Sweet potato as a first food in babies
I love sweet potato! It is such a staple in our house. I love making sweet potato fries to go with pretty much any meal… or sweet potato mash, or sweet potato curry, stew, dhal…! So getting my little one to love sweet potato was huge for me!
But thankfully, sweet potato is actually a great first food for babies who are weaning! When cooked it becomes soft and easy to chew and digest for little tummies. It’s packed with gut-loving fibre - especially if you keep the skin on, and contains lots of vitamin A for healthy vision development in babies and also folic acid!
I’ve got two first food sweet potato recipes for babies starting solids - sweet potato mash and sweet potato fingers - you can try them both - together or separately!
SWEET POTATO FINGERS
YOU NEED
1/2 sweet potato, peeled (you won’t need all of this!!)
Optional:
Extra virgin olive oil
Paprika
TO MAKE
Preheat air fryer to 190 degrees, or oven to 190 degrees
Cut the sweet potato into finger-like fries
Sprinkle over paprika and drizzle with oil (if using) and toss to coat
Add to the air-fryer and cook for 15-20 mins or until golden (these take around 25-30 mins in an oven) - time depends on thickness of your wedges. The wedges should be soft and squishable between your thumb and forefinger!
SWEET POTATO MASH
YOU NEED
1/2 sweet potato, peeled (you won’t need all of this!!)
Optional:
Extra virgin olive oil
Paprika
TO MAKE
Cut your sweet potato into small cubes
Bring to the boil then simmer for around 8-10 mins on the hob, or until the potatoes are nicely tender, then drain
Return to the pan and mash with a little breast milk or formula milk (around 30-50mls or so or more if needed)
Baby-led weaning tip
A double-ended weaning spoon can help your little one feed- as your baby certainly won’t understand the concept of “the right way round” just yet! Or just dip both ends of a regular weaning spoon anyway
Here is my little one devouring sweet potato wedges out in a restaurant on our travels in New Zealand!
