Spinach Baby Food- The Ultimate Nutrition Pack For Your Baby

The one superfood that you can swear by for the ultimate nutrition for your baby is the spinach baby food. So before your baby grows up and starts acting nosy about the green veggies, you can include spinach in his diet in the early growth years. Here is all that you need to know about the goodness of spinach for the baby along with some great recipes to try.

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Reasons to choose spinach for baby

Many spinach health facts can easily convince you into picking spinach baby food. Take a look:

The high water content in spinach provides adequate hydration to the baby’s body.
Spinach is good for the baby’s liver and keeps it safe from infections.
This superfood increases the resistance of the baby’s body against the worms.
Spinach relaxes the gastric system in the baby’s body and prevents the resulting uneasiness.
The vitamins and calcium in spinach strengthen the baby’s bones.
Spinach protein and antioxidants promote muscle growth in babies.
The folate in spinach promotes healthy nervous system development.
Spinach acts as a great immunity booster for the babies with nutrients like Vitamin K and C playing the key role.
Vitamin A in spinach keeps the eyes of the baby healthy.
The rich dietary fiber in spinaches keeps the digestive system of baby healthy by fighting constipation and irregular bowel movement.

The right time for including spinach in baby’s diet

Now, this is another very important factor to keep in mind as the digestive system of a baby readies itself up very slowly to different foods. Unanimously, it is suggested that spinach must only be included in the baby’s diet after 10 or 12 months of birth. Here are some facts related to why the timing for spinach baby food is important:

The baby can digest the spinach easily after the said time.
The high nitrate, calcium, and iron compounds in spinach can pose risk to the digestion of the baby.
The spinach food must be immediately discontinued if any allergic reaction shows up.
Introduce different spinach food recipes gradually to the baby. Always start with the basic puree, and then go on with one and more add-ons.
Feed spinach food only two or three times in a week to the baby.

Picking up the right spinach

You don’t want any risk with the food that you make for your baby and this is why picking up the best spinach for the baby is very important. Here are some tips on doing so:

Be careful about picking the organic spinaches as the store spinaches can have a huge amount of pesticide residue.
Fresh spinaches are the best option for winter, early spring and fall as their quality is the best in these seasons.
Watch out for the blemish and wilts in the leaves carefully. Pick only the bright green, tender, crisp, and whole leaves.
The spinaches with flexible and thin stems are also fresh ones.
The savoy spinach is the best option if you are going fresh as they can be easily cleaned.
The frozen spinach is another safe option to go with if you want the puree to be smoother. However, you must check if the leaves have any wilting or color change; discard them if that be the case.

Making the basic spinach puree

The basic idea that goes behind any spinach food for baby is that it must be easily chewable and the leaves don’t choke the baby. In that case, spinach puree baby food is the best way to feed this greenie to the baby and all that you need for this recipe is spinach.

Preparation method:

Start with washing the spinach leaves after you have removed their stems. Soak the leaves for a few minutes in cold water and then clean them under running water. If you are using frozen spinach, start with the next step straight away.
You need to cook the spinach until they turn soft. Steam the leaves for around 5 minutes. Drain the excess water and let the leaves cool down by keeping them aside for about 3 minutes.
Now put the leaves in a blender or a food processor and puree them well. You can add some water as per the consistency needs. Breast milk or any formula can also be used to give a creamier and smoother texture to the puree.
Your spinach puree baby food is ready to serve. Like we said earlier, you can customize it with other items the way you want like veggies, grains, protein, chicken, etc.

Storage tips: If you have the leftover puree, you can store it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days in the BPA free jars. You can also freeze them in ice trays and then store the cubes in a freezer bag for up to 3 months. Whenever you want to use the, just thaw overnight in the refrigerator and they are ready for any recipe.

Great spinach baby food recipes to try

Here are 3 great recipes to try.

The apple spinach puree

This spinach baby food recipe is very good for the digestion of the baby as it is full of fiber and tastes great too. You will need:

Six apples
Two cups spinach
Half cup of water
Half tsp cinnamon powder
A pinch of ginger powder and clove powder

Cook all the ingredients except spinach for about 15 minutes. After that, add the spinaches and boil the mix for two more minutes. Cooldown the mix and puree it to serve.

The green-trio puree

The ingredients of this particular recipe give a very creamy and buttery texture to it along with many healthy fats. It is made with:

One-fourth cup each of spinach and dried oats
One fourth avocado
Half cup of water/breast milk/stock

Prepare the oats mix and then add spinach to it. Cook for some time and then cool the mix. Add it along with the avocado in a blender and prepare a puree to serve.

Spinach soup

This is the healthiest spinach baby food that you can give to your baby. The ingredients include:

One cup spinach
One small onion, chopped
Three cloves of garlic
Half tsp butter
Half tsp cumin seeds
Pinch of turmeric powder
Two cups of water
Salt to taste

Heat butter in a pan and sauté the garlic, ginger, onions, and spinach in it with the spices. Add water to the mix and let it simmer for about 10 minutes after a boil. Cool the mixture and puree it well.

Strain the pureed mix now and your soup is ready to serve.

Watch this video for more vegetable puree recipes.

The best partner of spinach- Sweet potato

If your baby is loving spinach food and responding well to the recipes that you feed him/her, it is time you try these spinach and sweet potato baby food combinations.

Spicy sweet potato and spinach puree

This iron-rich and smooth puree will be loved by the baby for its bit spicy flavor. You will need:

One sweet potato, baked
Three bunches of spinach
One garlic clove
One tsp grated ginger
Some nutmeg powder

Sauté the spinach, garlic, ginger, and nutmeg powder together until the spinach turns soft. Blend this mix with the sweet potato flesh into a puree. Serve fresh.

The spinach and sweet potato curry

This tasty and tangy recipe can be served with some rice for the kids. Here are the ingredients:

One and a half cup spinach
Two tomatoes, diced
One cup sweet potato, diced
One small onion
One clove garlic
One tsp of grated ginger
A pinch of turmeric, cumin, and coriander spices
Two tbsp olive oil
Half cup of water

Heat olive oil in a pan and sauté the onions in it until soft. Add ginger and the spices and cook them for about 5 to 7 minutes. Put in the tomatoes, sweet potatoes, and water and let the mix simmer after one boil.

When the mix turns mushy in consistency, put in the spinach. Stir the curry for some time until cooked properly. Cool it down and serve.

Spinach-sweet potato fritters

If your kid loves food that they can munch on, this is the perfect recipe to try. You will need:

One bunch spinach, blanched and chopped
Two sweet potatoes, grated
Two spring onions, chopped
Two tbsp parsley, chopped
Three to 6 tbsp all-purpose flour
Two tbsp olive oil
Eggs (optional)

Mix spinach, sweet potatoes, spring onions, parsley, and flour together. Put in enough water to form a thick consistency batter. You can add eggs depending on their suitability for the baby’s age.

Prepare a baking tray with a greasing of olive oil. Take the batter in a spoon and put it on the tray in a fritter form. Bake them at 180 degrees Celsius and flip halfway through to make the fritters turn golden and crisp all over evenly.

Conclusion

We are sure that by now, you are surprised by the greatness of spinach baby food in supplying all the required nutrients to the baby’s body. Try out the amazing recipes of spinach food for your baby and share with us how your baby liked it. Do tell us about any spinach baby food recipe that you know.

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