Getting the balance right in a weaning meal is less about any single food and more about what you put next to it. There is a simple structure that does most of the work, and once you have it you can apply it to almost anything you serve.

Three components

The combination we look for is an iron rich food, a vitamin C rich food alongside it, and an energy rich source.

Each is doing a specific job, so let me take them in turn.

One: the iron rich food

Iron requirements between 7 and 12 months jump by around 45 percent, at exactly the point the stores a baby was born with are running low. So iron is the anchor of the meal.

Practical examples for a baby:

• Half a boiled egg.
• Some lentil puree.
• Really soft cooked meats.
• A soft meatball.

Two: the vitamin C rich food

Vitamin C rich foods help the body absorb iron, and this matters most when the iron is coming from a plant source.

Iron found in red meat, called haem iron, is the most readily absorbed by the body. Non-haem iron, which is what you find in plant based sources, needs more help. Pairing it with vitamin C is that help.

Practical examples:

• A broccoli floret.
• Half a strawberry.

These are small additions that make a measurable difference to what your baby actually absorbs, rather than what they simply eat.

Three: the energy rich source

Fat is a really good source of energy, so a fat and carbohydrate source rounds the plate out.

Practical examples:

• A soldier of buttered toast.
• Some mashed potato.
• A bit of pasta with a drizzle of oil.

Putting it together

So a plate might be a soft meatball, a broccoli floret and a little mashed potato. Or lentil puree, half a strawberry and a soldier of buttered toast.

None of this needs to be complicated. It is the same three slots filled with whatever you have.

Why this beats worrying about volume

There is no official portion size guideline for under ones, because all babies are different and growing at different rates. What you can control is the composition of what you offer, rather than how much of it goes in.

You also have to assume that not all of it gets eaten. Some will be on the wall, the floor and you. Building the plate well means that whatever does get eaten is doing more work.

Where menu planning helps

Doing this reliably across a whole week, meal after meal, is harder than doing it once.

This is exactly what we analyse in the V&Me menus, checking that iron rich foods are paired with vitamin C to maximise absorption, and that the overall balance works day to day and across the week rather than only on paper.

A note on milk

One thing that undoes good food combining is excessive milk, because milk blocks iron absorption. So a baby drinking very large volumes can be eating well and still fall short.

Try to avoid offering milk feeds too close to mealtimes, so there is appetite for solids and the iron in the meal has a better chance of being absorbed.