Can I give Exotic Fruit to my baby?

Can I give exotic fruit to my little one? Very interesting question.

My usual recommendation is to offer to your baby local + seasonal + organic (whenever possible) fruit and vegetables. That’s the best choice for your baby and for the rest of the family.

What is considered “exotic” might vary from country to country. Avocado is a local fruit here in Southern California, but it is considered exotic in Italy. At the same time papaya or mango are not local here in California but they are in tropical areas.

So I would consider “exotic” any produce that is not local and is imported from another area of the world. That being said, we live in an era where we can fly the best produce all over the world. So it is more than possible that the best and sweetest exotic fruit is available at your local grocery store: quite certainly very expensive, but still available 🙂

My suggestion in this case, if you want to let your baby try something new, is to check the taste before offering it to your little one. Usually fruit is picked green and unripe in the local country so that it can arrive still fresh at destination. Sometimes it arrives ripen and sweet enough to be enjoyed but most of times it arrives still unripe and tart, that’s why it is better to taste it before offering it to your baby.

The great thing about tropical exotic fruit is that it doesn’t require cooking!! Yeah!! so it means that it is ready to be served or it only takes 1 min of a blender to enjoy it.

Today I prepared a nice mix of Mango + Papaya + Dragon Fruit + Pineapple, that’s what was available at my local store. All amazing choices for a baby, packed with Vitamins and Fiber and naturally sweet.

How to prepare and offer exotic tropical fruit to your baby?

You have many options!!

#1 Puree. Simply peel the fruit, remove the pulp and chop it in pieces. In a tall container or food processor add the fruit and puree up until obtaining the desired consistency. To thin the fruit puree you can use few tablespoons of coconut water to keep the tropical flavor. Serve the puree to your little one and either enjoy the rest yourself or freeze it for up to 3 months or refrigerate in an air tight container for up to 3 days.

#2 Finger Food. If you are following the Baby Led Weaning method, this is a nice idea. Chop the fruit in small pea size pieces and simply offer them to your baby. If you want to make it more fun, display the fruit pieces by color 🙂 OR use cookie cutters to create fun shapes.

#3 Mix with some yogurt. You can add one tablespoon of plain yogurt (or Kefir) to the fruit puree to give some proteins and create a light meal instead of a snack.

#4 Add Texture. The fruit puree is too liquid? no problem! Chop some other fruit and simply top the puree with it. The fruit is so soft that your baby will be able to enjoy it and mash it with his/her gums.

You have so many options!!

If you are interested in other fruity baby purees, here you are some links:

• Watermelon Strawberry
• Melon Apricot
• Mango Quinoa Apple
• Figs and Pluot
• Pineapple Kiwi Lemon (cold remedy)
• Persimmon Pear Apple
• Tofu Apricot Mango Pear