Baby Food Recipes with Lentils

Among the popular baby foods in the world are the lentil purees. They are rich in nutrients like for instance proteins and fiber that are essential for the growth and development of a baby. This is a kind of baby food that can be prepared quickly and with much ease. To add some texture, flavor, and nutrition to this food, you can consider combining lentil puree with other healthy ingredients.

In this article, we talk about introducing lentils to your baby’s diet and we give you 3 easy recipes for tasty homemade baby food.

The recipes in this article:

Recipe 1 – Lentils, Sweet potato, and Cheese
Recipe 2 – Lentils, Chicken, Zucchini, and Rice
Recipe 3 – Lentils and Apple

You might also be interested in our recipes with chickpeas, rice or aubergines.

When can a baby eat lentils?

Lentils are the best option you should consider and a child can be introduced to this when he/she has attained the age of around 7 months. General growth and development of a child are greatly contributed to the kind of foods we feed them. According to experts in this field, nutritious food is far ahead as they support a baby’s mental and physical health.

From the time of birth to around six months, a baby depends on the mother’s breast milk or formula for required body growth and development nutrients. But then, as the baby keeps growing older, there is a need for the baby to be introduced into solid foods to act as supplements as there will be an increased need for more nutrients.

We recommend that you consult with your baby’s pediatrician on introducing solid foods as generalities may not apply to your infant.

How to prepare lentils for baby food

First, rinse the lentils for about 1 minute under cold, running water and remove excess dirt. Place lentils in a medium-sized pot. For 1 cup lentils, add 3 cups of water and bring it to a boil. Once the water boils, reduce the heat to a very gentle simmer.

Keep an eye on the liquid level and add a little bit more as needed, making sure to keep the lentils completely submerged. Cook until tender, which is around 20-40 minutes. For red and yellow lentils, this is around 15-20 minutes.

Pour off the water and let the lentils cool down a little. Now the lentils are ready to use in the recipes below.

Recipe 1: Lentils, sweet potato, and carrots (age 7 months+)

Tasty and healthy dinner recipe for your little one!

Ingredients:

• ½ Cup of lentils (cooked)
• 1 Small sweet potato
• 2 Carrots

Instructions:

Step 1 – Cook the lentils according to the instructions we named earlier.

Step 2 – Peel and chop the sweet potato and cook it for 30 minutes.

Step 3 – Peel the carrots, chop them in pieces and cook them for 8-10 minutes.

Step 4 – Add all the ingredients to a blender and blend until you reach the desired consistency. You can add some water if you want.

Recipe 2: Lentils, chicken, zucchini, and rice (age 8-10 months+)

A tasty curry that isn’t too spicy for your little one.

Ingredients:

• ½ Cup lentils
• 2 oz (50 gms) Chicken
• ½ Zucchini
• ½ Cup of rice (white or brown)

Instructions:

Step 1 – Cook the lentils following the instructions we mentioned earlier.

Step 2 – When preparing baby food recipes, make sure the chicken is cooked until it is very soft and easy to blend. In a saucepan, cover the chicken with water.

Step 3 – Bring to a boil and simmer very gently for about 10 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat. Cover and let stand for 10 minutes.

Step 4 – Wash and chop up the zucchini and cook it for 5-8 minutes.

Step 5 – Put rice and water together in a pot with a lid. Use the ratio of 1.5 cups water to 1 cup rice. Bring to a boil and once boiling, lower heat to a simmer and cover. Cook for about 15-25 minutes.

Step 6 – Add all the ingredients to a blender and blend until it is a creamy puree.

Recipe 3: Lentils and apple (age 7 months+)

This recipe is very easy to make and your baby will enjoy it!

Ingredients:

• ½ Cup of lentils
• 1 Apple

Instructions:

Step 1 – Cook the lentils and let them cool down. Peel the apple, remove the core, and chop it up.

Step 2 – You can cook the apple for 5 minutes to make it softer, but this is optional.

Step 3 – Add all the ingredients to a blender or use a hand blender.

You can easily store and freeze this recipe by pouring the mixture into an ice cube form.

Feeding guide for lentils

Please keep in mind that this feeding guide is for lentils only. If you add other ingredients, like meats, this guide will not apply anymore.

We recommend that you consult with your baby’s pediatrician on introducing solid foods as generalities may not apply to your infant.

Are these baby food recipes freezable?

You should store your batch of homemade lentil baby meals in a refrigerator using an airtight container for up to 72 hours.

You can freeze this baby food into different portions by employing pouring the mixture into ice cubes or in small food storage containers.

Which kitchen tools to use

In order to prepare these baby food recipes, you will need the following kitchen tools:

• Blender or food processor
• Knife
• Tablespoon
• Vegetable peeler
• Cutting board
• Saucepan
• Food storage containers or an ice cube form

Nutritional benefits

They are a healthy way to ensure a baby receives sufficient nutrients for her growth and development. Just to state a few, just a single tablespoon of this meal can provide a kid a full dose of proteins that is helpful to a child’s general growth and also a good source of energy.

There are so many other nutrients a kid gains from consuming this food at large; these are zinc that is responsible for a healthy immune system, iron for the baby’s brain development, and also calcium for the development of strong bones. It also offers a baby with vitamin C but in small amounts, potassium, folic acid, and vitamin A.

Recommendations

Lentils can be difficult for the babies to digest; therefore you should consider combining lentil puree with some other ingredients. You can consider the favorite vegetable to your child so as the baby can be encouraged to make lentils. You can substitute green beans you used in the recipe with other kinds of vegetable puree like for instance the squash, peas, or carrots.

Since we are after the nutritional value of this food, you should avoid adding any sugar or salt to the baby lentils as these will reduce the overall nutritional value. To enhance the food taste of lentils, you can sprinkle of dried herbs like ginger or cinnamon and also consider exposing your baby to more and new flavors out there.

Many of you know that legumes in general and the lentils do cause gases in our bodies as they contain sugar molecules that are large for the body to break down. The sugar molecules normally end up right at the colon where they are thereby consumed or eaten by the bacteria and as a result gas is produced. There are different foods that cause gases in our bodies but then, for our case the lentils to babies, it is advisable the baby is started off from small quantities. Thereafter you can consider offering the baby a little more in case no symptoms of digestive upset are experienced.