Spiced Sweet Potato Lentil Fritters (BLW recipe)
These soft and flavourful Sweet Potato Lentil Fritters are the perfect baby-led weaning recipe for little ones learning to self-feed. These vegetarian fritters are high in iron and a soft finger food. Great for babies 6 months+, these are a nutritious freezer-friendly baby food.
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"I've made these lentil fritters for over 5 years now, between all three of my children. We love to batch prep it and have on hand." - Erin
When I (Nita) first started feeding my second baby solids seven years ago, I quickly realized his approach to eating looked very different from his older sibling's. While my first baby preferred purées - in fact, his first food was this homemade Indian daal, my second wanted to grab food himself right from the start. Soft handheld foods became the easiest (and most enjoyable!) way for us to explore meals together.
That season of feeding inspired many of the baby-led weaning recipes we still make today, including our BLW-friendly Indian Sheet Pan Dinner, savoury Vegan Chilla (Indian Chickpea Pancake), and soft Black Bean Burgers made with warm spices like garam masala. These recipes are inspired by the flavours I already love cooking with as a South Asian mom, like turmeric, cinnamon, garlic, and garam masala.
So when Jessica showed up to my house with these soft Spiced Sweet Potato Lentil Fritters, they were an instant hit with my son! We knew we had to include it in our (now top selling) ebook, Whole Food Recipes for Your Baby. And they quickly became a favourite among the Happy Healthy Eaters community.
What makes these spiced sweet potato lentil fritters dietitian-approved?
🧠 A vegetarian baby finger food that doesn't skimp on protein or iron
👶 Soft texture and baby led weaning friendly form 6 months
🇮🇳 A great first introduction to warm Indian spices (more baby friendly Indian recipes here)
❄️ Easy to batch prep and freezer friendly
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- What makes these spiced sweet potato lentil fritters dietitian-approved?
- Key ingredients
- Allergen information and substitutes
- How to make these spiced sweet potato lentil fritters
- Serving suggestions for each age & stage
- Spiced sweet potato lentil fritters frequently asked questions:
- Play + books that match this recipe
- More baby led weaning recipes to stock your freezer
- Spiced Sweet Potato Lentil Fritters (baby led weaning)
Key ingredients
Split red lentils
We're using split red lentils for this recipe, once cooked they are soft and offer just the right amount of texture for these fritters. These legumes also offer a source of plant-based iron for your little eater. Iron is one of the top nutrients to focus on when your baby starts solids! It's important to note that this type of lentil is typically only found in dried form and not canned. We chose red lentils because they have a mild taste.
Coconut oil
The coconut flavor is a total hit in this recipe, but you could also use homemade ghee or butter.
Spice
You'll be needing a combination of warm Indian spices like garam masala, cinnamon, and turmeric. Don't worry - these aren't "spicy" spices. They just add flavour!
Eggs
This recipe uses two eggs for a binding purpose which means it will help keep the shape of this fritter. This also means if your kiddo is on an egg strike, this is the perfect recipe to maintain that allergen exposure.
Sweet potato mash
This is the main ingredient of the recipe and will help bind it together. You could substitute with mashed white potatoes. If you end up having leftover sweet potatoes, don't forget to make a batch of Sweet Potato Blueberry Muffins or our Salmon Cakes-both of these recipes can be found in our ebook, Whole Food Recipes for Your Baby.
Allergen information and substitutes
This recipe for lentil fritters contains eggs and wheat, which are two of the top priority allergens in Canada. If you decide to use butter or ghee instead of coconut oil, then it's important to keep in mind that these are dairy products.
If your child has an egg allergy, we've learned that the flax egg substitute works beautifully in this recipe. And, if you cannot offer wheat flour, opt for another wheat-free substitute you're familiar with.
At Happy Healthy Eaters, we share the most current allergen guidance inside our Start Solids Confidently video lessons.
How to make these spiced sweet potato lentil fritters
- This is the texture you're aiming for when cooked the split red lentils. The lentils should end up mushy and most of the water should be cooked away.
2. Sautéeing the spices in a bit of oil for one minute brightens up their flavour. You'll end up with a spice paste.
3. The batter for these sweet potato lentil baby fritters will be fairly thick.
4. Aim for a golden brown exterior when cooking the fritters.
Serving suggestions for each age & stage
4-6 months: since soft finger foods are not recommended until infants are at least 6 months old, we suggest that you mush this into a puree texture. You can spoon feed or use a slotted spoon to help your baby self feed.
6-9 months: if baby led weaning is the feeding style that is working for you, you'll love this recipe. It's perfectly soft with a slight crisp on the outside, and the lentils really make it a wonderful texture. Simply offer the round fritter whole or sliced in half to make it easier for your baby to hold in their little hands.
9-12 months+ : By this stage, your baby likely has an adorable pincer grasp! This means you can slice the fritter into small bite sized pieces about the size of a kidney bean! We suggest serving the fritters alongside a dollop of chia berry sauce - yum! Or, you can spread a thin layer of almond butter.
For the rest of the family: Follow the recipe exactly as suggested. After setting a few saltless fritters aside for your baby, you can add a bit of salt to the batter.
Spiced sweet potato lentil fritters frequently asked questions:
When you're preparing this, don't be alarmed by the thick and gooey batter. That's what you're looking for. When you cook the batter you'll want to make sure the fritter is about ½" to ¾" thick - you don't want it to be too thin because it will dry out. And, if it's too thick it might end up undercooked.
For this recipe, yes. The red lentils need to be cooked, strained and cooled before adding it to the batter. Whereas, in our authentic daal recipe, the lentils are cooked with the rest of the ingredients!
Yes, 100% these are a meal prep dream! Freeze the fritters in a single layer, then add to a ziploc bag. You can easily reheat these on a frying pan, in the toaster, or even an air fryer.
Yes - and in fact, introducing spices early on is a wonderful way to help your little one develop a love for flavourful foods! Babies and toddlers are naturally curious eaters, and early exposure to herbs and warm spices like garam masala, turmeric, and cinnamon can help build food acceptance over time. If your baby enjoys the flavors in this recipe then you'll want to make a batch of authentic daal, these vegan chickpea savory pancakes or this Indian Sheet Pan Dinner.
As with all baby recipes, we've kept this salt-free. Older family members can season their own portions.
About one medium sized sweet potato or about 2 cups cubed sweet potato will provide you with 1 cup mashed. If you end up having leftover sweet potato, don't worry! In the Whole Food Recipes for Your Baby recipe book there are so many fun ways to use to sweet potato like the sweet potato salmon cakes or sweet potato blueberry muffins.
This is up to you and depends on a few factors. If your baby is really new to solids you may want to peel the sweet potato so it's easier for your baby to manage. Alternatively, if you want your baby to reap the benefits of all that fibre you can keep it on but shred the sweet potato or dice it finely so the peel bits are nice and small!
Your baby's ability will really help determine what to do and there's really no wrong route!
Play + books that match this recipe
When kids get the chance to interact with "food " during playtime, they become more comfortable with the food, and are more likely to want to eat it at mealtimes! Here are some options to include sweet potatoes during play and story time.
More baby led weaning recipes to stock your freezer
If you tried these spiced sweet potato lentil fritters or any other recipe on our blog, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let us know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!
Spiced Sweet Potato Lentil Fritters (baby led weaning)
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cup water
- ½ cup dried split red lentils
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil
- 1 tablespoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup sweet potato mash
- ¾ cup all purpose flour
Instructions
- Place the water and dried lentils in a pot. Heat over medium high until the lentils are soft and most of the water is cooked away. Once cooked, remove the lentils to a bowl.
- In the same pot, melt the coconut oil over medium heat.
- Add the spices. Sauté for one minute then add to the lentils in the bowl.
- Add the eggs and sweet potatoes to the bowl and stir to combine. Next, stir in the flour.
- Heat a griddle or frying pan over medium low heat. Melt a bit of oil to grease the pan.
- Drop batter by spoonfuls onto the griddle. When bottom has browned, flip over and squish down to form a patty. When the second side has cooked, flip over once more to cook the batter that squished over.
