When Belle was a baby, I was meticulous about introducing her to new flavors and ingredients. Certain fruits, like pomegranate, were never introduced because they were a choking hazard at that early stage, and then I dialed back my efforts because our family was busy. Anyway, she’s never had pomegranate.
Time to change that. Pomegranates are in season (late September through January).
The Prep: I pulled out two bowls and Belle pulled out two aprons. We sat at the dining room table with the fruit and got to work! I did most of the work breaking it apart, while Belle did most of the work scraping the seeds out. Note that we only lost about 10 seeds (of a full pint’s worth) to the floor – victory! – but we did need to wipe the table of pom juice afterwards.
The Look: Like a “red apple,” according to Belle.
The Feel: Belle described the pomegranate as “heavy,” while I suggested it was also “smooth.” I asked again later what the seeds felt like, suggesting “slimy, sticky, smooth, maybe squishy, maybe firm” but she just shrugged.
The Smell and Taste: Belle said it smelled like apple, but didn’t taste like apple. In fact, she offered “yuck” unprompted for the taste.
The Recipes: Belle did think the seeds would work well with apple (her thought), and agreed they would work well in a salad (mine). We’ll have to experiment!
The Experience: Belle decided it was fun, that I should eat more pomegranate, that Buddy shouldn’t eat any pomegranate, and that we should pull more poms apart.
Ingredient explorations work on:
- language to describe sensory experiences
- fine motor
- sorting (edible from inedible)
- expanding palates
- pincer grasp
- food prep!
See some extension ideas and get a free printable in our next post!
Baking with Belle 