Key Nutrients – Page 8 – First 1000 Days

Toddler – Cheesy Egg Tortilla with chickpea and tomato salad

First 1000 Days Team

“Quick, easy and open to adding your own favourite extras.”

– Roberta McCarthy, Clinical Specialist Dietician, Dublin

This tasty vegetarian dish is packed with Iron which is important for your toddler’s brain development.

Serves 4

Toddler – Pitta Pizza

First 1000 Days Team

“A great dish to get the kids involved with the meal when they are big enough to add their own toppings”

– Michelle Skelly, Clinical Dietician, Laois

Who would have thought a pizza could be both tasty and nutritious! This is a great finger food for toddlers.

Serves 2

Toddler – Sun dried Tomato Frittata

First 1000 Days Team

“This is so easy to make and serve and a great way to include well cooked egg which is a cheap, nourishing food for everyone. The natural sweetness of the tomato combined with the savoury herbs and cheese make it a choice that ’s full of natural goodness for your toddler to enjoy”.

– Ruth Charles, Paediatric Dietitian, Westmeath

A twist on your average egg dish, packed with vitamin D and Calcium which are important for your toddler’s rapidly growing bones.

Serves 4

Baby – Chicken & Vegetable Soup with Barley

Neven Maguire

“One of the very first soups I cooked with my mother Vera. This is full of goodness and nutrition and, as they say in Cavan, there is eating and drinking in it! I make it for the twins but I replace the barley with Orzo which is a rice shaped pasta and they love it.”

Neven Maguire, Chef and Father

Tip! Once your baby is taking soft finger foods you can cut up small soldiers of brown bread for them to eat with their soup.

Puy Lentil Shepherd’s Pie

First 1000 Days Team

“This is my modern version of a standard comfort food. Perfect for a cold winter’s evening.”

Paula Mee, Dietician, Dublin.

An Iron rich dish which is especially important for vegetarians during pregnancy.

Beef With Creamed Potato

First 1000 Days Team

“A great dish for the expectant family as it can be made in advance and reheated later on or the following day”

Michelle Skelly, Dietician, Laois.

Toddler – Ragu Sauce

Neven Maguire

“This recipe is the the real McCoy and definitely doesn’t use any of those readymade pasta sauces. It’s just so versatile, soft and tender that it is worth the two hours cooking time – trust me it’s worth it!”

– Neven Maguire, Chef and Father

This dish is a perfect stand-by for converting into dishes such as moussaka, cannelloni, chilli con carne, lasagne, cottage pie and as a filling for pancakes and jacket potatoes.

Serves 10

Toddler – Chicken and Vegetable Risotto

First 1000 Days Team

“This creamy, nourishing risotto goes down a treat with my own children”

– Niamh Brannelly, Dietitian, Danone Baby Nutrition

You can add variety to this recipe by swapping chicken with fish such as salmon or cod.

Serves 6

Healthy Pancakes

First 1000 Days Team

This recipe is a source of folate and high in B12 which helps to process folic acid.

Jennifer Luddy, Nutritionist, Danone Baby Nutrition

Serves 2

These pancakes can work savoury or sweet! Why not try other delicious toppings such as strawberries and raspberries (out of season you can use frozen berries) cheddar cheese and ham,cream cheese and spinach.