Need Tofu Recipes for Finicky 16 Month Old

You can also get pre-seasoned tofu. I get Trader Joe's firm tofu in Thai seasoning. It's in the refrigerated section. It may sound exotic, but my daughter loves it!! Really. She often clamors for "fo-fu." She's 21 months old now, and has been eating it for months (can't remember exactly). And, call me lazy, but the best part is that all you do is cut it into little chunks and you're ready to go!

Hi J.,

My friend gave me this idea when my son was about a year old. Blend the tofu with peanut butter (equal parts tofu and peanut butter)and honey and put it into ice trays to make "ices." Obviously these are allergenic ingredients and if you or anyone in your family have allergies to nuts you need to proceed with caution and/or blend with fruit. This also comes in handy with teething time. It keeps them busy (and messy) trying to eat the COLD cubes, so be sure he's in the highchair. Another more time consuming way to use tofu is to freeze, defrost, and squeeze out the excess water, and then use it like chopmeat--needs some soy sauce, garlic, salt, dry mustard to give it some flavor. You can lightly saute and then add to spaghetti and sauce. I also used it instead of egg in fried rice--2T of oil, 2 crushed garlic cloves sauteed, then remove the garlic and add the crumbled tofu and 1T of soy sauce. Use brown rice instead of white. You can throw in peas and bean sprouts, too. If you don't have a fried rice recipe, let me know and I'll be more specific. The good thing about it is everyone will like it for dinner.

just get the extra hard tofu at the store and cook it with soy sauce. my son loves it!

J.,

The best (and worst) thing about tofu, is that it doesn't taste like anything. It tastes like whatever you put it into.

I don't believe (AND ANYONE please mail me to correct me if I am wrong, since I intend to do this later on) you have to cook tofu.

You'll have to try silky to firm tofu, to see what your son likes. I would start with the silky. Drain it well, and squish (carefully, so you don't lose half your brick) it so you get as much of the 'tofu water' out as possible. You won't get it completely dry, but well, that's what I do. I haven't heard of any uses for this water, either.

You can add tofu to anything your son eats, and puree it together. It will add a little different flavor, so be sure to try it a bit before giving up.

Put it in applesauce, prunes or some other fruit or vegetable that he likes that is strong enough to mask it.

Start half and half, so that you get a fair amount of protein in before he either 'catches on' or gets full. (I do this with rice cereal. :) Sneaky!)

I would NOT try the tofu cheese, especially if he likes real cheese. You've got protein there already (and it does NOT taste the same, although it doesn't taste bad).

I use my leftovers in 48 hours or less (well, they rarely last that long anyway) simply because I don't know how long I have for them. They have always tasted good to me (cold or hot even) in that amount of time. I think the same holds true for chicken and pork, too, but I'm guessing there.

A recipe YOU might like is: prepare the tofu, put some olive oil in a fry pan, and sizzle the rest of the water out of it, until it gets crispy on one side. Then drizzle a little (measure before if you are watching your salt) teriyaki sauce, and flip it, adding a little more olive oil if you need it. You can add your favorite herbs and spices too. I've used oregano, basil, and a few others and it's turned out so well, even my husband eats it. :) I don't know where herbs and teriyaki stand on the baby's list of things to try, though, so you'll have to look that one up.

I also have it on good authority, that it makes a good sandwich, sliced, with tomato and pesto sauce (in lieu of mozzarella, and less fattening, too!)

Good luck!
M.

Hi,

I know you had a lot of great responses but I just have to add something!

We first introduced tofu (firm or extra firm goes over best with our kids) by cutting it into slabs, then rinsing, pressing and draining (the more water you press out, the better consistency it has) with paper towels then coating with applesauce and baking at 350 until hot. Then cutting up into bite sized cubes. After your child gets the taste for it, try Nasoya extra firm cubes (already cut up for you and they are much firmer than regular extra firm tofu) and throw them in any meal you make. For example, "beef" stew, casseroles, mac and cheese, even salads!

I hope your little one ends up loving tofu. Good luck!

I bought soft tofu and just cut it into bite size pieces and put it into a bowl. My daughter is now 26 months and I still give it to her the same way and she loves it. It is straight from the package. I drain the water and put in new water daily.

I am now thinking about trying hard tofu and see what I can do with it for her. She is the same way with meat but sometimes I can get something into her.

Hi J.

My 15 months twins LOVE tofu. The easiest way to serve it is to cut a slice of firm tofu into cubes and serve it "naturel". You can also spread some pesto on a slice, sprinkle it with breadcrumbs and cut it into cubes.

Tofu can also be stirfried with any vegetables and spices your baby likes.

After opening I usually keep tofu in a tupperware for up to 5 days and replacing the water it is in daily.

Another good source of protein that isn't hard to chew is eggs.

Good luck!

Place firm tofu between two plates and let drain for 1/2 hour or so. "Dry fry" sliced tofu (cook in a lightly oiled pan over medium heat, turning regularly). It makes it into a cheese-like consistency. My 8-month old will self-feed small chunks and crumbles of it. I throw out anything we haven't used after a few days. But don't worry, he's getting enough food and plenty of protein. The less you stress and try to force food on him, the better he'll respond to your offers of food later.

I give my daughter - 19 months old- straight tofu (cut into cubes - I buy extra firm). She loves it; people are always amazed. I throw it out after two days. You can add tofu to anything - if your son decides to eat pasta, a great way to "hide" it is to add it to lasagnas and sauces (like cheese). You can make tofu smoothies (add it to strawberries/bananas and milk and ice in the blender), and add silken to yogurts and other stuff. I don't have any specific tofu recipes b/c I usually just add it to stuff that I already make. I hope this is helpful!

My 16 month old daughter won't eat any meat either (not even pureed). So I feed her tofu and eggs as proteins. I like to get the medium to firm type. I cut up cubes and I cook them in a little chicken broth (since it has no flavor) stove top. it takes less than 5 minutes to do, then i drain the liquid. I also do tofu burger. You have to drain the tofu (one hour is enough or you can do overnite in the fridge). then you mash it (you can use your hands and add seasonings like onion powder, salt, shredded carrots and mashed beans or peas - options are endless - whatever you want... i also add a little breadcrumbs for binding). i make into small patties, then i fry in a little bit of olive oil. it freezes well so i make a lot at a time. if our son likes peas, you can also try edamame which are young soy beans (same stuff tofu is made from). you can find this in the frozen section at stop and shop.
good luck!

Cut the tofu into small pieces then place it in a ziploc bag with fruit juice. Let it sit for a few hours to overnight.

Place in your son's bowl or plate and let him self feed it! Tofu takes on the flavor of foods it is cooked with and can be used in any recipe that meat is used in, too.

Just make sure it is always in chunks the size of a pea.

Firm tofu-meat replacement for hamburger, chicken, pork in recipes.

Semi firm-same as firm.

Soft- can be 'mooshed' like bananas and used like fruit in smoothies, cereals and such. Marinate with fruit juices for this use.

Silken- Softest tofu. Can be used to make puddings, soy mayo, 'milk shakes' and more.

When you buy the tofu, change the water in the container each day. If it has a sour small at all, toss it.

Here is a link to kid friendly recipes.
http://www.savvyvegetarian.com/vegetarian-recipes/tofu-re...

I WOULD NOT GIVE MY BABY TOFU! Your baby gets plenty of protein in everything else that he eats. Eventually, he might grow into eating meat. I am not a vegetarian; however, studies show that vegetarians live longer, healthier lives. The odds are that you are not eating organic, so the meat that you would be feeding him is from Feedlots that are full of diseased and dying animals who are cruelly treated-thus, your son is better off NOT eating it. There are Indian and populations that are complete vegetarians for many generations and their children are healthy and happy children who become healthy and happy adults. Back to soy, first of all the soy will be genetically modified, which is possibly a health danger, and secondly, the Japanese DO NOT eat a lot of processed soy, like soy milk, tofu ect... They a small portions of tempeh,which is good for you and miso which is good for you. The Japanese are healthy because they eat a whole lot of seaweeds. Please see these websites for references: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2005/0...

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2007/1...

Feeding the Whole Family by Cynthia Lair is the book that will change your life for the better. Great recipes for babies, toddlers and the rest of the family. You don't need to become a short order cook!

Miso soup is souper easy to make. I wouldn't necessarily load up on tofu. Soy products are not the safest foods to be giving to small kids. http://www.mothering.com/articles/growing_child/food/soy_...

If your baby will eat tofu plain, you could in theory serve it right out of the package since it's pre-cooked. But I'm anal so I boil it in water for a little bit anyway. Then just let it cool, cut into cubes and serve. You can store leftovers sitting in water in the fridge (make sure the tofu is fully immersed) for up to a week if you change out the water everyday. To serve to a baby though, I'd keep it for less than a week. You could also add a little salt to the water to help control bacterial growth.

My 2 1/2 yr old daughter doesn't eat much red meat, but will eat chicken, fish (both fish sticks and tilapia) and hot dogs. It may be that your son doesn't like the texture of regular meats, which is why he likes the purees-my daughter was like that for a while. And, if he's sprouting that many molars at once, no wonder he prefers pureed food-his mouth hurts! Maybe some baby Tylenol would help, say 30 min before each meal to give it time to kick in?

I'd like to point out that your son is indeed getting protein from what he is self-feeding. Not a whole lot, but he is getting it. So I would not worry TOO much. I bet when those teeth come in, he'll feel better and start eating more variety.

Hi J.

I was just having this conversation with a friend the other day and we did some research and found this site:
http://www.homemade-baby-food-recipes.com/tofu-baby-food....

Hope that helps a bit! :)

All my best,

L. A.

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HI J.,

When my daughter was small, she did not care for meat either, she didn't really eat meat til she was 4 or 5. I'd suggest The Vegetarian Mother Baby Book, it has some good ideas for dishes that have alternative proteins in them.

Good luck

i'm sorry i don't know any recipes for tofu... but i think i was told that you just cook it in a broth (whatever flavor you like) to give it a different flavor.

other proteins that i would serve my dd are (or just ideas i was given): black beans (they can self serve), cheese, deli meat, yogurt, cottage cheese (oh she LOVES cottage cheese!), peanut butter (some people recommend lots of different nut butters)

i wanted to encourage you that it really does take kids seeing a new food MANY times... i think i read 20, before they'll eat it. my daughter was this way with alot of fruits, believe it or not!

HTH let us know how it goes!

darci
don't give up! my daughter would eat grilled chicken, steak, fish... grilled zucchini, asparagus, mixed veggies, peas, foods that i think a lot of toddlers won't eat! pretty early on... b/c at dinner we would always just give her what we were having.

just wanted to encourage you!

First- don't worry- it's virtually impossible to get a protein deficiency. Breast milk, the perfect food, is only 5% protein.
When I was a toddler I started refusing meat, and I eventually became almost vegetarian at age 13, and a complete vegetarian by age 18. So, maybe your son is on the same path.

As for tofu recipes, try this: http://allrecipes.com/Search/Recipes.aspx?WithTerm=tofu

I actually don't like tofu, so I try to sneak it into things. Whenever I make something with ricotta chese, I replace half the cheese with crumbled firm tofu. You can also make a lot of things- dips, spreads, smoothies, pudding- with silken tofu.

My daughter, who will turn one next week, LOVES edamame.
Have you tried that?

I had a vegetarian pregnancy, and my daughter is vegetarian, and she's healthier than any other kid I know.

Good luck!

-T.

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