Almond

We start almond finely ground into a fine flour, or as a smooth paste, always well ground and never whole or in pieces. A little of the fine powder can be stirred right through a soft food she already takes, or you can loosen a smooth paste with a little water, breast milk, or formula until it is thin enough to swallow easily.

A jar of smooth, unsalted almond butter with no added sugar works the same way, thinned down first and stirred into a soft, scoopable food like porridge or curd, never given as a thick spoonful on its own.

Because almond is a common allergen, we bring it in as the one new food that day, keeping it thinned or mixed into a food she already takes, and watch her over the next few days before adding anything else new. A small pinch is where we begin, kept plain, with no added salt while she is little, no added sugar before she is two, and no honey before her first birthday, because botulism from honey can make a baby under one very ill. Let her appetite guide how much.

Almond still goes in finely ground, never whole or chopped. Around now she is starting to feed herself, and her pincer grasp is coming in, so this is a good time to stir a little ground almond or smooth paste into the thick, scoopable foods she can manage on her own, like a soft porridge, some mashed banana, or a little curd.

This is also the age for a strip of toast she can hold, with a little smooth almond butter spread thinly along it. The butter stays thin and on the toast, never a plain spoonful on its own, since a single scoop of nut butter can make her choke.

From a year, ground almond and smooth almond paste can go into whatever the rest of the family is eating. You can stir a little into her cereal or curd, dust it over a cooked dish, or spread some smooth paste or almond butter thinly on a soft piece of toast.

The form stays the same: almond stays ground or smooth, and whole and chopped almonds stay off her plate completely.