Grapes For Babies Right Age, How To Cut, Benefits And Recipes

Grapes can add color and nutrients to your baby’s meal. The fruit is available in seeded and seedless varieties and comes in various colors, such as white, red, green, purple, and black. Besides containing several micronutrients, grapes contain many bioactive compounds that offer long-term health benefits.

You can feed this nourishing fruit to your baby by adding it to sweet and savory recipes. But when can you safely feed grapes to your baby?

This post shares more about grapes, their possible health benefits, proper selection and storage, and tasty grape recipes to try.

When Can Babies Eat Grapes?

Babies can eat seedless or deseeded ripe grapes as puree or mash from six months of age (1). Once they adjust to the fruit’s taste and digestibility, you can add them to other foods, such as porridge. You can cut seedless or deseeded grapes into smaller pieces and feed them as finger food once the baby is between nine and ten months of age.

How To Cut Grapes For Babies?

First, peel the grapes and then slice each grape lengthwise, that is, vertically. Remove seeds, if any. You can further quarter the grape pieces to make them suitable for consumption for young babies who have just begun eating solids. It is necessary to peel and cut grapes lengthwise to prevent accidental choking, which may happen when the baby is served whole grapes. Older babies who can chew a wide variety of solids can eat sliced grapes that have their peels intact.

Nutritional Value Of Grapes

Ripe grapes (green or red) provide several nutrients, dietary fiber, and phytonutrients that can benefit long-term health. Approximately ten grapes (49 grams of grapes) can offer the following nutrients to the baby (2) (3) (4).

Nutrients	Amount	AI (7-12 months)
Water	39.5g	–
Energy	33.8kcal	–
Carbohydrate, by difference	8.87g	–
Fiber, total dietary	0.441g	–
Calcium, Ca	4.9mg	260mg
Magnesium, Mg	3.43mg	75mg
Phosphorus, P	9.8mg	275mg
Potassium, K	93.6mg	860mg
Vitamin C, total ascorbic acid	1.57mg	50mg
Vitamin A, RAE	1.47µg	500µg
Vitamin K (phylloquinone)	7.15µg	2.5µg

AI = Adequate intake – nutrient level assumed to ensure nutritional adequacy

Sources: U.S. Department of Agriculture and Oregon State University

Possible Health Benefits Of Grapes For Babies

The regular consumption of grapes could provide a baby with the following notable benefits.

1. Provide essential micronutrients: Grapes are a source of several micronutrients, such as vitamin A, C, K, and potassium. Babies and toddlers need these nutrients for growth, development, and good long-term health.

2. Aid proper digestion: Dietary fiber and water in grapes can support proper digestion and healthy bowels. Experts sometimes suggest using fresh grape juice to relieve constipation in babies and toddlers (5).

3. Enhance gut microbiota: Research suggests that consumption of grapes enhances gut microbiota (flora) over time. This can be attributed to the high bioactive compounds content, such as polyphenols, in grapes. Dietary fiber from grapes also acts as prebiotics, supporting long-term health (6) (7).

4. Boost immunity: Grapes contain micronutrients, such as vitamin A and C, and phytochemicals, such as carotenoids, flavonoids, and polyphenols (8).  These compounds hold antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties that improve immune system function over time (9) (10).

How To Select And Store Grapes?

Here are some simple tips to select and store grapes for safe feeding.

Tips for selecting grapes

• Pick firm, plump, and well-colored grapes, firmly attached to their pliable green stems. Some common grape varieties in the U.S. are Thompson seedless, flame seedless, crimson seedless, red seedless, red globe, ruby seedless, Muscat, and sugraone.

• Avoid shriveled or soft grapes with pits and spots. Discard mushy, moldy, and oozing grapes with dry and brittle stems. These are signs of poor quality and decay.

• Pick fully ripe seedless varieties of grapes for babies. Green grapes are the sweetest and flavorful when yellow-green. Red and blue-black grapes are the best flavored when deeply colored.

• Healthy grapes often have a light, silver-colored dusting on the skin, called bloom. Do not discard grapes that have this dusting, thinking it is mud or dirt.

Tips for storing grapes

• As soon as you get the grapes home, wash them under cold running water thoroughly. Pat dry with a soft cotton cloth and refrigerate in a perforated plastic bag.

• Ripe grapes can be stored in the refrigerator for up to two weeks at around 30 to 32°F (-1 to 0°C). However, it is always best to eat grapes within two to three days. If you plan to store them for longer, store them in the freezer.

• Do not store grapes with foods that have a strong aroma, such as onions. Grapes tend to take on the odor from other foods.

Precautions To Take While Feeding Grapes To Babies

Following some simple precautionary steps can make eating grapes safe for babies and toddlers.

1. Buy organic grapes from a reputable seller. Grapes are one of the common foods to contain high levels of pesticide residue (11).

2. Begin feeding peeled, deseeded grapes in mash or puree form to your baby. Once the baby can digest the grapes comfortably, begin adding the fruit to other foods.

3. Follow the three-day wait rule and feed only grapes and no other new food to your baby. It will help rule out sensitivity, intolerance, or allergy caused by grapes.

4. Initially, offer small quantities of one to two teaspoons. Once your baby is comfortable, you may gradually increase the amount to a tablespoon or two.

5. If your baby looks uncomfortable after ingesting grapes, stop feeding immediately, and try again later. If the problem persists, consult a pediatrician.

6. Grape allergy (oral allergy syndrome or pollen fruit syndrome) isn’t common but possible. Its symptoms come up immediately after ingesting or touching grapes. Stay alert to the signs, such as itching or swelling of the mouth, face, lip, tongue, and throat.

7. If the baby has a family history of allergies, consult a doctor before serving grapes. Babies allergic to fruits and nuts from the Rosaceae family (cherries, strawberries, apple, pear, apricot, plums, and almond) may show cross-reactive allergy to grapes (12).

8. For older babies, serve peeled, bite-sized chunks of grapes as finger food Give preference to seedless varieties. If using seeded varieties, remove their seeds and thinly slice them to prevent choking.

9. Encourage older toddlers to eat small chopped slices of grapes with the skin to enjoy their health benefits to the fullest.

10. Discourage toddlers from drinking grape juice unless advised by a pediatrician to treat or manage an ailment, such as constipation. You can occasionally feed up to four ounces of grape juice to toddlers aged one and three (13).

Delicious Grape Recipes For Babies And Toddlers

Below are some healthy and delectable grape recipes you can feed to your baby.

1. Apple, banana, grapes puree

You will need:

• ½ ripe banana
• ½ apple (stewed)
• ½ cup red grapes (peeled and deseeded)

How to prepare: 

1. Put all the ingredients in a blender and blend into a smooth, lump-free fluid. Ensure no lumps are present.
2. Pour some puree into a serving bowl and feed the baby right away.
3. You can add a tablespoon of breast milk or formula to this preparation to adjust its consistency.

2. Grape and Greek yogurt

You will need:

• ½ cup green grapes (peeled and chopped)
• ½ cup unsweetened, plain Greek yogurt
• ¼ tsp dry fruit powder
• ⅛ tsp cinnamon powder

How to prepare: 

1. Put grapes in a bowl and mash them into a lump-free, smooth mash using a fork.
2. Add yogurt, cinnamon powder, and dry fruit powder. Mix well.
3. Pour some yogurt into a feeding bowl and feed the baby immediately.

3. Grape and sweet potato casserole

You will need:

• 1 sweet potato
• 1 cup red grapes (seedless)
• 1 cup goat cheese
• 1tsp olive oil
• ¼ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp pepper powder
• Pinch of cinnamon powder
• Pinch of nutmeg powder

How to prepare:

1. Make some holes in the sweet potato using a fork. Wrap the potato into the foil and roast it in the oven at 350°F (176°C) for 45 to 60 minutes until the sweet potato looks well-cooked.
2. Remove the sweet potato from the oven and set it aside on a wire rack to cool.
3. Unwrap the sweet potato, remove its skin, and mash until smooth. Set aside.
4. Put the grapes into a baking dish and add olive oil and salt. Toss the ingredients to coat the grapes evenly. Roast in the oven at 450°F (232°C) for 20 to 25 minutes until the grapes’ skin starts to burst.
5. Take the baking dish out of the oven and set it aside to cool.
6. Meanwhile, mix goat cheese, salt, pepper, cinnamon powder, and nutmeg powder with sweet potato mash. Stir in the roasted grapes.
7. Spread the mixture in two small-sized casserole dishes. Bake at 350°F (176°C) for 20 to 30 minutes.
8. Put some casserole in a feeding bowl and feed your baby while the casserole is still warm.
9. You can add thinly sliced nuts and dried fruits to enhance the nutritional value of the recipe.

4. Red grape smoothie

You will need:

• 1 cup almond milk
• ½ cup canned blueberries
• ½ cup red grapes (peeled and deseeded)
• ½ cup Greek yogurt
• 1 banana
• 1tsp dry fruit powder
• ¼ tsp nutmeg powder

How to prepare: 

1. Blend all the ingredients into a smooth, lump-free smoothie using a blender.
2. Pour the smoothie into a feeding cup and feed the baby.

5. Grape sorbet

You will need:

• 1 cup green grapes (deseeded and peeled)
• 2tbsp jaggery powder
• 1tsp lemon zest (finely grated)
• 1tsp lemon juice

How to prepare: 

1. Put grapes on a baking sheet and freeze for at least four hours.
2. Puree the frozen grapes and the remaining ingredients into a smooth paste.
3. Pour the puree into a bowl and freeze for two to three hours. The sorbet is ready.

Grapes are a nutritious fruit that can add color and flavor to your baby’s meals. Add grapes to different foods and help your baby or toddler enjoy the fruit’s benefits to the fullest. You can begin feeding grapes to babies in the form of mash and puree. Older babies and toddlers can progress to eating small slices of grapes as finger foods.

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