Cheese?

crazy cat lady

The weaning guide I was given by my phn advises to start including cheese into your baby's diet at 6 months, which I have done, but is it ok to give Megan a stick of cheese to chomp on? Or when would you advise given cheese as a finger food?

Also, what suggestions do you have for finger food? So far we have:

Rusks
Toast fingers (without butter, not sure if I should be giving butter??)
Carrot sticks

Thanks!

Chuchu

I'm interested to hear what others say about cheese, we've only used cheese melted in a cauliflower dinner so far. I'm a big cheese fan so I can't wait for her to start it!!
For finger food we give slices of banana which she LOVES and pear, these are both very safe and she gets to practice chomping.
But I have to recommend this range called Organix for finger food, we decided early on not to buy jarred or shop food and make all the food ourselves (as much as possible:D) but this range is great and our little one LOVES them. They're basically puffed up corn snacks with dusted carrot powder or sweet corn powder on them (also do small apple rice cakes) they're kinda like crisps for babies but good for them!! Anyway I don't give her any more then 2 or 3 in one sitting but since she started them they have really helped her chewing and chomping skills so I can't recommend them highly enough. I've seen the range in most supermarkets.

January

Cheese is fine as a finger food, just make sure that it's not too hard. Addison loved cheese, still does!

Pear, Apple, Banana, Carrot, Broccoli, Cucumber, anything that can be cut into sticks is a brilliant finger food. Most veg, lightly boiled or steamed so it's not too crunchy.

Moonbeam

We ruled out anyhting with gluten until she was over 1 due to the increased risk of coeliac disease.

I bought a couple of these - http://www.babysafefeeder.com/ and put banana and pear in to them and she loved it.

She used to love sucking on raw peppers.

Sweet potato wedges became a favourite for both of us,they are yummy and cut up small she was well able for them and loved them.

I suppose I gave her anyhting that she could eat/suck with her limited teeth that was suitable for her age.

DubDani

Good topic, as I had something very similiar on my mind yesterday.

Our 7 month old loves solids and all kind of food. Unfortunately she has no teeth yet, which limits a bit the stuff we can give her as finger food.

Any suggestion on fingerfood that can be eaten without teeth? I had some rice crisps in my hand yesterday but they seemed very hard to be eaten without any teeth. So for now we are sticking to some soft fruits like Bananas, Apricots etc...

Grawns

Grated cheese is good at that age, calvita has added vitamin d and is yummy. Organix make soft biscuits that turn to mush. Really 6 or 7 months is a little too young for finger food ( self feeding) though. They need to be able to sit up unsupported.

DubDani

Our 7 month old has been sitting unsupported for the last 4 weeks and has been crawling for 3 weeks now all around the house.

Grawns

well able for it then

Ayla

The way I see it, if the babe can handle it & enjoys munching on it then it's fine. All the previous posters had good suggestions & I've done all that too.

I go a bit further though, and whatever we're having for bkfast/lunch/dinner I've given to my two daughters. If they can manage it (and #2 is only now just getting her 3rd tooth at 9 1/2 months) then they get some too. This includes any meat that we're eating (they've both *loved* chicken). They also have gotten soups.

Sometimes the girls just played with it, but more often than not they've figured out how to get it down the hatch, then they've come grabbing for more

Now, I know that some may feel that we're a bit too liberal with our diets, as some feel there should be restrictions b/c of increased risk of triggering alergies/etc, but this is what we've done. Everyone does their own thing & we've all made it alright

Grawns

I wish I had done that but we eat a lot of spicy food. Never meat and 2 veg. As a result Bridget at 17 mths rejects all meats except sausage! Not ideal.

The last few days I've made egg fried rice with chicken and peas, mash and beef and mild chilli and mash just for her. she wouldn't touch any of it.

It's cheesy peasy pasta for lunch and dinner again :eek:

Moonbeam

WIll she not eat the spicy foods or do you not give them to her?

January

Addison loves nothing better than trying to rob her fathers vindaloo off his plate... She can well handle it. Better than I could...

Khannie

crazy cat lady wrote: »

not sure if I should be giving butter??

Butter is good stuff. The fat in cheese is the same as the fat in butter. Plus, butter is delicious.

Cat Melodeon

My lad has been getting finger food since he was 6 months (we've done baby-led weaning with some spoonfeeds) and he recently decided that he and he alone is responsible for putting food in his mouth (he's 11 months). So all his food is now effectively finger food (including oatibix, yoghurt etc) as he does not like to use his spoon other than as a trowel to more effectively smear food into his eyebrows. God bless cheap coverall bibs from Tesco and dogs to clean the floor!

His favourite foods at the moment are:
veggie wedges - roast chunks of carrot, sweet potato, parsnip & beetroot (slice them thinly and roast them to make a great alternative to crisps for older kids).

slices of steamed butternut squash with fruit pureed dip - messy but yummy

pasta - I get a gluten free one and serve it up with whatever sauce is going

toast fingers - with butter and jam or with melted cheese

He'll also dig in to whatever we're having - he's had curry, roasts, fish pie, tortillas - pretty much everything. Mash anything with a skin (peas, berries) and shred up any lumps of meat - my lad loves sucking meat off chop bones but I make sure to break up any chunky bits of meat. Do your regular cooking with low-salt stocks and best quality meat & veg and it'll be grand for baby. For fruit & veg, Lidl has been shown to have the lowest traces of chemical and the highest quality produce, so best doesn't have to mean expensive.

It's been recommended on here before, but the Anabel Karmel books are brilliant for food ideas, including finger foods.

Edit - meant to say that he's been having cheese for ages now - I started off with grated but since he got teeth I just slice him off a bit and let him gnaw on it.

Grawns

Moonbeam wrote: »

WIll she not eat the spicy foods or do you not give them to her?

I try now and she ate a bit of massaman curry once but not the next time. Little minx.

Nevyn

I'd be careful with spicey foods and please make sure it is pasturised cheese.
I know your all sensible loving parents but I just have to say it

crazy cat lady

Thanks all for your replies!

Megan has been sitting up by herself for about a month now and the weaning book says its good to introduce finger foods at 6 months so I didn't think it was too early really.

I often give her what we have for dinner and mash it up with sweet potato, broccoli and carrot. She's taking lumpy food really well, despite being a big gummy bear!

I got some mild cheese sticks in Tesco and will try her with the over the next few days. I'm going to look for the Organix range too. I don't really spend time in the baby food aisle as I make all of her food. There could be a whole load of hidden treasures down there for her!

January

The Organix range is fantastic. Addie loves the tomato flavour X's and O's they do. She also loves the elephant biscuits

crazy cat lady

FYI Megan LOVES cheese!!

wolfpawnat

I think all babies do. I give my fella the grated mozzerella and cheddar mixed (variety is the spice of life they say ) He will actually pass up, chocolate, biscuits and everything else if he sees the cheese!!!!!

As others have said Organix are great, I have a packet everywhere I go (handy little snacks) just either have a full bib or a spare set of clothes with you, things can get messy, easily washed out though!!!!

Also on the spicy food thing. I was talking to a Thai friend of mine (since Thai is spicy food) she said they only give proper spicy food after the age of 4, but they make slightly spicy food but water it down with coconut milk before that to make it edible for them. Surely a very mild curry watered down with coconut milk is a good suggestion Aidan loves the Heinz jar of sweet and sour chicken!!!

Also he is addicted to little strips of chicken (cooked of course) he loves it, no chicken sandwich is safe around him!!!!!

crazy cat lady

Picked up spme Organix rice cakes and carrot sticks today! The carrot stick look like giant wotsits but Megan is happily chomping on one now