Food for babies below 10 months of age

Traditional Kerala food

1. Kunnan kaya verakiyathu

Add two tablespoon kunnan kaya to 1/2 cup of plain water. Add jaggrrey powder as sweetner(don't Use white sugar for babies if possible for ourselves too.....harmful, use brown sugar/ organic sugar/ damrera sugar)

Sweetner should be added for mild sweetening, if sweetner added heavily, then babies would not prefer natural sweetness of fruits.

Boil the mix on low flame, keep on stirring so no lumps are formed.

Initially when just starting to feed ,make a loose consistency, i.e. Slightly thickened but flows. be careful about it.

Benefits: rich in potassium

2. Wheat grain porridge /Gothambu nurkku verakiyathu

Gothambu nurkku should be presoaked in water overnight. Then wash it well and boil in water and jaggerry until cooked. Then blend to the above mentioned consistency.

Benefits: rich in vitamin B and minerals.

3. Ragi Porridge

An organic company named, 24 mantra sells ragi powder which is very fine and hence will give smooth paste for baby to eat. Otherwise buy any other companies powder or unpowdered ragi itself.

If powder, mix two tablespoon with 1/2 cup water and jaggerry and cook to above consistency

If unpowdered ragi, blend ragi in water on previous night and let it to sediment  overnight, in morning skin would get peeled off and float on top of water.remove above part of water and cook the lower sedimented part to the required consistency.

Benefits: rich in iron, best for breastfeeding mothers to increase milk production, good source of protein.

3. Navara rice porridge (kanji)

Plain navara rice  consumes a lot of time to boil.if you got this , cook with salt / jaggerry (as baby likes) in pressure cooker and blend to a paste.

An organic company named Jeevan provides a powdered form of navara rice, can bee cooked within 5 min

Add 2tablespoon navara powder to 1/2 cup water and cook to required consistency.very good for immunity.

Benefits: best to strengthen bone, and helps improve immunity.good weight gaining food for infants, good for pregnant mothers to help foetus gain weight. 

3. Kichadi

Equal quantity of rice and dal is cooked. And after getting cooked well and both dal and rice seems mashed and mixed , add coconut milk to it.

benefits: dal is a good source of protein, rice- a good source of carbohydrate, coconut milk is a good source of antioxidant, vitamin C, E, B, rich in many essential minerals

4.Multigrain powder meal

Many company like nirapara, jeevan, bambino etc make these powder

But before giving make sure baby is not allergic to any of the grains mentioned in the contents of the pack

Pulses are rich in protein and minerals

1. Brown rice kanji + dal / cherupayar  (Nelluthari kanji)

This is the normal food in our place. But it contains only carbohydrate. To make it more nutritious add  dal, cherupayar etc, they contain protein

Benefits : brown rice is rich in fiber and carbohydrate

Fruits 

Fruits to boil and blend ( no added sugar required) but if baby hesitate to eat ,boil a little jaggerry in a vessel and add while blending

1. Apple purée 

 Peel one apple, remove seeds, cut to small peicearound 1cm dimension, boil in vessel with sufficient water or steam in Phillips baby food maker with 1/4 cup water. Remove excess water and keeping little water to make a loose cream of apple, blend thoroughly.

Feed after Cooling down

Benefits of having apple: apples are rich in antioxidants and fiber, for children- apples is best for their digestive system, and to boost immunity

2.Pear purée

Peel, remove seed cut to small 1 cm pieces, steam or boil, blend with little water

Benefits of having pear: pear like apples are rich in antioxidants and dietary fiber + they are also rich source of vitamins and minerals.they are easy to digest.

3.Papaya purée

Peel, remove seed, use ripest pieces of 1cm ,around 8 pieces, steam or boil, blend

Benefits of Papaya: papayas are rich in antioxidants, minerals, vitamin  C and vitamin B. Good for skin, and digestive system.greatest source for increasing platelet count.

4.Chickoo purée or sapodilla purée

Cut chickoo to two, remove seed, with a spoon -scoop out chickoo from skin, chickoo should be soft in consistency and fully ripe, boil or steam in little water for 2 mins and blend to paste

Benefits of chickoo: major weight gain food for children. It is believed that children who show rapid weight gain during the 1st 2years of life are proved to have more IQ.

Chickoo is a storehouse of nutrients- minerals vitamins, calories everything, it's a complete food.

5.Ripe banana purée

Cut banana to small prices, boil and blend

Some people say, it's better to bake with skin on and remove skin after baking, skin will turn black color, then blend

Benefits of banana: richest source of potassium. Also rich in calories, minerals and vitamins. Good for immunity, skin and digestive system.

6.Avocado purée or butter fruit purée

Cut avocado to half, take half and scoop out the butter with spoon , raw taste is very bad, with sugar also tastes bad, add a little salt - would taste somewhat like mayonnaise (  because I tried every possible way to avocado to Asiya, if baby starts drinking milk, milkshakes are very tasty) even two spoon when eaten, is enough.....very nutritious.high in omega 3 best for brain development.

Benefits: high in omega3 fatty acid important for brain development. Major weight gaining food. Important for immunity.contains more pottassium than banana.rich in fibre.

Vegetables

Vegetables to boil and blend

1. Carrot purée
2. Beetroot purée
3. Potato purée
4. Sweet potato
5. Tapioca 

All veggies to be peeled, boiled and blended.

Except sweet potato and tapioca, remove skin after boiling, just cut to large pieces and boil in a big vessel. Remove skin with hands.

If necessary add salt or jaggerry(for sweet potato jaggerry makes it tastier)

Sweet potato best for immunity

Carrot and beetroot good for iron , and vitamins

Benefits- all food that are roots  are most safe to eat as They are very less polluted and not treated with harmful chemicals

Normally red coloured veggies are rich in antioxidants and vitamin A.carrots are called power food- has antioxidants , fiber, pottassium, and vitamin- A, B, C, K.

Beetroot are rich in vitamin B and C, and fibre.

Green color veggies are rich in iron and Vitamin B.

1. Broccoli- just boil or steam, add a little salt and blend,.

Tastes best when boiled with potato and blend

Benefits: rich in iron, vitamin - B, C, K. Helps new cell formation and helps body from damage of free radicals.

Miscellaneous

1. Oats - boil with water and jaggerry then blend

Benefits - best source of fibre, good for digestive system

     2.Arrowroot powder - all vegetable soups thickened using arrowroot powder instead of corn flour . For infant blend this soup and feed.

Food not to give

 1. Milk

Should not be given until baby turns 1year , all cooking of food should be done in water, whatever you give your baby is her first taste, so she will find food without milk tasty.

Olden days parents cook everything in milk.,but that way is wrong.

    2. Honey 

Shouldn't be given until baby is 1years, because honey contains a bacterial spore which ,baby below 1 year cannot fight.very dangerous if infected.

3. Dry fruits

Not to be given until baby is 10 months old. After she turns 10 months,

you can add dates, almond etc with oats while cooking, then blend.

Add cashews to apple while cooking, then blend

( my secret recipes because asiya hates almonds, she eats hidden almonds)