Stop! Before you think that this post doesn't apply to you because you don't have a baby, you may want to read on. This information could be helpful to share with someone you know.Plus, it's a perfect day to have your company in my kitchen. The weather has cooled considerably and the rain is falling. Coffee is on and we are ready.
A few weeks ago Mrs. Pear provided a cost analysis of peaches as baby food. She also provided a cost analysis of sweet potatoes as homemade baby food verses buying it in the store.
If the couple of hours of work it will take to make baby food, verses the cost of buying it doesn't convince you to give it a try... maybe seeing how easy it is to make will.
Plus, slowing the pace long enough to make it yourself not only saves money, but it also allows you know exactly what is in it! So, let's get started.
Food Purchased
carrots: 5 pounds
sweet potatoes: 3.5 pounds
peaches: 3.5 pounds
I started with the sweet potatoes.
Peel and Cut Into Chunks
I recently shared about learning to let my children take on more tasks. My daughter helped me peel. Much as we tried to keep it contained, I ended up with peelings on the counter, the coffee pot and even the window sill. She didn't seem to mind. She thoroughly enjoyed the fact that she was helping me make baby food for the little guy.
Boil or Steam
This took about 20 minutes. I just continued to check for softness with a fork.While these were cooking, we peeled the five pounds of carrots.
Blend
You can use a food processor or a blender.
Last time I made baby food I used the blender. In the process I forgot and took the lid off while I was blending. Needless to say I ended up with food on my walls and ceiling. OOPS!
This time I chose to use the food processor.
As you are blending, add water from the pan you cooked the veggie in to achieve the desired consistency.
Prepare to Freeze
You can use ice cube trays (as you will see on down) or you can use a scoop. Once again I owe credit to this idea from Mrs. Pear.I just put wax paper on a cookie sheet, used the ice cream scoop and then put into the freezer. Once frozen I removed from the freezer and put the now frozen scoops of food into labeled ziploc baggies to store in the freezer.
CARROTS:
Repeat steps as with the sweet potatoes.
Peel and Cut Into Chunks:
To save on time I did this while the sweet potatoes were cooking.
Boil or Steam
Blend and Freeze
Again, I used my food processor to blend. I used the ice cream scoop and put onto wax paper on cookie sheets for freezing. Once frozen I removed the frozen scoops and placed in a labeled gallon ziploc bag.
PEACHES:
For these I just peeled and blended. I put these into ice cube trays for freezing.
Ready To Eat
Just thaw and eat.
What's Next?
I picked up some broccoli and green beans. I'm going to give them a try.
Tell Me...
Have you ever made your own baby food?
If not, do you think you might give it a try? I'd enjoy hearing about your experience.
If so, what types of food did you make?
Making my own baby food sure works for me. Be sure to go read about other great ideas.
I used to make baby food when my kids were babies - ice cube trays and all! The only thing that didn't work so well was meat. So for my son I finally sucked it up and bought those casserole type baby foods when he was one. He loved them. To this day he has a wider variety of foods he will eat compared to his sisters who I refused to buy those for. Live and learn.
ReplyDeleteWow you make it look so easy! We are expecting our first baby in February, so I'm not used to baby food prices yet... so tell me, is it less expensive to do it this way? Or do you just enjoy it? Or is it healthier?
ReplyDeleteI made baby food when my oldest was a baby, and I did things just like you're doing. I kept much of ours in ice cube trays, but I like the idea of the wax paper and cookie tray as portions get a little larger.
ReplyDeleteI liked being able to thaw out exactly what we needed and avoid leftovers in baby food jars, and I also enjoyed being able to offer my daughter a bigger variety of healthy options that didn't come in the baby food aisle.
I did bananas, pears, peaches, carrots, peas, sweet potatoes, strawberries, and several others.
Great post, friend!
I have been making baby food for a few months now: apples, bananas, pears, peaches, plums, cantaloupe, peas, sweet potatoes, squash, carrots, and many combinations of the above...I LOVE it! A couple things I have done to make the process fast (or less work) I put the whole sweet potato in foil and bake it. I think peeling and cutting a raw one is much more difficult than baking (and multitasking while it is in the oven) and scooping out the insides once cooked. Also, for peaches, I dipped them in boiling water for 30 seconds before placing them in ice water to cool. This made the peeling process REALLY easy as the whole peel would just slip off. I also stored mine in chunks in juice in ziploc bags in the freezer so they didn't turn brown, then I pureed them (or mashed if ready for that) just before eating. It is SO simple AND cost effective!
ReplyDeleteFantabulous post Donnetta! We won't be needing baby food when we bring Amelia home, but you're making me so wish I would've done this with The Boy. Having our first baby and moving twice the first year (once from over seas, the second cross country) just totally overwhelmed me.
ReplyDeleteBless you for encouraging others to not only save money, but reduce the waste from baby food containers!