Feeding your baby pasta

It’s important that you don’t give your baby just puréed food for too long, as she can become lazy about chewing. The muscles babies use to chew are the same ones used for speech development, so it’s important to get them started at the right point. It also helps ease the transition to family meals.

Pasta’s soft texture is ideal for this. You can buy mini pasta shapes that are just right for babies, including my own brand Gluten-free Organic Mini Pasta Stars, Organic Mini Pasta Shells, and Organic Alphabet Pasta and Animal Pasta for older babies and toddlers.

Mix the pasta with a favourite vegetable purée or make your own tomato, Bolognese or cheese sauce. I like to boost the nutritional value of my sauces by adding vegetables, as I’ve done with my recipes Pasta with Tomato and Mascarpone Sauce and Cheesy Pasta with Chicken and Broccoli.

TOP TIP: A bowl of pasta can act as a natural sleeping aid because, after eating it, hormones in your body may be released that make you feel sleepy.