10 Recipes for the Whole Family to Enjoy [Adapted for Babies!]

As someone who loves food and loves cooking, getting to the stage of babyhood where Hannah can eat table food has been so much fun for me! I have loved making purees for her, trying different fruit and vegetable combinations, and adding in spices like cinnamon, thyme, and ginger along the way. And finding creative ways to introduce protein to my formerly toothless girl (she finally popped her first two teeth just before 9 months) has also been a fun adventure. The idea of eating pureed chicken horrifies me (and I tried serving it to her twice and Hannah had a similar reaction to the texture), so until she can chew she's been enjoying black bean and chickpea purees, mashed avocado, and many a scrambled egg. Now that she's almost 11 months old (what?) and has been eating solids for a few months, I'm feeling much more confident about introducing her to some of the meals that Alex and I also enjoy. So I've been scouring my recipe archives to find things that we can all enjoy together-- maybe with a few simple tweaks to make them baby-friendly. So, if you're feeding a little one and need some ideas I have rounded up a few recipes below, along with some baby-friendly cooking notes:

1. Blueberry Banana Buttermilk Pancakes - The blueberries in these pancakes will soften and burst with cooking, but just remember to cut up any berries or bananas for topping (and also the pancakes) into baby-safe pieces.

2. Herbed Cauliflower & Yukon Gold Puree - This smooth puree is delicious for adults and babies and a great way to introduce baby to the flavors of fresh herbs against the more subtle flavors of cauliflower and potato.

3. Cheesy Orzotto - Like mac and cheese, but the orzo is already small enough for tiny mouths. Sub in more chicken broth for the white wine and season with shallots and salt/pepper at your discretion!

4. Fire Roasted Tomato Soup - Soup is a fun way to introduce new and bolder flavors to a baby in a format that's easy to spoon feed to little mouths. Just be sure to serve lukewarm and leave out the red pepper flakes in this recipe.

5. Cheesy Zucchini Cakes - Omit the red pepper flakes from this recipe and you've got a perfect hearty, but vegetarian finger food for your little one.

6. Italian Turkey Meatballs - Turkey meatballs were one of the first meats that we introduced to Hannah and she loved them! Leave out the red pepper flakes and cut these into pea-sized pieces for baby to enjoy as finger food.



7. Pumpkin Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Muffins - Pumpkin puree was one of the first foods that I introduced to Hannah and muffins are another fun finger food for her to experiment with. Leave the chocolate chips out for baby and serve as a fun snack.

8. Slow Cooker Pot Roast with Root Vegetables - The slow cooker is my go to  way to prepare Hannah-friendly meat. It cooks low and slow so it is soft enough for babies without a full mouth of teeth to chew-- and includes some hearty root vegetables too. Just omit the hot sauce and enjoy!

9. Butternut Squash with a Rosemary Pecan Parmesan Crust - Roasting the squash gives it the same soft texture you'd get from a puree, but this crust adds some nice new flavors. Just make sure the herbs are chopped fine and leave out the pecans for baby.

10. Herb Roasted Carrots & Potatoes - This recipe does call for onions, but you could leave them out if you'd prefer not to introduce them to baby quite yet.