Sushi Balls

Cook rice until soft and sticky and let it cool to warm. Serve it as a thick mash or mix it into a vegetable, meat, or fruit purée. Sticky or short-grain rice that clumps is easier for a baby to handle than loose dry grains.

Cook salmon through until it flakes easily and is opaque throughout, never raw or seared. Run your fingers through it to remove every pin bone and the skin, then flake it finely or mash it into a smooth purée. Mix with breast milk, formula, or a vegetable purée to loosen the texture. As a Big-9 allergen, introduce it on its own and wait a few days before adding another new food. Choose salmon (a low-mercury fish) and skip the highest-mercury fish entirely. Add no salt.

Cook carrots until very soft, so a fork slides through with no resistance. Steam, boil, or roast, then serve as a smooth purée or a soft mash. For self-feeding, offer soft-cooked finger-length batons. Raw carrot belongs only as fine shreds. Skip added salt.

Peel the cucumber and offer a large, finger-length spear to hold and gnaw on, or grate it finely and stir into yogurt or a purée. For very young babies you can scoop out the seedy center first.

Sesame is one of the top-9 allergens, so introduce it on its own when a few first foods are tolerated and watch for a reaction. The easiest first form is smooth tahini (sesame paste) thinned with water, milk, or puree to a thin, drinkable consistency and stirred into porridge, yogurt, or a vegetable mash. A light sprinkle of finely ground sesame over soft food also works.