These mini vegetarian burgers are a breeze to make, taste great and contain iron! What more could you want in a baby veggie burger?!
Why is iron so important for babies?
Babies and young children need iron for their brains, bodies and immune systems to develop naturally.
The easiest way to ensure that your baby gets enough iron is to offer iron-rich foods at every meal.
READ MORE: 9 Every day iron-rich foods for babies
Iron and baby-led weaning
One concern that health professionals had with baby-led weaning was the fear that babies who self-feed might not eat enough iron-rich foods.
We now have research showing that babies following a Baby-Led Weaning approach can get the iron they need for good health provided they are offered high iron foods at each meal.
LEARN MORE: Baby led weaning, spoon feeding: The great debate!
These beans burgers are a source of iron for your baby.
Some veggie burger recipes for babies are packed with vegetables but don’t contain a reliable iron source. This recipe includes three iron-rich foods, kidney beans, fortified instant oat cereal and tahini (sesame butter).
Serve these burgers with some vitamin C on the side!
Beans, fortified cereal and tahini are all known as sources of non-haem iron. This is a type of iron that is more difficult for us to absorb, unlike iron in meat that is easily absorbed. The good news is that if you pair non-haem iron with vitamin C, your body can absorb more iron.
So, here are some vitamin C rich suggestions to serve with these burgers:
- Broccoli florets or mashed broccoli
- Cauliflower florets or mashed cauliflower
- Roasted sweet potato wedges or sweet potato mash
- Strips of steamed or roasted peppers or red pepper purée
- Slices of cooked tomatoes or a spoon of tinned tomatoes
Perfect for the whole family
They are perfect for little paws and can also be enjoyed by the whole family or frozen just for baby!
What do you need
A large tin of kidney beans (you can also use chickpeas), rinsed well and drained.
One clove of garlic, peeled
Juice 1/2 lemon
A teaspoon of ground cumin
Half a small butternut squash or 200 g sweet potato or carrot, peeled and cut into cubes
One tablespoon of tahini or smooth almond butter
Fortified Instant Oat Cereal for coating
A little olive oil for cooking
What you need to do
- Steam the veggies and garlic until tender
- Blend or mash the cooked veggies, garlic, tahini, lemon juice, beans and cumin together to your desired texture
- You could serve this now as a spoon feed to your baby or spread on a finger of toast
- To make burgers:
- Form into little balls and then flatten into burgers
- Coat in the instant oat cereal
- Drizzle a little oil on a baking tray
- Lay the burgers on top and then turn over, so they are covered in oil
- Oven bake for 20-30 minutes, turning over halfway through
Veggie Bean Burgers (Iron Recipe)
These mini vegetarian burgers are a breeze to make, taste great and contain iron! What more could you want in a baby veggie burger?
Ingredients
- A large tin of kidney beans (you can also use chickpeas), rinsed well and drained.
- One clove of garlic, peeled
- Juice 1/2 lemon
- A teaspoon of ground cumin
- Half a small butternut squash or 200 g sweet potato or carrot, peeled and cut into cubes
- One tablespoon of tahini or smooth almond butter
- Fortified Instant Oat Cereal for coating
- A little olive oil for cooking
Instructions
- Steam the veggies and garlic until tender
- Blend or mash the cooked veggies, garlic, tahini, lemon juice, beans and cumin together to your desired texture
- You could serve this now as a spoon feed to your baby or spread on a finger of toast
- To make burgers:
- Form into little balls and then flatten into burgers
- Coat in the instant oat cereal
- Drizzle a little oil on a baking tray
- Lay the burgers on top and then turn over, so they are covered in oil
- Oven bake for 20-30 minutes, turning over halfway through
- Cool before serving to your baby alongside some orange segments (peeled) for added vitamin C to aid iron absorption
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