Babies are typically ready to start solid foods at around 6 months of life when they show signs of readiness. Are you looking to make your own homemade baby food but feel lost on what to buy? I’ve been there! With so many options to choose from it is easy to get overwhelmed. This guide will go into the details of the top 10 Baby Feeding Essentials (for starting solids).
You don’t need a lot of items but these top 10 must-have items can help you in this exciting journey of introducing baby’s first foods!
I will share my top picks for highchairs, grip dishes, baby spoons, cups, bibs, storage, baby food makers, and more. But, most importantly, creating a safe eating environment and familiarizing yourself with the methods of solid introduction is key!
Babies will learn how to eat, and it is a process that can be fun or stressful! You and your mental readiness will play an important role in the outcome!
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Table of Contents
1- Safe and Comfortable Highchair
A good highchair ensures your little one is in a safe position to start introduction to solids. But the BEST highchairs have some other aspects to consider. Here are the most important criteria, in my opinion, when choosing the BEST chair for your little one:
- Pulls closer to the table – A highchair with a removable tray that pulls up to the dining table will allow the baby to be very close to the family during mealtimes. I remember when my son was very little, he enjoyed being at the table with us so much! Not to mention that babies learn to eat by observing; getting him/her used to mealtimes helps later on to have a successful introduction to solids.
- Grows with the child – A highchair that grows with your baby is nice, especially if you are investing in a more expensive chair.
- Adjustable footrest – Your baby’s feet should always be comfortably positioned with 90 degrees at the knees and 90 degrees at the ankles.
- Upright seat – Babies should be fed seating at 90 degrees at the waist, with their shoulders aligned with their hips when seated.
The Abiie Wooden High Chair, the Stokke Tripp Trapp and the Hauck Wooden Highchair Alpha + meet these criteria. With my son, I bought the Hauck brand as we were living in Germany at the time, and it ended up being more cost advantageous. He has been using it since he was 6 months old with the newborn set and up to this day with almost 4 years, he still loves it! The Hauck chair can be used for a long time up to 198 pounds, it is very stable and tilt proof.
With my little girl, I purchased the Stokke Tripp Trapp as here in the US is more affordable and has more availability. The seat holds up to 242 pounds so, again it will be used for life!
You can add the feeding tray for the baby to eat off table or take it off and pull it up to the family dinner table. It also comes with a newborn set, this way your baby can get used to being part of family meals early on.
Here are some important points to consider and my final comments:
There is a drawback on the Stokke Tripp Trap: The tray material is grained plastic, so it is NOT smooth and suction plates will not stick correctly to the surface. If using the tray, it is best to lay the food (BLW way) directly on the tray. I tried removing the tray and moving my baby to eat at the table around 8 months, but she was still way too little for the big table.
So, if I could go back, I would try the Abiie High Chair as it has the mostly same features as the Stokke Tripp Trapp (except the newborn attachment) and the advantage of having: Cushioned backrest and seat, a smooth plastic tray that will keep suction plates in place and the price is very competitive.
2- Best Bibs for Baby-Led Weaning
Before starting solids, all we had were cloth bibs. They were terrible, the stains were impossible to clean. For solids (traditional feeding or baby led weaning), you need waterproof and easy-to-clean bibs…and, preferably, the ones that catch the mess!
Yes, you read it right, you need something with a front pocket to catch dropped food (which will be quite a bit…get ready 😊).
Silicone bibs are our favorite! They are so easy to clean, and the front pockets are great to catch all the crumbs and spillage. Silicone bibs have adjustable straps and can be used from 6+ months.
If you are looking for wipeable (non-silicone), spill-proof options this Bumkins Waterproof SuperBib is light and can be thrown in the washing machine for convenience. I started solids with my baby girl using Bumkins bibs as they were very light and then switched to silicone. This starter pack is the cutest.
Some people also like to cover the little ones arms, so these Bumkins Sleeved Bibs are a great option!
3- Best Spoons for Babies
BABY LED WEANING
These are my top 2 favorite spoons for baby led weaning, they are perfect size for little hands. You can easily preload mashed food and they are very easy for babies to self-feed.
Your little one will use their feeding spoons several times a day, so it is important to inspect the spoons especially when the babies are teething. This will ensure that you can check for any damage and properly discard the cutlery if necessary.
- Bumkins Chewtensils – These have shields to prevent your baby from getting the utensils too deep inside their mouths.
- NumNum Pre-Spoon – They have a thicker handle for little hands to hold. The channels allow food to “stick” and the textured surface can soothe sore gums.
TRADITIONAL FEEDING
If you choose traditional feeding, my top choice is the Munchkin Soft-Tip Infant Spoons. Even though they are made of plastic, they are BPA free, and the spoon bowls are gentle on baby’s gums.
4- Best Baby Plates
Suction Plates can be helpful when babies are starting solids, especially if you are doing baby led weaning. They stay attached to the table and it is harder to tip over.
We have 2 favorite types of plates, silicone grip dishes from Bumkins and Bamboo plates and bowls from both Bamboo Bamboo and Munchkin. These 3 brands have very good quality, they will last for years!
Here is why I love them and my favorite picks for you!
- Bumkins silicone grip divided plate is microwave and dishwasher safe. The material is very sturdy, holds well to the table. And they come in a wide of variety of colors!
- Bamboo Bamboo and Munchkin suction plates. I love both brands; they have very similar quality! Bamboo plates are great as they do not retain the smell of food, the drawback is that they are not microwave and dishwasher safe.
Silicone plates will sometimes retain odor from food or dish soap. Here are a few methods that will remove the odor and get your silicone plate back as new:
Method 1: Add 1 cup of vinegar to a pan with boiling water. Submerge the silicone plate, remove from heat, and let it in the water for 30 minutes.
Method 2: Squeeze ½ a lemon on top of the silicone dish, then sprinkle a 1:1 mixture of baking soda and white vinegar (about ½ cup each).
Allow the silicone dish to be in the mixture overnight, then wash normally.
Preferably use unscented gel pods in the washing machine or liquid detergent.
Here are our favorites ones from Bamboo Bamboo and Bumkins:
- Little Lamb – This one has a smaller size, we used more for snacks now.
- Bunny – Good size, can be used for main meals.
- Penguin – Has a great size!
- Suction Bowl – Bowl and spoon. We love this great size bowl, it is a bit larger than the one from bumkins.
5- Favorite Sippy Cups
When babies start eating solids it is important to start offering water during mealtimes. Open cups can be offered right when they start at approximately 6 months and experts consider this a better option! Open cups encourage a sipping action, rather than sucking, which is good for promoting jaw development.
Ultimately, it will be your decision to choose from an open cup or sippy cup! When we started solids, the first cup I gave water to my son was the Nuby no spill 360 with straw. He absolutely loved it…but when trying it with my baby girl 3 years later it didn’t work as well. The straw would fall all the time and she would spill water all over. We have been loving Nuk’s learner silicone cups and for an open cup we use ezpz Tiny Cup, which is 100% silicone and designed to fit baby’s mouth and hands.
When my baby turns one, I will upgrade to the ezpz Mini Cup for toddlers and the ezpz Straw training system which has is larger than the ezpz Tiny Cup but has the same design.
6- Food Storage Trays and COntainers
Baby food should be stored in the fridge for a maximum of 3 days, and in the freezer for up to 3 months. The best way to save time and always have baby food available is to freeze! Keeping a variety of foods in your freezer stash will ensure that your baby is fed a good variety and relieves some of the stress of mealtimes. There is not anything worse than trying to cook something with a hungry baby crying!
I will share my favorite ways to store baby food by type.
- Ice cube trays with lid: Can be used to freeze rice, beans, mashed potatoes, ground beef, ground chicken, fish. The portion size of each food ice cube is about 1 tablespoon. When my baby was about 9 months of age, she would eat around 5-6 cubes of food for lunch and dinner. Once frozen, you can remove the food cubes and transfer to a Ziplock bag; this will save space in your freezer and free up your ice cube trays for other batches of food. Foods without a lot of liquid such as rice, can be unmolded easily. On the other hand, beans and other preparations with more liquid, you can run the back of the ice cube trays in warm water and then remove the food.
- Baby glass storage containers: Can be used for one pot meals such as chicken & chickpea masala, risotto, or pasta sauce.
- Silicone freezer trays: Can be used for smoothies, purees, soup, and veggies.
- Ziploc bags: Can be used to store muffins, pancakes, fritters, chicken patties, beef hamburgers, salmon cakes.
These are some of the best ways to thaw baby food:
- Refrigerator: Transfer frozen food to the refrigerator to thaw. It will take about 12 hours to defrost, works best when planning and leaving the food overnight to defrost.
- Microwave (frozen food cubes): Add the desired frozen cubes to a microwave safe plate and use the defrost mode by weight or by time. For 5-6 food cubes, it takes about 5 minutes to defrost. Then, start warming up the food to the desired temperature.
- Microwave (frozen baby glass jars): When defrosting food in glass jars, I like to add the glass jar to a bowl with water and use the defrost mode to thaw. Then, I discard the water, and warm up the food normally using a plate or microwave safe bowl.
7- tOP tOOLS FOR mAKING bABY pUREES
Regardless of the method you choose to feed your baby (traditional feeding or baby-led weaning), the best option to make your own baby food is steaming or roasting. 90% of the time, I end up steaming from potatoes, broccoli, to apples. Having a baby food maker with steaming function is key and a safer option! Moms are often overtired, and we all know that babies don’t stick to a set schedule, so, having a pan of boiling water on the stove isn’t something that I would recommend.
If you are planning to make baby purees, here are some of our favorite kitchen accessories.
- Electric steamer with a timer and shut-off function. This one already comes with a blender, or you can purchase a simpler version and a separate hand blender.
- Hand blender: for making homemade pasta sauce, blending fruits and vegetables.
8- Top Tools for Baby-Led Weaning
To make some baby-led weaning recipes, these items are the basic to get you started:
- Mini muffin tray: You will be baking muffins for baby and these min muffins are just the perfect size to avoid food waste.
- Baking sheet: For baking veggie tots and more!
- Waffle maker: This is our favorite!
- Wavy crinkle cutting tool: This is great to cut slippery fruits and veggies such as avocado and mango. Using a crinkle cutter will give these foods more grip.
- Grape cutter: Grapes are a common choking hazard; this tool makes it easier to cut grapes and save time!
9- Taking Hot Food On The Go
If you have a baby and plan a day out, a thermos lunch box is very convenient for packing a hot lunch or dinner. It keeps the food warm for up to 5 hours.
10- Taking Cold Snacks On The Go
Here are some essentials for packing a cold snack for babies such as yogurt, fruits and cheese.
Frequently Asked Questions
– Highchair
– Bibs
– Baby spoons
– Bowls and suction plates
– Drinking cups
Breast milk or formula is the only food your newborn needs. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends exclusive breast-feeding for the first six months after birth. After 6 months and all the signs of readiness solid feeding can start preferably offer fruits and veggies with safe cuts for BLW or purees.
Solid foods may be introduced in any order. I started with high iron foods, fruits and veggies. Only one single ingredient food should be offered to check for allergies before introducing recipes.
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the World Health Organization (WHO) encourage parents to wait until six months of age before starting baby on solids, when they may show all signs of readiness.
From 6 months of age, you can give your baby small amounts of water when starting introduction to solids. Water should be offer with food and breastmilk or formula for the other feedings.
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