Following 'protein ideas for veggie baby', now need 'fat ideas for vegan baby'

[MegBusset]

DS (7mo) is on dairy- and egg-free diet due to eczema. Has been eating fruit & veg for a while now so it's time to move on to protein, fats etc...

So how can I get enough fat into a baby's diet without being able to give dairy? The only thing I can think of is avocado which I have tried him on and he wasn't too impressed...

nut butters are reeeeeallly fatty. And delicious - almond, cashew and hazelnut, if you're avoid peanut.

Houmous is good.

Snooth nut butters? (You can buy almond nut butter from Holland and Barrett).

Mix a bit of olive oil into mashed potato.

Coconut too - creamed coconut or coconut milk, added to soups, stews, pureed mango. I'm not sure how protein-y it is, but it's really fatty.

I eat vegan and cook a lot of vegan meals. Cold pressed oils are useful - I use olive and sunflower.
VVF may be useful.
Viva for information, recipes and excellent books]]
And the Vegan Society

my DS likes farinata which is like a pancake made of chickpea flour and olive oil so takes care of protein as well as fat. if that doesn't sound utterly vile to you i can post a recipe.

Tahina (sesame seed paste) is delicious - it's the other ingredient in hummus apart from chickpeas. Can you give him milks other than cows' milk? Could you try goat cheese or ewe's milk cheeses, nice mild ones obviously, not the really socky ones? Also adding my vote for nut butters which are yummy.

I'd be interested in farinata

Oh yes, tahini. I love tahini.

Hi MegB, it also occurred to me this morning while I was hanging out the washing that coconut is very fatty - coconut cream might be a possible addition.

green leafy veg,olive oil,linseed oil,hempseed oil,rapseed oil.and obviously nuts but probably not for 7 month old.are you bf ?if not what milk is your ds having?maybe some fat in that.

I add Udo's choice oil to ds' food.

Thanks for these ideas. I am BF and have been expressing a little to use in cooking but find expressing a total pita to be honest.

I have been having a bit of recipe meltdown this weekend as I really need stuff that can be prepared and frozen in advance, but having a bit of a mindblank...

Is totally vegan baby the right idea?
If long term breastfeeding it would be safer.
Isnt a vegan diet high in fibre for a young child?
I always thought a veggie diet until 5 , and vegan diet safe after that.

just curious.

BTW if any atopic diseases I would avoid any nuts for a long time.
its really doesnt matter if its tree nut or peanut, both a pretty much a serious allergy.

rose elliot does some good vegan baby books.theres a few good vegan books on ebay at the moment not sure how many are good for 7 month olds though.cant think what ds used to eat!

williamsmummy i dont think its choice- MegBusset ds diet is due to medical reasons.also know lots of very healthy vegan babies.

Williamsmummy, as Moljam says, it's under doctor's orders due to eczema. (Though doens't seem to be making a huge difference so far, so may only be short-term.)

ooh hello again

farinata:

mix together 200g of chickpea flour (sold as gram flour in indian shops and big supermarkets) and 200g water into a smooth batter (add a pinch of salt if you feel OK with that). leave for 2 hours.

heat your oven to 220 degrees. stir 50g olive oil into the batter. heat an oven-safe pan (a paella pan or a big frying pan) with another 2tbps olive oil. when it's hot, pour in the batter, put it in the oven and bake for 20 minutes until lightly brown.

leave it to cool then tear or cut into pieces.

i keep meaning to make a tomato sauce to dip it in, i think that would be nice.

Did you try making guacamole on bread instead of pure avocado? Racking my brain for other fatty fruits/veg... Would olives be an option? Without pits, of course... My dd loves them.

I would avoid all nuts too if he has tendency towards eczema could be a sign of possible allergies. Any nut allergies in your family?

Both my DCs have been vegan since birth and there is nothing wrong with their growth! (both around 60-70th centile for height and 50-60 for weight)

They don't obviously eat as much fibre just yet as Dh and I, but we always gave them concentrated sources of energy like more oils and proteins. Using the oils mentioned below is good such as cold pressed coconut (a tsp in hot cereal), flax oil (same) and olive and hemp. However the don't need loads as it will give them diarrhea.
I always had guacamole on the go, and hummus made with olive oil and flax oil.
Almond butter and jam on bagels is a favorite.
Also put lots of seeds like sunflower and pumpkin in breads, or pureed in to nut butters/smoothies.

We didn't give dairy or egg to ds until he was 1. It's not a huge deal, milk should be providing most of the calories for the first 12 months anyway, and you can add olive oil or something like flax oil to whatever you cook.

I agree that I wouldn't give nuts or tahini if he has exczema. It isn't recommended this early.

can I bump this, as I am in exactly the same boat..

I buy 'pure Dairy Free' marge, and add that to any veggies I puree for extra fat.

Also avocado is fatty.

We have to avoid nuts, dairy, soya and egg so any more ideas for adding fat would be great!!

Fresh coconut goes down well. And if they can have seeds then either give for snacks or blend in to pastes to stir in to things like soup and porridge.

Flax oil is great as it is high in omega 3.

Yes, avocados are fab and delicious.

Other than that, using oilve oil and margarine will provide all the fat they need.