Home / Recipes / Sweet Potato, Beef & Garlic Broccoli Fingers with Apple
Sweet Potato, Beef & Garlic Broccoli Fingers with Apple
A nutritious and colorful meal featuring soft-cooked sweet potato and beef fingers for iron and protein, plus garlic broccoli for extra flavor and vitamins, served with apple for sweetness.
When can babies eat Sweet Potato, Beef & Garlic Broccoli Fingers with Apple?
From about 6 months, if your baby is ready for solids and the pieces mash easily. This is a baby-led weaning recipe to self-feed, not a puree-only start.
How to serve Sweet Potato, Beef & Garlic Broccoli Fingers with Apple
Serve Sweet Potato, Beef & Garlic Broccoli Fingers with Apple from about 6 months. Cut each food as shown below so pieces mash between your fingers. Put foods on the tray separately and stay with your baby for the whole meal.
Ingredients
- /4 medium sweet potato, peeled and cut into fingers
- g ground beef
- /4 cup broccoli florets, cut into fingers
- clove garlic, minced
- /4 small apple, peeled and cut into a stick
Steps
- Steam the sweet potato until very soft (about 10 minutes). Make sure it's soft enough for your baby to mash easily with their gums.
- Brown the ground beef in a pan over medium heat until fully cooked, ensuring no pink remains.
- Steam the broccoli florets with the minced garlic until soft (about 5 minutes). Make sure they are soft enough for your baby to mash easily with their gums.
- Peel the apple and cut it into a stick, removing seeds and core.
- Serve the sweet potato, beef, broccoli, and apple separately on your baby's tray, allowing them to self-feed.
How to cut the foods
Age-based baby-led weaning cut photos from Tiny Spoon. Pieces should mash between your fingers before they go on the tray.
How to cut Sweet potato, 6–8 months
Offer soft, fully cooked slices of sweet potato (with or without skin) for your baby to grasp. For utensil practice, serve sweet potato puree on a pre-loaded spoon.
How to cut Sweet potato, 9–11 months
Serve cooked, soft sweet potato. Offer bite-sized pieces for pincer grasp practice, or slices for biting practice. The skin can be left on or removed. Puree is also suitable for self-feeding with hands or utensils.
How to cut Sweet potato, 12+ months
Continue to serve cooked, soft sweet potato in pieces or slices. Encourage the use of a fork by pre-loading pieces, but allow eating with hands if your child wishes.
How to cut Beef, 6–8 months
Cut the beef into thick strips (finger-sized, about 5-7 cm long). Cook until very tender, but not dry. The strips should be soft enough to mash between your fingers.
How to cut Beef, 8–10 months
Cut into smaller, bite-sized pieces or thin strips. Do not overdry.
How to cut Beef, 12+ months
Cut into small cubes or mash.
How to cut Broccoli, 6–8 months
Serve whole florets with long stems. Steam until very soft. The stem serves as a handle for the baby to hold.
How to cut Broccoli, 8–10 months
Serve smaller florets or cut into smaller pieces. Still leave a bit of the stem for grasping.
How to cut Broccoli, 12+ months
Cut into small florets or chop into bite-sized pieces. Can be served a little firmer.
How to cut Apple, 6–8 months
Boil or bake half an apple until soft.
Frequently asked questions
How should I cut the foods in this baby-led weaning recipe?
Use the age-based BLW cut photos below. For a 6-month-old, pieces should be about two adult fingers long and mash between your fingers. Always supervise.
Is this a BLW recipe for starting solids?
A nutritious and colorful meal featuring soft-cooked sweet potato and beef fingers for iron and protein, plus garlic broccoli for extra flavor and vitamins, served with apple for sweetness. Offer it from about 6 months if the pieces mash easily.
When can babies eat Sweet Potato, Beef & Garlic Broccoli Fingers with Apple?
From about 6 months, if your baby is ready for solids and the pieces mash easily. This is a baby-led weaning recipe to self-feed, not a puree-only start.
How to serve Sweet Potato, Beef & Garlic Broccoli Fingers with Apple
Serve Sweet Potato, Beef & Garlic Broccoli Fingers with Apple from about 6 months. Cut each food as shown below so pieces mash between your fingers. Put foods on the tray separately and stay with your baby for the whole meal.
Sources
- Starting Solid Foods — American Academy of Pediatrics
- When, What, and How to Introduce Solid Foods — CDC
- Complementary feeding — World Health Organization
- Your baby’s first solid foods — NHS
Reviewed by Morvarid Nikousokhantayar.