Quorn

[Tryingtobenice]

About to start thinking about blw. We are vegetarian and sort of plan to bring dd up veggie, as long as she wants to be.

I'm probably going to try her on oily fish (which I hate but can literally hold my nose to get down her!). But for other protein I was wondering about trying her on QuornAbout pieces.

Any advice on this? Can I treat Quorn like chicken or should I treat it like a processed food and avoid it?

Thanks for your advice.

[FredFredGeorge]

Quorn has pretty low nutrient density due to the high fibre content and low fat. If you do feed a baby with it, ensure you have high nutrient density foods with it (e.g. stick it in a very creamy sauce). However it may be worth delaying introduction at all until later because of the fibre content but it really will depend on how your baby takes to food.

If Eggs and Dairy proteins are acceptable I'd focus on those in the early days rather than Quorn or Tofu, but there's no in principle reason to avoid.

You don't treat it like chicken, or "processed food" (which is a confused term anyway I'd say, not all processed foods need avoiding, processing food is what makes a lot of it suitable for humans) you treat it like Quorn.

[DameMargotFountain]

i too am veggie (or pesci to be precise) and i was warned about the salt content of quorn and other processed meat subs - it is really high on some of them

[FredFredGeorge]

Quorn has no salt in - some foods which use quorn as a protein source (like sausages) may well do, but it's not all quorn.

[DameMargotFountain]

i meant the processed meat sub products, like the sausages etc

i agree, quorn mince is a very good base product

[ItsAllGoingToBeFine]

Agree about watching qourn as it'll fill them up with bugger all nutrition. Everything in moderation :-)

[OneLittleToddlingTerror]

Would you believe that NHS has actually got advice on this exact topic? You can make your own decision after reading that

www.nhs.uk/chq/Pages/when-can-I-give-Quorn-to-my-baby.aspx?CategoryID=62&SubCategoryID=63

[Tryingtobenice]

Wow, thanks toddlingterror!

And thank you for the other info. I'm a bit confused about the point about nutritional content, i was looking for a protein source, isn't that a nutritional component?

Anyway, will stick to eggs. I was just a bit worried about how to get finger food pulses into her, without choking risk. I suppose hummus on toast?

[Nicknamenotavailableeither]

I remember making a cheesy lentil bake type thing which you cooled and sliced into wedges with dd when I did blw. We are both veggie so this was good source of protein that your dc can pick up easily. I'm sure I found it on a blw website. Have a google.

[Nicknamenotavailableeither]

www.babyledweaning.com/recipes/lunchdinner/alisons-lentil-and-cheese-wedges/

[Purplehonesty]

How about soya mince is that better for protein content perhaps?

[OneLittleToddlingTerror]

I've made that same lentil cheese wedges too. I use a mini muffin tray, instead of making a large pie and cut into wedges.

[OneLittleToddlingTerror]

It's not about protein content. It's that they are low in fat, and high in fibre. That fills up a baby's stomach too easily, without much nutritional content. It's the same why you should give baby full fat milk. Basically most of what you think of as healthy eating (ie low fat, high fibre) isn't good for babies. They need very fat and rich food, iyswim. Something like egg and cheese is therefore great for vegetarian babies. As they are usually think of as food that makes you fat!

[Snowsquonk]

The other thing to be aware of is that some people are intolerant or develop an intolerance to Quorn. I had eaten in - in moderation - for years before noticing a pattern of 24 - 48 hours after a meal with Quorn in I would develop the most awful stomach upset - complete with temperature spikes, shakes etc which would last for two days and leave me feeling wiped out. As I had young children I blamed bugs being brought home from pre-school until I made the link with quorn. Stopped eating it, not one stomach upset since - try googling quorn intolerance/allergy because I know I'm not the only person. I woul avoid this highly processed food for a child and offer other protein rich products instead - you can make all sorts of beany things which either mash up to puree or cut into slices!