From around seven to nine months old your little one will be ready to start on finger foods. Keep these important things in mind as your child takes this next step on their exciting food journey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So how exactly do you know that your baby is ready to move from purees on to finger foods? At around seven to nine months old, your child will start to master the pincer grasp \u2013 this means they can pick things up with their fingers and don\u2019t need to use their whole hand \u2013 and will be able to bring their hand to their mouth with intention. One of the easiest clues that your child is read for finger food is that they will start reaching out to steal food out of your hands or off your plate!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When first introducing finger foods start with softer textures so that they are easy to chew or suck and your little one can move the food around their mouth easily. Try mango, avo or banana, as well as sliced hard-boiled eggs and softly toasted bread. Initially you\u2019ll need to take the crunch out of veggies like carrots so that your baby can chew them easily \u2013 simply lightly steam or roast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To make grasping easier, don\u2019t slice food too thinly. Prep food to be about 2-3cm thick and about 6-9cm long. You don\u2019t want your child to feel frustrated because they can\u2019t pick it up!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Finger foods love a dip \u2013 and so will your little one. They are a great way to introduce new tastes, flavours and textures to your child and are so easy to make: just add a tablespoon of Squish 100% Fruit and Veg Puree<\/strong> to yoghurt or smooth cream cheese and mix well. Or you could simply use the puree on its own \u2013 there are a variety of flavours to choose from, including Squish 100% Summer Berries<\/strong>, Banana + Apple<\/strong>, and Sweet Potato, Apple + Cinnamon<\/strong>. Squish 100% Fruit and Veg Purees<\/strong> are packed full of natural goodness. They are completely free of added colourants, flavourants and preservatives, and have no added cane sugar. The resealable lids on Squish pouches cut back on waste too \u2013 just use what you need, then screw closed and pop back in the fridge for later. You\u2019ll find more dip inspiration under the Quick + Easy Recipe tab on our website, like this tasty and nutritious Bean Dip.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Choking is always a concern, especially when your little one first starts eating solids and finger foods. Make sure your child is sitting securely in their highchair to minimise choking risks \u2013 and sit with them so that you can supervise. Now isn\u2019t the time to multitask! If they start to get sleepy while eating, remove the food. Also, remember your child should not eat in the car, unless there is an adult sitting in the back seat to keep an eye on them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Once your little one has mastered basic finger foods, you can start to increase their menu options. Try these yummy recipes \u2013 they\u2019re all packed with Squish<\/strong> goodness: Cheesy Veg Balls<\/a> and Potato Pops<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" From around seven to nine months old your little one will be ready to start on…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":3226,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rank_math_lock_modified_date":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3225","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-6mnths","odd","has-thumbnail"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/squish.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3225"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/squish.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/squish.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/squish.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/squish.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3225"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/squish.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3225\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3227,"href":"https:\/\/squish.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3225\/revisions\/3227"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/squish.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3226"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/squish.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3225"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/squish.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3225"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/squish.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3225"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}