Introducing solid foods to your baby is one of the most exciting milestones in their early development. It feels like yesterday they were doing the newborn scrunch when you took them out of their car seat! Time certainly flies, and it only goes by faster from here. No matter how daunting it can be to start introducing your little one to solids, try to savor these moments with them. Take a deep breath because Little Spoon has designed Babyblends with USDA Certified Organic ingredients to take the guesswork out of feeding. With a thoughtful progression of five stages that match your baby’s developmental needs, you’ll never have to second-guess yourself when starting solids.
What are Babyblends?
Little Spoon’s pureed baby food, also known as Babyblends, are designed to make starting solids easy, from single ingredient to advanced purees. These blends are made with non-GMO and certified organic ingredients to deliver the quality that your babies deserve—the best. As part of Little Spoon’s EU-inspired safety standards for baby food, every batch is tested for 500+ toxins and contaminants—no blend will be sold if it does not meet these rigorous standards. To learn more about Little Spoon’s quality and safety standards, visit littlespoonbigchange.com.
Why Choose Purees Over Baby-Led Weaning?
As you begin your baby’s feeding journey, you may come across different feeding approaches, including baby-led weaning (BLW). Baby-led weaning is an approach to introducing solids to babies that bypasses the puree stage. Babies are offered developmentally appropriate finger foods from the very beginning and are not spoon-fed. While BLW works well for some families, purees can offer several advantages, especially in the early stages of feeding. Every family and child is different, always consult with your pediatrician on what works best for your baby!
Of course, as your baby becomes more confident and ready to explore self-feeding, you can explore introducing baby-led weaning techniques and bigger textures as they grow. Little Spoon makes this transition to table foods super easy with their Biteables line—Clean Label Project Certified, balanced meals with ingredients that are cut-to-size to support your baby’s motor and oral skills.
The key is to do what works best for you and your baby’s needs at every stage.
Many parents often ask, “When should we move to the next stage?” Each stage of Babyblends introduces new textures, flavors, and nutrients—helping your baby explore the wonderful world of food with confidence. Let’s take a closer look at what each stage offers, so you can make the best decisions for your baby’s feeding journey.
Stage 1: The Early Days (Thin and Simple Purees)
When to Start: When your baby is sitting mostly unassisted
Stage 1 is all about simplicity. At this stage, your baby’s digestive system is still developing, so the goal is to introduce smooth, single-ingredient purees that are easy to swallow and gentle on the tummy. Little Spoon’s Stage 1 Babyblends are made with USDA Certified Organic ingredients like sweet potatoes, apples, and peas.
What to Expect:
● Textures: Smooth and runny purees, perfect for babies who are just starting to explore solids.
● Flavors: Mild flavors, like Pear and Peach that help your baby get used to the idea of eating something other than breast milk or formula.
● Signs of Readiness: Your baby might be ready for Stage 1 if they can sit up with support, have good head control, and show interest in the food you’re eating.
At first, your baby may not finish an entire container of puree–and that’s okay! At this stage, it’s more about exposure than consumption, as they are still getting a lot of calories from milk or formula. When your baby starts to open their mouth and reach for the spoon, it’s a good sign they’re ready to move on to new flavors!.
Stage 2: The Next Step (Smooth Purees)
When to Start: Around 6 months
Once your baby has mastered the single-ingredient purees, it’s time to upgrade to Stage 2—blends containing two ingredients. This stage will begin to introduce your baby to different flavor combinations and new ingredients, while building on the texture foundation they experienced in Stage 1.
What to Expect:
● Textures: Gentle and smooth purees, slightly thicker than that of Stage 1.
● Flavors: Expect two-ingredient combos like Sweet Potato + Carrot, or Banana + Pitaya, that give your baby new flavors to explore.
● Signs of Readiness: If your baby is consistently eating Stage 1 purees and seems eager for something new, it’s probably time to introduce slightly thicker textures.
At this stage, you might notice your baby starting to make more munching (up and down movements) motions with their mouth. This is a great sign they’re ready to take on new, more complex textures!
Stage 3: Exploring Fruits and Veggies (Smooth Purees)
When to Start: Around 7 to 8 months
As your baby continues to discover smooth purees, you can begin to introduce them to Stage 3 Babyblends—three ingredient blends, soft in texture designed for palate expansion. These recipes feature fruits, vegetables, herbs, and spices to expose your little one to diverse flavors while still maintaining that thick puree texture that they’ve grown to be familiar with.
What to Expect:
● Textures: Soft and smooth purees, similar to the textures of Stage 2’s two-ingredient blends
● Flavors: Flavors like Purple Sweet Potato Blueberry Zucchini and Butternut Squash Golden Beet Cinnamon begin to expose your little one to vegetables, herbs and spices as they explore palate expansion in their feeding journey.
● Signs of Readiness: If your baby is consistently eating Stage 2 purees and shows signs of enjoyment with two-ingredient blends.
Stage 4: Exploring Textures (Chunkier Purees)
When to Start: Around 8 months
As your baby’s motor skills improve, they’re ready for chunkier purees with small, soft pieces that they can gum and explore. These blends slowly introduce more diverse textures by adding in ingredients like chia, chickpea and flax. The cold blend combined with these thicker textures can also soothe their tiny gums as they start to teethe.
What to Expect:
● Textures: Slightly thicker purees, but still smooth enough to be easily swallowed.
● Flavors: More complex flavor combinations like Pitaya Coconut Bowl and Mango Banana Chia Pudding
● Signs of Readiness: If your baby can handle thicker purees without gagging and seems to enjoy biting or gumming food, it’s time for even chunkier blends.
Stage 5 Mastering Textures (Chunkier Purees)
When to Start: Around 9 to 10 months
Stage 5 is all about preparing your little one to master the motions of gumming and swallowing to prepare them for table food. Little Spoon’s Stage 5 Babyblends feature five+ ingredient combination blends with thicker textures and chunkier ingredients for your advanced eater. These crafted recipes feature fruits, vegetables, legumes, superfoods, herbs, spices, oils and ancient grains to challenge your little eater as they master the Babyblends game.
What to Expect:
● Textures: Soft solids that can be gummed or mashed with the baby’s gums. These are the first foods that truly resemble the textures that the family eats at the table.
● Flavors: Combinations like Quinoa Raspberry Pudding and Apple Cinnamon Buckwheat Crumble feature more adventurous ingredients to prepare your little one for the next stage
● Signs of Readiness: If your baby is confidently eating chunky purees and is able to gum food with ease, it’s time to introduce soft solids. Your baby may also be showing more interest in feeding themselves.
A Feeding Journey, One Bite at a Time
Every baby is unique, and the path from purees to table food can look different for each little one. Little Spoon’s Babyblends are designed to grow with your baby, helping them take each step with ease. By following your baby’s cues and trusting their pace, you can ensure a feeding experience that is both nourishing and enjoyable.
Remember, there’s no rush—each stage is an important milestone, and the journey through Babyblends is all about introducing new textures and flavors that will help your baby become a confident eater.
