Baby Breakfast Ideas
In this blog we take a look at some easy and tasty baby breakfast ideas.
Breakfast times are a great opportunity to provide your little one with a variety of foods, and help them to get used to a range of tastes and textures.
You can find out more about the ‘when’ and the ‘how’ of introducing solid foods by signing up to FREE parents course ‘Feeding Your Baby in the First Year’ or by joining our FREE monthly ‘Weaning Your Baby‘ webinar!
Breakfast Variety
From six months, babies can be introduced to a wide range of foods, such as vegetables (avocado, tomato), cereals (oats, semolina), pulses (beans, lentils), meat, fish (sardines), eggs, tofu, ground nuts and seeds, and fruits.
Breakfast is a great time to explore a range of textures- from smooth, to lumpy and finger foods. Find out more in our texture blog (opens in new tab).
Let’s take a look at some of our favourite baby breakfast ideas (which are also tasty ideas for the whole family!).
Starchy Foods
A range of starchy foods can be offered to your baby at breakfast time, including:
- porridge made from oats
- cereals, such as pearl barley
- semolina (ground wheat), or polenta (corn meal)
- bread fingers (chapatti, pitta, naan and other breads).
Texture
Rather than using expensive baby breakfast foods, things like rice, porridge and other cereals can be mashed, rather than using expensive infant versions.
Ground rice and semolina are smooth cereals when made up with milk. They can be mixed with breast milk or infant formula – or with full-fat cows’ milk, if your baby is over 6 months old.
Bread is a great option at breakfast time and you can choose different topping to help vary the range of foods your little ones has. Just to note, white bread can form a ball shape with a dough-like texture at the back of a child’s throat, if not chewed properly. Brown bread or toasted white bread are good alternatives. Cut bread, chapattis, naan bread and other breads into narrow strips to offer them as finger foods.
Baby Breakfast Ideas – Starchy Recipes
Cereal
Cereals, such as overnight porridge oats (opens in new tab)/warm porridge, are very versatile as you can add a range of different fruit and/or vegetables (e.g. carrot). They are also easy to make the night before to save you time in the morning, and the rest of your family can enjoy them alongside your little one.
Yes, we know breakfast couscous sounds strange, but this recipe is honestly delicious and something totally different. The ingredients in this recipe are slightly different from your average breakfast recipe, for example, pistachios (finely ground for under 5′) and orange zest. Give it a try, you’ll be surprised!
Check out the Couscous recipe card here (PDF, 280KB)!
Bread
We love eggy bread for breakfast! It’s easily chopped into suitable sized pieces for your little ones, and you can serve it with a variety of other finger foods too!
- Eggy bread with avocado fingers (opens in new tab)
- French toast with strawberries (opens in new tab)
Pancakes
If you have a little more time at the weekends, then pancakes are a great family breakfast option and perfect to offer as finger foods with the following toppings:
- Blueberries, banana and plain natural or Greek yoghurt
- Banana, raspberry and peanut butter
- Rhubarb compote with crème fraîche
- Mixed berries with cream cheese
- Tahini, yoghurt and grated cheese
Check out our pancake recipes here! (opens in new tab)
Fruit and Vegetables
Once your baby has accepted other savoury tastes, fruit can be introduced.
- Hard fruits, like apple and pear, can be cooked to soften them
- Soft fruits like banana can be mashed
- Any type of fruit can be used – canned in own juice, frozen or fresh.
Texture
If making a smooth version, the fruit should be free of pips and skin. If serving fruit as finger foods, the pieces should be soft and manageable, and chunks of apple or harder fruits should be avoided.
- Cut small round fruits like grapes, cherries, berries, strawberries and cherry tomatoes, into small pieces: cut length-ways and then again cut them in halves (quarters)
- Cut large fruits like melon and firm fruits like apple into slices instead of small chunks. For very young children, consider grating or mashing firm fruits, or softening them up by steaming or simmering them
- Consider removing the skin from fruit and vegetables, especially for very young children. Peeled fruit and vegetables can be swallowed more easily
- Do not give babies under the age of 1 whole raisins or dried fruits. Cut them into small pieces.
Baby Breakfast Ideas – Fruit and Vegetable Recipes
Fruit
We love this Apple and Raspberry Stew. This is a delicious recipe to make for your little one. It can be served on its own or added to porridge, yum! This is a perfect lumpy food to offer to little ones.
Fruit and Vegetables
First Steps Nutrition have lots of fantastic meal ideas in their resource ‘Eating Well in the First Year (PDF, 6.8MB)‘, including:
- Baked Beans with toast fingers
- Porridge with mango
- Fruit Fingers with cottage cheese.
Protein
Breakfast is a great time to offer babies a variety of non-dairy protein foods, such as:
- beans, lentils
- tofu
- eggs
- nut butters or ground nuts or seeds
- fish (e.g. sardines on toast)
- meat.
Texture
Eggs are an excellent first food as they are easy to prepare and easy to mash (if required) or to offer as finger foods. Ensure any eggs offered to your baby are hens’ eggs and have a red lion stamped on them, or have the words “British Lion Quality” displayed on the box. It’s fine for baby to have them raw (e.g. homemade mayonnaise) or lightly cooked (as long as they have the red lion stamp).
Tofu can be mixed with other foods as it mashes easily and has a smooth texture.
Fish and meat can be introduced as first foods. They should be well cooked, and checked to make sure there are no bones or pieces of gristle. They should then be chopped finely and mixed with some breastmilk or infant formula – or with full-fat cows’ milk if baby is over 6 months old. Foods can be made smooth by putting them through a mixer. Pieces of well cooked meat and fish can also be offered as finger foods.
Salt or sugar should never be added to food served to babies.
Cut sausages into short strips. Cut them in half and then lengthways or as thinly as possible. Peeling the skin off the sausages helps them to be swallowed more easily.
Chop or flake whole nuts, peanuts and seeds. Whole nuts should not be given to children under five years old. Do not give babies and young children peanut butter on its own, only use as a spread.
Baby Breakfast Ideas – Protein Recipes
Eggs
- Our tasty pepper omelette is a super quick and easy recipe to make for your little one! If you’ve got them, add other vegetables to give your omelette extra colour Click here to get your free activity card (PDF, 2MB)
- Our Smashed Avocado and Egg Fingers recipe is a simple and delicious protein breakfast for babies. Click here to get your free recipe card! (opens in new tab)
Dairy and alternatives
Dairy and calcium fortified dairy alternatives (unsweetened), are good choices from around 6 months
- plain full-fat milk yoghurt
- Greek yoghurt
- Plain soya yoghurt (unsweetened, calcium fortified).
Texture
Dairy and suitable alternatives are naturally smooth and can be mixed with other tastes and textures. For example, you can add your choice of mashed fruit or finger foods alongside suitable yoghurts.
Baby Breakfast Ideas – Dairy Recipes
Drinks
Baby can be introduced to an open cup or free-flow beaker from six months and offered sips of tap water with meals.
Babies under 12 months don’t need fruit juice or smoothies due to their level of free sugars which can increase the risk of tooth decay.
You can find more recipes via:
- Our Early Start Nutrition blogs: Breakfast in your Early Years setting (opens in new tab), Family Breakfast Ideas (opens in new tab) and Example Menus (opens in new tab)
- Start for Life website (opens in new tab)
- Action on Sugars Breakfast Recipe booklet (PDF, 3.8MB) which also features our popular Breakfast CousCous