Food hacks: meals for toddler and baby together
Two under two isn’t easy – especially as they get older. They’re too far apart in age to enjoy doing much together but both too young for one of them to turn to the other and say, “Hey, maybe we should give Mum a rest?” If you can manage to do two lots of baby care at once, it feels like the ultimate life hack – hence why I’ve been trying double playtimes, double potty sessions and double baths (when Daddy actually finishes work on time).
However, my Everest is dinnertime. My eldest is using cutlery but my youngest still hasn’t sprouted any teeth so I’m stuck concocting three different meals each evening. Plus, it’s not like they give me much time to go full Jamie Oliver in the kitchen. Here’s a rundown of ten incredibly basic meals which my toddler and baby have shared together – with full help from Ella, a microwave and one worn out mummy.
Ella’s Kitchen Lentil bake (with cheese and chicken)
Very simply, your baby has a few heaped spoonfuls of the lentil bake cold or prepared as Ella recommends. Your toddler has lots of chopped pre-prepared chicken and a mountain of cheese added to the vast majority of the lentil bake, which is then microwaved – creating a mini cheesy chicken casserole. Add rice if you need to bulk it up further.
Heinz Mango, Chicken and Veggies (with extra chicken)
My toddler loved this sauce as a baby so it was my go-to meal for both my kids. I would offer my baby a few spoonfuls that I knew would fill her up. My toddler had diced, pre-prepared chicken in the (heated up) sauce with some Tilda Kids rice to create her favourite curry.
Scrambled egg
Yeah, not very original but everyone can eat it. The baby has it in very small pieces and lukewarm, with no other flavouring. My toddler has it with cheese, spinach, asparagus and leeks.
Mashed potato (or cottage pie)
A food so good, The Wiggles wrote a song about it. This one is best made with your toddler and baby ‘helping’ as it takes a bit longer than the others. Make up a carrot and mash puree for your baby – you can get prepeeled potatoes from the supermarket to save you a job. For your toddler, you can get tinned minced beef and onion bolognese from Sainsburys or M&S to add to the potato to make a tasty toddler cottage pie.
Ella’s Kitchen Chilli Con Carne (with jacket potatoes)
Nicely prepared for a 7 monther onwards. For the toddler, mix this sauce with cheese in the microwave to go on a jacket potato, and (if you need more) some beef mince.
Pancakes
What’s great about pancakes is they’re for young and old alike. The only difference between my baby and toddler’s meals is my toddler has hers rolled up while my baby’s is chopped into tiny pieces. This was one of the first meals my toddler and baby had together.
Ella’s Kitchen Lentil Bake or Veggie Feast (on pizza)
Plenty of supermarkets have pre-made mini pizza bases, while Pizza Express sells ready to roll pizza dough in most stores. While your baby is tucking into her Ella’s Kitchen, use the rest of her sachet as a pizza sauce, with cheese and toppings of your choice to finish off.
Cauliflower (Macaroni) cheese mash
Puree or mash cauliflower with no other ingredients, for a baby food from 6 months. You can make a cheese sauce when they are a bit older using milk, butter, flour and cheese – or use something premade like Colman’s Sauce Mix Cheddar Cheese. To keep your toddler full, add some toddler pasta shapes.
