Easy baby led weaning foods and meal ideas you can use to introduce your baby to the top 8 allergen foods. 

I recently started on the journey of baby led weaning with my now 7 month old, about a month ago. This is not something I did with my son, partially because I just wasn’t educated and down right scared. So I totally understand many parents hesitations with feeding solid foods first. But i’ll tell you it has been really fun to see my daughter learn how to pick up food and eat it at such a young age. One thing I learned that is really important with baby led weaning is understanding how to best prepare foods and what to offer.

The latest research indicates that the earlier we introduce top allergen foods to our infants the lower risk of developing allergies later on. This means as long as you do not have a family history of food allergens you can start feeding your infant these foods as early as the are developmentally ready to begin eating, around 6 months old. If there is any allergen risk, discuss with your pediatrician first. 

Below is a list of the Top 8 food allergens along with baby led weaning foods and meal ideas incorporating the food allergens to give you some inspiration when starting to feed your infant. All of these meal ideas are appropriate for infants as early as 6 months. This list will help give you ideas on how to introduce food allergens like peanut butter,eggs, and dairy to your baby.

Feel free to mix and match the fruits and vegetables based on what you have available.

TOP 8 Food Allergen Baby Led Weaning Foods and Meal Ideas

1. PEANUT BUTTER

• Fortified infant cereal made with breast milk or formula, mix in 1 teaspoon peanut butter (PEANUT BUTTER)
• whole milk yogurt mixed with 1 teaspoon peanut butter + soft pears sticks

2. EGGS

• Plain Omelet cut into strips + soft peach slices
• Hard boiled egg cut into strips + cucumber strips + avocado strips (coat in coconut or leave part of the skin on the bottom to help baby hold onto the avocado better)

3. FISH

• Salmon + raw or slightly steamed broccoli stalk and floret
• Tuna + cantaloupe sticks (make sure it is soft, using the pinch test*)

4. DAIRY

• Whole Milk Yogurt + sliced strawberries
• Shredded cheese + black beans + soft nectarine slices

5. WHEAT

• Whole wheat bread sticks spread with avocado + banana
• Whole wheat pasta (like penne) + soft steamed green beans + drizzle of olive oil

6. SOY

• Tofu sticks + steamed asparagus + shredded cheese
• Mashed edamame + soft cooked sweet potato stick + pear slices

7. TREE NUTS

• Wheat bread sticks spread with almond butter and kiwi wedges
• Fortified infant cereal mixed with mashed blueberries and cashew butter

8. SHELLFISH

• Ground shrimp mixed with whole milk yogurt OR avocado (shrimp salad) and steamed carrots

*pinch test: you can easily mash fruit between two fingers. Good test to see if fruit or vegetable is soft enough for baby to mash it in their mouth.