Making Baby Food

I've had some friends ask me about making baby food so here goes. It's very easy!

Step 1: Buy whatever it is that you want to make. I buy organic. Try your local farmer's market instead of more pricey places like Whole Foods. My local Kroger is getting more and more organic produce in as well and they will even order things for you (I learned this when asking why they didn't carry organic green beans. Who knew?) Also, if you are trying to "watch your dough" - some fruits and vegetables aren't worth buying organic. Check out THIS page to see which ones are the most contaminated.Step 2: Cook and Blend. This is where it gets messy. :) I steam most things in order to "lock in" the most nutrients. I microwaved the sweet potatoes and I steamed the green beans. It's also ok to buy frozen organic. Frozen is better than canned. You'll need a blender that does puree and even liquify or a food processer. You don't need to go out and buy that really cool baby food maker at Williams Sonoma but trust me I thought about it. ha ha If the food is too thick once it's blended you can add breastmilk, formula or water.

Step 3: Place in ice cube trays. You can store in other ways but I think this works best because you waste less, only taking out to thaw or heat what you think baby will eat. I also let the food cool before putting it in the trays. Something about hot food and plastic weirds me out. Each ice cube holds about 1.5 ounces of food. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze overnight.Step 4: Pop out vegetable or fruit into a freezer bag so you can reuse your ice cube trays for the next food. Label and Date. Good for 1-3 months in fridge but it's recommended that you use it within a month. That's it! Very easy. And economical. I bought several jars of Earth's Best organic baby food to have as backup/traveling and it's around $0.77 - $0.99 a jar (1 serving), depending on where you buy. I cooked 4-5 large sweet potatoes for around $4.00 that equals about 10-12 servings.

There's an awesome website called Wholesome Baby Food where I get most of my info. Check it out! It tells what foods freeze better than others, how much your baby should be eating at each meal, recipes and info. on allergies and "forbidden" baby foods. That was a helpful link. For example, you aren't supposed to give babies certain foods until they are 1. These include honey, acidic/citrus fruits, eggwhites and strawberries, blackberries and raspberries to name a few.
Let me know if you decide to make some things for your little one and how they turn out! :)