Your Baby’s First Menu: Simple Recipes for Ages 4 to 12 Months

Wholegrains

½ bowl of brown rice/rice (100g)
½ bowl of noodles, spaghetti or beehoon (100g)
1 large potato (180g)

Fruit

1 small apple, orange, pear or mango (130g)
1 wedge pineapple, papaya or watermelon (130g)
1 medium banana

Vegetable

¾ mug or 1 small rice bowl of cooked vegetables (100g)
¼ plate of vegetables

Meat and others

1 palm-sized piece of fish, lean meat or skinless poultry (90g)
2 small blocks of soft beancurd (170g)
¾ cup or 1 small rice bowl of cooked pulses (e.g. lentils) (120g)

Time required

Prep time: 5 mins 

Cook time: 15 mins

Additional time: 2 hours

Serves: 12

Ingredients

3 cups frozen peas

½ cup breast milk

Note: You can use fresh peas instead of frozen ones if you have them. You can also substitute formula or water for breast milk.

Directions

1. Place a steamer insert into a saucepan and fill with water to just below the bottom of the steamer. Bring water to a boil. Add peas, cover, and steam until tender, about 15 minutes.

2. Place peas and breast milk in a blender or food processor; puree until creamy. Strain mixture through a fine-mesh sieve to remove any lumps.

3. Spread pea mixture into an ice cube tray; cover with plastic wrap and freeze until solid, 2 to 3 hours. Transfer frozen cubes to a resealable plastic bag and store in the freezer.

4. To serve, heat cubes in the microwave for about 30 seconds until warm but not hot. Stir thoroughly.

Estimated Macros (per serving)

47 Calories, 1g Fat, 8g Carbs, 2g Protein

Time required

Prep time: 5 mins

Cook time: 15 mins

Additional time: 2 hours

Serves: 12

Ingredients

6 apples, peeled and chopped

½ tsp ground cinnamon (optional)

½ cup water

Directions

1. Place the chopped apples, cinnamon, and water in a medium saucepan over medium heat.

2. Cover and cook for 12–15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until apples are soft and tender.

3. Let the mixture cool slightly, then transfer to a blender or food processor. Puree until smooth.

4. For younger babies, you can add more water to thin the puree to your desired consistency.

5. Spoon into an ice cube tray, cover with plastic wrap, and freeze for 2–3 hours. Transfer frozen cubes to a resealable plastic bag for storage.

To serve, heat cubes in the microwave for about 30 seconds until warm but not hot. Stir thoroughly.

Estimated Macros (per serving)

40 Calories, 0g Fat, 11g Carbs

Time required

Prep time: 5 mins 

Cook time: 10 mins

Serves: 3

Ingredients

1/3 small head cauliflower (about 140 g/5 oz), cut into small florets

Directions

1. Steam or boil the cauliflower in a saucepan over a medium heat for 8–10 minutes until very tender.

2. Add 4–5 tablespoons of boiled water, purée the cauliflower in a food processor, or using a hand blender, until smooth.

Estimated Macros (per serving)

Not available for this recipe

Pro Tips

Once your little one is used to plain cauliflower, Try adding a pinch of cumin or paprika to mix it up!

You can thin all the purées using your baby’s usual milk, if you prefer!

Prefer other vegetables? Swap cauliflower for broccoli, or carrots (Original recipe linked)!

Time required

Prep time: 5 mins 

Cook time: 45 mins

Serves: 1

Ingredients

3 cups water

1/4 teaspoon salt (omit if needed)

3/4 cup quick-cooking brown rice

1 Green apple

1 Red apple

1 large peach

1 cup raisins

1 container (8-ounce) low fat vanilla or plain yogurt

Directions

Step 1: Cook grains for 30 minutes then add diced apples, diced peach and chopped raisins.

Step 2: Return to cooking for another 15 minutes or until everything is soggy and cereal-like. Keep a close watch on the pot as you may need to add more water. Stir often.

Step 3: Just before serving, stir in yogurt of an amount you desire.

Estimated Macros (per serving)

Per apple: 52 Calories, 0.2g Fat, 14g Carbs, 10g Sugars, 2.4g Fibre, 0.3g Protein, 0g Salt

Brown Rice (per ¾ cup): 167 Calories, 1.35g Fat, 0.3g Saturates, 34.5g Carbs, 0.6g Sugars, 2.7g Fibre, 3.9g Protein, 0g salt

Time required

Prep time: 5 mins 

Cook time: 10-12 mins

Serves: 1

Ingredients

10g of Whole Egg**

10g of Codfish

5g of Green Beans

80g of Whole Rice Gruel

Directions

1. Crack the egg** into a non-stick pan over low heat. Continuously stir it with a spatula as it cooks to create soft, scrambled egg** pieces. Make sure it's fully cooked through with no runny parts. Set aside to cool slightly.

2. Bring a small pot of water to a boil and gently simmer the codfish for about 5–7 minutes, or until it flakes easily with a fork.

Remove from water, let it cool, then shred it into tiny, baby-friendly pieces. Ensure that there are no bones.

3. Wash and trim the green beans, then chop them into very small pieces. Boil or steam until soft (about 5–8 minutes), then drain and mix with warm rice or rice gruel. Stir until well combined.

4. Spoon the rice and green bean mixture into your baby’s bowl. Top with the scrambled egg** and shredded codfish. 

Make sure everything is soft, bite-sized, and at a safe temperature before serving.

Estimated Macros (per serving)

79 Calories, 1.3g Fat, 12g Carbs, 4.3g Protein

Vegetables that roast well (time taken to roast)

This recipe works well with a range of vegetables.

Carrots (35 minutes; see tip below)

Parsnips (35 minutes; see tip below)

Broccoli (25 minutes)

Cauliflower (30 minutes)

Zucchini and summer squash (30 minutes)

Butternut squash (30 minutes)

Eggplant (25 minutes)

Green beans (25 minutes)

Potatoes (35 minutes)

Sweet potatoes (35 minutes)

Asparagus (15 minutes)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 425°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 

Cut the vegetable of your choice into roughly equal-sized pieces so they will cook at an even rate. Aim for pieces about the size and shape of your pinky finger so babies will be able to grasp them. 

Lay the veggies in a single layer on the baking sheet. 

(Note: If the sheet is too crowded or the veggies overlap, they will steam, not roast, and that delectable browning won’t occur.) 

Roast until tender and browned; the time will vary based on the vegetable. (Approximate times are in parentheses above.) 

Cool and serve.

Pro Tip

Certain vegetables, such as carrots, parsnips, and Brussels sprouts, need a little extra help to turn out perfectly tender. To achieve this, cover the sheet pan tightly with aluminum foil at the start of roasting. Roast for 15 minutes, then remove the foil and continue roasting until they’re golden and tender. This initial steaming step helps soften the veggies evenly before they caramelize.

Time required

Prep time: 5 mins

Cook time: 5 mins

Serves: 1

Ingredients

1 tablespoon of Grated Apple

2 tablespoon of Unsweetened Plain Yoghurt

1 Slice of Bread (cut into 8 slices)

Directions

1. Trim the ends off the breadsticks and slice them into baby-friendly lengths. Lightly toast them until just crisp and golden.

2. In a small bowl, mix the grated or mashed apples with plain yogurt.

3. Dip the toasted breadsticks into the apple-yogurt mix and serve as a fun, easy-to-grasp snack for your little one.

Estimated Macros (per serving)

105 Calories, 2g Fat, 16.7g Carbs, 3.5g Protein

Time required

Prep time: 5 mins 

Cook time: 5 mins

Serves: 12

Ingredients

100g porridge oats

300ml full-fat milk

1 banana

1 large carrot

2 tbsp chia seeds

1 tbsp cinnamon

1 tbsp peanut butter**

Directions

1. Place 100g of porridge oats in a food processor and blend.

2. Add 3 parts milk to 1 part porridge and gently heat. So for 100g oats use 300ml milk

3. Whilst the porridge heats for 5 minutes, mash the banana with a fork and peel and finely grate a carrot

4. Remove the porridge from the heat and stir in the mashed banana, grated carrot, chia seeds, cinnamon and peanut butter**.

5. Mix well and serve 1 portion of porridge once cooled. The rest of the porridge will keep for up to 5 days in the fridge.

Estimated Macros (per serving)

74 Calories, 3g Fat, 1g Saturates, 9g Carbs, 3g Sugars, 2g Fibre, 3g Protein, 0.04g Salt

Time required

Prep time: 10 mins

Marinating time: 30 mins (ground meat) or ≥4 hrs (thin‑sliced)

Cook time: 10 mins

Total time: ~50 mins

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• ½ cup chopped apple

• 1 cup chopped pear (Asian pear preferred)

• ½ cup chopped yellow onion

• 1 small garlic clove

• 2 tsp sesame seeds (or perilla seeds if avoiding sesame)

• 1 lb (450g) ground beef or thinly sliced beef

• Optional: chopped/sliced vegetables like carrots or more onion

Directions

1. Add apple, pear, onion, garlic, sesame seeds, and soy sauce to a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth to form a marinade.

2. In a bowl, pour the marinade over the meat and mix well.

• For ground meat: marinate for at least 30 minutes.

• For thin-sliced beef: marinate for at least 4 hours or overnight.

3. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add meat (and veggies if using) and cook until fully done and lightly caramelized.

4. Serve over rice, noodles, in pancakes, lettuce wraps, or however you like!

Estimated Macros (per serving)

178 Calories, 7.6g Fat, 5.7g Carbs, 23.2g Protein