Welcome to my Food Ideas For Toddlers: 10 Airfryer Toddler Recipe Ideas For Your Fussy Toddler.
10 Simple Airfryer Recipes that you can feed your kids as you attempt to wean them onto solids and off 100% milk.
Today is a special day in our lives. It is our youngest child’s 1st birthday. Our cute little Jorge was born exactly a year ago today.
It was an easy birth as far as all that blood, pushing and panting goes. I had already done it twice so I knew what to expect.
I knew that those pregnancy cravings for avocados were going to end any moment and that instead of 50 trips to the toilet for my bladder each day, I would instead have (at least) 50 cuddles with a beautiful newborn baby.
But after my second birth and the horrible thing of being strapped to a bed for hours I decided that this time I was going to walk around a lot before the hospital to hopefully move things on a bit quicker.
So I showered. I argued with Dominic that it was too to go to the hospital and that I was going to take my time. I walked.
I walked again and then I walked some more. Unlike many labour mums I was grateful that the car park was a distance from the hospital doors and was wondering how long before he would enter the world.
My last 2 labours had been five hours so I was wondering if it was going to be a hattrick.
Then when I arrived at the hospital I watched as the other mums sat there feeling sorry for themselves and looked at me like I was a freak of nature that didn’t sit down during labour.
But it paid off as after my first contraction just before 7am he was born at just before 9am.
As soon as I was examined at the hospital I was ready to push and it felt like the best labour ever!
The other mums to be didn’t look too happy though. As I was getting pushed to the ward with my newborn baby while they were still waiting for a room to go into.
Jorge was suddenly real and a very big part of our family. We were so excited to complete our family and we loved taking him home.
But then karma hit us like a brick. Unlike our other 2 kids that were really easy going babies we suddenly had a very bad colicky baby.
A baby that was never happy and all he did was scream. The only time he was truly happy in the first few months was when he was breastfeeding.
Plus unlike my other breastfeeding experiences I suddenly had to watch everything that I ate. Everything seemed to give him bad wind and he was really hard work.
My daughter who is 22 months older was a dream baby in comparison. As long as she had a clean bottom, a cuddle and was not hungry then she was so happy.
The same goes for our older son who was just happy as long as he had a cuddle.
So this was unknown territory.
We eventually got through it and introduced him to solid foods at six months and he started sleeping through at 8 months.
He still has the odd bad night but overall the colicky baby is a thing of the past.
Table of Contents
Food Ideas For Toddlers
But what has got us most about having a colicky baby is how much harder it is to discover food ideas for toddlers.
It’s not just a case of giving them a quick fix but thinking more about your food choices.
We should point out that we are very anti processed foods when it comes to us and our kids.
We don’t give our kids freezer food, crisps, cans of vegetables or beans and their health is always our concern when we feed them.
But we also want convenience.
We want things that are really easy to make them and we want food that will make the learning curve of real food exciting and easy for them.
We want it to be fruit and vegetable led so that they will grow up loving vegetables.
We also want it to be easier for toddlers to learn how to eat with their fingers and get used to the texture of the food that they are eating.
Of course it is never plain sailing. There are many times when you feed your baby a new food and they refuse to chew, then before you know it, their bib is full of sick.
That reminds me – to make baby feeding successful you need this to catch the unwanted spillages.
If you browse below I have shared with you my top 10 favourite recipes that I have given to Jorge since he was introduced to solids that are high in fresh fruit and vegetables.
Several of these are also ones Sofia loves so if you want general food ideas for toddlers then I would start with these.
#1 Airfryer Honey Glazed Pineapple Fries
Why this Philips Airfryer Recipe is a great food idea for toddlers: One thing that kids love is fruit.
They find it so easy to eat too and as they progress they can go from sucking on it to eating it. Add a little honey to it and they have a delicious sweet treat.
#2 Airfryer Pumpkin French Fries
Why this Philips Airfryer Recipe is a great food idea for toddlers: This is just like the pineapple but a good alternative for the young ones for giving them fries.
They are easy to make are oil less and are easier to chew than traditional potato fries.
#3 Airfryer Avocado Egg Boats
Why this Philips Airfryer Recipe is a great food idea for toddlers: This is my daughters favourite breakfast and perfect for if you want something easy to feed them.
Wait until 9 months with the eggs being runny and they will love it.
#4 Airfryer Breakfast Muffins
Why this Philips Airfryer Recipe is a great food idea for toddlers: I love this as it is an easy recipe for introducing them to cooked vegetables rather than just making them soup.
It is also perfect cold and for taking with you when you are out of the house.
#5 Airfryer Veggie Fritters
Why this Philips Airfryer Recipe is a great food idea for toddlers: We all love veggie fritters and these are a classic version.
Easy to make and then cook them in the Airfryer for a delicious lunch or dinner.
#6 Airfryer Vegan Lentil Burgers
Why this Philips Airfryer Recipe is a great food idea for toddlers: Just like us adults a kid loves a burger.
Now this is the burger to give them first. A test run burger if you like! Filled with healthy lentils your toddlers will love it.
Then chop it up and make them a small version and let them use their hands to self feed.
#7 Airfryer Courgette Fritter Bites
Why this Philips Airfryer Recipe is a great food idea for toddlers: This is great as they are a lovely bite sized shape perfect for toddlers when they want to learn about different foods. Though adults love these too.
#8 Airfryer Leftover Muffins
Why this Philips Airfryer Recipe is a great food idea for toddlers: This is actually a leftover Christmas recipe.
It uses up the leftover turkey and vegetables. But you can use the concept with any leftover meat and vegetables with your toddlers.
#9 Airfryer Pumpkin Muffins
Why this Philips Airfryer Recipe is a great food idea for toddlers: This is another favourite muffin recipe of mine.
Using pumpkins (they are in season all year round in Portugal) you can make this delicious treat for your toddlers.
#10 Airfryer Apple Chips
Why this Philips Airfryer Recipe is a great food idea for toddlers: This is great for a quick snack for the little ones. It is delicious and easy for them to eat themselves.
It will get them used to feeding themselves and you can have them in their highchair in the kitchen eating this as you cook dinner.
More Food Ideas For Toddlers
It was so difficult to just choose 10 and I just couldn’t stop, so here is a few more for you to try out with your baby or toddler:
- Guilt Free Veggie Fries
- Sweet Potato Fries
- Mediterranean Vegetables
- Honey Glazed Cauliflower Bites
- Must Try Vegan Veggie Balls
- Airfryer Banana Bread
If you are stuck for general foods to give your toddler then I would also suggest that you introduce the following into their diet:
- Avocados
- Bananas
- Peaches
- Apples
- Pears
- Courgette
- Broccoli
- Butternut Squash
- Sweet Potato
- Carrots
As a standard rule it is advised that you only ever introduce 1 new food to them every 72 hours.
This is because if they are allergic to a food it can be hard to work out what it is. Also as the mum of a colicky baby, you should do it really slowly so that you can notice what the trigger points are.
I also found that following the FODMap is a good idea. This is because having a baby with colicky issues is like having an adult with IBS.
So with the FODMap being the cure to IBS, it can work well with it.
From the point of view of Jorge we found the following was his biggest triggers for his colic. They were mainly an issue when I ate them and he then absorbed them via breast milk:
- Couscous
- White Potatoes
- Chickpeas
- Rice
- Salad Dressing
But every baby is different and even though I have given you plenty of food ideas for toddlers, all toddlers like different things and just have fun as you introduce all these new foods to your baby.
Most of all, don’t get stressed out if they refuse something you have made them, just have a backup plan in place and tomorrow will be another day!
Thanks for reading all about our healthy food ideas for toddlers. I just love what you can make for your little ones with a little bit of imagination.
Kids love simple foods and to get them eating healthy from day 1 a few interesting fruit and vegetable recipes is a perfect starting point.
But each of these recipes was created using our Philips XL Airfryer. A great bit of kit and perfect for long term healthy cooking for your family. They are a bit more expensive that some of the other Airfryers but you get what you pay for and they really do last. You can find out more about it here.
