Lure zucchini: what to consider and how to cook?

This unpretentious vegetable, like zucchini, is very common and we love in our country. Therefore, during the appearance on the shelves of young green zucchini, each mother of the infant decides to buy this vegetable for the first feeding. What is good zucchini as a complementary food for a small child and how to cook it properly for the toddler?

• As one of the least allergenic foods, zucchini is usually recommended for the first acquaintance of a child with vegetables.
• Zucchini has a lot of pectin, which helps to improve digestion, so squash dishes should be included in the menu of children with constipation.
• Since this vegetable is low-calorie, it is advised to give to overweight babies.
• Zucchini can be called a universal product. Due to its neutral taste and quick preparation, such a vegetable is added to different categories of dishes - from soups before baking.
• The carbohydrates that make up the zucchini are easily digested and do not cause sudden jumps in glucose, so dishes made from such vegetables are allowed for diabetes.
• Zucchini can be a source of vitamins B, E, PP, H, A, C, potassium, phosphorus, calcium, iron and magnesium for your baby. Although their content is not as high as in other vegetables, but thanks to the minimal heat treatment of a young zucchini, the nutrients are practically not destroyed.
• The proportion of minerals such as sodium and potassium in this vegetable culture is optimal, which is important for heart rate, the nervous system and the saturation of the brain with oxygen.
• The zucchini is noted for its calming effect, therefore, dishes with it are recommended for capricious and easily excitable babies.
• The texture of squash puree is tender, so this food does not irritate the baby's sky.

• Vegetable should not be consumed in acute diseases of the digestive system.
• Have zucchini noted pronounced diuretic effect, therefore, the presence of kidney disease can be an obstacle to its use.
• Zucchini is not recommended for pollinosis, as it can cause cross-allergy if the baby has a reaction to weed pollen.

In the kids menu, zucchini appear one of the first when a child is going to be introduced to vegetables. Usually familiarity with zucchini lure occurs at 6 months, although babies-artificials can be introduced to zucchini and a little earlier. Also, the earlier introduction of this vegetable into the children's menu is possible after the recommendation of a doctor, for example, for long constipation.

For the first time, half a teaspoon of courgette puree is given in the morning feeding. You can mix this puree with breast milk. If the baby has transferred such a portion well, then the next day the portion can be doubled. So gradually the number of squash supplements is adjusted to 50-60 g at 6 months, about 70 g at seven to eight months and about 100 g for older age.

The first dishes from the zucchini for babies will be, of course, mashed potatoes. It is best to prepare young zucchini for children, but if you only have a ripe fruit, then it should remove the dense skin and the core with the seeds. Also, mature zucchini before cooking is recommended to soak for 3-4 hours.

From 9-10 months, zucchini can no longer be crushed, stimulating the crumbs to chew. Vegetable is offered in the form of small pieces after boiling or stewing, and also added to vegetable stews and soups. Children older than a year can make pancakes, casseroles and other dishes from zucchini, but the cooking method should still be boiling and baking.

If the zucchini is young, they will be ready in just three to five minutes, and about 20 minutes should be allotted for boiling a mature zucchini. In a double boiler, the processing time of zucchini is usually 15-20 minutes.

Put the zucchini into small cubes in hot water so that it covers only a little vegetable or in a double boiler. So you save a maximum of vitamins. The fruit boiled to readiness (check the softness with a fork) and a little broth are either whipped with a blender or frayed with a sieve.

In order to please the baby with useful zucchini dishes in winter, chopped vegetable without peel can be placed in the freezer. In this case, remember that thawing such zucchini before cooking is not necessary.

Ideally, dishes for the little ones should be cooked from a zucchini grown in their garden, but if the mother has access only to market and store vegetables, their choice should be given enough attention. To buy zucchini for baby food you need only high-quality and fresh.

The optimal weight of zucchini is 100-200 g, and the length is from 12 to 20 cm. The skin of the fruit should be thin and delicate. On its surface there should be no damage and areas of rotting.

Store the zucchini purchased for the child in the refrigerator for a maximum of a week, and you should not wash the fruit before putting it in the refrigerator.