Questions about making home-made food

[CBB]

I'm planning on pureeing some food for DD. I have a foodmill (kidco). DD has tried several gerber foods. She seems to like the fruits much better than veg, especially bannana, apple and peach. How do I make pureed food? Do you steam the fruits or veg first? If I make a bunch and freeze it, how long can I leave it in the freezer? What do you use to freeze the food? Do you just use a regular icecube tray and cover it up with something or get one of those baby food trays like these:

http://store.babycenter.com/product/feeding/solid_feeding/feeding_accessories/3376
http://www.onestepahead.com/jump.jsp?lGen=detail&itemID=68760&itemType=PRODUCT&iProductID=68760&change=117&cm_ven=Google&cm_cat=Top100&cm_pla=Top100&cm_ite=null#reviews

Thanks so much!

[Raidra]

You have to steam everything first, with the exception of some fruits like banana and melon.

I just used a regular blender to puree everything.. it worked fine and could handle a lot.

We used regular ice cube trays covered with tin foil. Once the food is frozen, put the food cubes into a ziploc baggie and write the type of food and the date you made it on the bag.

Most foods are good for at least a month in the freezer, and some are good for a lot longer.

We used the book Super Baby Food as a reference. You can also use the site www.wholesomebabyfood.com.

[jillc]

Hi Li,

We've been making pureed fruits & veggies for Abby, with the help of the book "Mommy Made & Daddy, Too", which we purchased on overstock.com for about $10. Several of my friends recommended this book, and we really like it. Among other things, it gives instructions for cooking conventionally (steaming or baking), as well as microwave instructions.

Bananas don't have to be cooked - just let one get pretty ripe (but not so ripe that you'd use it for banana bread), and mash w/a fork.

Apples & pears can be quartered, cored, & steamed. Golden delicious apples are supposed to be the least acidic, and so might be most tasty for baby. Book says to leave skin on until after steaming for better nutrient retention, but I found it tough to take the skin off after steaming. I think next time I'm going to try taking it off before. Then let cool, and puree. We use our food processer. You can add some boiled water to thin the puree to your DD's liking. Shouldn't need to add any water to pears. Using 6 apples, we made about 20 ice cube portions, and using 4 pears, about 12 portions.

Peaches can be prepared the same way as apples & pears, except you'll want to take the skin off first. I read that the easiest way to do this is to drop the peaches whole in to boiling water for a few seconds. Then cool & peel. Then puree. Same for plums. I haven't made these yet, but they're next on our list. :)

We've also done squash & sweet potatoes, which we baked & pureed. I believe both were 350 for just under an hour, turning once halfway thru cooking. Cut squash in half to cool, and remove seeds. Once you then take the skin off, puree, adding water as needed. Abby really likes both of these, and doing just one squash & one sweet potato made about 20 portions each.

We let the purees cool a bit & then spoon into ice cube trays. Cover with saran wrap & freeze overnight. Then pop out the cubes & freeze in zippered freezer bags to store. Book says they keep in the freezer for a month. We're finishing up some things that have been frozen for 5 wks, and they're just fine.

When it's meal time, just pop a cube into a mug & into the micro on defrost for about 30 seconds. Or put in to fridge the night before. Book says that the food will stay good in the fridge for 3 days.

HTH.
Jill

[miki]

If you really want an ice cube tray with a cover, Oxo makes one that I got at Bed, Bath & Beyond for $4. I always used a handblender after steaming the fruit. By the time DD was eating finger food, that was when the ped said she could have raw fruits and veg as long as they were soft enough for her to gum and swallow.

[soexcited]

I bought the OXO for the same reason. I liked that the cover was attached and that I could remove one cube at a time without making a mess.


-Lisa

[ErinMC]

> How do I make pureed food? Do you steam the fruits or
>veg first?
I haven't steamed any fruits, just served them ripe and mashed up. But I also started out with the commercial baby food jars for the first month, just to see what DS liked. So he was almost 7 months before he first had homemade fruit. The veggies are either steamed (squash, broccoli) or microwaved (i.e. sweet potato, peas). I used a blender at first, but as DS has gotten older and likes some texture, I just fork-mash it really well and add some water.

>If I make a bunch and freeze it, how long can I
>leave it in the freezer?
It depends on the exact food, but most foods can be frozen for up to 2 months as long as it's wrapped well. I really recommend the book Super Baby Food by Ruth Yaron, which gives timelines for the freezing of each food. She DOES really emphasize an extremely healthy, completely homemade diet, but take it with a grain of salt, and if you only use it to make fruits and veggies, I think it's worth it. She gives a lot of detail on how to make each individual food, and the nutritional needs of babies.

>What do you use to freeze the food?
>Do you just use a regular icecube tray and cover it up with
>something or get one of those baby food trays like these:
I just use a regular ice cube tray - I bought 4 of them at Wal-Mart, for about $1.25, in a different color than my regular ice cube trays, so that I remember which is which. I cover them with aluminum foil overnight, then pop them out into freezer bags in the morning.

Once you get started its really easy. I still keep some of the commercial jars just for convenience, like when we are at other people's homes or in a rush, but making a batch of the food takens 10-15 minutes max and you get a ton of food cubes.

HTH!

[shamrock]

I'm so glad you asked this question and everyone gave responses. I was coming on here with the same question!

I've seen that book (Mommy Made & Daddy too) I'm glad to hear it recommended by someone.

[CBB]

Thanks so much for the replies. I'm planning on starting with some steamed apple puree. Hopefully DD'll like it. That Oxo ice tray looks great and is cheaper. Thanks for the suggestions!!

[smallestangel]

Hi

We've just begun solids but I've already made a few test batches. It's easy & quick. :)

I bought the book Super Baby Foods by Ruth Yaron (check your library or ebay). It's good for info on how to pick and prepare fruits/veggies. Also on how long to store them. However, some of her advice on when to start certain things (like nuts) is off.

You don't need any special equipment really. I bought a metal steamer insert at Target for $3. I puree in my cuisinart, but I already had one, a blender works fine too. I freeze in an ice cube tray & then pop them out once everything's frozen solid and store in freezer bags.

Hope this helps :)



Amanda & Jacob :)

[jamsmu]

Here is the Amazon link for a great book: Mommy Made and Daddy Too. It got me through all of my questions about what and when to feed DS and how to make it all. I use it now for creative recipes for the whole family. I HIGHLY recommend it!

http://tinyurl.com/675am