Edamame & Avocado Green Mash
Allergen lists cover the priority allergens in the recipe as written. Always check your own ingredient labels, and introduce each new allergen on its own first.
Ingredients
- 150 g frozen podded edamame (shelled young soybeans)
- ½ ripe avocado
- 15 ml (1 tbsp) olive oil
- 30-45 ml (2-3 tbsp) of the cooking water, cooled, to loosen
- 1 tsp finely chopped fresh mint or basil
- 2 courgette spears, steamed until soft enough to squash between thumb and forefinger, for serving (optional vehicle)
Method
- 1. Simmer the edamame in unsalted water for 5-6 minutes until a bean squashes to nothing between thumb and forefinger. Reserve a few tablespoons of the water and drain.
- 2. Cool the beans under cold water, then blend with the avocado and olive oil until completely smooth — this must be a purée, not a chunky mash.
- 3. Loosen with the cooled cooking water a spoonful at a time until it is spreadable but not runny, and stir in the herbs.
- 4. Run a spoon through the mash and check by eye and by feel that no whole or half beans and no tough bean skins remain — a whole edamame bean is exactly the small firm round shape that can block an infant airway. If you find any, blend again until they disappear completely.
- 5. If you are using the courgette spears as a vehicle, steam them in a basket set over the simmering edamame in step 1 for about 6 minutes, until a spear squashes easily between thumb and forefinger, then cool them. Never offer raw courgette, carrot or apple sticks to a baby — raw hard vegetables and fruit are a choking hazard.
- 6. Serve at room temperature. Keep covered in the fridge for up to 2 days, pressing cling film onto the surface to slow browning, and discard any portion your baby has already eaten from rather than returning it to the batch.
How to serve by age
6–8 months
Smear a thin 2-3 mm layer onto finger-length (about 8 cm) steamed courgette spears the width of two adult fingers, or onto a pre-loaded spoon handed over handle-first — both work with the whole-hand palmar grasp this age relies on. Never offer a thick glob of any mash or spread on its own.
9–12 months
Dot pea-sized 1 cm blobs onto soft-cooked vegetable cubes, or offer a shallow dish of the mash for dipping, so your baby practises the thumb-and-forefinger pincer grasp on the small loaded pieces.
Paediatric note
Soya beans are among the better plant sources of choline and bring useful iron and folate too, which makes this a genuine option for babies avoiding egg. Soy is a Top-14 allergen, so introduce it on its own on a calm day at home and wait a couple of days before adding another new allergen.
Source guidance: https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/feeding-nutrition/Pages/default.aspx
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