First foods database
🌿 Pesto for babies: when and how to serve it
Can babies eat pesto? Yes, from about 6 months, ideally homemade with no added salt. Classic pesto is basil, olive oil, parmesan and pine nuts, so it brings big flavour, but shop jars are salty and some use cashews.
Good source of: Healthy fats, Calcium
How to serve pesto by age
6 to 9 months
Blend a handful of basil, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, a tablespoon of grated parmesan and a tablespoon of finely ground pine nuts or ground almonds, no salt. Stir a teaspoon into soft pasta, mashed potato or courgette. Pasta shapes coated in pesto are easier to grip.
9 to 12 months
Use in pasta, risotto and soups, spread thinly in sandwiches or brushed on chicken strips before baking. Freeze homemade pesto in ice cube trays.
12 months and up
Use in family meals. Keep shop pesto to a teaspoon or two per portion, or use homemade.
Choking safety
Blend any nuts completely smooth. Pesto is not a choking risk and coats pasta nicely, making it easier to swallow.
Gagging is common and noisy while babies learn to eat. Choking is usually silent. Always stay with your baby while they eat, sitting upright. How to help a choking baby (NHS).
Good to know
- Shop pesto is salty.
- Contains milk and usually tree nuts; some brands use cashews or peanuts.
- Introduce cow's milk and the nut used before offering pesto.
Introducing it as an allergen
It contains milk, tree nuts, which are among the 14 major allergens. How to introduce milk · How to introduce tree nuts
Easy ideas
- Homemade pesto pasta with peas
- Pesto stirred into mashed potato
- Pesto swirled into tomato soup
Goes well with
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Questions parents ask
Can babies eat pesto?
Can babies eat pesto? Yes, from about 6 months, ideally homemade with no added salt. Classic pesto is basil, olive oil, parmesan and pine nuts, so it brings big flavour, but shop jars are salty and some use cashews.
Can babies eat pesto?
Yes, homemade low-salt pesto from about 6 months, once milk and the nuts in it have been introduced.
Is shop-bought pesto okay for babies?
Most jars are high in salt, so use occasionally and sparingly.
Can I make nut-free pesto?
Yes. Use sunflower seeds or leave nuts out, and blend basil, oil and a little cheese.
Sources
- NHS Start for Life: Weaning
- NHS: Foods to avoid giving babies and young children
- NHS: What to feed young children
- NHS: Food allergies in babies and young children
OBubba gives general information based on UK guidance. It is not medical advice and does not diagnose anything. Every baby is different. If your baby has a known allergy, severe eczema or a medical condition, speak to your doctor or health visitor before starting solids. Learn baby first aid, and in an emergency call your local emergency number (999 in the UK).