Baby snacks: easy ideas from 6 months to 2 years
Looking for baby snack ideas beyond fruit pouches?
Snacks help your little one meet their needs between meals. Here's when to offer them, what to serve by age and easy-to-hold snacks, homemade or ready to serve.
When should babies start having snacks?
- Around 6 months: at the start of solids, baby still drinks mostly milk. Snacks aren't necessary: you can offer a small one if needed, based on their appetite.
- Around 9 months to 1 year: snacks play a bigger role. At 1 year, 3 meals and 2 or 3 snacks a day is a common rhythm.
- The right time: at regular times, far enough from meals that baby is hungry at the next one.
What makes a good baby snack?
- Easy to hold: sticks, bites, small patties or bars that baby picks up with their hands.
- Soft: baby should be able to squash the food between their thumb and index finger.
- Nourishing: a food that provides iron or protein, with a fruit or vegetable.
- No added sugar or salt, especially for the youngest.
Homemade baby snack ideas
- Pieces of ripe, soft fruit (banana, pear, avocado)
- Cooked vegetable sticks (sweet potato, carrot, zucchini)
- Plain yogurt, on a spoon or preloaded on a spoon
- Toast strips with a thin spread of peanut butter, if peanuts have already been introduced
- Omelette cut into sticks
Chunks snacks, ready to serve
All these snacks are made for little hands and are served after reheating or thawing according to the instructions:
- Banana and berry bites: with blueberries and raspberries, a snack rich in protein and iron.
- Chunks strawberry and avocado bars: oat-based, nut-free, egg-free and dairy-free.
- Pumpkin and sunflower muffins: with Greek yogurt and dates.
- Blueberry fritters: iron-enriched with baby cereal.
- Raspberry and almond bites: a source of protein, fibre and iron (contains almonds).
- Banana and peanut fritters (contains peanuts).
- Peanut and raspberry cookies: egg-free and dairy-free (contains peanuts).
Prefer a savoury snack? Our Tex-Mex chicken bites, chicken, squash and apple bites and pork, carrot and sweet potato meatballs also make great snacks.
Baby snacks by age
- 6 months: very soft fruit, cooked vegetable sticks, banana and berry bites, strawberry and avocado bars.
- 9 months: add more variety and textures: muffins, fritters, small chicken bites.
- 1 year and up: baby eats almost like the family. See also our page Meals for 1-year-olds.
Snacks without cooking everything
Chunks snacks are made in Quebec, already cooked and frozen.
- All our snacks and meals, to pick one by one.
- The BLW Discovery Box: 12 of our most popular meals and snacks.
- Home delivery in Quebec ($100 minimum, free from $150) or at our retail locations.
Safety first
- Baby eats sitting down, always with an adult watching, even for a small snack.
- Avoid round, hard foods: cut grapes and cherry tomatoes lengthwise, and don't offer whole nuts or popcorn.
- Introduce allergens (peanuts, tree nuts, eggs) one at a time before offering them as snacks. Talk to your healthcare provider, especially if allergies run in the family.
Frequently asked questions
When should babies start having snacks?
Around 6 months, snacks aren't necessary and are offered based on baby's appetite. They play a bigger role around 9 months to 1 year, with 2 or 3 snacks a day.
What snack can I give a 6-month-old?
A soft, easy-to-hold food, like very ripe fruit, a cooked vegetable stick or a snack designed for baby-led weaning, with no added sugar or salt.
What are some nut-free snacks for babies?
Fruit, cooked vegetables and plain yogurt, or snacks like Chunks strawberry and avocado bars, banana and berry bites and pumpkin muffins.
Are fruit purees good snacks?
Yes, they can be part of snack time. Also offering finger-food snacks helps baby discover different textures and eat with their hands.
Where can I find Chunks snacks?
Chunks snacks are delivered frozen to your home in Quebec and are also available at our retail locations.