Baby Led Weaning Meal Ideas
Now that our son Ryder is 8 months old, we’ve really gotten into meal times. He LOVES to eat and so far hasn’t been picky towards much, which has been amazing! So I wanted to share some of the meals I’ve made for Ryder for those just getting started on baby led weaning (BLW). However, before I begin this post, I want to make it clear that I am not a nutritionist and your baby’s meal plan should be cleared by your pediatrician. I am simply sharing what has worked for our family. We also started BLW when he was around 6 months old. And we began with purees for about a month while slowly introducing different solid foods. Now at 8 months he really only eats purees if we are traveling or don’t have time to prepare a meal. He also currently has no teeth.
So if you follow me on Instagram, you’ll know I’ve shared a lot of Ryder’s meals. You all have given me a ton of great feedback, so I wanted to have a post dedicated to BLW so you can pin now and read later. I really love BLW because it’s easy! Basically Ryder eats what we eat. There are no special meals, unless I make something extra spicy or something that he isn’t old enough to have just yet. The convenience of BLW is what really convinced me to start. As well as the added bonus of raising a good eater! By broadening his palate now, he is more likely to enjoy different varieties and tastes of food when he’s older.
Breakfast:
Here I’ve shown 3 examples of breakfasts Ryder eats:
Kodiak Cakes protein waffles with mango and a dash of syrup.
Kodiak Cakes protein pancakes with sausage and a dash of syrup.
Scrambled eggs, blueberry bagel pieces, and mixed berries.
Other breakfast foods I’ve made include an egg scramble with potatoes and ham, apple cinnamon oatmeal with extra cinnamon sprinkled on top, and buttered toast sticks.
Lunch:
Here are 3 examples of lunch:
Apple pumpkin teething wafer, raspberries, swiss cheese.
Blueberry teething wafers, blueberries, green beans.
Turkey lunch meat, strawberries, colby jack cheese.
Other lunch options you could try are avocado toast, chicken, banana, hard boiled egg.
Dinner:
Here are 3 examples of dinner:
Pork tenderloin, steamed broccoli, sweet potato
Hamburger, streamed carrots, and strawberries
Shredded bbq chicken, corn, potatoes
Other dinner options include: pork chops, salmon, steak, mashed potatoes, buttered rolls, applesauce.
Important things to consider:
Make sure veggies are steamed so they can be easily chewed.
Meat is tender enough to eat without teeth.
Keep food small enough or in stick pieces which are easy for little hands to grasp.
Always eat with your child to make sure they do not choke.
Allow the child to self feed. I do not put any food in Ryder’s mouth. He is in control.
If the child does choke, do not put your finger in their mouth to try and remove the food because it can actually push the food farther down their throat on accident. Refer to this article from The Bump for the proper steps to handle a choking child.
Trust your child. Kids are more resilient than we think! Your child might gag or cough at first but they will eventually get the hang of it, and always go with your gut. You know your child better than anyone else. If you feel they aren’t ready for BLW then give it another try later. As long as your baby is being fed that is most important.
Some of my favorite baby feeding gear:
This is not sponsored, but I love the Bella Tunno brand. They have really fun designs and are super functional. We use the silicone bibs, plates, and spoons. What’s really awesome about Bella Tunno is when you buy a product they provide a meal for a family in need as well. You can find more info as well as purchase the items above here.
If you made it this far, whew! That was a long post. But I hope you found it helpful and enjoyed the information I shared with you. Have you tried BLW? How was your experience with it? Sound off in the comments!