The world of baby food is a minefield of conflicting advice. One side swears by age-old traditions — ragi porridge, sprouted grains, and homemade ghee — while the other promotes modern nutrition trends like baby-led weaning and protein-packed purées. Enter Chef Shilarna Vaze, whose new book Baby Knows Best bridges this divide, offering Indian parents a fresh, practical approach to feeding their babies.
Shilarna’s journey began on Instagram when she was pregnant, sharing what she ate and how she introduced food to her daughter. As a chef, a mum, and someone deeply invested in nutrition, she found herself drawn to both traditional baby foods and the latest in holistic nutrition. But she noticed a gap — most baby food books were Western, focusing on butternut squash purées and freezer-friendly meals, which were at odds with Indian wisdom of soaking, sprouting, and fermenting. Her book brings the best of both worlds together, combining ancestral knowledge with practical, modern solutions.
With overwhelming amount of conflicting information on baby nutrition Shilarna acknowledges the real struggle. “Western baby food guides often emphasise things that aren’t realistic for Indian households, like feeding babies chicken liver or completely rejecting purées in favour of baby-led weaning. Meanwhile, traditional Indian weaning foods tend to be carb-heavy and lack nutrient density,” she says. Through Baby Knows Best, she wants to help parents reclaim the basics — simple home-cooked meals that are nutritious, practical, and adaptable to modern lifestyles.
Striking a balance between traditional and global influences was also important to her, simply because that’s how she eats. “I didn’t want to only give my daughter khichdi, and neither did I only want to give her sushi,” she explains. Growing up in a mixed-cultural household and living in an era where kids are exposed to diverse cuisines, she wanted her daughter to enjoy the best of all worlds.
So what should Indian parents focus on when introducing solids? “Sprouting and fermenting are key,” she says. These processes make grains more bioavailable and enhance their nutritional value. She also highlights the power of traditional vegetarian protein combinations — like dal, rice, and ghee, which together form a complete protein. “Spices like turmeric, ginger powder, cinnamon, and saffron are also Indian superfoods, not just for flavour but for their digestive and immunity-boosting properties. Even simple home remedies — like the coriander-cumin-fennel tea I give my daughter for tummy aches instead of Cyclopam for babies — are nutritional gold,” she explains.
Meal prep can feel overwhelming, but her book includes hacks to make life easier. She recommends prepping in bulk — soaking and sprouting beans to freeze, making large portions of tomato sauce or chicken stock, and keeping versatile homemade staples like nut powders and seed mixes on hand. These small habits allow parents to put together nutrient-dense meals quickly.
And what about picky eaters? Shilarna believes that parents shouldn’t stress too much. “I don’t believe in treating the kitchen like a restaurant, where kids get endless options in one meal,” she notes. Her own daughter, once the perfect baby-led weaning eater, went through a phase where she only ate fried prawns, bhindi, and chapati for a year. Rather than force variety, she focused on ensuring that she did eat was nutritious. She encourages parents to introduce different foods, take kids to markets, and get them involved in cooking — but ultimately, some kids will be picky, and that’s okay.
Shilarna’s approach has garnered support from many celebrities; actress Anushka Sharma, who wrote the foreword, being one of them. Their connection began when Shilarna catered for Anushka, but their bond truly grew over conversations about children’s nutrition during Anushka’s pregnancy. Their shared passion for clean eating and holistic food choices made Anushka the perfect person to introduce this book.
And if there’s one golden rule for parents starting their baby’s food journey? “I hate to say it, but they should buy my book,” she jokes. But beyond that, she believes in reclaiming the basics — learning how to make simple staples at home instead of outsourcing everything. “It’s not just about nutrition,” she explains, “But about feeling empowered. Making dosa batter, dahi, or ghee at home might seem old-school, but it allows parents to control ingredients and build a solid food foundation for their child.”
With 150 recipes, DIY hacks for homemade staples, expert advice from paediatric nutritionist Sanchita Daswani, and practical tips for meal prep, soaking, fermenting, and tackling dietary restrictions, the book is a comprehensive guide for parents navigating their baby’s food journey.
Healthy Homemade Teething Biscuits
Age: 6.5 months
Time: 1 hour
INGREDIENTS
2 cups oats, powdered
1 banana, mashed
½ tsp cinnamon
A pinch of clove powder
2 tbsp coconut oil
4 tbsp water
METHOD
PREHEAT. Preheat the oven to 200-210°C
Line the baking tray with parchment paper.
PREP. Blitz the oats in a mixer to make flour.
DOUGH. In a mixing bowl, mix all the ingredients to make a soft, slightly sticky dough.
SHAPE. Slightly oil the surface and pat the dough ¼ inch thick and cut into rectangular sticks or use cutters to make interesting shapes.
BAKE. Transfer onto a lined baking tray and bake for 15-20 min.
REST. Once baked, turn off oven and let them sit in the oven for 20 min. to harden more. The longer they stay in the oven the harder they will get.
STORE. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week in the fridge or up to 3 months in the freezer.
Broccoli Sweet Potato Purée
Age: 6 months
Time: 20 minutes.
INGREDIENTS
1/8 cup (2 tbsp) broccoli
¼ cup (4 tbsp) sweet potato
½ tsp ground pumpkin seed powder
½ tsp coconut oil or ghee
¼-½ cup liquid (veg stock, chicken stock, bone broth, water, breast milk or formula milk)
METHOD
PREP. Chop broccoli into florets and dice the sweet potato.
STEAM. Prepare your saucepan or steamer with water and place the steamer basket over it.
Put the sweet potato first and steam for 10 min.
Then add broccoli for 10 more min., or until they are very tender.
BLEND/MASH. In a mixer jar, purée the broccoli, sweet potato, pumpkin seeds powder and oil, or mash using a fork. Add the liquid to adjust the consistency.
STORE. You can store it in an airtight container in the fridge for 4 days. Or freeze in an ice-cube tray or baby food silicon container with lid. Once frozen, pop out and store in a freezer bag or a container for up to 3 months.
Brekkie Mango Cardamom Srikhand
Age: 7 months
(after introducing dairy)
Time : 1 hr 5 min
INGREDIENTS
½ cup fresh yogurt/dahi
Fresh grated coconut
1 tsp roasted powdered rice
1/8 tsp roasted powdered cardamom
¼ cup mango, preferably hapus (Alphonso), peeled and cubed
Honey or any natural sweetener (only after 1 year)
METHOD
HANG. Spread a muslin cloth in a strainer and add dahi to it or tie dahi up in a muslin cloth and hang for 1 hr. Press to squeeze out excess water.
DRY ROAST. Roast ¼ cup rice in a nonstick pan. Grind in mixer till it is a smooth powder. Dry-roast a few cardamoms, take out the seeds and grind fine. Measure out required amounts of both and mix.
BLEND. Blend mango and yogurt in a mixer till smooth.
MIX. Add in the rice-cardamom mix.
Serve fresh.