5 easy first-food recipes for messy little explorers

Starting solids doesn't need a cookbook — it needs a handful of easy, safe, squishable foods your baby can explore with their hands. Here are five NZ-kitchen staples to start with:

• Kumara wedges — steam or roast until soft, cool, and cut into chip-sized pieces baby can grip.
• Banana halves — leave a little skin on the bottom half as a natural handle.
• Avocado strips — roll in a little baby rice cereal for extra grip.
• Steamed broccoli trees — the stalk is a ready-made handle for little fists.
• Porridge fingers — cook thick, cool in a tray, slice into bars.

Expect most of it to end up anywhere but the mouth — that's not failure, that's learning. Pop on a coverall bib, let the tray catch the rest, and let them get stuck in.

Always supervise your baby while eating, and check with your Plunket nurse or GP about starting solids around 6 months.