Make the most of this humble but delicious fruit with our Healthy Papaya Recipes for babies and kids! Try smoothies, puddings, halwa and more!

After bananas, one fruit that I’ve seen a lot in Indian backyards is the papaya. There’s something so interesting about the texture, when raw the flesh resembles an unripe melon, but raw papayas are like mangoes – mushy and messy, but delish!

It’s not just about the taste too, papayas are packed with all kinds of nutrients. So when you find this wonderful fruit in season and abundantly available, it’s time to put it to good use – with some healthy papaya recipes for babies and kids!

30 Healthy Papaya Recipes for Babies and Kids

(The recipes listed below are suitable for babies over 6 months. If you’d like to know if your baby can have papaya, check out our post on ‘Can I give my baby Papaya?‘)

1. Papaya Puree for Babies

This is the most basic recipe that babies can have – papaya puree. If your papaya is quite ripe, you can mash it up without any equipment. A ripe papaya will blend into a smooth puree and the natural sweetness will make baby enjoy it.

2. Papaya Mango Pear Puree

One Handed Cooks takes the regular papaya puree to another level by adding mango and pear to it. This tropical combination is both delicious and packed with nutrients.

3. Cantaloupe and Papaya Milkshake for Babies

Babies can enjoy this ‘milkshake’ too, made without cow’s milk. OTips uses natural yogurt instead of cow’s milk, and you can add watermelon instead of cantaloupes for a different taste.

4. Vegan Papaya Banana Smoothie

Here is another refreshing papaya drink for babies, from Vegan Family Recipes. The recipe uses interesting ingredients like pineapple and ginger to give your baby something different to taste.

5. Fruity Breakfast Treat

OTips has a great ideas to ramping up your baby’s regular oatmeal – just add papaya! It not only makes the oatmeal sweeter, but also adds flavor and makes it more filling.

6. Papaya Apple Ice Lollies

These ice lollies from Baking Queen use just two ingredients and are perfect for summer! These are great for teething babies to soothe their sore gums while also getting some fruit nutrients in.

7. Easy Vegan Papaya Ice Cream

Babies under one can’t have milk, but that doesn’t mean they can’t have ice cream! Check out this recipe from Sprouting Zen that makes a rich dessert with cashews, coconut cream and dates.

8. Papaya with Coconut Topping

Papaya bites make a great finger food idea for babies, but if you’d like to take it up a notch, try this smart idea from Smart Bites for Baby. Make sure your baby won’t choke on the coconut – in which case it’s better to skip it.

(The recipes below are suitable for children one year and above)

9. Papaya Lemonade

Few things are as refreshing as lemonade during a hot summer’s day, and Caroline’s Cooking makes it even better by adding papaya, cilantro and honey!

10. Immunobooster Smoothie

Boost your family’s immunity during monsoons and winters with a power packed Immunity boosting smoothie, containing top immune-boosting ingredients.

11. Papaya Carrot Banana Smoothie

Start your child’s morning on a healthy note with a nutritious smoothie containing papaya, banana and carrots. The bright color alone is enough to attract kids to this delicious drink.

12. Papaya Lassi

If your kids are bored with regular lassi, why not add a little something to it – like papaya! My Cooking Journey gives us a recipe that also contains the added flavor of cardamom. Just be sure to adjust the sugar as per your needs.

13. Dehydrated Papaya Snack

If the kids need a snack while watching TV, swap out the greasy chips and processed foods with something healthier and tastier – a dehydrated papaya snack. Check out the instructions to make these on Leaf TV.

14. Homemade Papaya Fruit Roll Ups

Just like dehydrated papaya, these fruit roll ups are also a wonderful snack for kids. Little Grazers has a recipe that uses just three ingredients and is super easy to make.

15. Papaya Jam

Give your everyday toast an extra boost of antioxidants and immunity boosting enzymes with this papaya jam recipe from Manus Menu. The sugar in the recipe is on the higher side, so you can adjust it to your requirement.

16. Papaya Fruit Boat

We absolutely love the open ended nature of these papaya boats form Move Nourish Believe! You can add anything you like to this, and even add a scoop of ice cream – kids will never realize how much fruit they’re eating!

17. Grilled Papaya Dessert

Turning Clock Back gives us an easy grilled papaya dessert that’s an interesting way to eat this fruit. Check out all her grilling tips for fruits – perfect for a kiddie party!

18. Sorghum Papaya Pancakes

Why make pancakes out of wheat when you can make them even better with sorghum? That Girl Cooks Healthy offers us a lovely pancake recipe that’s perfect for family members who have a gluten intolerance.

19. Papaya Chicken

Ripe papaya and chicken – this is a combination that’s much tastier than you think! Leite’s Culinaria gives us a simple recipe that’s perfect for little kids who can’t handle spicy curries.

20. Papaya Paniyaram

Sweet paniyaram is a popular snack in most Indian homes, and you can make them with papaya for a twist. Get the recipe from Awesome Cuisine, who uses coconut to give the paniyaram a delicious nuttiness.

21. Papaya Greek Yogurt Parfait

Parfait is one of those dishes that sounds and looks fancy but is really easy to make! Smart Little Cookie uses papaya and Greek yogurt to make a parfait. Use homemade granola to make the dish healthier.

22. Papaya Flan

If you’re a fan of the beautiful silkiness of flan, then you’ll love this papaya flan from Con Harina En Mis Zapatos, made with just 4 ingredients! Translate the page to get the full recipe.

23. Creamy Coconut Milk Papaya Mousse

This is the perfect dessert when you’re craving something sweet, but light. Creative Healthy Family makes this papaya mousse out of just 3 ingredients – great for a weekday dessert!

24. Papaya Raspberry Frozen Yogurt Bark

Healthy Little Foodies uses an assortment of healthy ingredients to make a universal kid-friendly snack – yogurt bark. The recipe uses papaya, raspberry and pistachios – a yum combination!

25. Papaya Halwa

This papaya halwa from Cook with Smile is a great way to make use of papaya that’s quite ripe and on the verge of getting mushy. Check out the options to make the dish a sugar free one.

26. Papaya Cream Popsicles

These aren’t your everyday Popsicles – they’re much more creamy! Oven Love Blog uses heavy cream and honey to make these, and if your papayas are sweet enough, you may not even need the honey.

27. Healthy Papaya Cake

Ready to bake with papaya? Check out this healthy cake from Nadias Healthy Kitchen, made with oats flour. You can skip the baking soda if you like.

28. Tropical Banana and Papaya Bread

Once you make papaya cake, can papaya bread be far behind? Kidgredients gives regular banana bread a twist by adding papaya to it. You can use organic coconut sugar and replace the refined flour with whole wheat flour.

29. Papaya Coconut Muffins

Here’s a great recipe to make your kids have their breakfast along with some fruit – papaya muffins! Wyza uses honey instead of sugar, making it a healthier pick over other recipes.

30. Vegan Tropical Cookies

Sneaky Veg makes these nutty vegan cookies that are sure to be a hit with the kids. With coconut and cashew butter, I can imagine that these will just melt in the mouth!