that was a big hit with him. Just about any "grown up" food will work as long as the big chunks are out of it. I wish I could think of some more ideas. Good luck - my baby hit the ground running and hasn't stopped eating anything & everything since then....and he's a very healthy 17 year old now!

There is a wonderful cookbook-nutrition guide called Mommy-Made which has a lot of helpful suggestions and recipes for things to prepare for babies and toddlers (and the rest of the family). I like it because it gives informational profiles on different foods and the recipes are tasty.
Good luck!

Get the book "First Foods". It has great meal ideas for all stages of development. My kids have loved the food we've made from it!

Hi!
I found that my son loved whole grain waffles, pancakes, grilled cheese.....all of those are easy enough to eat at 9 months! Also, banana pieces rather than baby food, and lots of cheese!

Hey...

I loved preparing meals for my little one...I made almost all my own baby food, and was crazy enough to enjoy doing it...My daughter refused to let me feed her at around 8 or 9 months, so I had to get really creative...anyway...I did a lot with cottage cheese (low sodium) i.e. mixing organic barley with chopped strawberries (or other fruit of choice) and combining it. Avocado is a great baby food; high in good fats and soft. You could also try a Dr. Praeger brand veggie burger. They're soft, with some chunks, and are delicious. Avoid the commerical brands, as they contain GMO soy products and preservatives. Organic tofu might be worth a try as well. I used to steam cook steak and chicken, puree it, and freeze them (seperately) in ice cube trays and then combine it with whole wheat shell pasta and a vegetable...There is a WONDERFUL baby cookbook I borrowed from a friend, but I cannot recall the name of it right now. I'm going to guess it's called "The Well-Fed Baby" and it is a wonderful resource. You're on a great track with soups...don't be afraid to get creative. Quinoa (pronounced keen-wah) is a wonderful source of protein, is small and delicious and baby-friendly. I also make an "alfredo" sauce with plain yogurt, a bit of butter, parmesan cheese and olive oil. It's a wonderful way to sneak in probiotics. Also, get her used to ground flax-seed sprinkled on her food...I used to add that to the cottage cheese/barley/fruit breakfast. And don't get caught up in the "it's not breakfast food" mindset. My oldest went on a garbanzo bean and dried fruit breakfast for a month. She asked for it. She ate it. Weird, yes. But healthier than empty fortified grain cereal..definetly. Good luck and have fun!

Breakfast is where we have lots of ideas. We make small pancakes in batches, pack them up a couple to a pack wrapped in plastic wrap and just warm up for an easy pancake breakfast. You can use regular syrup or make your own with a fruit puree. Cream of Wheat is also very nice. My daughter loves it and it is so good for her. I feel like my daughter doesn't get the same thing twice for breakfast in a week. My challenges with variety lie more often with lunch. Good Luck

Hi A. - My baby daugher LOVED chunks of firm tofu! It's healthy, inexpensive and easy to prepare. I'd just cut up a few chunks and serve it cold/plain. If she likes eggs, I'll bet she'd like tofu. Try chunks of soft cheese too!
Good luck!

When our babies were little they loved raw tofu. It's a great source of protein and just about impossible to choke on. We used the firm stuff because the soft tends to fall apart. It's still a part of their diet (ages 9 and 12) though now we cook it.

my youngest is one of the most difficult kids Ive ever encountered. she nursed 24/7 and hated all babyfood. seriously. all of it. to make matters worse, she didnt cut teeth until 10.5 months! ugh. she ate what i ate...little bits of everything all day long. which was difficult because she had a nut allergy and that limited alot of what she could have. anyways, give her what you eat...it tastes better than the bland baby food...just chop it up fine, but leave some lumps. good luck

This is my 10 month old daughter's favorite breakfast treat. I cut up strawberries and put them in vanilla yogurt, mix them up and then put them, coated in yogurt in front of her. I tried it myself and I'm hooked too!

Meals for 9 month olds?: any little parts of your own meals that she can handle at this point; and still breastmilk
(Experienced mom of 3 grown girls)

French toast or pancakes without the syrup or sugar. She will love it without. Eggs. Old fashioned oatmeal. Fruit. Cheese or lunch foods, like deli meats such as turkey. You don't necessarily have to give her breakfast food after all.

My daughter loves french toast, Kashi frozen waffles (especially blueberry!), and stonyfield yo-baby yogurt. You could also make all kinds of pancakes and mini muffins. (Just cut everything into tiny pieces) You can find tins at most grocers and the little muffins make great snacks too. She also enjoys oatmeal with pureed fruit or all fruit jam mixed in. She also loves all the foods you mentioned! Good luck and happy cooking!

Hi A.,

If she is that interested in other foods, I suggest you offer her some of what you eat for those meals and find a way to mush it up appropriately for her ability. If she takes to the food you generally eat, you will be soooooo much better off down the road trying to get her to eat.

My 4.5 year old daughter started eating our spicy foods around 9 months and now eats almost anything, including Thai, Indian, Asian and other very spicy things. It's great!

Good luck!
~Liza

30 yo full-time working, single mom to 4.5 year old girl.