Baby Food

The homemade baby food making days are back in full swing at our house since Brynley has recently started eating baby food.  I started making Landry's baby food when he was little at the suggestion of our pediatrician.  He told me it would be a lot cheaper and make for an easier transition into table foods when he got older.  He was right!  I wish I had a way to total up the savings.

If you are interested, all you need is a food processor or blender.  I use a very inexpensive food chopper that I received as a wedding gift.  It can be purchased at Walmart for less than $10 and I use it for so much more than making baby food.

The awesome thing about making baby food in the summer time is that you can buy fresh produce for a reasonable price.  If I can't buy it fresh, I try to use frozen vegetables or fruits.  The pediatrician recommended steering clear of canned vegetables as much as possible to avoid the unneeded sodium. 

I usually try to set aside an hour to make up at least a couple of weeks worth of baby food to freeze.  I recently made frozen peas and carrots and fresh yellow squash and avocados.  I also made fresh peaches, bananas, pears, and blueberries (a few pictures below).  All you need to do is cook your vegetables in the microwave as directed on the package or cook them until they are soft if using fresh vegetables.  Then place them in your chopper and chop, chop, chop!  You may need to add a little water to get to a baby food consistency.  The fruits are the easiest.  All you do is peel and chop.  Most of the time, no water is needed since fruits tend to be a little juicy anyways. 

Once you get done chopping, spoon the mixture into ice cube trays and place in freezer to freeze.  Allow approximately 4-6 hours to freeze.  Remove, place in labeled Ziploc bags, and throw in the freezer.  All you have to do is zap them in the microwave when your little one is ready to eat or if you are on the go throw them in a small container to take with you.  More than likely they will be thawed and ready to eat when you are ready for them.

I would recommend trying it at least once to see what you think.  You will be surprised at how much money it will save you and how easy it is!  If nothing else, you can make the simple switch from applesauce baby food to unsweetened applesauce in a jar.  And if your babies are anything like mine, they will love the real food even more!