Almost entirely hands-off, easy method to make the nutritious protein-rich Chicken Butternut Squash Baby food recipe. Can be served to babies from 6-months-old either as a stage 1 baby food puree, stage 2, stage 3 or as baby-led weaning.
Thinking of great puree combinations for your baby can often be more stressful than it should be.
I mean sure, the presumption is that babies will pretty much eat anything blended into a puree but you want your little one to have a caloric and nutritious meal also.
I know I did. So thinking of purees that provided enough calories, a lot of essential nutrients, were easy to make and tasted good was often a challenge for me.
That's why I'd like to share with you one of the best puree combinations that my son absolutely loved - this Chicken Butternut Squash puree.
Below you will also see how to serve as a baby-led weaning option (blw).
Why we love this recipe:
- Easy puree combination
- Perfect for 6 month old babies and older
- Protein-rich
- Vitamin and mineral rich butternut squash
- Just as easy to make as a puree or baby-led weaning
Jump to:
- Nutrition And Ingredients
- How to cook chicken and butternut squash for baby food?
- How to serve as a stage 2 and stage 3 baby food puree combination?
- How to serve chicken and butternut squash for baby-led weaning?
- Tips And Tricks For The Perfect Puree
- FAQ & Puree Variations
- More Baby Food Recipes
- Chicken Butternut Squash Baby Food Recipe
- Comments
Nutrition And Ingredients
Chicken Breast
- I used chicken breast for this recipe. It's 100% white meat, skinless and boneless. But you can just as easily use a chicken leg or any part of a chicken. Or turkey for that matter.
- Chicken is a great source of protein for your kids as well as iron, phosphorus, vitamin B3 (niacin) and selenium
Butternut squash
- I just love how the subtle sweet taste of the butternut squash blends beautifully with the chicken
- It's a great source of the vitamins A, C and E as well as the minerals calcium and iron
Olive Oil
- Use the best olive oil you can find, cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil
- A great source of calories and "healthy" fats which can protect the cardio-vascular system
How to cook chicken and butternut squash for baby food?
1. Heat the oven. Preheat the oven to 390ºF / 200ºC.
2. Prepare the ingredients. Wash, peel and slice the butternut squash into cubes (or ½ inch / 1.5 cm thick sticks if BLW). Cut the chicken into cubes (or 1 inch wide strips if BLW).
3. Bake. Put the chicken and butternut on a baking tray, drizzle with olive oil and bake for 30 mins.
4. Make a puree. Once cooked, let it cool and blend into a smooth puree. Add teaspoon by teaspoon of pre-boiled or bottled water if needed to reach desired consistency. For stage 2, stage 3 baby food combinations, or for baby-led weaning see below.
Cool and serve.
How to serve as a stage 2 and stage 3 baby food puree combination?
- If you are transitioning from purees to finger food and are in the in between stage you may want to mash the chicken (either with a blender or by cutting into tiny tiny pieces) and mix with the mashed butternut squash.
- For stage 2 baby food you want thicker mashable chunks and for stage 3 you want soft, chewable, small chunks of butternut squash and chicken
How to serve chicken and butternut squash for baby-led weaning?
- The butternut squash needs to be so soft you could mash it between your fingers
- The chicken should be the size of two fingers stuck together so it is easy for baby to hold. They will mostly just suck on it at this point
This recipe is included in our Wean With Confidence Book.
And if you want to add more chicken to your baby's diet check out these simple Clear Chicken Soup and Boiled Chicken Thighs Recipes that and nutritious and can be served to the whole family.
Tips And Tricks For The Perfect Puree
Allow the chicken and butternut squash to cool a bit before blending. If you want to have a nice and compact puree, I recommend you wait at least 5 - 10 minutes after the chicken and butternut squash are baked before mixing them into a puree.
FAQ & Puree Variations
Yes, you don't really need to use chicken breast for this puree. You can also use any other part of the chicken or another meat for that matter. Turkey or other poultry would be a great substitute.
Instead of butternut squash, you can use another similar vegetable. The best substitute would be another veggie from the pumpkin family. But also sweet potato or carrots can provide that subtle sweet taste.
Although I always recommend going with olive oil as a source of fats and oils in baby meals and purees, if you don't have any you can use another fat or oil. Vegetable oils with a subtle aroma like linseed oil or sunflower oil are great as well as butter which is another nutrient and calorie source for babies.
More Baby Food Recipes
If you've tried this recipe or any other recipe on the blog, then please rate it and leave us a comment below!
Chicken Butternut Squash Baby Food Recipe
EQUIPMENT
Ingredients
- 3.6 oz chicken breast
- 1 cup butternut squash
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
Instructions
- Heat the oven. Preheat the oven to 390ºF / 200ºC.
- Prepare the ingredients. Wash, peel and slice the butternut squash into cubes (or ½ inch / 1. 5 cm thick sticks if BLW). Cut the chicken into cubes (or strips the width of two adult fingers put together if BLW).
- Bake. Put the chicken and butternut on a baking tray, drizzle with olive oil and bake for 30 mins.
- Make a puree. Once cooked, let cool and blend into a smooth puree. Add teaspoon by teaspoon of pre-boiled or bottled water if needed to reach desired consistency. For stage 2, stage 3 baby food combinations, or for baby-led weaning see notes below.
- Allow to cool a bit before serving.
Notes
- If you are transitioning from purees to finger food and are in the in between stage you may want to mash the chicken (either with a blender or by cutting into tiny tiny pieces) and mix with the mashed butternut squash.
- For stage 2 baby food you want thicker mashable chunks and for stage 3 you want soft, chewable, small chunks of butternut squash and chicken
- See blog post above for image
- Butternut squash needs to be so soft you could mash it between your fingers
- Chicken should be the size of two fingers stuck together so it is easy for baby to hold. They will mostly just suck on it at this point
- See blog post above for image
Nutrition
If you've tried this recipe or any other recipe on the blog, then please rate it and leave us a comment below!
Comments
No Comments