My Top 10... Dairy-Free Baby Meals
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Food & Cooking
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As regular readers will know, Toby has been dairy-free since about 5 months old, due to an intolerance causing severe silent reflux when he was a newborn. When it came to weaning, I was really nervous at first and worried about giving him anything that could potentially cause a reaction, including soya, nuts, eggs and anything with high acid content. Now a year old, Toby's tummy is still pretty delicate but he enjoys a wide range of meals and I thought I'd share some of our favourites, many of which make great meals for the whole family.
1. Sweet potato cottage pie - I threw this together recently by way of using up some food that needed to be eaten and Toby loved it! This meal seriously couldn't be any easier and is simply some mincemeat fried off in your oil of preference with some mixed herbs to season, some frozen veg boiled then added to the mine, low-salt gravy made quite thick and poured over the meat and veg, then sweet potatoes boiled until soft enough to mash and mashed with a dollop of dairy-free spread and almond milk. I sprinkled fresh rosemary into the sweet potato mix too and voila!
2. Vegetable curry - Courgette, aubergine, potato, peas, cauliflower and any veg you fancy really. Add some korma paste, a tin of coconut milk, some dairy-free single cream and gently simmer, stirring it all together. Service with wholegrain rice and a dollop of mango chutney.
3. Bolognese - Mince, peeled plum tomatoes, tomato puree, pepper, whatever fresh or dried herbs you fancy, onion, garlic and some small chunks of carrot or swede for an extra veggy boost. Easy peasy and serve with spaghetti, pasta or whatever you fancy really.
4. Tuna and sweet potato fishcakes. You can read my recipe for these here, they're so easy to make and can be frozen so you can make a big batch and grab one from the freezer as you want it. I just serve them with some frozen veg for a quick and nutritious meal.
5. Creamy salmon - Pop a salmon fillet into a foil pocket with some dairy-free spread and parsley, then put it in the oven for 20-25 minutes. On the hob, gently heat some dairy-free cream alternative and soya cheese together, season with some black pepper then pour over your cooked salmon. Serve with pasta or potato and veg.
6. Sausage hotpot - More of a winter meal, really hearty and filling. I brown the sausages on the hob then pop them in the slow cooker with low-salt vegetable stock, whatever vegetables I have to hand, a few onions and top with sliced white or sweet potatoes. Let the slow cooker do it's think and you have an easy and tasty meal with very little effort.
7. Egg on toast. Okay, I know, it's hardly a huge meal, but one of Toby's favourite things to eat is well-cooked scrambled egg made with his dairy-free spread and some pepper and maybe a few low-salt baked beans. Thankfully Toby seems fine with egg, but do be careful introducing them to any babies, but especially those with other allergies and under the age of 1.
8. Smoothies on Weetabix - Lately, Toby has been refusing his breakfast, so using our Babymoov Nutribaby I have been making smoothies with banana, strawberries and oat or almond milk, then pouring some over his Weetabix and he gobbles it down! Such a healthy start to the day.
9. Creamy paprika chicken and mushrooms - One of my absolute favourites and Toby seems to enjoy it too. I fry small chunks of chicken and sliced mushrooms, then add paprika, spinach and dairy-free cream and simmer until everything is cooked through. Serve with pasta or rice.
10. Veggy wraps - Avocado slices, grilled peppers and soya cream cheese in tortilla wraps are fab for an alternative to sandwiches at lunchtime.
1. Sweet potato cottage pie - I threw this together recently by way of using up some food that needed to be eaten and Toby loved it! This meal seriously couldn't be any easier and is simply some mincemeat fried off in your oil of preference with some mixed herbs to season, some frozen veg boiled then added to the mine, low-salt gravy made quite thick and poured over the meat and veg, then sweet potatoes boiled until soft enough to mash and mashed with a dollop of dairy-free spread and almond milk. I sprinkled fresh rosemary into the sweet potato mix too and voila!
2. Vegetable curry - Courgette, aubergine, potato, peas, cauliflower and any veg you fancy really. Add some korma paste, a tin of coconut milk, some dairy-free single cream and gently simmer, stirring it all together. Service with wholegrain rice and a dollop of mango chutney.
3. Bolognese - Mince, peeled plum tomatoes, tomato puree, pepper, whatever fresh or dried herbs you fancy, onion, garlic and some small chunks of carrot or swede for an extra veggy boost. Easy peasy and serve with spaghetti, pasta or whatever you fancy really.
4. Tuna and sweet potato fishcakes. You can read my recipe for these here, they're so easy to make and can be frozen so you can make a big batch and grab one from the freezer as you want it. I just serve them with some frozen veg for a quick and nutritious meal.
5. Creamy salmon - Pop a salmon fillet into a foil pocket with some dairy-free spread and parsley, then put it in the oven for 20-25 minutes. On the hob, gently heat some dairy-free cream alternative and soya cheese together, season with some black pepper then pour over your cooked salmon. Serve with pasta or potato and veg.
6. Sausage hotpot - More of a winter meal, really hearty and filling. I brown the sausages on the hob then pop them in the slow cooker with low-salt vegetable stock, whatever vegetables I have to hand, a few onions and top with sliced white or sweet potatoes. Let the slow cooker do it's think and you have an easy and tasty meal with very little effort.
7. Egg on toast. Okay, I know, it's hardly a huge meal, but one of Toby's favourite things to eat is well-cooked scrambled egg made with his dairy-free spread and some pepper and maybe a few low-salt baked beans. Thankfully Toby seems fine with egg, but do be careful introducing them to any babies, but especially those with other allergies and under the age of 1.
8. Smoothies on Weetabix - Lately, Toby has been refusing his breakfast, so using our Babymoov Nutribaby I have been making smoothies with banana, strawberries and oat or almond milk, then pouring some over his Weetabix and he gobbles it down! Such a healthy start to the day.
9. Creamy paprika chicken and mushrooms - One of my absolute favourites and Toby seems to enjoy it too. I fry small chunks of chicken and sliced mushrooms, then add paprika, spinach and dairy-free cream and simmer until everything is cooked through. Serve with pasta or rice.
10. Veggy wraps - Avocado slices, grilled peppers and soya cream cheese in tortilla wraps are fab for an alternative to sandwiches at lunchtime.
