Best Early Finger Foods for Baby (With Tips, Visuals, and Recipes) (2024)

Use this list of safe, nutritious, and easy to eat finger foods for baby to help you know exactly what (and how) to offer at meals and snacks. Plus, find the best first finger foods, troubleshooting tips, and visuals of foods broken down by food group to keep things easy!

Finger Foods for Baby

After baby starts solids and is ready to move onto finger foods, you may feel a little confused by exactly what to serve and how to serve it. Which is totally normal because it can be scary to let baby feed themselves this way and we may not have any experience doing this—or we may have totally forgotten from our last kiddo!

This list of finger foods for baby will cover some great first finger foods to start with, then set you up with plenty of healthy options from each food group.

TIP: Find more info on starting solids here and the best foods to start with if doing baby led weaning or purees with baby.

Healthy Baby Food

I love sharing these ideas for baby food since they are easy to prepare and serve and because I know how hard it can be to continue to come up with flavorful and healthy meals and snacks for our little ones. Let me tell you, I’m on my third kiddo and it can be such a challenge to feed him during the chaos of parenting the rest of my crew! These foods are wholesome and nutritious—perfect for your baby.

TIP: I’m a big fan of SpoonfulONE, a company that offers the most complete way to introduce food allergens to our kids. They make mix-ins, puffs, and crackers that are yummy and easy for babies and toddlers to eat. Learn more about their pediatrician-approved baby foods here. (sponsored link)

Best First Finger Foods

When baby is around 9 months, you’ll notice that they’re able to pick up smaller pieces of food with two fingers. This is known as the “pincer grasp” and is a sign that they’re ready to start finger foods. To be clear, when I say “finger foods” I mean small pieces of food that a baby (or toddler) can feed themselves.

Here are some of my favorite ones to start with that are all super soft, safe to eat, and easy to pick up.

• Scrambled egg, broken up into small pieces
• Roasted sweet potato mashed and broken up into small pieces
• Fresh raspberries, broken up into smaller pieces
• Oatmeal, cooked according to package directions and allowed to cool
• Tofu, diced and sauteed lightly or steamed
• Ground beef, chicken, or turkey, broken up into small pieces or lightly mashed meatballs
• Shredded cheese or crumbled goat cheese
• Mashed sweet potato, in little pieces
• Peanut butter puffs

TIP: You can serve the tofu, ground meat, or meatballs in veggie puree from a pouch or a simple marinara sauce for extra moisture and flavor. Learn more about how and why to introduce peanut butter.

Finger Foods for Baby: Fruits and Veggies

Some of my favorite early fruits and veggies to serve babies are:

• Mashed roasted sweet potato, broken up into small pieces
• Warmed frozen peas, slightly mashed if desired
• Roasted Zucchini
• Diced Roasted Sweet Potato or Butternut Squash
• Fresh blueberries, cut in half or quarters
• Fresh raspberries, broken into small pieces
• Banana, broken into small segments (they are less slippery this way versus slicing them)
• Avocado, diced and mashed slightly (be sure it’s ripe and very soft)

TIP: A good rule of thumb is to serve pieces of food that are about the size of a pea to start and soft enough that they are easy to squish between your fingers. This will be easy for baby to pick up and eat and will also reduce chances of choking.

Finger Food Ideas: Carbohydrates

Offering complex carbohydrates can provide fiber, a variety of textures, B vitamins, and more. Try these with your baby.

• Spinach pancakes (moisten with applesauce or plain yogurt if needed; this recipe is particularly moist and great for babies)
• Oatmeal, cooked according to package directions and allowed to cool
• Baby Puffs
• Peanut Butter Puffs
• Rice (it’s easiest if it’s in little clumps so baby can pick it up; this Coconut Rice or this Cheesy Rice are both good options)
• Baby Banana Muffin
• O cereal (soften in nondairy unsweetened milk or yogurt as needed)
• Baked Oatmeal, diced

Finger Food Ideas: Proteins

Offering proteins will continue to expose baby to a range of nutrients. These are my go-tos for babies newer to finger foods—and toddlers too.

• Shredded cheese (thicker cuts are a little easier to pick up)
• Tofu, diced and sauteed lightly or steamed
• Flaked cooked wild salmon
• Lightly mashed meatballs
• Shredded chicken, cut up finely (we love this Butter Chicken to share with baby)
• Ground beef, turkey, or chicken, broken into smaller pieces
• Lightly mashed beans
• Scrambled eggs, broken up into small pieces
• Diced egg muffins

I’d love to hear any questions you may have, or if you have foods that your babies enjoy that I didn’t include here. Chime in below in the comments!