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Is your baby getting used to eating solid foods? Then it might be time to try some new, slightly more advanced baby food recipes stage 2.
Here you’ll find baby food recipes stage 2 for the 8-month-old baby or so, who has eaten solid food for a while.
While you wouldn’t want to start with these foods, they are great recipes to try if your baby is getting used to (and tired of) eating the same vegetable purees every day. Also, your baby’s tummy should be good at handling solids before you start with more advanced recipes.
Now might also be the time to offer one whole meal a day (for example the lunch) based on solid food instead of breast milk or formula. A baby portion is around 0.2 – 0.4 cups (0.5-1 dl) of food. (Find a feeding schedule for the 8-month-old baby (and up) here.)
Baby Food Recipes Stage 2 (~ 8-Month-Old Baby And Up)
- General instructions
- Chicken with broccoli
- Chicken with root vegetables
- Chicken with curry
- Ham with dill
- Ham with vegetables
- Minced meat
- Fish with herbs
- Minced fish
- Scrambled eggs
- Quorn with vegetables
General instructions
First a few general pieces of advice for cooking baby food:
- Use fresh, organic ingredients as much as you can! Organic vegetables are often lower in nitrates.
- No salt ever until your baby is 1 year old.
- Steam vegetables as often as possible. This will preserve the vitamins better than boiling. (Steaming can be done easily with a steel steamer like this one. No need to buy a new, bulky kitchen appliance.
- When boiling, use as little water as possible without risking burning the food. This way, you’ll keep more of the vitamins in the food.
- Add some healthy oil or butter without salt to the baby recipes, a teaspoon or so per serving, since babies need the fat to grow and develop properly. (I know in some countries this is not recommended for some reason. If so follow the guidelines provided by your baby’s health nurse.) You can read more about adding fats to baby food here.
- The more inexperienced your child is with eating solid food, the soupier the food should be when you serve it. Add a lot of breast milk or formula in the beginning. Reduce the amount when your baby gets more used to eating solid food.
- If you want to save time and cook many portions at once, be sure to cool the food down and freeze it quickly. This way you avoid bacteria growth in the food. Use an ice cube tray for example.
- Always try small amounts of the new baby food recipes stage 2 before making many portions. Otherwise, you might have to throw away a lot of food if your baby doesn’t like it.
For some more instructions on how to make baby food, click here.
Before you start experimenting, you might want to take a quick look at this list of foods to avoid for babies.
If you want to vary the taste, add other or more herbs for example. Some lemon (not too much) is nice to add to fish recipes for babies, especially together with dill. Apple pieces go well with curry.
Before you know it, you’ll be creating your own baby food recipes! (Please spread them to the world by adding them to the comments section at the bottom of this page! :-)
If you have allergies running in your family, make sure you talk with your doctor before introducing risky foods to your baby, such as fish, eggs, and milk for example.
Chicken with broccoli
(4 baby portions)
Ingredients:
- 1 teaspoon of butter or oil
- 1 chicken fillet
- 1 cup (2 dl) of canned crushed tomatoes (or make your own)
- 0.5 -1 cups (1-2 dl) broccoli
- 4-5 fresh basil leaves or more, cut in pieces
- 0.5 cups (1 dl) of water
Instructions:
- Make sure that the chicken is completely free from skin and bones.
- Clean and cut the broccoli. If you need to save time, use frozen broccoli.
- Cut the chicken in small pieces.
- Fry the chicken carefully on low heat. Make sure it doesn’t get burned or develop any hard surface at all from the frying.
- Add the tomatoes, broccoli, and basil.
- Add water and boil the food for a few minutes until the chicken is done.
- Taste it to see if you want to add some more basil.
- Puree the food to the consistency you want. Add more water if needed.
Chicken with root vegetables
(4 baby portions)
Ingredients:
- 1 teaspoon butter or oil
- 1 chicken fillet
- 2 parsnips
- 1 carrot
- 0.75 cups (1.5 dl) water
- 2 tablespoons cream
- 1 teaspoon thyme
- 1 teaspoon unsalted vegetable stock
Instructions:
- Chop the root vegetables and chicken in small pieces. Make sure that the chicken is completely free from skin and bones.
- Set the water to boil and add the vegetables, chicken, thyme, stock, and cream. Boil for 8 minutes.
- Add the oil or butter.
- Puree or mash the food to the consistency you want. Add more water if needed.
- Serve with some finely chopped parsley if you like.
Chicken with curry
(8 baby portions)
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons butter or oil
- 4 chicken fillets (or 3 if they are very big)
- 0.5 tablespoon curry
- 1 cup (2 dl) corn
- 0.5 cube of unsalted chicken stock
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 3/4 cup of cream (half & half)
- 1 cup water
Instructions:
- Chop the chicken in small pieces. Make sure that the chicken is completely free from skin and bones.
- Fry the chicken carefully on quite low heat until it gets just a little bit of color.
- Add the curry and let it fry together with the chicken for a few minutes.
- Add the flour while stirring.
- Add the cream while stirring.
- Add the corn, the stock, and the water.
- Let it all boil for 5 minutes.
- Puree or mash the food to the consistency you want. Add more water if needed.
- Serve with rice.
Ham with dill
(At least 2 baby portions)
Ingredients:
- 1 teaspoon of butter or oil
- Less than 1 ounce (some 25 gr) of boiled ham
- 2 potatoes
- 3 tablespoons of cream
- 1 teaspoon or more of dill (or half as much of dried dill)
- Possibly some water
Instructions:
- Peel, wash, and cut the potatoes in small pieces.
- Steam it or boil it in water without salt until tender.
- Cut the ham in small pieces.
- Mix the potato with the ham, dill, and cream.
- Add the oil and some water if needed. (Use some of the water that you used for boiling the potatoes).
- Puree the food to the consistency you want. Add more water if needed.
Ham with vegetables
(At least 8 baby portions)
Ingredients:
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 lb (some 400 gr) of boiled ham
- 1 cup (2-2.5 dl) vegetables of your choice (for example carrots, broccoli, potatoes)
- 2 tablespoons of flour
- 3/4-1 cup (2-2.5 dl) of milk
- Possibly some water
Instructions:
- Peel, wash, and cut the vegetables into small pieces.
- Steam or boil them in water without salt until tender.
- Cut the ham in small pieces.
- Melt the butter in a saucepan.
- Add the flour, whip it with the butter. Add the milk and stir vigorously.
- Increase the heat to make the sauce boil. Then lower the heat and simmer for a few minutes until the sauce thickens.
- Add the ham and vegetables.
- Puree or mash to the food the consistency you want. Add water if needed
Minced meat
(At least 8 baby portions)
Ingredients:
- 0.7 lbs (300 gr) of minced meat (beef or lamb for example).
- 0.5 cup (1 dl) water
- 1 teaspoon of basil or parsley (optional)
Instructions:
- Put the meat in a saucepan.
- Add the water and herbs and simmer for 8-10 minutes while stirring occasionally.
- Serve the meat with vegetables and potatoes, pasta, or rice.
- Freeze the meat you don’t use in small portions.
Fish with herbs
(At least 8 baby portions)
Ingredients:
- 1 pound (400 gr) white fish, like cod for example.
- 1 inch (2.5 cm) leek
- 1 piece celeriac (a rather small piece)
- 3 twigs parsley
- 1 teaspoon of butter or oil
- Water
Instructions:
- If frozen, defrost the fish enough to be able to cut it in pieces.
- Cut the fish. Peel and cut the leek and celeriac. Cut the parsley in large pieces.
- Simmer the fish and vegetables in water for 15 minutes.
- Pour away most of the water, but not all.
- Add the oil.
- Puree or mash the fish to the consistency you like.
- Serve the fish with potatoes.
- Freeze the fish you don’t use in baby portions.
If you have fish allergy in your family, consult a pediatrician before serving fish to your baby!
Minced fish
(At least 8 baby portions)
Ingredients:
- 1 lb (400 gr) frozen fish
- 2 tablespoons potato flour
- 3 eggs
- 3/4 cup (2 dl) cream (half & half) or milk
- 2 teaspoons of dill (optional)
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 390 F (200 C).
- If frozen, defrost the fish enough to be able to cut it in pieces.
- Chop the fish up in pieces and mince it using a food processor.
- Mix with potato flour, eggs, and cream and dill (if you like) until smooth.
- Put the mixture in a greased oven tin.
- Bake it for about 1 hour.
- Cut the fish in slices when it has cooled a bit and freeze as soon as possible.
If you have fish allergy in your family, consult a pediatrician before serving fish to your baby!
Scrambled eggs
(1 baby portion)
Ingredients:
- 1 teaspoon butter
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon milk
- 0.5 tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon cheese
Instructions:
- Chop the tomato in small pieces and grate the cheese.
- Melt the butter and fry the tomato carefully until tender.
- Whip the egg and milk together and add the cheese.
- Fry carefully on medium to low heat with the tomato until the mixture thickens.
Quorn with vegetables
(At least 4 baby portions)
Ingredients:
- 0.5 lb (200 gr) Quorn
- 1 yellow onion
- 1 small parsnip
- 1 small carrot
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 3/4 cup (2 dl) cream (half & half)
- 1 teaspoon flour
- 1 pinch thyme
- 1 pinch black pepper
- 1/3 chicken stock cube
- 0.5 bay leaf
Instructions:
- Defrost the Quorn pieces. Chop the onion in small pieces. Peel and chop the carrot and parsnip in small pieces.
- Fry the onion and vegetables carefully in the butter until the onion is soft (but not brown). Add the Quorn pieces. Add the flour and stir.
- Add the cream, stock, pepper, bay leaf, and thyme.
- Boil for 10 minutes and add some water if needed.
- Take away the bay leaf and mash or puree the food.
- Serve with boiled potato for example.
Try More Baby Food Recipes
- Baby Food Recipes to Start With (Stage 1)
- Tips on Inspiring Baby Food Cookbooks with Great Recipes
- Indian Baby Food Recipes from 8 Months (Stage2)
- Vegetarian Baby Food Recipes
- Recipes for baby’s first Thanksgiving and Halloween
- Safe Finger Foods For Babies & Toddlers
- The Best Iron-Rich Foods for Kids; Tips and 8 Easy Recipes
If you have any favorite baby food recipes stage 2, please share either by leaving a comment below or by sending me an email. Sharing is caring! :-)
Paula Dennholt founded Easy Baby Life in 2006 and has been a passionate parenting and pregnancy writer since then. Her parenting approach and writing are based on studies in cognitive-behavioral models and therapy for children and her experience as a mother and stepmother. Life as a parent has convinced her of how crucial it is to put relationships before rules. She strongly believes in positive parenting and a science-based approach.
Paula cooperates with a team of pediatricians who assist in reviewing and writing articles.