Is There Such A Thing?

[mrsnj91]

Is there such a thing as gluten free/wheat free baby food? I have hit the toddler stage and it is nice to be able to have handy a few foods for on the go like the Gerber Grads, etc. But everything they make is like 90% pasta!! Or has wheat starch in it. I am getting so frustrated! Can I tell you how excited I get when I am in the babyfood isle and find something she can eat??!! I must look like a nut!

Last week I came in after a mega baby food sale and couldn't find much of anything for her. So I decided to head to the soup isle in hopes of finding something there. HA HA HA HA HA! What a joke! What the heck do they need to put wheat starch in chicken, rice and broth for!!!????? I was ready to just sit down and cry!

Is there ANY baby/toddler food out there that is gluten/wheat free???? Another brand besides Gerber/Beechnut perhaps?

[fullofhope]

My son is now past the babyfood stage (he's 2) but I seem to remember finding some rice/veg babyfood, and of course fruits, that didn't have gluten... it was at a health food store, sorry I don't remember the brand. It's an on-going frustration, I feel for you! Elliot wasn't big on babyfood anyway, though, so he ate mainly just steamed veggies, peeled fruits, rice (there's a kind of rice, can't think of the name, that is so sticky when made that you can form it into balls so it's finger food), rice pasta with veggie baby food on it as a sauce, beans, lentils, corn tortillas, and, our favorite most convenient snack- puffed corn or rice cereal by arrowhead mills. Nothing added, just the puffed corn/rice. Oh, and always rice cakes. For dinners he just ate what I ate (I'm gluten-free too). Sorry I can't help you in the prepared babyfood area, though, and soups- there is a brand at a health food store that I know is gluten-free, but again can't think of the name. Maybe someone else can be a little more helpful than me!

janel

[eKatherine]

I never served baby food to my daughter. She wasn't inclined to start eating solid food until about 8 months of age, and then I would just give her little mashed or crumbled bits of what we were having and let her play with them. When she was ready and hungry, she started feeding herself.

[mmaccartney]

We didn't feed our children baby food either.

The best thing you could do is to:

1) Learn how to "can" food in small jars

2) get lots of small jars for baby sized portions

3) get a food processor

4) Make your own baby food, "can" it into the jars, and there you have it. Gluten free baby food!!!

We didn't get into canning any of the food, but we never bought any baby food, made our own from fresh food!

[Izak's Mom]

My son is just past 1 now and we've been wf/gluten-free for almost 5 months now...

I think the truth is that with food intolerance, what you gain in health from changing diet you give up in convenience. The good thing is, the things you can prepare at home with relatively little fuss are way healthier than any pre-packaged meal anyway! Not that that's such a help when you're in a rush and trying to feed your starving kid, lol.

How 'toddler' is your toddler? ie, how many teeth does s/he have? My Izak can't quite do the breakfast cereal bar things yet (like the Puffins rice krispie things) - no molars for mashing. But he loves snacks like Pirates Booty (especially Veggie Booty) and Veggie Chips. Check out Open Original Shared Link, Open Original Shared Link and Open Original Shared Link too.

Good luck!

[KayJay]

I am so in the same boat as you are. My baby is 11 months old and I have pretty much given up on the whole baby food stuff. She eats all the fruits and veggies of course. Some of the chicken and rice is made with rice flour but you have to look at the ingredients. Wagon wheels are gluten free! I keep those in the diaper bag for while we are out. They are great to have around!

But mainly I make some gluten-free pasta and put some to the side and Maddie eats it plain. I buy bags of frozen veggies or fresh and steam them and then cut them up and give those to her. I tried some gluten-free bread once but she choked on it. It was too crumbly for her and scared me half to death so I haven't tried that again. My biggest fear is that she isn't getting a lot of grains in her diet. She isn't growing too well lately and I think it is because her main diet consist of fruits and veggies. No one would gain weight on just that alone! So today I am going to go to the store and get some chicken and pasta and make my own baby food entrees and freeze them.

[Izak's Mom]

My biggest fear is that she isn't getting a lot of grains in her diet. She isn't growing too well lately and I think it is because her main diet consist of fruits and veggies. No one would gain weight on just that alone! So today I am going to go to the store and get some chicken and pasta and make my own baby food entrees and freeze them.

If you're not a vegetarian (which I suspect you're not, if you're buying chicken!) you should try making meatballs - Izak loves 'em. Instead of breadcrumbs, I mix in some cornmeal and the usual spices (a little oregano, basil, salt, pepper - plus an egg for consistency) and cook them in tomato sauce. They're mushy enough for him to eat himself and are a great source of protein. I actually use ground lamb most of the time, or meatloaf mix (a blend of beef, pork & veal) - 'lamballs' just taste so much better to me! Cam your daughter tolerate cheese? Izak also loves 'mac n cheese' (made with corn/quinoa rotelli pasta) - he can pick up the 'roni's and feed himself, and leftover pasta goes great with the meatballs. Scrambled egg/omelette is on his list of favorites too & is good protein. And as for the bread, I've found that if you make french toast out of it it's much better - if you cut it up into really small mushy pieces your daughter might be able to eat them without choking.

[mrsnj91]

Thanks for the replies. I had a feeling I was at a dead end. Thing is that I HATE to cook so it is nice to have those ready made things when we are on the go and I can just grab and run. Other problem I have is that she won't touch certain foods like pasta or fresh fruit and she is on an allergy restricted diet...no fish, shellfish, eggs, peanuts, etc. till she is about 2-3. So it really limits me. Sometimes I just want to scream!!!

Delaney is 16 months and has all her teeth. Problem is that she has a texture problem. Hence the no fruit and such. When she was on all baby food it was great. But once she got past the stage 2's my life became hard. Oddly she is on the typical toddler diet...all carbs. Funny when you think about it! So her favs are muffins, pancakes, cereal and such. I try and throw in tricks like fruit in the muffins, dried Gerber fruit, etc. Just so frustrating!!!

[jayhawkmom]

We buy Earth's Best baby foods. While a lot of the "older baby" foods do have pasta, there are also some good alternatives such as Cinnamon Sweet Potato Bisque, Lentil and Veggie Dinner, and things like that.

My disclaimer is that my 11 month old is not gluten-free. But, I have been trying harder to pay close attention to what he's eating, because he's had "the big D" a lot lately. *Ugh*

Lots of luck. I do agree though, making your own is a good idea!

[TinkerbellSwt]

We have no diagnosis or suspicion of Colin having celiac yet, but we are keeping him gluten free anyway. I know Whole Foods carries Earths Best and another brand (cant remember the name) of baby food. Colin is just reaching the point of the third foods.. he doesnt really like them. We are giving him the pre canned veggies by Del Monte and such. I know we can get healthier stuff for him, but for now its a start. His docs at CHOP said it was ok too. We started tonite with the Gerber Meat Sticks.. they look gross and feel gross, but he loved them. They are basically hot dogs, just softer. He didnt even blink at the taste. They are gluten free too. I hope this helps some, we are at the same turning point! Good Luck!!!

[KayJay]

If you're not a vegetarian (which I suspect you're not, if you're buying chicken!) you should try making meatballs - Izak loves 'em. Instead of breadcrumbs, I mix in some cornmeal and the usual spices (a little oregano, basil, salt, pepper - plus an egg for consistency) and cook them in tomato sauce. They're mushy enough for him to eat himself and are a great source of protein. I actually use ground lamb most of the time, or meatloaf mix (a blend of beef, pork & veal) - 'lamballs' just taste so much better to me! Cam your daughter tolerate cheese? Izak also loves 'mac n cheese' (made with corn/quinoa rotelli pasta) - he can pick up the 'roni's and feed himself, and leftover pasta goes great with the meatballs. Scrambled egg/omelette is on his list of favorites too & is good protein. And as for the bread, I've found that if you make french toast out of it it's much better - if you cut it up into really small mushy pieces your daughter might be able to eat them without choking.

Those meatballs sound good!

Maddie can't have Milk, soy, eggs, dairy, peanuts and Gluten. I know how you feel with the screaming thing. We go to the GI next week so maybe he will be able to help us find something she can eat. I also just wanted to let you guys know that those meat sticks have milk in them Also the wagon wheels have some soy but so far that hasn't seemed to bother Maddie that I can tell.

[Izak's Mom]

Maddie can't have Milk, soy, eggs, dairy, peanuts and Gluten.

KayJay - Yowsers! Hmm...you could still do the meatballs, just omit the egg. Tomato sauce should be OK too - I use the little cans of Hunt's with the Basil & Oregano in there (easier & faster than making my own, but my Italian grandma would probably kill me)

I just checked the label on the bread I use - Food for Life brand WF/gluten-free Brown Rice Fruit-Juice Sweetened (or something like that) and it's free of all of what you mentioned - I wonder if you could do a 'french toast' from the bread with Rice Milk? Can she do any egg yolk at all, or is the whole thing off limits? I know the whites are the most allergenic part... toast with jam cut up in little pieces is also an option.

A couple other things I forgot that Ike loves - the Quaker Oats Instant Grits (I usually put cheese on them, but maybe with a little salt/paprika & olive oil they'd be good? I like the Crazy Jane's Mixed Up Salt - it has better flavor than plain salt, or Mrs. Dash or something like that, if you're watching salt intake). Also avocados, diced with a little balsamic vinegar on them - or just mashed with a banana. That's really a good protein combo too.

Kimberly - hang in there! I know how you feel about just wanting to grab something and run. I personally love to cook, but I have no time to do it so it becomes a major pain in the you-know to have to prepare everything ahead of time. I've stocked up on organic turkey dogs (no nitrates or anything like that), which I can nuke in a less than a minute & give him, and have started making rice-flour muffins & banana breads that I cut up and put in individual baggies, then freeze so I can take them out during the week & use them. Get most of that cooking done on the weekends during his morning nap (thank the powers that be that he's a good napper!!) so I'm all set for the week. What texture does she like? The bready stuff?

[Guest Robbin]

I used a little baby food mill-check online for one-you can just put in whatever you are eating and make your own food for your baby too. The one I had was little and had a crank on top that you turn. I took it to restaurants (this was ten years ago before dx) and it was super handy. I just saw one at a cat show, it was intended to be used for babies/toddlers, but the cat owners were using it to make homemade cat food!

[jayhawkmom]

Maddie can't have Milk, soy, eggs, dairy, peanuts and Gluten. I know how you feel with the screaming thing.

Hmmm, I think I need to be talking to you. My daughter is pretty much in the same boat. No milk, eggs, peanuts, gluten. And, it seems that she's reacting to soy now as well. I'm so frustrated. Currently, all she wants to eat is Cantaloupe, watermelon, and McDonalds fries. She simply can't go on like this. =(

[Fiddle-Faddle]

We always gave our kids fresh broiled salmon--we flaked it for them and let them pick it up as finger food. You can usually find it on restaurant menus (ask for it without glaze or soy sauce or whatever they put on it). It's very healthy and easy to digest.

[mrsnj91]

Hi Jay!!! It is Kimberly aka Kimberlee!! Nice to see you on the board!

We are on the allergic wagon too with Wheat, oats, peanuts, eggs, fish and strawberries. She isn't allergic to it all...thank GOD. We are not giving big no-no's to be safe. Until she is 2-3 years anyway. She is allergic to the wheat and oats though.

Izak's Mom- you need to post your recipe.

Someone asked (sorry can't remember who) what texture she doesn't like....seems it is more anything cold, wet and slimmy. Which mostly covers all fruits. LOL! She will eat a few veggies with no butter, etc. And a few meats but is happy with anything like sausage, hotdogs, etc. She actually ate ham the other day. I about passed out where I sat! Between the limits and those that she adds on, it makes mommy's life a bit frustrating! She cannot live on hotdogs and muffins alone! Ok maybe she can but it isn't good!

[Nikki2003]

I know there are glutn free chocolate chip cookies and some jar baby foods,they don't say gluten free on them. Just look at the ingredients. I did find something interesting though. If you compare gerber infant rice cereal to the rice cereal from beechnut. Beechnut has gluten containing ingredients. I just noticed that the other day. Just a heads up.

[lindalee]

Is there such a thing as gluten free/wheat free baby food? I have hit the toddler stage and it is nice to be able to have handy a few foods for on the go like the Gerber Grads, etc. But everything they make is like 90% pasta!! Or has wheat starch in it. I am getting so frustrated! Can I tell you how excited I get when I am in the babyfood isle and find something she can eat??!! I must look like a nut!

Last week I came in after a mega baby food sale and couldn't find much of anything for her. So I decided to head to the soup isle in hopes of finding something there. HA HA HA HA HA! What a joke! What the heck do they need to put wheat starch in chicken, rice and broth for!!!????? I was ready to just sit down and cry!

Is there ANY baby/toddler food out there that is gluten/wheat free???? Another brand besides Gerber/Beechnut perhaps?

I used to have a little baby food grinder and would just grind up the food in there. Dr. Perimutter (wrote the Brain Book) suggests putting a little DHA (good fat) in the baby food - he said it helps with their brain progress(more alert, smarter and less chance of ADD). LL

[jayhawkmom]

Hi Kimberlee - there you are!! =) =)