Cooper's been eating rice cereal, fruits, and vegetables since he was four months old - right around Thanksgiving 2010. I bought a few jars of Beech Nut and Gerber baby food and fed him those at first. I had wondered how hard and time-consuming making our own baby food would be. If it wasn't easy, I wasn't going to do it. Always had heard that it was much cheaper and healthier for babies. So I put a plea out on Facebook and received lots of great feedback, including recommended recipes, websites, books, and cooking products. The next time we went to the grocery store, I stocked up on the age-appropriate fruits and veggies. Over the next week, I had made a few weeks worth of apples, pears, peaches, bananas, butternut squash, green beans, peas, carrots, and sweet potatoes for Cooper. It was easy!!! He liked (and actually enjoyed eating) more of the homemade baby food than of the jarred food. The color of the homemade food is much more appetizing as well! I kept track of the cost for the homemade food versus how much it would cost to buy the same amount in jars. I know we are saving many dollars per week! For most of the recipes, it's as simple as peeling, cutting the fruit/veggie into chunks, steaming (in the microwave), pureeing, and portioning into ice cube trays. Freeze overnight. Pop out the cubes into a freezer bag, label it, and you're ready for mealtime! Bananas are as easy as cutting them right into the food processor and pureeing, no cooking necessary. This week, after his 6-month appointment, I knew that I would be able to introduce a couple more fruits and veggies. Cooper has now taken a liking to mango and avocado! :) The next hurdle in a couple of months is the meats. Not sure I want to take on making those at home. In summary, I would encourage anyone who is thinking about making baby food at home or knows someone who is, to go for it! It's cheaper, healthier for your baby, and in my opinion, easy!
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Making Baby Food
Wasn't thinking I would post about this... but there was so much interest and questions from friends and family that I changed my mind!
Cooper's been eating rice cereal, fruits, and vegetables since he was four months old - right around Thanksgiving 2010. I bought a few jars of Beech Nut and Gerber baby food and fed him those at first. I had wondered how hard and time-consuming making our own baby food would be. If it wasn't easy, I wasn't going to do it. Always had heard that it was much cheaper and healthier for babies. So I put a plea out on Facebook and received lots of great feedback, including recommended recipes, websites, books, and cooking products. The next time we went to the grocery store, I stocked up on the age-appropriate fruits and veggies. Over the next week, I had made a few weeks worth of apples, pears, peaches, bananas, butternut squash, green beans, peas, carrots, and sweet potatoes for Cooper. It was easy!!! He liked (and actually enjoyed eating) more of the homemade baby food than of the jarred food. The color of the homemade food is much more appetizing as well! I kept track of the cost for the homemade food versus how much it would cost to buy the same amount in jars. I know we are saving many dollars per week! For most of the recipes, it's as simple as peeling, cutting the fruit/veggie into chunks, steaming (in the microwave), pureeing, and portioning into ice cube trays. Freeze overnight. Pop out the cubes into a freezer bag, label it, and you're ready for mealtime! Bananas are as easy as cutting them right into the food processor and pureeing, no cooking necessary. This week, after his 6-month appointment, I knew that I would be able to introduce a couple more fruits and veggies. Cooper has now taken a liking to mango and avocado! :) The next hurdle in a couple of months is the meats. Not sure I want to take on making those at home. In summary, I would encourage anyone who is thinking about making baby food at home or knows someone who is, to go for it! It's cheaper, healthier for your baby, and in my opinion, easy!
Cooper's been eating rice cereal, fruits, and vegetables since he was four months old - right around Thanksgiving 2010. I bought a few jars of Beech Nut and Gerber baby food and fed him those at first. I had wondered how hard and time-consuming making our own baby food would be. If it wasn't easy, I wasn't going to do it. Always had heard that it was much cheaper and healthier for babies. So I put a plea out on Facebook and received lots of great feedback, including recommended recipes, websites, books, and cooking products. The next time we went to the grocery store, I stocked up on the age-appropriate fruits and veggies. Over the next week, I had made a few weeks worth of apples, pears, peaches, bananas, butternut squash, green beans, peas, carrots, and sweet potatoes for Cooper. It was easy!!! He liked (and actually enjoyed eating) more of the homemade baby food than of the jarred food. The color of the homemade food is much more appetizing as well! I kept track of the cost for the homemade food versus how much it would cost to buy the same amount in jars. I know we are saving many dollars per week! For most of the recipes, it's as simple as peeling, cutting the fruit/veggie into chunks, steaming (in the microwave), pureeing, and portioning into ice cube trays. Freeze overnight. Pop out the cubes into a freezer bag, label it, and you're ready for mealtime! Bananas are as easy as cutting them right into the food processor and pureeing, no cooking necessary. This week, after his 6-month appointment, I knew that I would be able to introduce a couple more fruits and veggies. Cooper has now taken a liking to mango and avocado! :) The next hurdle in a couple of months is the meats. Not sure I want to take on making those at home. In summary, I would encourage anyone who is thinking about making baby food at home or knows someone who is, to go for it! It's cheaper, healthier for your baby, and in my opinion, easy!
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I agree with everything you said about making food, I'm glad that you tried and found out the ease of it all. As for the meats, it was not much harder. I would boil some chicken and then blend it in with steamed veggies, freeze, store. Tofu and beans also have lots of protein and don't need to be cooked. What's great about it is that YOU can slowly change the texture consistency so that it get's chunkier. Have you smelled the jarred meats...that was enough for me :)
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