Spiced fruit compote
Serves 2–3
If star anise and cardamom are not spices you usually cook with, you’re in for a treat. I love adding flavours like this to children’s food as it exposes them to a more interesting world of taste than the fruit alone and helps cultivate their rapidly developing palates.
3 plums, halved and stones removed
3 apricots, halved and stones removed
2 white nectarines, halved and stones removed
250 ml (8½ fl oz/1 cup) pure (100%) apple juice or water
3 cardamom pods, crushed
1 whole star anise
plain yoghurt, to serve (optional – omit for dairy-free)
Place the fruit and apple juice or water in a saucepan with the cardamom and star anise. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 6–8 minutes or until the fruit is tender. Divide the spiced fruit compote between serving bowls and serve with yoghurt, if liked.
Baby’s serve: for a younger baby, remove and discard the cardamom and star anise from the poached fruit and blend until smooth. For an older baby, keep the puréed consistency lumpier – or you can mash or chop the fruit instead of blending – so that he experiences more texture. (Wait until serving to stir in the yoghurt, as it’s better to eat yoghurt fresh, particularly because freezing and reheating can destroy some of the precious probiotics.)
Toddler’s serve: serve as is, chopping the fruit into smaller pieces for your child.
Fruit skins The benefit of keeping the skins on your fruit is that your baby is getting more fibre and nutrients. However, for younger babies in particular, giving them lots of fibre is not always desirable as it can affect their nutrient absorption. Also, if fruit isn’t organic, removing the skins can be one way of getting rid of some of the pesticide residue. If the skins are easy to remove, you might like to do so until your baby is older and handling more texture in his meals.
