How to: Oatmeal for All Ages
I have this deep seasonal passion for oatmeal that goes beyond anything on a normal level. Every Fall, I open the cabinet and see my glass jar full of those big flaky oats and get excited. Really excited.
It’s time to get reacquainted with an old friend. You know the kind of friend I’m talking about, the kind where you start talking and then you look up at your clock and 3 hours have gone by, your ear hurts and your phone is beeping the low battery sign. That kind of friend.
I open the jar, smile and start simple. Oats, apples and cinnamon. Just taking it out for a test drive. Then as the season lingers on, I find different methods of cooking oats and different toppings to pile onto the oats. I can’t get enough of it.
They are easy.
They are healthy.
Oatmeal is my jam.
Oatmeal for babies is a no-brainer. It is a whole grain that is packed with soluble dietary fiber, iron, magnesium and vitamin B. A clean food that some people argue is the best food you can eat for breakfast. My favorite part is that you can make a big batch of it on the weekend and then heat it up during the week, adding different flavors each day.
When starting your baby on oatmeal, there are a couple of things you need to know. For starters, don’t be fooled into purchasing quick oats or instant oats. They have been processed so much that there is not many health benefits left in them. Poor things. I would also shy away from any packaged instant oatmeals in the cereal or baby food aisle. Again, they may take only a minute to make but they have nothing left in them to offer.
Go for either the steel cut oats or the old-fashioned oats. Steel cut oats are the least processed of the oats and are simply toasted oat grouts cut into small pieces. Old-Fashioned [also called Rolled Oats] are made by steaming the toasted grouts and then rolling them out into flakes. Both kinds have roughly the same amazing health benefits and nutrition.
Secondly, I would recommend feeding oatmeal cereal to your baby before rice cereal. I know this is not what is the norm but oats are not as constipating, have more nutritional value and are more tasty then rice.
Oatmeal Cereal for 4+ Months
1/4 cup organic ground Old-Fashioned or Steel Cut Oats
1 cup of water
Grind oats in a food processor or blender. I would recommend grinding 2-3 cups of oats and storing them in a cool dark place or fridge so you always have some ready. In a small pot, bring water to a boil. Add ground oats and whisk constantly for 10 minutes. Add in breast milk, milk, fruit or purees. Let cool slightly until warm to touch.
Old-Fashioned Oatmeal for 6+ Months
1 cup organic Old-Fashioned or Rolled Oats
2 cups of water
In a medium pot, bring water to boil. Add Old-Fashioned oats and stir. Return to a boil. Turn heat down to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes or until all the water is absorbed and you get the desired amount of chewiness. Stir every now and again so the oats on the bottom don’t burn. If you get a ‘skin’ on the top of your oatmeal, don’t freak out, just stir it back into that rest of the oatmeal.
Steel Cut Oats for 6+ Months
1 cup organic Steel Cut Oats
3 cups water
In a medium pot, bring water to boil. Add steel cut oats and stir. Return to boil. Turn heat down to medium-low and simmer for 20-30 minutes or until all the water is absorbed and you get the desired amount of chewiness. Stir every now and again so the oats on the bottom don’t burn. If you get a ‘skin’ on the top of your oatmeal, don’t freak out, just stir it back into that rest of the oatmeal.
Additions [the yummy stuff] for Toddlers
I personally add my spices and sweetener into my oatmeal when it is about halfway done cooking (cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg). You can also toss in finely chopped apples or other hard fruit while cooking to soften them a bit for baby.
When done, let cool slightly and then add any ingredients you like if you didn’t already; milk, berries, fruit, carob chips, nuts, cinnamon, brown sugar, cloves, honey, etc.
Go wild.
This is the fun part.
16 Comments on “How to: Oatmeal for All Ages”
I’m starting my first on solids this weekend. He will be 6 months on Tuesday and has not had anything but BM so far. I would prefer to skip the rice cereal all together and I’m going to start him with pears and work towards oatmeal. Would you recommend starting with the 4 mo recipe or do you think it’s fine to jump right to the 6 mo recipes? Also, I’m reading mixed opinions on starting a baby on solids with fruits as they won’t want veggies because the fruit is so sweet. What do you think on this? Final question… Do you not worry about allergies to spices? I would be afraid to mix food and spices and then have him have an allergic reaction and not know if it was to the food or to the spice, thoughts? I love your blog btw… 😉
Hello Heather,
I believe you are the reader that told me about the amazing blender wand – Right? If not, there is another Heather Chapman reading my blog. lol. So I was going to write you back anyway and tell you that I tried it this week in the kitchen and I really like it with some purees. The ones with fruits or veggies that got super soft it was so easy to just dump all the cooked ingredients into a bowl and then blend with the wand. I did try it on a sweet potatoes and I must not have cooked them long enough because I think I almost blew my blender wand engine because that thing was almost smoking with the amount of work I was trying to make it do:) But I do love it and will have to do a best of soon. Thanks again for the advice.
So for your questions [this is going to be a little long winded since I just had a big coffee;]
I didn’t introduce my little one to rice, oat or any grains until she was about 7 months old and this was only when the fruits and veggie purees I was giving her weren’t filling her up anymore. I am a big advocate of not introducing rice cereal as the first food just because there is not that much nutritional value in rice cereal (especially packaged, where there is actually no nutritional value) and it is so bland. I believe starting with either fruit or veggies is the way to go.
This is a really good question and I think I will do a post about it – fruit or veggies first? I have read some of the newer articles coming out about this as well but from my point of view I always recommend starting with a fruit because it is sweet and matches the taste of your breast milk. It might be weird but if you have tried your breast milk [I totally did because I was curious what it tasted like] it is super sweet and creamy. I believe since fruit is as sweet as your breast milk, it is easier for your little one to transition to solids eating fruit instead of veggies. I have noticed that with several babies in my mommy group that got introduced to fruit first, they had a bigger desire to eat more and different fruit and veggies a couple months down the line as opposed to those introduced first to veggies. I will say that at this point all the little toddlers are pretty good eaters regardless if they got introduced to fruits or veggies first. So my recommendation is to first introduce a fruit, followed by a veggie, then a fruit and then a veggie. Just switch back and forth until you start mixing 2 or more ingredients together and then you can do a veggie and fruit combo, which is my favorite.
As far as the recipes, you can start with whichever ones you really like and sound good to you. For allergy reasons, I would recommend starting with recipes that only have 1 fruit or veggie in them plus a spice until you test several fruits and veggies out for allergies. Then you can start mixing away. I am writing about this next week so stay tuned.
Being allergic to spices and herbs is extremely rare because they have a VERY low allergic reaction value in them, garlic being the one with the most allergic properties which is still extremely small compared to other huge culprits like nuts, egg whites, wheat,etc . You can certainly skip the spices and herbs for the first month or two and see how it goes or add them and just watch it like any other food group. Or maybe add just a pinch and add up the volume from there.
Good luck with your food making session this weekend. Please let me know what you decided to make and how it goes feeding the little guy for the first time. Have fun!!
xoxo,
Michele
Awesome! Thanks you so much for your advice! I am the same person who wrote to you about the wand. I used it on sweet potatoes and butternut squash with success but mine is pretty thinned with water/breast milk so that’s probably why I had an easier time. I wonder if the food processor that it comes with is stronger for the harder jobs? I haven’t used that yet, but if and when I do I"ll let you know. I’m going with the pears to start and then I’ll get more adventurous once him and I both get the hang of this! I’m so excited to try your recipes and I honestly think that I might be tempted to make versions for myself as well because it sounds to good to pass up.
Can you freeze these in ice cubes like your other recipes?
Hello Anna,
Yes!! You can and boy does it save tons of time during a busy morning. I would recommend making a big batch of oatmeal and let cool slightly (so you can touch it without burning yourself), pour into ice cube trays or any baby food storage container, cover and place in freezer. You don’t want to let it sit out on the counter at room temperature for too long or bacteria will start to grow. Once frozen, place cubes in freezer zip-lock bag or glass container and mark with the date. Since it is a grain, I would only keep oatmeal frozen for 1 month to be on the safe side.
xo,
Michele
LOVE your recipes thank you soo much for sharing! I ground my oats in my Cusinart food processor, but when i added them to water it came out chunky like. How do I get them ground super fine for the baby cereal? My son is 16 weeks and didn’t seem to like the chunks :/
Hello Katie,
Great question and I realize I should update the recipe with this info. I would put my oats in the food processor for 10-15 minutes and this would give me oatmeal the consistency of cream of wheat. If this is still too chunky for your little ones taste buds, I would make the oatmeal like you are making it for yourself and then put the cooked oatmeal into the food processor or blender. Start with about 1 cup of cooked oatmeal adding some additional water or breast milk to thin it out. Because you are breaking down the oats, the oatmeal will get pretty thick so just keep adding liquid until you get the consistency and texture you like. This do the trick but let me know how this works for you!
xoxo,
Michele
Thank you!! You made it so simple!
Hello Jaclyn,
So glad to have helped!!
xoxo,
Michele
Hi Michele,
Love your site, thanks for all the info. We are so excited to get our four-month old going on solids. Just a quick question– how often do I feed him? I’ve just read something that says start with two teaspoons once a day, for about a week, then increase to one tablespoon twice a day, until he’s 6 months. What do you think?
Thanks again,
Ambar
Hello Ambar,
Welcome to the world of feeding!!! Congrats on your little one. Yes, I would suggest starting with a teaspoon or two and seeing how it goes for the first couple of feedings. Your little one is still young so he might not eat a ton until 6 months (which is fine). After that I would leave it to him. He might open his mouth and want spoonful after spoonful, which you can gladly offer, or he might not want it at all, which then you can place it on your finger, or just let him play with it at first. My baby Parker would eat about 1 ounce starting at 5 months, 2 times a day until one day she got what it was all about and then suddenly there was no stopping her, she now eats 6-8 ounces at a meal (she’s 8 months)! So just let your little one determine how much.
Hope that helps! And thanks for reading:)
xoxo, Michele
I love these recipes! I found that a quick and easy way to reheat the oats, for those who do not have or do not want to use a microwave, is to pour a little bit of boiling water on the oats and then let cool before serving. I usually add a cube of frozen pureed fruit at this time, so it doesn’t usually take any time to cool. Also, I added mashed banana and cinnamon once – tasted like banana bread. Thanks for all the great recipes!
Thanks Tarryn,
Would have never thought of this method!! Thanks for sharing!!
Michele
Hi there,
My son is 3 months old, and for weeks now he has been so unsettled and will fight to go to sleep (I’m talking hours of this). I have tried everything to get him to sleep, including putting him on a lactose free formula as he was having problems digesting milk. But he still doesn’t appear full.
So I’ve just given him a teaspoon of oats in his 180ml bottle of milk, he’s had it all – he’s never had a full bottle in one sitting – but he’s still awake… I know it’s frowned upon by alot of people to give babies solids this early, but I’m at a loss of what else to do. My question is, how much would you suggest giving a 3 month old, and would you do what I’m doing giving it in his milk or give it on a small spoon?
Hi there,
My son is 3 months old, and for weeks now he has been so unsettled and will fight to go to sleep (I’m talking hours of this). I have tried everything to get him to sleep, including putting him on a lactose free formula as he was having problems digesting milk. But he still doesn’t appear full.
So I’ve just given him a teaspoon of oats in his 180ml bottle of milk, he’s had it all – he’s never had a full bottle in one sitting – but he’s still awake… I know it’s frowned upon by alot of people to give babies solids this early, but I’m at a loss of what else to do. My question is, how much would you suggest giving a 3 month old, and would you do what I’m doing giving it in his milk or give it on a small spoon?
Hello Karma,
Unfortunately, I cannot recommend feeding baby before at least 4 months old and you should first consult with your baby’s doctor. I hear your pain when your little one won’t sleep. I found the site – http://www.incredibleinfant.com/ to be extremely helpful for sleeping tips. In my personal experience I would give my girls a quick warm bath with lavender oil around 7pm, then swaddle, read a book and give a bottle/boob. We called it the 3B’s Bath, Book and Boob. All in dim lighting and in soft voices. It worked for our little ones.
Hope that helps.
xo, Michele