Good Food
type: channel
link: https://www.bbcgoodfood.com
date: 2025-09-09T10:29:37.000Z
update period: hourly
update frequency: 1
update base: 2000-01-01T12:00+00:00
items: What is baby-led weaning?
items: When is my baby ready for weaning?
items: What is vegetable-led weaning?
items: 7 of the best blenders and steamers for making baby food
items: Baby-led weaning recipes
items: Top 5 weaning recipes for the first weeks
items: Weaning – safety, hygiene and storage
items: Weaning recipes for the first year
items: All you need to know about weaning

What is baby-led weaning?
type: item
date: 2023-01-18T17:13:10.000Z
creator: Dr Frankie Phillips – Registered dietitian and public health nutritionist
subject: Family
subject: Family health
subject: Health
subject: Weaning
subject: Dr Kerry Torrens
subject: first baby foods
subject: goodhealth
subject: how to wean
subject: weaning
subject: weaning advice
subject: when should I wean my baby
description: Choosing a weaning style to suit you and your baby can feel daunting, with everyone seemingly having an opinion. Registered dietitian and leading child nutritionist Frankie Phillips outlines what baby-led weaning means.
encoded: Your baby’s first foray into solid food opens up a whole world of flavours and texture. But how do you decide what your baby’s first taste should be? Do you offer it to them on a spoon or fingertip, or do they just pick it up with their tiny hands? Thankfully, we’ve moved on from putting rusks in the bottle with milk, but choosing whether to opt for traditional or baby-led weaning still sparks debate. Looking for inspiration? Try our weaning recipe collection, packed full of perfect purées and tasty finger foods. Not sure if your baby is ready for weaning? Find out how to spot the signs. Be prepared for feeding by reading our review of the best high chairs for babies and toddlers. What is baby-led weaning? The term baby-led weaning refers to the relaxed and unstructured approach of offering your baby only solid finger foods and learning to feed themselves from the very start of weaning, with no help from you or another adult. This skips the step of food being spoon fed in a mashed or puréed form, and instead it is usually offered in soft pieces held in the hand. The phrase 'baby-led weaning' was coined around 2003 by healthy writer Dr Gill Rapley, who has written extensively on the topic. How do I initiate baby-led weaning? Manageable chunks of different family foods are put onto your baby’s plate or a tray, your baby can then feed him or herself how and what they want. Some research suggests this is a useful way of enabling babies to regulate their own food intake. This ‘responsive feeding’ might also improve eating patterns, because it relies on your baby’s innate ability to respond to cues for hunger and satiety, in a similar way to on-demand milk feeding. This may help with self-regulation of food intake and lead to healthier weight gain. Why is baby-led weaning sometimes criticised? According to some research, babies who follow the baby-led weaning approach are more likely to be underweight and may be at increased risk of nutrient shortfalls such as iron defici…

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When is my baby ready for weaning?
type: item
creator: Dr Frankie Phillips – Registered dietitian and public health nutritionist
subject: Family
subject: Guide
subject: Health
subject: How to
subject: Weaning
subject: Dr Frankie Phillips
subject: Dr Kerry Torrens
subject: goodhealth
subject: weaning advice
subject: weaning nutrition
description: Registered dietitian and leading child nutritionist Dr Frankie Phillips shares advice on the signs to look for that show your baby is ready to start weaning.
encoded: After getting through those first few sleep-deprived weeks, you may have fallen confidently into a routine where your response to your baby's need to feed becomes second nature. However, after a few months of milk feeds, it’s time to shake things up and reach a new, exciting milestone: the weaning window. Discover more about weaning with our guides on what is baby-led weaning? and what can my baby eat and when? How do I recognise the signs that my baby is ready for weaning? Little ones naturally develop the skills they need to move on to solid food, and there are three tell-tale signs that appear at around six months: • Your baby is able to stay upright in a sitting position and hold their head steady • Your baby can co-ordinate their eyes, hands and mouth, so they can look at food, pick it up and put it in their mouth • Your baby can swallow food (you’ll know if they aren't ready, because the food will be pushed out with their tongue) There are many myths about how to recognise whether a baby is ready for weaning, but signs such as chewing on fists, waking more in the night or wanting more milk feeds are not reliable signs of readiness. Why are solids important for my baby? For the first few months, breast or formula milk provides most of the nutrition your baby needs. However, as they approach six months (or 26 weeks) and for the rest of the first year, adding a wide range of foods to their diet to complement the milk becomes more important. This is because your baby’s stores of some nutrients, such as iron, begin to run low, so they need to start obtaining the nutrients they need from the foods they eat. Introducing textures early on is also valuable, because biting and chewing helps develop the muscles in the mouth and tongue, which are needed for speech. Why is six months the right time to wean my baby? The World Health Organisation recommends that babies should be exclusively breastfed for the first six months of life to achieve optimal growth, development and…

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What is vegetable-led weaning?
type: item
creator: Tracey Raye
subject: Family
subject: Guide
subject: Health
subject: How to
subject: Weaning
subject: baby weaning
subject: Charlotte Stirling-Reed
subject: goodhealth
subject: infant nutrition
subject: joe wicks
subject: toddler nutrition
subject: veg led weaning
subject: weaning
description: Leading expert in infant and toddler nutrition, Charlotte Stirling-Reed, discusses vegetable-led weaning. She also answers parent's questions about how to feed their children a healthy and balanced diet.
encoded: Ensuring that your child is receiving adequate nutrition can sometimes feel like a daunting task – especially with things like allergies, intolerances and fussy eating to consider. Registered nutritionist and a leading expert in infant and toddler nutrition, Charlotte Stirling-Reed, has made a career out of giving parents confidence in feeding their children – from weaning, fussy eating and beyond. Below, she answers some of our staffers most burning questions… What is vegetable-led weaning? Vegetable-led weaning is essentially where you kick off your baby's weaning journey with vegetables, instead of the more traditional baby rice or fruits. Starting weaning with veggies can help babies to be more accepting of the savoury and bitter tastes you might get from vegetables earlier on. Babies are born with a preference for sweeter foods, so it's good to get them familiar with, and accepting, a variety of different tastes from the start of weaning. I normally recommend 10 days or so of single veggies before combining with other foods, and offering more of a variety alongside plenty of savoury veggies. Why do toddlers have such changeable eating habits? My little boy suddenly goes off something he used to love! Toddlers appetites are affected by so much and so easily. Being overtired, teething, feeling unwell, being distracted (all common things for toddlers) will likely affect your little one's appetite for food. Additionally, children are naturally a little ‘picky’ about what they eat and sometimes refuse certain foods for attention or simply because they don't feel like eating it that day. The important thing is to keep offering foods, even rejected ones, regularly so they stay familiar with them. Mealtime routines can help too as children tend to like structure and can be more receptive to foods if they know it's coming. If you have a serious veg dodger on your hands, what five healthy ingredients should you really persevere with? ‘Eating well’ is all about balance, s…

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7 of the best blenders and steamers for making baby food
type: item
creator: Kayleigh Rattle
subject: Family
subject: Guide
subject: Health
subject: Review
subject: Weaning
subject: How to
subject: baby blender
subject: Baby food
subject: baby puree
subject: goodhealth
subject: high chair
subject: Kayleigh Rattle
subject: weaning
subject: weaning accessories
subject: Weaning recipes
description: Looking to wean your little one onto solids? Read our round-up of the best baby food blenders and steamers for making purées and finger foods, plus find weaning recipes and advice.
encoded: Being a parent is busy and once your little one is ready to start weaning, it’s guaranteed to get busier – and messier. Whether you’re choosing to adopt a baby-led weaning approach – where finger foods are used – or to feed your infant purées and mashed foods, time-saving gadgets such as steamers, blenders and mashers can save you precious minutes in the kitchen. Here, we've tried, tested and rounded up the best in blenders, steamers and mashers to set you off on the exciting road to weaning. You can also find plenty of hints, tips and weaning recipes in our comprehensive weaning guide. What is the best blender for making baby food? When looking for the perfect weaning gadget, your search certainly won’t fall short – there are plenty of devices on the market to choose between. From specialist baby food makers which can steam and blend, through to simple hand blenders, mashers and manual tools such as mills and grinders, they all have their merits. For ambitious home cooks who want to make everything from scratch, top-of-the range blenders such as the Beaba (see below) will appeal. If you're searching for a gadget which will be of use beyond the weaning years, a traditional hand blender, stand blender or food processor can be a great option, while hand-held mills and mashers are brilliantly affordable, compact, and tend to be easily portable. The best baby food blenders to buy Read on to discover the best blenders and steamers for making baby food. For weaning recipes and more, visit our weaning guide to find tips on identifying when your baby is ready for weaning, flavour combinations for the first year and recommendations on the best high chairs to buy. Oxo Tot Mash Maker Best affordable baby food maker Pros: Portable Affordable Silent Cons: Not as thorough as an electric blender Fiddly to clean This nifty and affordable hand-held device conveniently transforms steamed fruit, vegetables and ‘grown-up’ food into baby food in seconds. Essentially a stacking system, f…

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Baby-led weaning recipes
type: item
subject: Collection
subject: Family
subject: Recipes
subject: Weaning
description: Explore Good Food's simple, nutritious finger food recipes, perfect for baby-led weaning and packed with essential goodness.
encoded: Start with these baby-led weaning recipes, and then, when they're ready, move on to our curated toddler recipes for continued growth and flavour.

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Top 5 weaning recipes for the first weeks
type: item
creator: Lily Barclay – Content Director
subject: Family
subject: Family health
subject: Guide
subject: Health
subject: Weaning
subject: How to
subject: Baby food
subject: baby food recipes
subject: baby purees
subject: baby-led weaning
subject: goodhealth
subject: Lily Barclay
subject: purees
subject: weaning
description: Is your baby ready for weaning? Discover BBC Good Food's easy, triple-tested baby food recipes, from simple sweet potato purée to spiced pear.
encoded: Giving your baby their first taste of foods is a huge milestone, which can feel exciting and daunting all at the same time. Weaning begins with single fruit or vegetable purées or soft finger foods like florets of steamed broccoli or cauliflower. The below recipes have been designed to give your baby a great tasting foundation before proteins and other richer foods are introduced. 1. Sweet potato purée Sweet potatoes are an easy, simple first food for when you start weaning your baby. The taste tends to be readily accepted and you can blend in their regular milk for a creamy, easily-digestible purée. Sweet potato purée 2. Carrot & swede purée Once your baby has tried single tastes of these root vegetables, try combining for a more interesting flavour combination. This carrot and swede blend is packed with vitamins that you can make with their usual breast milk or formula. Carrot & swede purée 3. Apple & beetroot purée This vibrant purée is a great way of introducing a new taste like beetroot into your child’s diet. The more varied the flavours sampled at an early age, the easier the weaning process should be when they start exploring more complex dishes. Just make sure you have a decent sized bib at the ready! Apple & beetroot purée 4. Spiced pear purée This makes a lovely purée for breakfast or a first dessert. A subtle pinch of cinnamon will stimulate your baby's taste buds, laying the foundations for more interesting recipes in the future. Spiced pear purée 5. Perfect banana & avocado purée This simple no-cook purée is great if you need to feed your baby in a hurry. Made with ripe, nutrient-rich avocado and banana, this is also quite a filling meal. Yogurt can be added for a protein boost if you like. Perfect banana & avocado purée Like this? Try... The best high chairs for babies and toddlers Weaning – safety, hygiene and storage What can my baby eat when? When is my baby ready for weaning? What is baby-led weaning? All of our weaning recipes

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Weaning – safety, hygiene and storage
type: item
creator: Caroline Hire – Food writer
subject: Family
subject: Family health
subject: Guide
subject: Health
subject: Weaning
subject: How to
subject: baby puree storage
subject: baby weaning
subject: Caroline Hire
subject: food poisoning
subject: goodhealth
subject: weaning
subject: weaning storage
description: We all know you need to be extra careful when preparing or storing food for your little one. Our easy-to-follow tips are designed to keep health and safety in check.
encoded: Weaning can certainly get messy at times, but it's all part of the learning process for your baby. However, when you're cooking, preparing or storing food for your little one, there are some simple food safety tips and tricks that will help keep them healthy, happy and well-fed. Top cooking safety tips for weaning your baby Hygiene is really important when it comes to feeding your baby, but the following rules apply whoever you’re cooking for: Always wash your hands before preparing food and if you touch raw foods, wash your hands straight afterwards. Wash your hands after touching the bin too, as well as any family pets. Keep equipment, work surfaces and appliances clean. Particularly if you’re preparing meat, clean your equipment (eg boards, knives, bowls, forks) thoroughly before using it for something else. Chopping boards have been shown to harbour an alarming number of bacteria. A plastic one you can put in the dishwasher is a great option and having a couple to hand helps to avoid cross-contamination as you cook. Use one for raw and one for ready-to-eat foods. Examine your chopping boards regularly – plastic boards will damage over time with knife grooves and these incisions may harbour bacteria. Dry your board after washing with disposable kitchen paper – this minimises the time in which bacteria can multiply. Never stack damp boards together as this encourages bacterial growth. Wash your dishcloths and tea towels regularly. According to the NHS, kitchen sponges have been shown to have the highest number of germs in the home. Be aware of cross-contamination, so, for example, avoid getting meat juices on hands, then taps, dishcloths etc. Keep pets away from food and work surfaces. If your child doesn’t eat all their food, throw the rest away. Unless eggs carry the British Lion Mark you should cook eggs (both white and yolk) until firm. However, eggs produced under the British Lion Code of Practice (and carry the British Lion Mark) are considered very low risk…

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Weaning recipes for the first year
type: item
creator: Caroline Hire – Food writer
subject: Family
subject: Family health
subject: Guide
subject: Health
subject: Weaning
subject: How to
subject: Caroline Hire
subject: goodhealth
description: Weaning your child can seem like a daunting task, whether you’re a nervous newcomer to the kitchen or a keen cook. Discover what to cook, how to cook it and practical advice on hygiene and storage.
encoded: Introducing your baby to new foods can feel like a big responsibility, but the good news is it really is a lot easier than you might think. Deciding which foods to put in front of your child and how to combine them draws a great deal on the flavour combinations we enjoy as adults, and thankfully the techniques needed to get the food on the table are equally as simple. First flavours - from around six months Weaning begins with single fruit or vegetable purées or soft finger foods. Get your little one used to a variety of different flavours and textures by trying the following: Cooked food Steamed cauliflower or broccoli, either in florets or puréed Steamed or roasted carrot, swede or parsnip, peeled, in thin batons or puréed Boiled or roasted sweet potato, peeled, in wedges or puréed Boiled peas and beans, as well as green leafy veg like spinach puréed Boiled lentils, puréed Roasted or steamed butternut squash or pumpkin, puréed Steamed apple or pear, puréed Steamed stone fruits (like peach, nectarine or plum), skin and stone removed, puréed Raw food Mango or papaya, skin removed, puréed or in slices Banana, skin removed, in chunks or mashed Ripe avocado, mashed Cucumber, skin removed, in sticks Stoned fruit, skin and stone removed, in small pieces Very ripe pear, peeled, in slices Finely grated carrot Berries, citrus fruit, kiwi, pineapple, celery and tomatoes are best avoided to begin with due to potential allergies. Kiwi is not a highly allergenic fruit but it is associated with cross reactivity and so if a baby has a sensitive tummy or suffers rashes then it is best to introduce a little later. When to introduce does to a certain extent depend on whether the family has atopic tendencies - so introduce for most babies at around eight months, whilst those with atopic tendencies should wait until around 10 months. When you do introduce them, do so one at a time and in small amounts so that you can notice and pinpoint any adverse reactions. Firstly try foods you kno…

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All you need to know about weaning
type: item
creator: Good Food team
subject: Family
subject: Family health
subject: Guide
subject: Health
subject: Weaning
subject: How to
subject: goodhealth
description: Stepping into the wonderful world of weaning? We've got everything you need to keep the little person in your life happy, healthy and safe...
encoded: Is my baby ready for weaning? Registered dietitian and leading child nutritionist Frankie Phillips tell us how to recognise the signs that your baby is ready for their first taste of food. When is my baby ready for weaning? What is baby-led weaning? Choosing a weaning style to suit you and your baby can feel daunting, and everyone seems to have an opinion. We explain what baby-led weaning really means... What is baby-led weaning? What can my baby eat when? Which are the best first foods? When do you introduce protein and texture? And how much should my baby be eating? Our registered dietitian covers everything you need to know... What can my baby eat when? Weaning recipes From perfect purées to fabulous finger foods, our easy and healthy baby and toddler recipes are sure to be a hit with the little person in your life. All our weaning recipes Flavour pairing for the first year Weaning your child can seem like a daunting task, whether you’re a nervous newcomer to the kitchen or a keen cook. Discover what to cook, how to cook it and practical advice on hygiene and storage. Flavour pairing for the first year The best high chairs for babies and toddlers A good high chair will take you from weaning through to toddlerhood and sometimes beyond. We enlisted parents to test popular brands like IKEA, Stokke and BabyBjörn to bring you our best buys for kids' mealtimes. The best high chairs to buy You may also be interested in the following guides... When is my baby ready for weaning? The best high chairs for babies and toddlers What can my baby eat when? Weaning recipes More about weaning​ NHS guide to healthy weaning ​What's your experience of weaning your baby? we'd love to hear from you below...

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