Any tips for getting a 1 year old to eat protein?

[Pennies]

DD2 (13 months) will not eat any meat, fish or cheese. I have tried to hide them in all sorts of sauces, soups, casseroles etc but she is nothaving any of them. The ONLY time I can get her to eat cheese is on pizza / cheese on toast.

She wolfs down yoghurts and likes her milk so that is obviously one source but I was hoping that I could somehow get her to be a bit more inclined towards meat / fish as we're quite a carniverous household and I don't want to be in the postion whereby I'm either having to make two meals or having to change to a more vegetarian diet as DD1 would therefore miss out on some foods she loves. At the moment I'm making casseroles with tons of veg in so she just gets a portion of the veg plus the casserole sauce rather than the meat.

Any hints / tips?

what about baked beans with grated cheese mixed in ? ( I use the whole earth baked beans, no sugar I think and organic). Or pasta with a cheese and tomato sauce?

Don't panic and just go with it! She'll probably get to like them as she gets older - keep offering but don't make a big deal of it. Even at 13 mo, they are quick to spot an opportunity to tweak your tail.

But for practical suggestions at getting more protein into her, have you tried peanut butter or soft cheese? Or hummous? Or chuck a couple of handfuls of lentils in with the casserole - they'll mush down and are a great source of protein and iron. Baked beans are another good one - you can get organic versions now, and even Heinz do some with less sugar and salt and no sweeteners.

sardines mashed up on toast?
a mince based dish - i.e., shepherds pie/bolongnase/mousaka.
sandwiches with mashed banana & peanut butter/cottage cheese

agree with Corriedale ito try & relax - tis sure to change ... but on a more pracitcal note ... eggs?!

ah yes lentils - I keep forgetting thay are a good protein source.

agree with corriedale (pmsl at 'tweak your tail'). have you tried her with eggy bread? and i chuck a couple of handfuls of lentils into minestrone soup and then give dd the soup on bread. loads of other good suggestions here, particularly the peanut butter which dd eats off big bits of celery or oatcakes.

Oooh lots of suggestions here, thank you!.

Yes she does like baked beans (but only if she can eat them one by one using her fingers aaarrggg).

She doesn't like eggs in any form (except custard but I don't want to give her that too much even tho I make my own so can control the sugar in it). No joy with hummous with either of my kids sadly.

Good idea re. lentils. I forgot about them completely - will do that too.

you could squish the beans onto toast and melt cheese on top.

DizzyBint - LOL I like your style!!!

on my blog thing there is a delicious recipe for chickpea burgers. they are properly nice. www.babyledweaning.com.

With lentils you could try lentil rissoles which my dd loves (she is similarly protein-shy so have had to get a bit creative)

I googled a recipe but basically its red lentils, carrots, onion, cumin, cook them up til mushy, add egg yolk, roll into balls and squish into burger shapes, dip into egg white and breadcrumbs and fry a few mins each side. If freezing do it before the frying stage. We eat them too with sweet chilli sauce, and add sesame seeds to the crumbs. Very proud of them, i am..

If she likes yogurt. I have a fab recipie from Anabel karmels book. It includes cold chopped chicken, grated cheese, mashed avacado, chopped p, skinned tomato mixed with natural yogurt. My DS has only just started to enjoy chicken in 'lunp form' recently at 21 months, but from about 9 months he ws woolfing this recipie down. It's nice and quick to. If you think you might try this recipie, I'll dig out the book quickly and post the amounts.

I would also recommend investing in a good 3 or more different familie recipie books just so you have lots to try.

Have you tried giving her cold cuts of ham & chicken etc that she can pick at on her own?

Good luck

If she likes eating with her fingers, try risotto made with chicken stock, chicken and veg etc, she can pick out the bits she doesn't like and indeed lap up the bits she does.

Also agree with other posters, this is a phase that will probably pass, keep offering the same as the rest of the hosuehold are eating, she won't starve.

By way of more consolation, Pennies, at 13mo, DS wouldn't eat advocado at all. He even cried if offered it. Tonight he ate nearly a whole one, and it was meant to be mine.

i make a tomato and pepper sauce with lentils cooked into it that goes down well with pasta or as a pizza topping - the lentils mush in and are completely unnoticable. dd (1yr) always wolfs it down.

I have got a couple of Annabel Karmel books so will look that recipe up Tigermum.

I will also get into lentils - are we talking red lentils for the rissoles then? Do you have to soak them?

I think i used this recipe , and combined it with this minus the chilli powder, also added carrots along with the lentils, and peas right at the end of cooking. No need to soak the lentils. Damn i bet i wont be able to recreate them now but hope yours are nice!

How about other beans? My dd (also a meat refuser, and is still at nearly 3) would eat cannellini beans, kidney beans, borlotti beans etc. Good finger food I thought. Probably why her fine motor skills are so good . I used tinned, and just rinsed them off.