Lentil Puree is a yummy, nourishing first food for when baby starts solids. Lentils are an amazing first food! They’re soft and creamy once cooked, and packed with protein, iron, fibre and zinc [1] amongst other nutrients. Combined with the range of vegetables in this recipe, it makes for a yummy lentil puree that tastes just like vegetable soup.
Ingredients in Lentil Puree
This homemade lentil baby food recipe is full of simple wholefood ingredients:
Red split lentils – Split red lentils work best in this recipe. If you use whole lentils instead of split, you’ll need to adjust your cooking time.
Carrots – I peel my carrots, but if using unpeeled then be sure to wash them thoroughly.
Red capsicum – Capsicums are loaded with Vitamin C [2], which helps the body to absorb the iron found in lentils.
Brown shallots – Shallots have a milder, sweeter flavour than brown onions. You can substitute in equal amounts if you’d like.
Zucchini – I don’t peel the zucchini in this recipe, just wash it before chopping.
Sweet potato – I use orange sweet potato, which are packed with nutrients [3] including Vitamin C.
Olive oil
Water
How to make Lentil Puree
First, chop the vegetables. In a saucepan over medium heat on the stovetop, sauté the chopped vegetables. Add the sweet potatoes, lentils and water. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the lentils are cooked. With either a hand mixer, stick blender or food processor, carefully blend to a puree.
Thermomixer? This is a really straightforward baby puree recipe to make in a thermo cooker/all-in-one appliance. I simply weigh all ingredients into my Thermomix, cook and blend to a smooth puree.
You’ll find the recipe card below, with ingredient amounts and detailed steps for both regular and thermo cooker methods.
Turn pureed lentils into baby’s first soup
This Lentil Puree tastes like delicious homemade vegetable soup. In fact, you can use this as a soup base for the whole family and add extra veggies, stock and noodles or pasta for a really hearty meal on a cold winter’s day.
Once baby is over 12 months of age (and can have small amounts of salt), why not try this Pumpkin, Carrot and Red Lentil Soup instead 😋.
Serving
Serve this Lentil Puree as a runny puree when baby starts solids; make it more mashed for introducing texture; or use it as a pasta sauce when baby is learning to self-feed. Add vegetable stock and veggies for a comforting soup for the family. This red lentil puree recipe is very versatile!
Storing
You can store pureed lentils in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 2 days or freezer for up to 1 month. Using ice cube trays is a great way to portion single servings for freezing. Be sure to practice food safety when freezing, defrosting and reheating baby food.
Looking for more baby puree ideas? Check out this helpful guide and the best baby purees to try when starting weaning.
If you try this Lentil Puree, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how you go in the 📝 comments below. I love hearing from you! Don’t forget to follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest too for more baby food recipes.
Happy pureeing,
Chloe x
Lentil Puree
Category: PuréeTap or hover to scale
Ingredients
- 2 brown shallots peeled (50g) (Thermomixers: halved)
- 1 carrot peeled (Thermomixers: roughly chopped)
- 1 zucchini (100g) (Thermomixers: roughly chopped)
- 1/2 red capsicum/bell pepper (90g) (Thermomixers: roughly chopped)
- 1 tbs olive oil
- 175 g sweet potato peeled and roughly chopped
- 40 g split red lentils rinsed well
- 150 ml water
Instructions
- Chop the shallots, carrot, zucchini and capsicum into small pieces.
- Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan and sauté the chopped vegetables over medium-high heat for 4 minutes.
- Add the sweet potatoes, lentils and water. Bring to the boil, and then let simmer for 15 minutes until lentils and sweet potatoes are cooked. Remove from the heat.
- Using a food processor or immersion blender, blend until you are happy with the consistency (Note 1).
Thermomix Instructions
- Put the shallots, carrot, zucchini and capsicum into the mixing bowl. Chop for 4 seconds, speed 6, MC on. Scrape down the mixing bowl.
- Add the olive oil. Cook for 4 minutes, 100°C, speed 1, MC off.
- Add the sweet potato, lentils and water. Cook for 15 minutes, 100°C, speed 2, MC off. Put the simmering basket on the lid to prevent splatter.
- To puree, chop for 10 seconds, speed 6, MC on. Scrape down the mixing bowl, and repeat until you are happy with the consistency (Note1).
Recipe Notes
Nutrition Information
[1] Lentils, 2023, Solid Starts Inc.
[2] Bell pepper, 2023, Solid Starts Inc.
[3] Australian Sweet Potatoes, 2016, Horticulture Innovation Australia.
[4] Homemade baby food, 2023, Raising Children Network Australia.
One Response
Made this for my little girl, she absolutely loved it, it went down a treat! I froze portions for later use and each time she’s had it so far she’s demolished the lot. Really easy to make. I have to say I tried some and it is delicious. Thank you for the recipe!