Baby food recipes for babies 6 to 12 months old



Once your baby starts eating solid food, a whole new world opens up for them. Whether you're going the traditional spoon-feeding route or trying baby-led weaning, you're likely starving for ideas for what to feed your baby. Making your own baby food can seem daunting, but with a little planning, it's super easy – and it can be cheaper than buying prepared baby food.
From thin purees to full finger-food meals, here are some baby food recipes for every stage of your solid feeding journey.
Baby food recipes for 6 to 8 months
Babies are typically ready to start eating solid foods around 6 months. Signs that they're ready include having good head control, being able to sit up, and showing an interest in food. If your baby watches you while you eat, opens their mouth when you offer them a spoonful of food, or even tries to grab food off your plate, those are good indicators that they're ready.
You can start your baby off with just about any pureed, single-ingredient food – like bananas, berries, or many of the foods listed below.
The exceptions are the top allergenic foods, such as fish, wheat, eggs, soy, peanuts, tree nuts, sesame, and dairy. It's best to give your baby low-allergy foods at the very beginning, like apple or chicken puree. Once you know they can handle those foods, you can start introducing potentially allergenic foods.
When introducing your baby to a common allergen, serve it for three to five days before introducing another type of food. That way, if your baby has an allergic reaction, it'll be easier to tell what caused it.
Try these baby food recipes for your 6- to 8-month-old:
Baby food recipes for 9 to 12 months
By the time your baby is about 9 months old, they're ready for some more complex dishes – often, you'll find yourself feeding them whatever you and the rest of your family are eating.
While you're expanding your baby's eating horizons, remember they still don't have that many teeth and can't chew hard or crunchy produce like raw carrots – and be on the lookout for choking hazards, like whole grapes and popcorn. But there are still plenty of other options for babies at this age: flaky salmon, ground beef, roasted vegetables, baked potatoes, pasta dishes… the list goes on.
If your baby doesn't like new textures, don't worry. The key at any age is to offer your baby a variety of foods and to keep trying. Even if they don't like the food at first, keep offering it to them – sometimes, you may have to offer your baby a food up to 20 times before they'll accept it.
By this age, your baby is also typically ready to start trying out finger foods, like O-shaped toasted oat cereal, banana slices, or well-cooked pasta cut into bite-size pieces, about a ¼ of an inch in size. Several of the recipes below, like guacamole, hummus, and whipped cauliflower, make perfect dips to pair with finger foods so your baby can start learning to eat independently. It'll be messy, of course, but it's a great time for them to practice their hand-eye coordination and skills with their newfound pincer grasp.
If you're ready for some more food adventures with your baby, try adding spices to their meals. While it isn't recommended to give babies added salt or sugar in their diet until they're at least 2 years old, fresh herbs and other spices are fair game (and a little added salt is okay). Try adding cinnamon to their oatmeal or rosemary to their ground beef.
And if you really want to experiment with new flavors, your baby may even enjoy a bit of spicy food – but avoid foods with a lot of added sugar, salt, or processing. (If you're a fan of spicy food yourself and ate it while breastfeeding, your baby might even have some built-in tolerance for spice.)
Try these recipes for your 9- to 12-month-old:
- Asparagus risotto
- Baby guacamole
- Barley and mushroom mash
- Broccoli and cauliflower cheese
- Chicken curry with green beans and zucchini
- Coconut milk rice pudding with blueberry compote
- Homemade hummus
- Lentil and spinach stew
- Pasta with spinach and ricotta
- Oatmeal with apples
- Quinoa, black beans, and corn
- Rice with peas, carrots, and egg
- Root veggie mash
- Salmon, asparagus, and peas
- Shepherd's pie
- Smashed chickpea and butternut squash chili
- Tomato and avocado scramble
- Tropical fruit salad
If you're ever unsure about what to feed your baby or how much food to give them at any age, check out our age-by-age guide to feeding.