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Bubur saring (sieved rice and vegetable porridge)

Indonesian parents call a baby's first solids MPASI, and the first stage is bubur saring: rice porridge cooked with vegetables and pressed through a sieve until velvety. Across Java it is often made each morning in a small pot and given at lunchtime, with a daun salam (Indonesian bay leaf) for a gentle scent. Carrot gives it colour and sweetness, spinach a soft green flavour. There are no common allergens in it (milk, egg, gluten, peanut, tree nuts, soya, sesame, fish). Chef's tip: add the spinach only in the last few minutes, so it stays green and doesn't turn the porridge grey.

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Kärntner ReindlingCinnamon raisin yeast cake

Carinthia's Easter loaf takes its name from the Reindl, the round, deep pan it is baked in, and in southern Austria no Easter basket goes to church without one. Inside the golden yeast crust is a spiral of butter, cinnamon sugar and plump raisins, so every slice shows a dark swirl. Locals eat it two ways: sweet with coffee on Easter morning, or alongside the savoury Easter platter with horseradish. Many bakers soak the raisins in rum overnight; warm water or tea works just as well and keeps it alcohol-free. A dry, crumbly Reindling usually means too much flour went in during kneading, so keep the dough soft and only lightly floured. Chef's tip: butter the pan well and dust it with sugar, which caramelises into a thin crunchy shell.

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Gorditas de nataSweet cream griddle cakes

In central Mexico, from Mexico City markets to kitchens in Hidalgo and Puebla, gorditas de nata were traditionally made with the thick skin of cream (nata) skimmed from boiled milk, and grandmothers still cook them on the comal for an afternoon merienda with hot chocolate or milky coffee. They are soft and cakey inside with a lightly crisp, golden face, somewhere between a scone and a pancake. Double cream stands in for nata here. They contain gluten, milk and egg. Chef's tip: keep the comal on a low-medium heat; these brown quickly because of the cream and sugar.

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Nasi tumpengTurmeric coconut rice cone

In Java, and now across Indonesia, a birthday, a new house or a child's first school day is marked with a tumpeng: a tall cone of golden turmeric rice cooked in coconut milk, set on a banana leaf and surrounded by side dishes. The top is cut off and handed to the guest of honour, often the birthday child, before everyone shares the rest. This home version keeps the sides mild for children: sweet soy chicken, boiled eggs, crisp tempeh and blanched vegetables. It contains soya and egg. For a vegetarian tumpeng, leave out the chicken and double the tempeh. Chef's tip: pack the rice into a cone made from a rolled sheet of baking paper or a large funnel lined with cling film, then turn it out in one go.

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Bubur merah putih (red and white porridge)

In Java, bubur merah putih is cooked for a baby's naming day, a child's birthday or a new house: a red-brown porridge sweetened with palm sugar and a white one rich with coconut milk, spooned side by side into one bowl. The red is said to stand for courage and the white for purity, and the bowls are shared with neighbours as thanks. The family and older children eat the sweetened red half; it is not for babies under one because of the sugar. Free of milk, egg, gluten, nuts and soya. Chef's tip: tie a pandan leaf in a knot and simmer it in both pots for a gentle vanilla-like scent.

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BizcochueloPlain whisked sponge cake

Nearly every Argentine birthday torta starts life as a bizcochuelo: a tall, plain sponge of eggs, sugar, flour and cornflour, with no butter and no baking powder, lifted only by long whisking. Grandmothers bake it on Sunday to split into three and fill with dulce de leche and whipped cream, or eat it plain in the afternoon with mate. The crumb is fine, dry-ish and airy, made to soak up syrup. Opening the oven in the first 20 minutes is the classic way to flatten it, so leave the door shut. Chef's tip: whisk until the mixture reaches 'punto letra', thick enough that a ribbon drawn on the surface holds its shape for a few seconds; that takes a good 8–10 minutes with an electric mixer, and warm eggs get there faster.

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TelerasSoft two-groove sandwich rolls

Without teleras there would be no torta, Mexico City's great lunchtime sandwich. These wide, flattish oval rolls, marked with two long grooves, have a thin, tender crust and a soft, close crumb that holds refried beans, avocado, queso and pickled jalapeños without falling apart. Every neighbourhood panadería piles them on metal trays next to the crustier bolillos, and street stalls toast them on a griddle before filling. Some bakers add a spoonful of lard to the dough; vegetable shortening gives the same softness and keeps these vegan. Pressing the grooves too gently is the usual mistake, because they puff closed in the oven and you lose the three-part shape. Chef's tip: for a proper torta, split the roll, pull out a little of the crumb and toast the cut sides on a hot comal with a smear of oil or butter.

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Rice atole for babies (atole de arroz)

Atole is the warm, thick drink Mexicans have sipped since before the conquest, and in many homes the first version a baby tastes is atole de arroz, ground rice cooked with a stick of true cinnamon. For grown-ups it is sweetened with piloncillo and drunk at breakfast or on cold evenings around Día de Muertos; for babies the sugar stays out and it is thickened enough to eat from a spoon. It contains milk; there is no egg, gluten, nuts, soya, sesame or fish. Chef's tip: grind the rice yourself in a spice grinder; shop-bought rice flour works, but freshly ground rice tastes sweeter.

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Pan de yemaEgg yolk bread with sesame

Sesame-flecked and burnished almost to mahogany, Oaxaca's pan de yema is made for dunking. Bakeries in the city and in the bread town of San Antonio de la Cal turn it out daily, but it is most loved around Día de Muertos, when it sits on the family altar with marigolds and a painted dough face, and is broken into bowls of frothy Oaxacan hot chocolate made with water or milk. The crumb is dense, yellow and close, with a gentle orange note. Some bakers use lard; butter and vegetable shortening are used here so it stays vegetarian. A pale loaf is the giveaway of skipping the second yolk wash: brush twice for that deep, shiny crust. Chef's tip: the dough is heavy and sticky with yolks, so knead it by machine and resist adding flour; it firms up as it develops.

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Telur gulung (Indonesian rolled egg skewers)

Telur gulung is a cheap, cheerful street snack sold from little carts outside primary schools across Java, where children watch the vendor pour beaten egg into hot oil and roll it onto a stick in seconds. The result is a puffy, golden, slightly crisp egg spiral, usually eaten with a squirt of chilli or tomato sauce. At home it is easy to make in a small pan with a little more care. It contains egg. Chef's tip: the oil must be hot enough that a drop of egg puffs up instantly; in cool oil the egg sinks and turns greasy.

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Roti bakar (Indonesian toasted bread)

Roti bakar stalls light up street corners all over Indonesia from late afternoon, and children from Jakarta to Surabaya beg for the classic filling of chocolate sprinkles with grated cheese, an unlikely pairing that works. Thick slices of soft bread are spread with butter, toasted on a hot plate until crisp and golden, filled and cut into fingers. Traditional versions add a lot of condensed milk; here it is an optional drizzle. It contains gluten and milk (and may contain soya in the chocolate). Chef's tip: press the bread flat with a spatula as it toasts so the filling melts into it.

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Nasi tim ayam for toddlersSteamed chicken and mushroom rice

Nasi tim ayam comes from the Chinese-Indonesian kitchens of Java, and is the meal many Indonesian children eat when they first move on from porridge: rice steamed slowly in a bowl over diced chicken and mushrooms until very soft, then turned out like a little dome. For toddlers the seasoning is just garlic, ginger, a few drops of sesame oil and a little low-salt soy sauce. It contains soya and gluten (soy sauce) and sesame. Chef's tip: use no-salt stock in the rice; it soaks up the flavour of the chicken as it steams.

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Bubur ayam for little onesChicken rice porridge for babies

Bubur ayam is breakfast from street carts all over West Java and the rest of Indonesia: soft rice porridge topped with shredded chicken, fried shallots, crackers and sweet soy. At home, families cook one plain pot fragrant with ginger and salam leaf, take out the baby's bowl first, unsalted, with the chicken finely shredded, and add the toppings for everyone else. The baby's portion has none of the common allergens (milk, egg, gluten, peanut, tree nuts, soya, sesame, fish); the family toppings add soya and gluten. Chef's tip: cooking the rice in the chicken poaching liquid gives the baby's bowl plenty of flavour without salt.

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Roti buayaCrocodile-shaped bread

Crocodiles, to the Betawi people of Jakarta, stand for faithfulness: they are said to take one mate for life. So in a Betawi wedding procession the groom's family carries a pair of roti buaya, a large male crocodile bread and a female one, often with a baby crocodile on her back, alongside the other gifts for the bride. Once the ceremony is over the bread is cut and shared among the guests and neighbours. Old-style roti buaya was plain and firm; today's are soft, lightly sweet milk bread, and some are filled with chocolate or kaya. Eat slices with coffee or sweet tea. Snipping the scales too shallowly is a common slip, since they close up as the dough rises; cut decisively at a steep angle. Chef's tip: shape the crocodile straight on the lined tray and build it from one main log, adding only the legs, so it does not crack apart in the oven.

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Sopa de letras (Mexican alphabet soup)

Sopa de letras is the soup almost every Mexican child grows up on, served as the 'sopa aguada' course at the midday meal: tiny letter-shaped pasta, toasted golden in oil, then simmered in a broth of blended tomato, onion and garlic with soft diced carrot. For toddlers it is made with a no-salt vegetable stock, so the sweetness of the tomato comes through. It contains gluten (wheat); it has no milk, egg, nuts, soya, sesame or fish. Chef's tip: toast the pasta until it smells nutty and turns light gold; that is where the flavour comes from.

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Bean and cheese burrito

In Sonora and the rest of northern Mexico, where wheat tortillas are an everyday bread, a burrito of refried beans and cheese is one of the simplest things to wrap in foil for a child's school lunch or an after-school snack. The beans are fried with a little onion and cumin until thick and creamy, then rolled up with cheese and toasted so it melts. It contains milk and gluten (wheat tortillas). Chef's tip: warm the tortillas before filling them; cold ones crack when you roll them.

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Huevo con papa toddler tacos

Huevo con papa is a breakfast and supper standby in kitchens all over Mexico: small cubes of potato fried until tender, then scrambled with egg and rolled into warm tortillas. Mild, soft and easy to hold, it is a favourite for toddlers from a year old, and the grown-ups add salsa to their own. It contains egg; made with 100% corn tortillas it has no gluten, and it has no milk, nuts, soya, sesame or fish. Chef's tip: cut the potato into small 1 cm cubes and cover the pan for the first few minutes, so it steams tender before it browns.

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Bean broth for babies (caldito de frijol)

Mexican families nearly always have a pot of frijoles de la olla on the stove, and before the salt goes in a cup of caldito is set aside for the baby. Black or pinto beans are cooked slowly with a piece of onion until they collapse; the broth is offered first on its own and, a week or two later, thickened with the sieved bean flesh into a smooth, earthy purée. Families from Oaxaca to Monterrey give it at midday, the time of the main meal. It has none of the common allergens (milk, egg, gluten, peanut, tree nuts, soya, sesame, fish). Chef's tip: soak the beans overnight and change the water; they cook more evenly and are easier on small tummies.

130 minMexicanSoupsVeganGluten free
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Torta de jamón (Mexican ham sandwich)

The torta de jamón is the classic recreo (school break) sandwich across Mexico, sold at school gates and made at home before the morning rush: a crusty bolillo roll, toasted on the griddle, spread with refried beans, then layered with ham, fresh cheese, avocado and tomato. Grown-ups add pickled jalapeños. It contains gluten (wheat), milk and egg (mayonnaise). Chef's tip: spread the beans right to the edges of the bottom half; they act as a barrier so tomato juice doesn't soak the bread.

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Espagueti blanco (creamy white spaghetti)

At Mexican children's birthday parties and family gatherings, a big tray of espagueti blanco usually sits next to the chicken and the salads: soft spaghetti in a mild, silky sauce of cream, cream cheese and butter, sometimes with a little onion and garlic blended in. Some families add diced ham; this version keeps it vegetarian with sweetcorn. It contains milk and gluten. Chef's tip: blend the sauce while it is warm so it is perfectly smooth, then toss it with the pasta off the heat so it stays creamy.

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Pan chutaAniseed round bread

The small town of Oropesa, half an hour from Cusco, calls itself Peru's bread capital, and its wood-fired bakeries are famous for chuta: big, flat, round loaves as wide as a dinner plate, glossy on top, with a faint sweetness and the warmth of aniseed. Travellers on the road to Puno and Bolivia stop to buy them by the bagful, and families bring them home for All Saints' Day and for sharing with hot coca tea or coffee, fresh cheese and butter. The bakeries traditionally use lard; this version uses vegetable shortening and butter, so it is vegetarian. The make-or-break moment is the proof: chuta is large and flat, and if it goes in under-risen it bakes dense and splits at the rim. Chef's tip: toast the aniseed for a minute in a dry pan and crush it lightly before adding, for a rounder, sweeter perfume.

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ChaplasHollow puffed Andean bread

Walk through Ayacucho's central market at seven in the morning and you will see women selling stacks of chaplas from cloth-lined baskets, still warm from the wood-fired ovens of the Andes. These round wheat breads puff up like pita in the fierce heat, leaving a hollow pocket inside a thin, soft, lightly floury crust. In Ayacucho and Huancavelica they are eaten with sweet coffee or hot emoliente for breakfast, or split and filled with queso fresco, avocado or a spoonful of rocoto sauce. Highland bakers traditionally work in a little lard; vegetable shortening gives the same tenderness and keeps the bread vegan. A cool baking tray is the reason chaplas stay flat, so preheat it thoroughly. Chef's tip: let the rolled rounds rest before baking and flip them upside down onto the tray, so the smooth, dry side meets the heat first and the pocket opens evenly.

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Cilok (Sundanese tapioca balls with peanut sauce)

Cilok comes from Bandung in West Java, where its name is short for 'aci dicolok', tapioca you stab with a stick, and vendors sell it outside schools from steaming carts. The little balls are chewy and bouncy with garlic and spring onion through them, dunked in a thick peanut sauce that is sweet, savoury and only gently spicy for children. It contains peanuts, soya and gluten (sweet soy sauce). Chef's tip: pour boiling water onto part of the starch first; that scalded paste is what keeps cilok soft and stretchy instead of hard.

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ErdäpfelstrudelSavoury potato strudel

Austrians, especially in the Mühlviertel of Upper Austria and the Waldviertel, make savoury strudels as often as sweet ones, and Erdäpfelstrudel is a farmhouse favourite for a meatless Friday or a cold evening. Thin pastry wraps a filling of potatoes, fried onion, sour cream, marjoram and parsley, baked until crisp and golden and sliced with a green salad or a dill and sour-cream dip. Bought filo makes it easy at home. The mistake to avoid is a wet filling, which turns the pastry soggy underneath. Chef's tip: cool the filling completely before rolling; warm filling makes the layers stick and tear.

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