my DS goes to a child care centre... he would never eat puree or even v mushy food... still wont.. they have givcen him finger foods since 9 months and now he has the same food as the ELC kids@! the chef loves him! apparently he opften stands at the kitchen door and the chef feeds him LOL!
given she is a friend and you dont want to make her umcomf i would provide whatver she is comfortable with that he will eat - soft foods, some purees/soups/yoghurt etc, then she wont get into trouble...