Junior Recipe Testers

Meet our food and recipe testers!

Aarav

Aarav brings curiosity and perseverance to everything he does—including exploring foods. He loves gnawing moringa, exfoliating in pumpkin, scooping lasagna, nibbling coconut malai, and devouring yogurt (hello dips and chaas!). He’s game to try any of the foods offered by his Gujarati (Indian) and German American family, just don’t expect him to sit when cleaning his face.

Adie

Deliberate and fastidious, Adie is carefully testing each of the foods in our free First Foods® database. She is the twin sister of Max and a founding member of the #ladieswholoveliver and #solidhairity movements.

Amelia Jane, Texas

Amelia is a 12-month-old feisty, strong-willed Latina/Iranian girl eager to try new foods. Her favorite meal is traditional picadillo with saffron rice and a side of breast milk on tap. Green beans may not be her cup of tea, but she’ll go to town on some blackberries. Amelia, with the help of her personal clean-up dog Hachi, continues to tackle the best flavors and dishes.

Asher Ray, Missouri

Asher Ray is a true foodie and has yet to find a food he doesn’t like. Born with a bilateral cleft lip and palate, Asher initially struggled with early weight gain but is now thriving after starting solids. Asher looks forward to every meal and every opportunity to try new foods.

Beau, Illinois

Beau is the first to the kitchen for every meal and no plate is safe with this guy around. He’s willing to try anything once and loves hearty breakfast foods. He only asks that you hold the mango and cheese, please!

Bennett, Georgia

Bennett is a mango-loving kid living in Georgia, USA. An adventurous eater, Bennett has yet to refuse a new food. While mangoes reign supreme, his other food favorites include strawberries, steak, and Greek yogurt. Bennett’s dad is an officer in the Army and his family is looking forward to living in many different places and trying various cuisines over the next few years.

Bobbi, Illinois

Bobbi loves to eat. She’ll clear her plate and then move on to her big sister’s. She loves fruit and will happily demolish a pint of raspberries at a time. Willing to explore and play with all foods, she finds green veggies to be perfectly suited for testing gravity.

Broly, Oklahoma

Caden, California

Caden is a voracious eater exploring his way through the First Foods® database. He’ll gleefully scarf down strawberries and squish his oatmeal but prefers to decorate the floor with chicken and hide eggs in his belly rolls. Caden loves different food textures and experimenting with the effects of gravity on dinner.

Callie, Canada

Born of Filipino descent, it’s not surprising that Callie's favorite foods are sinigang, fish, rice, and corn. She loves playing the drums, sweeping the floor, and peeling all the garlic in the pantry.

Charles, Montana

Cooper, Washington

Cooper thinks almost everything tastes better with garlic, greek yogurt, or grapefruit, but finds corn on the cob perplexing. His favorite mealtime activities include dance parties, and imitating his favorite farm animals between bites.

Elliott, Maryland

Elliott is new to eating solids and loves playing with food even if it doesn’t always make it to his mouth. So far, his favorite food is banana, and he’s not fond of sweet potato. When he’s not exploring his culinary preferences, Elliott’s favorite thing to do is play with his Greater Swiss Mountain dog, Silas.

Hawii, Nairobi, Kenya

Isar, Los Angeles 

Isar is an adventurous guy who devours any kind of beans as long as they aren’t green.  He’s part of a plant-based family and is obsessed with fruits, specifically pears and blueberries. This little thrill-seeker climbs anything in sight, enjoys water/sensory play, and loves animals and books.

Julian, California

Juliet Rose, North Carolina

Juliet is a food fanatic and loves to savor every bite. She has yet to try something she doesn’t fancy and her canine sidekick, Prince, ensures clean-up is a breeze. Juliet is Latina with Guatemalan, Mexican, and Puerto Rican descent. She’s part of a military family, always going new places and exploring new foods and recipes.

Kai, Florida

Kai is an avid eater and has been since birth. She's usually the first to the dinner table. Her favorite foods are barbecue “chichen” and “noonles.” She moonlights as a sauce connoisseur and platano thief much to the dismay of her parents. She proudly embraces her Afro-Latinidad through language and diet. Kai is a new over-loving big sister and embracing her newfound toddler independence. She looks forward to showing her little brother the ropes at the dinner table and making many happy messes with him by her side.

Kaia, California

Born in Hawaii, Kaia can't wait to try all the local foods her family loves like laulau, poke, and poi. She enjoys watching mom and dad cook dinner in the kitchen, and, for now, will settle for the occasional zucchini stick until she officially starts solids at 6 months.

Kalani, Ohio

Leila, New York

Leila is a passionate eater and will try almost anything she can scoop with a spoon. She’s never refused a piece of fruit or beans but is skeptical of potatoes in any form. She loves sharing food with her moms and little sister.

Leo, England UK

Leo is enthusiastic about food and will try anything as long as he can feed himself. He’s fond of cheese, nut butters, and zucchini, but will pass on the sauerkraut. When he’s not exploring the food scene, you can find Leo practicing his walking and dance moves with his Nigerian dad and Romanian mom.

Lina, New Jersey

Maëlys, New York

Maëlys is a little investigator who enjoys inspecting every piece of food she puts in her mouth. She hails from a Dominican-Haitian household and her favorite food is platano maduro, or sweet plantain. Maëlys is quite the chatterbox and enjoys sharing meals with her big sister.

Mahalia, Maryland

Mahalia loves trying new foods, especially if it’s fruit. Her favorite foods change often but always include oranges and green beans. She only asks to forgo the scallops, please!

Max

Our most aggressive recipe tester, Max likes to shovel food in by the palmful and to test gravity with meatballs. Skeptical of orange-colored foods but willing to try anything green, Max is personally tasting every vegetable in our free First Foods® database.

Mila

Mila is a happy, inquisitive girl of Iranian, German, and Irish descent.  She finds great joy in exploring her world through touch and taste. Mila recently started solids and loves tasting and holding new foods. She is working her way through our free First Foods® database and enjoying every bite. So far, her favorite foods include broccoli, bananas, and steak. Mila’s sidekick Jaxon, a miniature Australian Shepherd, thoroughly enjoys Mila’s eating adventures and makes sure no food goes to waste.

Nkosi, New York

Master of filling his cheeks to capacity, Nkosi is an adventurous eater who will try almost any food as long as he can hold it first. He loves fruit but has a burning passion for noodles…all types of noodles.

Patrick, Chicago

A proclaimed carnivore, Patrick loves all kinds of meat, from seafood to chicken, steak to ribs (his all-time favorite!). When meals are plated, the meat is gone first, and the sides linger a bit longer. When he is finished eating, he lets it be known by using food as his favorite word.... a BALL!

Quaide, Kansas

Quaide loves his papás Saturday morning pancakes and Greek yogurt. He is still acclimating to tomatoes, but happy to try a taste when offered. At mealtime, you can Quaide sharing giggles with his brother.

Quentin, Texas

Quentin is an eager Belizean-American eater willing to try everything at least once. He’s game to explore traditional favorites, exotic tastes, fun textures, and bright colors. His current favorites are all things orange: carrots, clementine, and cantaloupe. Day by day, Quentin succeeds in getting more food to his mouth than on the floor.

Riley, California

Riley is a Korean Taiwanese American who currently loves staining her clothes black with portobello, gnawing through zucchini sticks, and styling her hair with yogurt. She loves including the family dog in mealtime and makes sure he is well-fed. Riley doesn’t quite love kimchi yet, but her Korean momma offers lots of opportunities to become familiar with it!

Riley

Riley is a two-time Chinese American born to a Cantonese and Mandarin-speaking household. She loves broccoli and thinks grapefruit is only worth smashing. Riley has a few allergies including milk, egg, and peanuts, but still loves stuffing her cheeks full of food. Her next challenge? Dim sum! Riley's chic pink helmet helps correct plagiocephaly (flat head).

Sebastián, Canada

Sebastián, lovingly known as Sebí is a voracious foodie at the tender age of 7 months. He enjoys gnawing on chicken legs and T-bone steaks. He also loves his greens: avocados, broccoli, asparagus, and especially bok choy. Sebastián enjoys supervising meal prep activities and never misses an opportunity to sharpen his skills with a whisk.

William, Louisiana

William is a spunky little eater willing to try just about anything. He lights up for a bone without meat, broccoli, or almond butter. If he can’t get his spoon or food spear to his mouth fast enough, he resorts to a more direct route — head diving into his plate for a bite. Every now and then, he thinks his food is so tasty that his furry brother deserves a bite too.

Zeke, South Carolina

Zuri, Florida

Solid Starts compensates a number of families as part of its effort to ensure babies from all over the world are represented in our work. To inquire about being considered for the program, contact [email protected] and include the following information: baby's age, date of starting solids, location, family heritage, and any cultural information that is important to you.