There are a variety of ways to prepare avocado baby food - either avocado puree, baby-led weaning avocado, mashed avocado for baby and when they are older as bite sized pieces. It is a great produce to use to introduce solid foods from a nutrition standpoint.
*This post has been reviewed by Dora Babic-Cikos, PhD Nutritional Science
Avocado as First Baby Food
Avocado is a great first food for your baby regardless whether you decided to start with puree or baby-led weaning.
Why we love avocado for baby?
- no need to cook
- mild flavor
- can be made in less than 5 minutes and served as avocado puree, avocado baby-led weaning or mashed
- full of nutrients for baby's diet
- because of its creamy texture you can use it to make lots of different baby food combinations
- not a common choking hazard
- great finger food
Benefits of avocado
From a nutrition standpoint it is a great produce to use to introduce solid foods and it has been a popular first food (we use it as baby's first food in our Wean with Confidence eBOOK).
The reason it is the ideal first food is because it is a highly nutritious food filled with fat-soluble vitamins and healthy fats that help promote baby's growth and brain development.
Avocados are also a good source of carotenoids, pigments that can benefit the overall body and improve health. The fats in the avocado also help the carotenoid absorption. So in general – your body will use more carotenoids from avocado than, for example, carrots.
And it is also high in energy and pretty bland in taste for one of the first solid foods your baby will try.
How to prepare avocado for baby?
Depending on how you decided to feed your baby, you can make avocado as a puree, blw or mashed.
You can also do a combination of puree and blw.
Before mixing it with any other food do test it on its own in case baby has any allergy (i.e just serve avocado in one seating).
Avocado is not usually an allergen but better to be safe.
Make sure you pick a ripe avocado, one that has a bit of give when pressed.
Avocado Puree for Baby
Making avocado puree is super easy. This is usually for 6 month old baby.
1. Wash the whole avocado and slice it in half
2. Separate the two halves, remove the pit.
3. Use a soup spoon to scoop out the flesh.
4. Place the avocado flesh in the food processor and process until you have a smooth puree. If you want to you may add a tablespoon of water.
5. Give baby a preloaded spoon so they can feed themselves. It will be messy in the beginning but with more practice it will help them develop their gross motor skills.
6. Store in fridge for 3 days in an airtight container or freeze in an ice cube tray.
Tip: You can mix in olive oil to make it even smoother, or a little bit of lemon juice or lime juice to stop it turning brown. Do make sure you have allergy tested your baby for lemon juice or lime juice before adding to the diet.
You can combine giving avocado puree with baby-led weaning style avocado and see which one your child prefers more.
Transitioning from puree to mashed avocado for baby
Once you feel like you baby has mastered purees and is eating a little bit more you can simply give them mashed avocado so they get used to more texture and use their chew muscles more. See here our guide on stages of baby food.
If you started with purees the baby would usually move to textured purees by 7-8 months and once their pincer grasp develops (around 9 months old) you would serve them food the same way you do for baby-led weaning.
1. Wash the whole avocado and slice it in half.
2. Separate the two halves, remove the pit.
3. Use a soup spoon to scoop out the flesh and place the flesh in a bowl.
4. Use a fork to gently mash the avocado.
Avocado Baby-led Weaning
There are different ways on how to feed baby avocado baby-led weaning style. Avocado must be soft enough so you can easily mash it between your fingers.
- option 1: wash the avocado, halve it, remove the pit and use a butter knife to cut out 3 - 4 piece in each half. The piece should be no thicker than your pinky finger. Take a spoon and scoop out the pieces. Serve baby one piece at a time.
- option 2: same as option one but instead of a butter knife place the avocado half flesh side down and use a sharper knife to cut out the 3-4 pieces with the skin on. Then from each piece remove half of the skin. We keep the skin so it is easier for baby to grab.
- variations - coat the skinless avocado pieces in shredded coconut, hemp seeds, bread crumbs, flaxseeds so it is easier for baby to hold. Use a crinkle cutter for fun shapes
9 month old baby & older
For a 9 month old baby who's little hands are developing their pincer grasp you can start cutting the avocado in bite sized pieces. You would use the same method of washing, halving, removing the pit. Use a spoon to remove the flesh and then place the flesh where the pit area used to be down and cut into bite sized pieces.
How to feed avocado to baby?
In order for your baby to develop gross motor skills and feel a sense of control when eating you want to make sure that they are feeding themselves even if they are just eating purees.
- offer them purees or mashed avocado on a preloaded spoon so they can bring the spoon to their mouths
- have a quality high chair and quality bib that contains most food
- offer a combination of baby-led weaning and puree
- always be present when they are eating
- doesn't matter how much they eat, the priority here is to expose them to a variety of different textures and foods. Their main nutrition for six-month-old baby is still breast milk or formula.
Avocado Baby Food Combinations
Avocado puree and blw avocado are great to combine with a variety of different fruits and vegetables. You can mix it with other stage 1 purees or with other fruits and vegetables that are prepared soft for baby-led weaning and create your own favorite avocado recipes.
Storage
- fridge - store puree or cut up avocado in an airtight container for up to 3 days. It will turn brown but it is still safe to eat. If you baby is able to eat lemons then drizzle lemon juice on both the puree and blw version and it will prevent the avocado from browning. Purees can be stored in an ice cube tray.
- freezer - same as fridge but up to 3 months. You can also freeze whole avocados
- thaw in fridge overnight. Take out of fridge an hour before serving to baby. No need to heat it before serving.
For baby-led weaning or once your baby has developed pincer grasp combine it as a side to chicken, lamb, broccoli, zucchini, eggs, carrots, shrimp.
FAQ
No, avocado is one of the rare produce that does not need to be cooked. However do wash it beforehand to get rid of any pesticide residue (if not buying organic) as baby's mouth may come in contact with the avocado skin.
Yes, avocado puree can be frozen in an airtight container for up to 3 months. It may start turning brown but to prevent that you can use a drop of lemon juice and then mix thoroughly (do make sure your baby is allergy tested for lemon). You can also freeze whole avocados just as they are up to 3 months.
6 month old recipes
- 3-ingredient Oat Banana Pancakes for Baby
- Easy Thin Dairy-Free Crepes
- Healthy Gluten-Free Breakfast Apple Oat Cake (Flourless)
- Broccoli Cheese Patties (Suitable For Kids)
If you've tried this recipe or any other recipe on the blog, then please rate it and leave us a comment below!
Avocado for baby (BLW, puree, mashed)
EQUIPMENT
Ingredients
- 1 avocado
Instructions
Avocado Puree
- Wash the whole avocado and slice it in half
- Separate the two halves, remove the pit.
- Use a soup spoon to scoop out the flesh.
- Place the avocado flesh in the food processor and process until you have a smooth puree. If you want to you may add a tablespoon of water.
- Give baby a preloaded spoon so they can feed themselves. It will be messy in the beginning but with more practice it will help them develop their gross motor skills.
- Store in fridge for 3 days in an airtight container or freeze in an ice cube tray.
Mashed Avocado for baby
- Wash the whole avocado and slice it in half.
- Separate the two halves, remove the pit.
- Use a soup spoon to scoop out the flesh and place the flesh in a bowl.
- Use a fork to gently mash the avocado.
Avocado Baby-led Weaning
- There are different ways on how to feed baby avocado baby-led weaning style. Avocado must be soft enough so you can easily mash it between your fingers.
- option 1: wash the avocado, halve it, remove the pit and use a butter knife to cut out 3 - 4 piece in each half. The piece should be no thicker than your pinky finger. Take a spoon and scoop out the pieces. Serve baby one piece at a time.
- option 2: same as option one but instead of a butter knife place the avocado half flesh side down and use a sharper knife to cut out the 3-4 pieces with the skin on. Then from each piece remove half of the skin. We keep the skin so it is easier for baby to grab.
9 month old baby that is ready for pincer grasp
- Wash, halve and remove the avocado pit.
- Use a spoon to remove the flesh and then place the flesh where the pit area used to be down and cut into bite sized pieces.
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