Baby’s First Thanksgiving: Foods to Serve and Foods to Avoid
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If it’s your baby’s first Thanksgiving, you might be on the hunt for some special foods that work well during infant feeding and/or baby-led weaning.
The good news is that some of the most commonly served Thanksgiving foods can be easily modified for infants and combined into a balanced baby meal.
Thanksgiving day is a good time to bring babies to the Thanksgiving table, introduce them to your family traditions, and let them eat with everyone else. They can copy what other family members are doing and eat most of the same foods (with some minor modifications).
In this article, you’ll find some easy baby-led weaning food ideas that work well for babies (and the rest of your friends and family!) on Thanksgiving, as well as safe serving tips, recipe ideas, and foods to avoid giving babies on turkey day and throughout the first year of life.
4 Thanksgiving Food Ideas for Babies During BLW
Here are some ideas on how to prepare for baby some typical Thanksgiving foods that are appropriate for a 6-12 month-old.
Remember that solid foods during the first year are also called “complementary” foods for a reason!
Babies continue to get most of their nutrition from breastfeeding and/or formula for the first 12 months, which means there is no need to worry if a baby doesn’t finish a meal or a portion of complementary foods.
1. Turkey
Thanksgiving turkey is a great nutrient-rich protein food for babies 6 months and older who are showing the signs of readiness for starting solids.
Choose darker cuts of meat that tend to be more moist and easier to swallow. Dark meat is also higher in iron, zinc, and fat (3 key nutrients for babies!) as well as vitamin B12.
Before serving, remove the skin, protruding bones and any gristle and shred or chop into finger-sized strips for babies using a palmar grasp, shreds for babies using a pincer grasp, or chick-pea sized bites for babies about 12 months and up.
Alternatively, many babies do well with turkey drumsticks as long as they are on the smaller side and not too heavy. Before serving, remove the skin and gristle and any smaller bones that stick out - then hand it over and let the baby nibble on the drumstick.
Dark turkey meat is pictured below, chopped for babies using a pincer grasp and in a finger-sized strip for babies using a palmar grasp.
The fabulous fellow munching on a drumstick is 6 months old - the drumstick is actually chicken, but small turkey drumsticks equally work well! Thank you to his wonderful parents for allowing me permission to share his photo!
2. Sweet potatoes
Sweet potatoes are high in vitamin A and potassium, and offer plenty of fiber, vitamins C and E, iron, copper, and calcium. Season with a dash of nutmeg or Ceylon cinnamon to bump up the flavor for everyone - babies included.
One of my favorite ways to serve sweet potatoes to babies is to use a crinkle cutter to slice them into textured fries, coat in olive oil, and then roast, bake, or air-fry. The ridges in the sweet potatoes are easier for babies to grasp for self-feeding.
Sweet potatoes can also be baked and served mashed or pureed on a preloaded spoon, or cut into soft, bite-sized pieces as pictured below.
3. Mashed potatoes
Mashed potatoes are a common Thanksgiving food that works well for self-feeding babies who can easily scoop handfuls from a bowl or self-feed using a preloaded spoon.
White potatoes aren’t well known for being nutrient-rich, but they are loaded with micronutrients like iron, zinc, vitamin B6 and folate!
4. Green beans
Tender-cooked green beans are a great size and shape for babies using a palmar grasp to palm foods up to the mouth.
Green beans are great sources of vitamins C, K and A, fiber, and plant-based protein.
Check that the texture is safe for your baby by squeezing the green bean between your thumb and forefinger before serving and making sure that it is “squishable.”
Thanksgiving Foods to Avoid for Babies Under12 Months
1. Honey
When feeding a baby under the age of 12 months at Thanksgiving dinner, be sure to avoid serving any dishes that include honey (even if they are cooked or baked) as honey can be tainted with a bacteria that is dangerous for infants.
2. Choking hazards
Avoid foods that increase choking risk in infants, including corn kernels that are off the cob, popcorn, whole (or larger pieces of) nuts and seeds, and anything that is small, hard and roundish.
Choking episodes are rare. But it’s important for anyone feeding an infant to be trained in infant CPR and first aid just in case. Get trained by a nationally certified Red Cross and Lifesaving Society First Aid Instructor using this EXCELLENT, 2-hour, self-paced online course from Safe Beginnings* - for 20% off, use my code: MALINA.
3. Unpasteurized cheeses
Avoid offering unpasteurized cheeses from the appetizer spread, as unpasteurized dairy products may contain bacterias that can cause serious illness in babies. If you’re looking for an alternative nutrient-rich appetizer babies can enjoy too, try this Mommy and Me Cashew Dip.
4. High-sodium foods
If possible, reserve portions of foods like gravies and cooked vegetables for the baby before adding salt and/or high-sodium ingredients to help keep sodium levels low. But don't sweat it if you can't - just avoid higher-sodium foods in the meals you serve before and after.
5. Added sugars
Added sugars are not recommended for babies under the age of 2.
A tiny taste of pumpkin pie, smooth cranberry sauce, sugar-sweetened sweet potato casserole, or another sugar-sweetened special dish for Thanksgiving is fine (as long as it doesn’t contain honey), but because babies have high nutrient needs and small stomachs, we want to maximize the nutrition in the foods we offer.
Foods with added sugars can end up replacing more nutrient-rich foods that help babies meet their needs.
As alternatives to pumpkin pie, try these Baby-Friendly Pumpkin Muffins or Pumpkin Cookies for Babies that are sweetened only with fruit.
Final Thoughts on Thanksgiving Foods for Babies
Complementary feeding is a time for little ones to explore flavors and textures. In my experience as an infant and child nutrition expert, the more foods and food groups babies are exposed to, the less likely picky eating will be down the road.
If you’re getting ready to start your baby on solids, download my FREE Baby-Led Feeding Essential Checklist to make sure you have everything you need to get started. You might also want to check out my online course for parents if you prefer to learn via video. It walks you through the whole process of starting solids using a baby-led approach.
Alternatively, if your baby is almost ready to start solids and you’re looking for someone you trust to map out the entire first 8 weeks of your baby’s solid food-feeding journey, check out my new book, Safe and Simple Food Allergy Prevention: A Baby-Led Feeding Guide to Starting Solids and Introducing Top Allergens with 80 Family Family-Friendly Recipes!
It helps reduce the risk of developing food allergy during infant feeding and makes starting solids easy, joyful, and delicious for your little one (and the entire family) as well.
With a complete plan for allergen introduction, 8 weeks of baby-led feeding meal plans, and 80 family-friendly recipes, you’ll never again have to wonder what to feed your baby!