How do you make your baby food? ?

Question

I always thought it was simple: steam, puree, add water/formula/breast milk. But I keep reading all these recipes and stuff online. How do you make your baby food? MY daughter is going to 2nd foods but has a sensitive tummy so I'm looking for really simple ideas, not a whole lot of stuff mixed together yet. I also don't have a lot of free time but I do like the idea of making her food. We also don't eat the healthiest or always have time to cook dinner, so simplity grindng up whatever mommy and daddy eat isn't really an option. Any suggestions would be very much appreciated. thanks!

Answer 1

you got it:

steam, puree or mash, add water/formula/breastmilk

that's all there is to it.

applesauce and pears, you do exactly as above.  

(with fruits you can also "stew" them, meaning put maybe 3 inches of water in pot, bring water to boil, put in cut up fruit (such as cut up apples), turn down to simmer for 7 minutes or so, covered.  then you can puree or mash the fruit and use the water the fruit cooked in to make it thinner if you want (the water the fruit cooked in will have more of the nutrients in it that came out of the fruit during cooking).  this way tends to make the fruit very soft.

it's very simple and so easy, i don't know why more people don't do it.

Answer 2

Just buy whatever vegetables are on sale, steam or microwave to cook them, then puree. If you are not going to use it up immediately, just put it in ice cube trays to freeze, then put the cubes in a freezer bag and freeze. Thaw as needed. The great thing about home made baby food is you can serve stuff that you'll never find in a store-bought jar (my son LOVED cooked cod pureed). Best wishes - it's not complicated at all.

Answer 3

It really IS that simple. Don't worry about the recipes.

Peel vegetable, chop, steam, puree, freeze. Freeze the puree only. If you want to do bigger chunks, mash it with a fork. Add water or formula when you thaw it out, depending on the consistency and how experienced your baby is at eating.

If you make fruit, cook it all, except banana and avocado.

I've made all my baby's food and even though she's just started to eat solids I have enough that I'll never have to puree anything again since by the time she's done eating this stuff, she will probably be ready for diced things and bigger chunks.

I freeze in regular ice cube trays, then transfer to baggies the next day. If you want to mix things, mix them after the cubes are thawed.

Answer 4

if she's going onto 2nd stage then just make the puree a bit rougher, or mash it. thats all 2nd stage is really, letting her learn to chew and swallow small, soft easily chewed lumps.

do the icecube thing, try veg and fruits out individually if she has a sensitive tummy, then note what she likes and what agrees with her. then mix icecubes of two or more things she likes together and see how she gets on with it.

by now she will be eating a few icecubes worth at a sitting so I would recommend freezing combinations she likes in freezer bags in larger portions after a while.

before you know it she will be having proper meals without you ever thinking about cooking her one! it should actually work the other way, btw. You will start to eat healthier cos you will find yourself thinking "i cant be bothered making all this veg for just her, i'll make us a soup out of it" and so on. you get soup she gets a bunch of veg she likes. same thing really, just go by different names.

and yes you can do apples and pears. just peel and chop, put in a pan, cover with cold water and bring to boil. simmer for 5-6 mins or until soft, then drain most of water and mash or puree/sieve.

annabel karmel has lots of recipes but she does cover how to make most fruits and vegs into basic purees too. google her, she ahs a website and some good books out too.