Learn how to make the easiest breastmilk popsicles for your baby or toddler. Breastmilk popsicles are super helpful for relieving teething pain, sore throats, or just for a healthy ‘treat’!
Medically reviewed and cowritten by Jamie Johnson, Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN), and Lauren Braaten, Pediatric Occupational Therapist (OT).
Homemade Breast Milk Popsicles
Imagine taking all the wonderful benefits of breast milk and putting it into a refreshing popsicle treat for your teething baby. Now that’s a smart snack!
Homemade breast milk popsicles are a great alternative to other types of popsicles, snacks, or less healthy ‘treats’ for babies and younger toddlers. And depending on the age of your baby, you can even add in fruits and veggies to introduce your little one to new flavors and textures.
New to making homemade baby food? If you answered yes, then I suggest you start this journey by reading my in-depth Guide on How to Make Homemade Baby Food. The detailed article goes over all the essential information such as the best cooking tools to have on hand, safe storage, knowing when your baby is ready for solids, introducing purees, making the best first foods for baby, and more! You can also check out my best-selling cookbook for even more information and recipes.
Reasons to Love Breast Milk Popsicles
- Easy to make
- Helpful for relieving teething pain
- Perfect way to use up extra breast milk
- Provides another form of hydration for babies and toddlers during warm weather
- Helpful for soothing sore throats
- Offers a fun sensory experience for baby
- Healthier ‘treat’ option for growing babies and toddlers
Ingredients
- Breast Milk: you can use breast milk, formula, or a blend of both.
- Fruit (optional): once your baby is closer to 6 months of age and you’ve started introducing solid foods, you can start by blending in a fruit or veggie with your breast milk popsicles.
Health Benefits of Breast Milk Popsicles
These breast milk popsicles are one of the most nutritious things for your baby. Because breast milk…
- is full of nutrients designs specifically for your baby
- has antibodies to help fight infection and build a strong immune system for your baby
- is easily digestible
- reduces the chances of developing certain health conditions like ear infections, asthma, RSV, SIDS, eczema, and type 2 diabetes later on.
- And depending on if you choose to add a fruit or veggie blend, they will be getting added vitamins and minerals from those.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Pour fresh breast milk or formula into your popsicle molds. If your baby has been introduced to solids, you can blend breast milk or formula with a pureed fruit or veggie before pouring into molds.
- Freeze for at least 5 hours, but preferably overnight.
- Serve to baby!
Fruits & Veggies Add-Ins
Once your baby starts solid foods, you can try adding a fruit or veggie to these breast milk popsicles for an extra flavorful treat. We recommend adding just one food at a time, so you can be aware of any foods that may cause allergic reactions in your baby.
- blueberries
- bananas
- strawberries
- spinach
- sweet potato (cooked)
- mango
- carrots (cooked)
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! Feel free to use what works for your family. You can use formula only, breast milk only, or a combination of formula and breast milk for these popsicles.
Your baby will likely be able to enjoy these popsicles when they are at least 6 months of age. Although babies typically start bringing objects like toys to their mouth sooner than this (around 4 months of age), it’s usually pretty difficult for a baby younger than 6 months to hold onto AND bring these popsicles to their mouths efficiently.
Storage
Store popsicles in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 6 months.
Best Popsicle Molds for Baby
These popsicle molds are all very budget-friendly ($10-20) and are definitely worth the cost, as you can use them for years to make so many different kinds of popsicles.
Expert Tips
- Be sure to use fresh breast milk when making popsicles. It is NOT recommended to use thawed, previously frozen breast milk and then refreeze it into popsicle molds, as this may cause unwanted bacterial growth.
- The mixed consistency of popsicles – both liquid and semi-solid at the same time – may cause some initial coughing for your baby, which is normal. Even with that said, it’s always a good idea to use supervision when feeding your baby.
- Smaller popsicle molds like the ones recommended above will be the best serving size and grasping size for little hands.
- If your popsicles seem to be sticking in the mold, running the base under warm water for about 30 seconds will help release a popsicle easily.
- 1 cup fresh breast milk or formula
- 3 tbsp fruit or veggie add-ins (optional)
Yield: 1 cup of popsicle mixture, which was 4 small popsicles
Just Breast Milk Popsicles: if you prefer not to add any fruits or veggies to your popsicles, you can simply pour the breast milk into the popsicle molds and freeze for at least 5 hours.
Fruit or Veggie Add-Ins
- blueberries
- bananas
- strawberries
- spinach
- sweet potato (cooked)
- mango
- carrots (cooked)