How to make cottage cheese from kefir for babies. Delicate curd for first feeding. The process of making cottage cheese

The time when introducing cottage cheese into complementary foods is not only desirable, but mandatory - comes in the second half of the baby’s first year of life. During this period, the baby learns to crawl, sit, and stand up. A colossal amount of energy is wasted. Foods rich in protein, phosphorus and calcium help replenish it. So, cottage cheese comes to the children's menu as the owner.

Feeding a baby healthy food is not easy. In this sense, cottage cheese is a salvation for many parents. After all, of all the fermented milk, it is curd dishes that children, as a rule, eat with pleasure.

Curd protein has a high biological value; children's bodies absorb it well. In addition to calcium and phosphorus, the product is rich in folic acid, B-vitamins and niacin.

Of all the fermented milk products, cottage cheese is the least susceptible to criticism from pediatricians. Doctors generally agree that cottage cheese is a must-have product for children under one year of age. Exceptions are children suffering from kidney disease. It is also prohibited in cases of milk protein intolerance and in cases where the baby’s fontanelle closes too quickly. And for overweight children, kefir is recommended instead of cottage cheese.

Useful properties of the product

Cottage cheese is useful not only for the full formation of bone tissue. The product ensures healthy weight gain, normalizes metabolism, liver and nervous system function, and strengthens heart muscle tissue. Curd protein stimulates the immune system. The product itself, due to its “good” acidity, has a gentle effect on the gastrointestinal tract. Additionally, probiotics protect the gut and promote healthy digestion.

At what age can a child be given cottage cheese? Here, a lot depends on whether the baby is artificial or still feeds on mother’s milk. In the first case, you can give cottage cheese to babies starting from six to seven months. In the second, the deadlines have been shifted to eight to nine months. But, as a rule, all fermented milk products come after the baby has become acquainted with fruits, vegetables, meat and dairy-free cereals. This sequence can be corrected if the child suffers from rickets and there is an increased need for calcium.

Time to get acquainted with cottage cheese

The period when you can give your child cottage cheese without risk to health begins in the second half of the year for several reasons. They are caused by age-related changes in the body.

The need for microelements increases. As the baby grows, so do the body’s demands. More substances involved in the construction of organs and systems are required. For example, after six months a child needs 600 mg of calcium per day, but before that 400 mg was enough.
The ability to absorb protein improves. You should not introduce cottage cheese earlier than recommended due to its high protein content. For comparison, milk contains six times less of this substance. Due to non-compliance with the timing of curd complementary foods, the baby’s kidneys will literally work to their limits. In addition, excess protein can result in diabetes and hypertension.
The necessary enzyme “base” appears. After six months, the baby’s body produces in optimal quantities the enzymes necessary for the healthy digestion of fermented milk foods. And microflora favorable for this is formed in the intestines.

Five “cheese” questions

So, after consulting with your pediatrician, you have decided when you can introduce cottage cheese into complementary foods. But this is not the end of parents’ questions about the fermented milk menu. Here's what moms worry about and ask, five popular questions.

How to start cottage cheese feeding? The scheme is similar to the introduction of any new product. The child must be healthy. More than a week has passed since the last vaccination, and the next one is not due for the next seven days. It's not hot outside. For the first time, we offer the baby ½ teaspoon. If the child does not show an allergy to cottage cheese, gradually, doubling, increase the dose to the daily norm.
When, with what frequency and how much should I give my baby cottage cheese? It is recommended to give cottage cheese between main meals. There are opinions that the optimal time is after 18:00. According to some studies, it is during this period that calcium is best absorbed by the body. Pediatricians suggest feeding healthy babies cottage cheese every other day. At the age of 12 months, a child can eat 50 grams of cottage cheese, but no more. You need to focus on this dosage when gradually increasing the volume of the product. For example, at seven months you can give 20-30, and at eight months - 30-40 grams. From nine months, a maximum dosage of fifty grams is allowed.
How to give? It should be delivered to the baby’s table in a container that has undergone the necessary heat treatment. The temperature of the product itself is not lower than room temperature. You can heat cottage cheese that you just took out of the refrigerator in a water bath.
Which cottage cheese is better? Doctors recommend that children under three years of age be given factory-made goods or products from children's dairy plants. Until one year of age, it is better to eat pure cottage cheese, and after that you can give baby cottage cheese with fruit fillings.
How to store? Definitely in the refrigerator. Once the original pack is opened, it must be consumed immediately. Therefore, it is better to buy a product packaged in no more than 50 g. If we are talking about homemade cottage cheese, its shelf life is no more than two to three days.

How to choose “your” product

Modern manufacturers offer a wide selection of curd products for babies. Parents may be confused by the rich assortment, so it is important to know what types of cottage cheese there are and what will suit a particular child. As a rule, the product is made from whole or normalized milk, the fat content of which during processing was adjusted to 3.8% or more.

In the shop…

First of all, by the way, cottage cheese for children differs precisely in the percentage of fat content. There are three main types.

Lactic. Its fat content does not exceed 5%. This product is suitable for large babies who, due to inactivity, gain weight and expend little energy.
Creamy. This product is higher in calories. The percentage of fat content is from 10 to 15. It is useful for children who have difficulty gaining weight, as well as for hyperactive children.
Combined. It combines fats of both animal and plant origin. Most often it has an optimal fat content of six percent. Enriched with substances that help strengthen the nervous system and develop brain functions.

... and at home

At the same time, on thematic forums there are many negative reviews about store-bought fermented milk. There are cases of poisoning. As a result, despite the recommendations of doctors, mothers agree that children’s cottage cheese prepared at home still deserves more trust.

If parents decide to set up a “dairy factory” in their own kitchen, then pediatricians recommend strictly adhering to the recipe, taking a responsible approach to the selection of raw materials and storing the finished product. Ideally, it is better to make cottage cheese for a child from the milk of your own domestic cow.

Depending on the method of preparation and the tasks that the product should solve in the crumb menu, cottage cheese is divided into two types:

Fresh homemade. The product is better suited for breastfed babies and children with weight gain problems. How to prepare such cottage cheese for a child at home? You need milk and a ten percent calcium chloride solution, which is available in pharmacies. There is about 19 ml of the substance per liter of milk. After mixing the ingredients, bring the mixture to a boil. After the contents of the pan have cooled, strain it, separating the whey from the curd mass.
Homemade kefir. This product is called sour. It is prepared from baby or regular kefir. In the second case, you need a base whose fat content does not exceed 1%. Suitable for healthy babies who develop within normal age limits. No additional starters or additives are needed here. The raw material is poured into a jar and boiled in a water bath. After curd flakes appear in the container, you need to strain the resulting mixture and place under a press. In this way you can get approximately 50 g of cottage cheese from 100 g of raw materials.

Experienced mothers also share their recipes for homemade cottage cheese. For example, they offer a quick way to make fresh product for each feeding. You need 100 ml of milk and 60 ml of kefir. The mixture can even be brought to a boil in the microwave, after which it can be strained. The remaining liquid is used to make pancakes.

When the baby has fully adapted to the new product, you can diversify it by adding different fruits or cookies. Mix the components using a blender.

Cottage cheese for babies is an important product. Over time, so that your baby doesn’t get bored with it, you can prepare casseroles, puddings, cheesecakes, and dumplings with curd filling. The main thing to remember is that with all the benefits of cottage cheese, you should not rush to introduce it to the menu. The product brings benefits only if the timing and dosage of complementary feeding is observed.

The first complementary feeding is necessary for an infant after six months, and cottage cheese is ideal for this, but, of course, not store-bought, but prepared by the mother herself. To do this, it is important to know the technology, and then the children's menu will be enriched with not only healthy, but also tasty dishes.

Benefit

A product such as cottage cheese is a source of many valuable substances for the body of a growing child. Breaking down into amino acids, the proteins in its composition perform the task of building material: they are engaged in the construction of cells of skin and bone tissue, and internal organs. Cottage cheese also contains essential substances – tryptophan and methionine, which are vital for the normal development and functioning of the baby’s digestive, circulatory and nervous systems. A rich set of vitamins and microelements also makes the product extremely useful. Moreover, it is quickly digested and absorbed by the child’s body.

The main effect that the product has on the child’s body:

helps to grow quickly and gain weight;
participates in the formation of the nervous system;
improves the intestinal microenvironment;
improves the functioning of the immune system;
helps strengthen the skeleton, makes bone tissue denser and stronger.

It is better to make cottage cheese for children at home with your own hands, since the store-bought version may contain unnecessary fillers, sugar and even allergens. The structure of such a product is unlikely to be suitable for a child: it is too soft and homogeneous, while children already need to learn to chew.

Of course, you can buy dairy products from a dairy kitchen, but why, if you can take a good recipe and cook it yourself.

Product Usage Restrictions

The cottage cheese dish is introduced into the diet for up to a year as the first complementary food, but always after cereals, fruit and vegetable purees. This is due to the fact that during the digestion of proteins, a large amount of nitrogen compounds is formed, and this, in turn, can negatively affect the health of the child’s urinary system. Eating too early, as well as an excess of the product, can lead to metabolic disorders, instability of blood pressure and the formation of unwanted salts in the baby’s urine.

That is why it is necessary that the cottage cheese be used later - for a child of 7 months. Some nutritionists and pediatricians generally believe that his turn should come after the introduction of meat, but so far this position remains controversial.

In some cases concerning problems with weight gain, in the presence of rickets and other diseases, the product is prescribed as the first complementary food at 4–5 months.

But there are special situations when cottage cheese is temporarily contraindicated for children:

if the baby has allergies, which is why cottage cheese appears in his diet much later - at 11–12 months;
when a baby suffers from lactose intolerance due to hypolactasia.

In other cases, a mother can prepare wonderful cottage cheese for her child at home. In order for the product to be well absorbed by the child’s body, you will need to follow the basic rules for introducing complementary foods:

You can give cottage cheese in microdosages, starting with 1/2 tsp. and gradually increasing portions to 50 g by the age of one year;
you cannot combine cottage cheese with another new menu item;
Feeding should occur in the morning or afternoon.

If there is any negative reaction from the baby’s well-being, you must stop using it.

Cooking options

A curd dish for baby food can be made using milk, sour cream and kefir, as well as additional ingredients. Let's consider several options.

Young mothers are probably well aware calcium chloride recipe, which can be bought at a pharmacy. It is a calcium salt of hydrochloric acid, sold in the form of a solution in ampoules; for every 100 milliliters of liquid you will need 1 milliliter of the drug. First, bring the milk to a boil and leave it to cool completely. Calcium chloride is poured in and stirred, after which intensive coagulation occurs. The mixture is heated, not allowing it to boil, then placed on a sieve and allowed to drain. The liquid should go away, then the cottage cheese will turn out thicker.
From kefir The healthy product is also quite simple to prepare. It is heated until it curdles. Then simply transfer it to a colander or sieve to drain. You can heat the fermented milk drink using a water bath, without stirring the whey. After 7–10 minutes, you can turn off the stove and leave the mixture to simmer for 60 minutes. Keep the resulting curd for another 15 minutes, pouring cold water into a large saucepan, then drain the water.

There is an opportunity to make cottage cheese from milk and curdled milk(per 300 ml 4-5 large spoons). It needs to be cooked until it boils, boil for a few minutes and wait until it cools to 50 degrees. The curdled milk is kneaded thoroughly, then the pan is covered with a thick cloth and put in a warm place overnight. In the morning, the resulting kefir is heated until it hardens. Instead of yogurt, some use sour cream: this makes the resulting dish more fatty.
You can place an unopened package of 1% fat kefir in the freezer for 12 hours. After this, the frozen product is laid out to drain into a sieve lined with clean gauze. The result will be very tender and tasty cottage cheese, which will also retain all its beneficial qualities. This is perhaps the simplest preparation option.

In addition to the recipes listed, you can prepare cottage cheese for children using a special starter in a yogurt maker.

Complementary foods made from cottage cheese for a child are a whole range of nutrients and beneficial substances. It is a source of energy, which contains microelements such as phosphorus, calcium, B vitamins, as well as fungal microorganisms that normalize the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract, cardiovascular system, improve metabolic processes, and in general, have a beneficial effect on the baby’s health. So, in our review we will look at how to prepare cottage cheese for babies and when you can start introducing it into complementary foods.

When can you give cottage cheese?

If your little one is breastfed, then cottage cheese is not necessary in the baby's diet before 8 months. During this period, it is quite enough for the baby. After all, it contains all the nutrients and microelements necessary for the rapid development and health of the baby.

Doctors recommend giving cottage cheese to an infant only after porridge and vegetable purees have appeared in his diet. As a rule, 7-8 months is the optimal period when you can give curd mass to a baby. Until this age, the cheese product is not included in the main dishes, and therefore it is not necessary. The exception is the category of children suffering from rickets

You should start giving a new food very carefully and in small quantities. On the first day, the daily dose of cottage cheese for a newborn should not exceed one teaspoon. If there are no negative consequences when monitoring the baby, then the daily dose can be increased by 1.5-2 times. A closer to healthy child can eat about 50-60 grams of cottage cheese.

Sometimes, after taking a new product for the first time, a baby may experience pain because the stomach is not ready to digest the new food. In such cases, it is necessary to stop feeding, and in case of complications, call a pediatrician who will conduct an examination and prescribe treatment.

How much cottage cheese should I give to a newborn?

Age standards:

From 7 to 8 months - the daily norm should not exceed 20 grams.
From 8 to 9 months. – amount of product in a volume of 30 g.
Newborns 9-10 months – 40 gr.
Boys and girls 1 year old – no more than 50 grams.
From 12 to 1.5 years – 70-80 g.

How to cook

Best Homemade Recipe

The product prepared at home from grandmother's recipes is especially tasty and healthy. This cottage cheese stimulates well the development of the muscular and skeletal systems (for example, tooth growth), which has a beneficial effect on.

Making cottage cheese for babies at home is quite simple. To do this, you need to have a few simple ingredients: 1 liter of cow or goat milk and sourdough.

Cooking process:

Bring goat (cow) milk to a boil, then let it cool to room temperature;
add 50 grams of milk, maybe sour cream and put in a warm place to sour;
Place the sour product in a water bath for about 40 minutes and boil over low heat. Squeeze the resulting mass on gauze to get rid of any remaining water. Now our curd is ready and can be given to an infant.

As a rule, small children do not really like to eat homemade cottage cheese in its pure form. Therefore, experienced mothers do the following: they grind store-bought or homemade cottage cheese in a blender and put various tasty treats into it: raspberry, currant, apricot jam or grated fruit. This original cottage cheese dish will appeal not only to your baby, but also to older children.

Everyone knows that protein products, of which cottage cheese is a representative, supply “building material” for the body’s cells. The fact is that when digested, any proteins break down into individual amino acids, which are the “building blocks” for the construction of the body’s own proteins. There are 20 known amino acids, ten of which are essential for the human body. This means that they cannot be synthesized in it and must be supplied with food. Of the essential amino acids, the rarest ones in terms of content in foods are methionine and tryptophan (they are necessary for the proper functioning of the nervous system, digestive tract and blood vessels). And it is cottage cheese that is the main source of these amino acids. In addition, it contains three more essential amino acids - histidine, phenylalanine and lysine. Cottage cheese is also rich in some vitamins - folic acid, B 12, B 6, B 2, niacin. And of course, everyone knows that cottage cheese contains a lot of calcium and phosphorus. Moreover, the ratio of these two elements in cottage cheese is close to optimal for absorption and assimilation by the body. These minerals form the basis of bone tissue and teeth. That is why children need them during a period of active growth and development.

When to introduce cottage cheese?

Cottage cheese is introduced into the diet of infants no earlier than. The fact is that when protein is processed in the body, many acidic nitrogen compounds are formed, which create an increased load on the baby’s still immature kidneys. In this regard, “abuse” of cottage cheese (prescribing it earlier than six months or exceeding recommended daily dosages) may subsequently “result” in the appearance of salts in the child’s urine - oxalates, urates and phosphates, metabolic disorders, and increased blood pressure.

If the first complementary foods are offered to the baby at , then the turn of cottage cheese comes around (after the introduction of vegetables, cereals, fruits). Some experts consider it correct to first introduce meat into the baby’s diet and only then cottage cheese, others - in the reverse order (cottage cheese - meat).

In special cases (insufficient weight gain, severe manifestations), cottage cheese can be prescribed as one of the first courses of complementary feeding, but this decision must be made by the pediatrician observing the baby. And even in such cases, they try not to offer this product to the baby earlier.

They start, as always when introducing a new dish, with 1/2 teaspoon (about 3-5 grams).

It is better to offer cottage cheese in the first half of the day so that you can monitor the baby until the evening. If during the day you do not notice any unpleasant phenomena (skin rash, upset stool, bloating, severe anxiety), the next day you can give your little one no more than 1 teaspoon of cottage cheese.

In the absence of undesirable reactions, the dose is gradually increased to 30 grams, to 40 g - to and 50 g - to.

Special cases

We must not forget that cottage cheese is made from cow's milk. And although milk proteins undergo some modification during the cooking process, children who are allergic to cow's milk protein often develop allergic reactions to cottage cheese. Such babies should wait with the introduction of cottage cheese at least until, and sometimes much longer (it all depends on the severity of the allergic reaction). Moreover, children with allergies should not be introduced to new foods without consulting an allergist.

Sometimes cottage cheese intolerance occurs with severe lactase deficiency. This condition occurs when the gastrointestinal tract lacks the enzyme lactase, which is necessary to digest milk sugar, or lactose. Lactose is part of fresh milk (both breast milk and animal milk - cow, goat), and is present in much smaller quantities in fermented milk products, since lactic acid bacteria convert milk sugar into lactic acid. Lactase deficiency is said to occur when the amount of lactase produced by the digestive glands is not enough to digest the amount of lactose supplied with food. The causes of this condition can be either an increased amount of lactose or a real lack of the enzyme in the body. The main symptom of lactase deficiency is loose, watery stools with a sour odor. Often this condition is also accompanied by bloating and pain in the abdomen. There is very little milk sugar (lactose) left in the cottage cheese, since most of it is processed by lactic acid bacteria (they are used as a starter). But if there is a significant lack of lactase, even such a minimal amount of lactose can cause intolerance to the product. It is manifested by the appearance of watery, liquefied stools, sometimes with an admixture of greens, rumbling in the stomach, bloating, and less often pain. Such problems must be resolved together with a pediatrician or gastroenterologist. If your baby is already receiving lactase enzyme as replacement therapy, the dose may need to be increased. If such therapy has not been prescribed, perhaps you should wait a few more months before introducing cottage cheese.

Chemical educational program
Cottage cheese protein is mainly represented by casein, the main milk protein of all mammals. In milk, the molecules of this protein have their original structure (that is, like the molecules of any protein, they are folded in a certain way), therefore casein is soluble. In an acidic environment (which occurs when milk sours), casein molecules undergo denaturation - first they unfold, and then they twist again, but in a random manner. Denatured casein is no longer soluble and begins to clump. This is why standing yogurt stratifies: a layer of whey (water and milk sugar, which is processed by lactic acid bacteria) is formed at the bottom and the top layer is milk fat and denatured casein. As the temperature increases, the denaturation process accelerates.

You should not give fatty cottage cheese to a child suffering from an acute illness or weakened as a result of a serious illness. The maximum permissible fat content of cottage cheese is 15%. Digesting fats requires a lot of energy, which is needed for other purposes during such periods.

Let's make the cottage cheese ourselves

There are several recipes for making cottage cheese. At home you can get unleavened (calcined) and sour cottage cheese. Remember: cottage cheese is a perishable product.

What to choose?
The industry produces children's curds with natural fruit fillings. They allow you to enrich your baby’s diet with vitamins, microelements and dietary fiber, as well as significantly diversify the palette of tastes. But we would not recommend using these curds in the first year of life. The fact is that added fruits increase the risk of developing allergies. In addition, these products always contain sugar, which is not recommended for infants due to the risk of developing caries and excess weight. If you give a child under 1 year of age purchased cottage cheese, it is advisable that it be children's cottage cheese without fruit fillings.

After preparation, it should be stored in the refrigerator for no more than 2-3 days.

Preparation of sour cottage cheese with sourdough

For 1 liter of milk you will need 50-75 g of yogurt or sour cream for sourdough. The milk needs to be boiled and cooled to a temperature of 35-40°C. Boiling in this case is used as sterilization so that by-product bacterial cultures do not develop in the milk. It is necessary to cool the milk so that the living bacteria of the starter do not die. Add the starter to the cooled milk and leave it for a while in a warm place until the milk acquires the consistency of curdled milk. The sour milk is heated until the whey is separated. To make the cottage cheese tender and tasty, it is better to heat the milk in a water bath. As a last resort, you can put it on a very low heat, never letting it boil. If you heat the mass quickly, the denaturation of the protein will be very rough, and the curd will form hard, tasteless lumps.

Some recipes suggest not even waiting for the whey to separate - you just need to slowly heat the fermented milk to a temperature of 60-80°C and remove from heat. The separation of whey should occur in this case as it cools. This way you get cottage cheese with the most delicate consistency.

As soon as you notice the whey separating, remove the milk from the heat and place it in a sieve or colander with clean gauze placed over it. After the main volume of whey has drained, the curd is suspended in gauze. If you want a thicker curd, you can place it under a light weight, which will remove more whey and make the final product drier. However, for infants it is better to leave a more delicate, semi-liquid consistency.

Making sour cottage cheese without starter

To prepare 50 g of cottage cheese you will need about 250-300 ml of kefir. Pour one-day kefir into a saucepan and heat over low heat or in a water bath until it curdles (the whey separates). Pour the cooled mass into a sieve or colander lined with gauze. After the whey has drained, the resulting curd can be rubbed through a sieve to obtain a more homogeneous mass.

Preparation of fresh (calcined) cottage cheese

In addition to milk, you will need a solution of calcium chloride, which can be purchased at the pharmacy. For 300 ml of milk - approximately 3 ml of the drug. The milk is boiled, cooled, calcium chloride is added from the ampoule and the resulting mixture is brought to a boil again (preferably in an enamel bowl). During the heating process, the mixture curdles. It is thrown into a colander or sieve, as described above.

No matter how useful, convenient, profitable and versatile breast milk may be for a baby, the introduction of complementary foods into the child’s menu is still inevitable. Moreover, it is important to do this in a timely manner and in compliance with pediatric recommendations. But here, exactly, everything is not very simple. Doctors' opinions about when to introduce complementary foods to a baby, what product to start with, and what should be introduced into his diet first, are strikingly different from each other.

Let's talk about cottage cheese today. Is it possible to give cottage cheese to children under one year old? Will this cause harm or benefit to the child? How and how much cottage cheese can be given and which is better?

Cottage cheese in the diet of children under one year old

For many decades, this product has been considered one of the most beneficial in children's diets. Together with meat, fish and eggs, it is a valuable source of protein, without which a child’s full development, growth and health are impossible.

In addition, cottage cheese enriches the child’s body with vital calcium and other nutrients: phosphorus, iron, magnesium, sodium, vitamins A, B, C, PP.

Nutritionists say that eating cottage cheese promotes better functioning of the gastrointestinal tract. But modern pediatricians believe that the effect of such nutrition is exactly the opposite when it comes to one-year-old babies. Recently, it is increasingly possible to find recommendations for feeding children that exclude cottage cheese (and other dairy products) from the menu for at least a year.

Why you can’t give cottage cheese to a child under one year old

It’s no longer news to anyone that animal milk is a “heavy” and “aggressive” food for newborns, and therefore, in the absence of breast milk, modern mothers feed their babies only with adapted formulas. Adapted means “adapted” specifically for newborns. On the one hand, their composition is as close as possible (as far as possible in industrial conditions) to the composition of human breast milk. On the other hand, it is devoid of all the harmful qualities that cow’s (and other animal) milk has. This is primarily a high content of caseins - animal proteins that require special enzymes for digestion and absorption. These same enzymes are not produced in a newborn until at least 9-10 months: only closer to a year, the pancreas will begin to produce these substances in minimal quantities. But in the process of splitting the cottage cheese, nitrogenous compounds will be formed...

Animal protein puts an unbearable burden on the baby’s kidneys, liver and pancreas, doctors say today. Among other things, its use by babies under 10-12 months of age can cause symptoms similar to food poisoning. The consequences of introducing cottage cheese into baby food too early can be constipation, frequent regurgitation, bloating and colic, allergic manifestations and even anemia (due to gastric microbleeding).

For this reason (and also because of the high fat content, which also requires high enzymatic activity for normal absorption), milk and sour cream were excluded from the diet of one-year-old children.

Kefir, yogurt and cottage cheese in the menu of children up to one year old remained a good replacement and alternative to milk. But today, these products have fallen out of favor with specialists and child feeding consultants. They assure that all concerns and potential risks associated with milk fully apply to all other dairy (including fermented milk) products. And they advise you to wait with cottage cheese for at least 10 months, and better yet even later (this is especially true for children whose fontanel has closed early).

As for nutritional value, cottage cheese is far from a panacea. Its protein, as we have found out, is difficult to digest by the baby’s ventricle and is poorly absorbed; the amounts of calcium acceptable for use by babies are so tiny that it is better to get it through breast milk (if the nursing mother is taking calcium supplements) or together with supplementary feeding (if formula milk enriched with calcium and vitamin D).

When to give cottage cheese to a child under one year old: Komarovsky

Pediatrician Evgeny Komarovsky has a completely different opinion. He not only recommends giving cottage cheese to babies, but also considers it an ideal first complementary food after kefir.

Complementary feeding according to Komarovsky should begin at 6 months from low-fat baby kefir, observing all the rules for gradual introduction. When kefir is safely introduced into the menu of a six-month-old baby (the portion will be increased to 150 ml per feeding), begin adding low-fat cottage cheese to it, gradually increasing its amount to 30 grams. Thus, one of a child’s meals at 6 or 7 months is completely replaced with a kefir-curd mixture, to which a little sugar can be added if desired. It is ideal to eat a fermented milk dish as your first snack - from 10 to 11 o'clock.

But generally accepted recommendations are radically different from those given by Komarovsky. Most pediatricians believe that cottage cheese can be introduced into a child’s menu no earlier than 7-8 months (after he has been introduced to vegetables, fruits and cereals), and modern feeding consultants recommend delaying this event as much as possible (at least until 10-12 months ). If the child is not gaining weight, cottage cheese can be introduced earlier (for example, from the 9th month). In the opposite case (if you are overweight), first the baby is offered kefir, and only then cottage cheese (not earlier than the 10th month).

It should be taken into account that “heavy” protein foods are better broken down in the second half of the day, so it is recommended to feed cottage cheese no earlier than 15 hours.

If a child under one year old does not eat cottage cheese or refuses it, then there is no need to insist. Postpone the idea and try again after a few weeks. You can “smear” the curd with fruit or berry puree. But cookies and sugar will be unnecessary here, experts say: carbohydrates interfere with the absorption of calcium from the product.

Whether or not to give cottage cheese to a child under one year old, every mother must decide for herself. But if she is inclined to favor this product on her baby’s menu, then she should study some recommendations for introducing it into complementary foods.

Cottage cheese for a child under one year old: how much to give

Like any other product, this one is introduced into complementary foods gradually, starting with half a teaspoon. The permissible daily intake of cottage cheese for children 7-8 months old is 30 g; for children 9-12 months old, you can offer a child no more than 50 g per day. But you shouldn’t give cottage cheese every day: three times a week or once every two days will be enough, that is, the norm per week is about 150 grams. It is not recommended to give your child protein twice on the same day (for example, cottage cheese and an egg, or cottage cheese and meat).

If you don’t know what fat content to give cottage cheese to a one-year-old baby, then keep in mind that this product should be minimally fat (no more than 5%). Consequently, to the question “is it possible to give homemade cottage cheese to children under one year old,” experts unanimously answer “no,” mainly because of its high calorie content and the heavy load it places on the children’s gastrointestinal tract. In this case we mean ordinary village cheese.

The best option is an adapted industrially produced children's cottage cheese (convenient, low-fat, and sterile). If the mother does not want to feed the baby with store-bought products, then she can easily prepare the cottage cheese herself at home. It should be borne in mind that each time it must be prepared immediately before feeding the baby.

How to prepare cottage cheese for a child under one year old at home: recipe

Any woman can prepare children's cottage cheese, even if she is not strong in culinary arts - it is done very simply. You just need to choose the recipe that suits you.

From kefir

Place kefir or yogurt in a water bath and heat until the whey begins to drain. Remove from heat and leave to stand for another 30 minutes. Strain and then rub the curd mass through a strainer (optional).

Another way: place a package of baby kefir in the freezer. When it is completely frozen, remove it from the packaging and place it in a colander lined with gauze. After the kefir has melted and the whey has drained from it (this will take about 3-4 hours), a soft, delicate curd mass will remain on the gauze. In the same way, you can prepare curd from fermented baked milk, which will have a slightly different taste.

Kefir-milk

Combine milk and kefir (yogurt) in a ratio of 2:1 or 3:1 and place in a water bath. Warm up the mixture, wait for it to start curdling and remove from heat. When it cools down, place it in a sieve.

With lemon juice

Heat the milk almost to a boil and add freshly squeezed lemon juice (at the rate of 1 tablespoon per 600 ml of milk). Remove from the stove and, stirring, wait until it curdles, then strain.

Calcined cottage cheese

A solution of calcium chloride (10%) should be poured into milk heated to 70-90 o C at the rate of 1 tbsp. l. for half a liter of milk. Stir the mixture, and when it curdles, place in a colander. You cannot give your child calcined cottage cheese all the time (usually such a product is given only on the recommendation of a pediatrician).

Each mother chooses a recipe for baby cottage cheese at her own discretion. For some, the speed and ease of preparation suits them, while others analyze the ingredients included in the final product; someone is trying to make the curd more useful by using products containing lactic acid bacteria, and some believe that when heated they still die.

Feeding experts, in order to minimize any risks of indigestion and poor digestibility of the product, advise preparing cottage cheese for a child up to one year old in a water bath, using fermented baby formula as a base, rather than milk.

Children with kidney disease or intolerance to milk protein should not be given cottage cheese until they are one year old.

Especially for - Larisa Nezabudkina