The aubergine is not a vegetable but a berry! More precisely, it is a fruiting vegetable like the tomato. It has a melting flesh and can have several shapes (oval, pear-shaped, round, elongated...), many colours (ivory-white, yellow, green, purple, purplish and almost black) and can be uniform, graded or streaked. What are its nutritional characteristics and dietary benefits? What is the reason for the little redness around the mouth that can be seen when it is offered to baby? How do you cook it? This article will answer all these questions that you are certainly asking yourself...
Nutritional characteristics and interests
Aubergine is a fruit vegetable available in summer and a source of fibre (more than 3g of fibre per 100g). Fibre is ideal for combating constipation. If your baby or child has hard or infrequent stools, this food can help.
Aubergines are rich in antioxidants (present in the skin) which help to combat ageing. It also provides around 7% of the nutritional reference values for vitamins B9, B1 and B6, which are respectively of interest for the normal functioning of the immune system and the growth of maternal tissues during pregnancy, for the normal functioning of the nervous system and finally to reduce fatigue.
Small inconveniences of the aubergine for baby...
When baby first tasted aubergine, you may have noticed a little redness around his mouth. Don't panic, it's not serious! Aubergine contains substances that can cause reactions, including solanine and histamine. Solanine can be toxic to the body if consumed in excess. This compound is present in and under the skin. Too much storage also increases the amount.Histamine causes a pseudo food allergy syndrome, resulting in these famous small skin reactions, which are not serious in most cases. More rarely, there may be a reaction to the salicylic acid also present in aubergines, especially in cases of severe immune disorders.
PRACTICAL TIP! To sum up this paragraph and above all to reassure you, I advise you to introduce aubergine in moderate quantities at the beginning, to eat it quickly after purchase, to peel it, to remove the small seeds before cooking it well and that should not cause any reaction!
Aubergine recipes
Aubergines can be cooked in a variety of ways, each more appetising than the last. Here are some recipe ideas that can be adapted to babies, i.e. at the time of food diversification (around 4/6 months, according to the latest national recommendations). For younger children, it is important to follow the preparation advice given in the tip above, toadapt the texture (by mixing or grinding the preparation), to control the amount of protein according to the child's age and toadd the rawfat at the end of the preparation:
- Aubergine caviar with dried tomato, ratatouille du soleil, aubergine curry, aubergine tian or mille-feuille, pizza-style aubergine, aubergine rolls with pesto, etc. (corresponds to the portion of vegetables needed for each meal)
- Moussaka with lamb, chicken tagine with aubergine... (for lunch)
- Savoury aubergine crumble with parmesan, aubergine gratin with ricotta cheese... (recipes also containing the dairy product)
- Basil aubergine puree with tomato, star pasta or rice and a drizzle of olive oil (a complete evening meal without protein)
Enjoy cooking and giving your baby this nutritionally interestingfood thanks to its fibre, which promotes regular transit, and its softness and creaminess in many preparations!
Dietician - Nutritionist specialising in paediatrics
Source:
CIQUAL: https: //ciqual.anses.fr/ (July 2020)
APRIFEL: https: //aprifel.com (July 2020)
