Are you running out of ideas for finger foods for your little ones? Then this post is just for you.

Hello everyone. A new year and a new beginning to another year of delicious recipes and valuable tips and tricks for you all here at Easy Baby Meals.

I am starting this year by sharing 15 Finger Food Ideas for your babies and toddlers. I know and understand we all run out of options for finger food.

It is either fish crackers or cereal or cheese. And sometimes fruits. I have been there and done that.

After a point, my daughter wanted something different. Hence I came up with these ideas, so every day, it can be new finger food for the next 15 days and repeated for the upcoming 15 days.

So let’s dig in and check out the 15 Finger Food Ideas For Babies And Toddlers.

The idea behind sharing this post:

Whenever we are out in the social setting, my daughter is the only one among kids who eats her raw vegetables.

She enjoys eating them. At times a bowl of salad and some protein becomes a meal for her.

People always ask me how she does that; my answer is that she loves raw fruits and vegetables.

And the little secret is I introduced her to raw fruits and vegetables at a young age.

A little word of cautions:

Before we go further, I want to mention that the finger food ideas discussed here are for babies ten months and above.

Mainly they are for babies who have graduated to a chunky puree. And have developed a pincer grip.

These are not for younger babies.

Also, some of the ideas mentioned here will need to be cut into pieces that your child can hold and swallow.

Please use care and caution while giving these to your children.

Let’s go through each of these.

Cooked Pasta- Noodles, Macaroni:

Pasta is an excellent idea for finger food. Since the baby has started gaining a pincer grip, she can hold her food in her finger and eat it.

Foods like these can help her master the grip. My daughter enjoyed her mealtime more when she had noodles and pasta. It was a fun playtime and mastering the new skill she picked up for her.

Besides macaroni and noodles, I also gave her farfalle, cavatappi, and rotini pasta.

Frozen Yogurt Pops:

Frozen Yogurt pops are my go-to for snacks and finger food. They are easy to make, and they turned into a delicious and healthy snack with just a few essential ingredients. My daughter had these a lot, especially during her teething months.

You can find the recipe for the yogurt pops here: Berry Yogurt Pops

Cooked Vegetables And Fruits: 

Mine is eating vegetables from 6 months of age. It started with baby puree, which progressed to baby-friendly bite-size pieces of vegetables.

I gave her cooked carrots, potatoes, squashes, roasted zucchini, french beans, sugar snap peas, to name a few.

These are cooked until soft so the baby can chew them well.

The same principle is applied to cooked fruit. I gave her apples and pears.

Soft fruits (lightly mashed): 

Raw fruits like strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries were my daughter’s favorite to snack on and still are. She is now eight years old, and her lunch consists of these berries as her side food.

Wedges of soft ripe fruit:

Raw ripe fruits play an important role in developing the taste buds for new textures and tastes.

My daughter relished mangoes, figs, grapes (cut into quarters,) watermelon, cantaloupe, oranges, bananas, various kinds of berries, and so on.

They all provide essential nutrients.

At times, I also gave her avocado, but it was her least favorite.

Grated Cheese:

It all starts with a grated mozzarella cheese stick, which turns into strings from cheese-string. It is a fun activity, and also you get to eat your toy.

Jokes apart, cheese has been an essential part of dairy in my daughter’s diet during the early years.

Grated raw vegetables and fruits: 

I started by giving her a grated cucumber. Apples, cantaloupe slices, pear are also good options.

Baby-friendly puffs:

Baby-friendly puffs are the most common snack in the park. They are easy to hold by the baby and easy to eat. I made sure they were organic.

Cooked and shredded (chicken, salmon, meat)

Cooked and shredded meat and poultry make delicious side and finger food. Also, it helps introduce the flavors of the family cooking at an early age.

Crackers:

Cracker and graham crackers are perfect finger food. They are easy to grip with tiny hands and have a texture that soothes the teething child. I made Homemade crackers for my daughter; you can check out the recipe here: Homemade Herb Crackers. 

Pancakes and waffles: 

Pancakes and waffles are some of my favorite finger foods to give to little ones. They are easy to make and part of our regular breakfast. Also, you can customize it by adding various fruits. Just make sure to cut into child-friendly bite-size pieces.

Grilled cheese toast:

At one point, grilled cheese toast with herb topping had become my daughter’s favorite. She still likes it. Toast has become an essential part of her diet.

Toast with mashed banana and butter:

Another finger food favorite was warm toast with butter and banana. At times it was a meal. I like to add some cardamom powder to this banana toast to its delicious aroma.

Dry Cereal:

Cereal is an integral part of the family diet. We all eat cereal at some point in the day. I gave her dry cereal as finger food and a snack for my daughter. It kept her busy playing along with providing nutrition. I made sure, though, that the cereal had less sugar content.

Raw vegetables and fruits: 

It is one of the categories of food she adores. She has turned into a person who prefers raw fruits and vegetables more than cooked food. She likes boiled green beans, broccoli, and lima beans are, to name a few.

And in terms of raw vegetables, she is into carrots, cucumbers, and tomatoes. In the fruits category, she likes apples, pear, peach, watermelon, raspberries, blueberries, cherries, mango, grapes, pomegranates, just the name a few.

Introducing fruits and vegetables early is crucial in developing taste buds for later foods.

This concludes our post today. I hope these ideas can help you get out of the rut if you are stuck on what to give to your little one as finger food.

I will talk to you all again in the next post. Till then, take care and stay safe.

What are you giving your child as finger food? Do share it in the comments.

Disclaimer:

The ideas presented here are from the author’s experiences with her daughter. Each child is different. What works for one person might not work for another. 

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Important Note:

Talk to your baby’s Pediatrician before starting new food.

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