Ultimate Health Report

Making your own baby cereal costs a fraction of what you can buy it for and takes just minutes! Learn how with our simple tutorial!

What is the Best Baby Cereal to Start With?

For years, the recommendation was that you start with plain white rice cereal. There has been recent evidence against rice cereal, and now the experts recommend that you simply feed your baby food that’s easy to digest and contains good amounts of iron. A single-grain cereal is a good choice to start with.

What grains are best for making baby cereal?

There are so many highly nutritious grains that are a great choice for making baby cereal from scratch.

• Rice is typically the least allergenic grain and is easy to digest. Organic brown, jasmine rice and basmati are great.
• Oats are a great starter grain for babies. It is high in fiber, calcium, protein and even some B vitamins. Old fashioned, steel cut, and rolled oats all work well for making baby cereal.
• Barley is a good source of fiber, as well as Vitamin A, Folate and even protein. When cooked, barley’s texture is similar oats. Barely most commonly comes in hulled, rolled, and pearled form, and all three are perfect for baby cereal.
• Kamut is a high protein grain, about 30% more protein than wheat. It has a sweet and almost buttery flavor.  Its shape looks similar to basmati rice.
• Millet is rich in B vitamins, potassium, iron, and is even considered a good protein source. It looks like a tiny round ball and has a mild flavor making it a great option to us for mixing other flavors with. It is gluten free and a great option for grain sensitivities.
• Quinoa is packed with fiber, iron, and is a great plant source of protein, and is gluten free. It has a slightly nutty flavor, but overall is not very strong. Make sure you rinse your quinoa well.

How Do I Make My Own Baby Cereal?

Here is how…….(you won’t believe how easy it is)

You take your uncooked grain, place it in a high powered blender, and pulse until it has a fine texture.  That is it!! Really it is that simple.  Making your own will cost you pennies, provides your baby with whole grain nutrients and is super fast and easy to make.

To Cook:

1/2 cup milled grain + 4 cups water

Add together to a pot and bring to a boil.  Then reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.  If it is too thick, add a little more water.  This will make a lot!  You can store the leftovers as individual portions and then freeze for later.  I like to use  silicone trays because it is super easy to pop an individual portion out. I love the the NUK Silicone Tray because I love the size of the cups. They are a really good portion size, and I love that it has a lid to cover the entire tray instead of individual lids.

I personally think that plain whole grain cereal is kind of bland, and so I usually mix it with some kind of fruit or vegetable.  To make your own fruit and vegetable baby food, check out our post here.

When Can I Start Giving My Baby Cereal?

Most babies are ready to start solids between 4 and 6 months (and experts recommend waiting until closer to 6 months in many cases) Your baby’s individual development is really what you should go by when deciding whether or not it’s time to start solid food.

These are some of the signs that your baby is developmentally ready for solid food:

• Your baby can hold her head up well when propped to sit. Even strained baby foods should not be offered until then. Chunkier foods should wait until a baby can sit well alone, usually not until 7 months.
• The tongue thrust reflex has disappeared. Try this test: Place a tiny bit of baby-appropriate food thinned with breast milk or formula in your baby’s mouth from the tip of a baby spoon or your finger. If the food comes right back out again with that tiny tongue, and continues to after several tries, the thrust is still present and baby isn’t ready for spoon-feeding.
• Your baby reaches for and otherwise shows an interest in table foods. If she’s grabbing the fork out of your hand or watching intently and excitedly with every bite you take, that may be a sign that she’s hungry for more real food.
• Your baby is able to make back-and-forth and up-and-down movements with the tongue. How can you tell? Just watch carefully.