The introduction of complementary foods unties the hands of parents, expanding the culinary horizons. Immediately I want to offer the baby all the most delicious and healthy. Pediatricians recommend starting complementary foods with vegetables, smoothly moving to fruits. When the mother gave the baby the opportunity to get acquainted with all the available raw fruits, the time comes for culinary delights. The first is often a baked apple in the oven for a child.
Baked apple
The benefits of baked apples for child nutrition
Apples contain many important vitamins necessary for the full development of a growing body. However, after heat treatment in the oven, almost all representatives of the B group, as well as absolutely completely vitamin C, disintegrate without entering the body. But this does not mean that a baked apple is useless for a child.
One of the most important components of this fruit is its fiber-rich pulp. When baked, its amount increases significantly, which increases the level of pectins. Nutritionists believe that for this reason, baked fruit is more beneficial for strengthening the body's immune system than raw fruit.
Composition and nutritional value
Apples contain the following vitamins:
- Vitamin C, which strengthens the walls of blood vessels, thereby increasing the resistance of immunity to infectious pathogens.
- Vitamin A is one of the most important components involved in the formation of the organ of vision and the processes of renewal of the skin.
- B vitamins, mainly B1, B2, B9, which enhance brain activity, as well as nerve muscle conduction.
Attention! Apple peel is one of the richest ingredients in the fruit. It contains a large amount of ursolic acid, the main tasks of which are to build muscle mass and produce insulin.
How to choose the right apples
When choosing apples, you should mainly rely on appearance. Fruit should be whole, without knocked sides and holes from the tails of their neighbors. For baby food, domestic samples are safer, the surface of which is not covered with wax and other compounds.
Ripe garden fruit should be fragrant. Outwardly, it should not look shriveled and withered. Often in the supermarket you can buy beautiful specimens from the outside with a rotten core, which is not visible until the apple is bitten. You can protect yourself from buying such fruits by lightly pressing with your fingers. Those with a rotten middle will be soft to the touch with a completely smooth and shiny shell.
Selection of ripe fruit
At what age can a baby be given
Despite all the benefits of baked apples, you shouldn't give them to a baby under 6 months old. During the first six months of life, the child's body does not need anything but milk. Therefore, do not rush to introduce complementary foods. Do not forget the recommendations of most pediatricians: complementary foods should start with vegetables, because after tasting a sweet apple or pear, the baby will not want to eat cabbage.
How to properly bake an apple in the oven
Before baking an apple for a child, you need to wash it and remove the core with seeds and partitions.
Recipes
You can bake apples both in the oven and in the microwave, as well as whole or cut into slices. To prepare a whole apple you will need:
- apple, 1 pc .;
- refractory bowl;
- water, 150 ml.
A clean, washed, cored apple is placed on a baking sheet covered with parchment. You can put a bowl of water in the lower section of the oven to prevent the fruit from drying out during baking. The water, evaporating, will preserve the juiciness of the fruit and will not allow a rough crust to form.
Cooking time - 20-30 minutes, depending on the size of the fruit. You can also cook the fruit in the microwave. Do not be upset that there is nowhere to put a bowl of water. You can easily get out of the situation by building a structure of two plates: put a small bowl in a flat plate, and an apple in it. Before sending it to the microwave, pour water into the lower plate so that the fruit does not dry out. You don't need to rush to throw away the healthy peel. If you managed to cook it soft, you can use a blender to turn it into an easy-to-eat porridge and give it to the baby, which you definitely cannot do with fresh skin.
Spoon feeding
Additional Information. It is convenient to feed the child with a baked dish from a spoon. It becomes soft, it is easy to pick up, like porridge.
What can be combined with
Popular recipes with added honey or sugar are not suitable for feeding babies in their first year of life. Additional sweeteners under three years old are not required at all by children. Honey will be dangerous if the child is allergic. Therefore, for baking, it is better to choose sweet varieties that do not require the addition of sugar.
Apples can be combined with shredded raisins by stuffing the fruit into the cut-out hole. Such a complex dish with filling can be given from 8 months.
Norms for complementary foods by month
Every mother should know that everything is good in moderation. The important properties of the apple will not be beneficial if the child eats too much fruit and suffers from overeating.
How often to give
Before baking an apple in the oven for a child again, it is worth remembering the benefits of other fruits and vegetables. It would be okay to limit the children's diet to a daily baked apple, however, if the child is just starting to get used to a new food, and in his daily menu only one feeding can be based on a non-dairy dish, it is wiser to alternate apples with other fruits and vegetables.
Number
In accordance with the recommendations of pediatricians and WHO, you need to start introducing a new dish with small volumes:
- at 6 months, the first week, you can give 1 teaspoon of pulp, gradually increasing the volume;
- A 7-month-old baby can be given half a finished apple;
- at 8-9 months, babies happily eat a whole medium-sized apple;
- after 10 months, one large fruit will be enough;
- at one year old, the baby may require supplements, to which the mother can answer with consent and an additional half of the fruit.
Important! No matter how tasty it is for a child, it is not worth overeating with such a dish - a large amount of fiber has a beneficial effect on the work of the intestines only when it enters the body in moderation.
Possible problems when feeding with a baked apple
Apple is a hypoallergenic fruit, therefore it is recommended for feeding children of the first year of life. However, even when consuming this safe fruit, allergic reactions can occur due to the flavors used by moms:
- honey;
- jam;
- sugar;
- condensed milk.
Excessive consumption of apples can provoke abdominal pain associated with large volumes of feces, which form coarse fibers that swell in the intestines.
Signs of allergies
The obvious signs of a food allergy are:
- redness of the skin;
- itchy skin;
- swelling of the nasal mucosa that makes breathing difficult;
- diarrhea;
- redness of the eyes.
To avoid health problems after eating a baked apple, you do not need to sweeten it with honey, condensed milk or jam during cooking. It is useful for a kid to learn the natural tastes of fruits and vegetables; there is no need to turn healthy food into dangerous food with allergenic additives.
Honey is not recommended for infants
Each mother tries to please her child by indulging in gastronomic surprises. When composing a children's menu, it is important to remember that children, not knowing food flavor enhancers such as sugar or salt, are happy to accept the natural tastes of products. Do not rush to introduce kids to such seasonings. From infancy, the formation of taste sensations is laid. If you allow your child to taste the natural taste of zucchini, pear or baked apple, then you will not have to face the fussy at the table, refusing mother's borscht.
