Why, and a freezing baby food question

[sunnydays]

isn't my post from hours ago showing up?

Now this one did, so I am editting it with the original. Let's see if that works.

I am not due until June, and realize that baby will not start any type of solids at least until 6 months, but I have time and food on my hands now, so I am wondering if it is too early to mash and freeze fruits and veggies? I am a chef and we can not re-serve our meals, but I am free to take extras with me. I am the only one that orders, preps and serves it, and it is high quality stuff, so I am not worried about germs, temps etc., and it all comes in fresh or frozen. I know what the standards say for commercial food prep, but unsure of home prep for baby food. The food would be frozen the same day it is prepared and in an industrial deep freeze, so I am inclined to think it is safe, nutritious and tasty enough to go ahead and start making a stash that will be used within a year.

Any thoughts? Or any online or book resources that would help me?

[jeniferrlynne]

I think this is OK to post, but if it is not then mod please remove link.
http://www.hotcouponworld.com/forums/storage-guides-how-buy-store-use-anything/25052-index-guide-buying-freezing-shelf-lives-food.html

If it doesn't work then go to hot coupon world and find the couponing basics section. It will lead you to stockpiling - freezing, storing etc. which would eventually lead you to the link above.
HTH

[o_mom]

I wouldn't bother. You have no idea what your baby will like or if he or she will even want mashed or pureed food. If you wait until 6-7 mos, you might not even need to freeze anything. I found it easier to just go straight to finger foods with mine. When we did mash anything, I just did it when we were eating - banana, avacado, sweet potato are all very easy to just peel and mash.

[GeekLady]

I would presume the standard food freezing times would apply. I think they're a year for fruits/veggies and 3 months for meats.

[maydaymommy]

I make my own baby food & do not keep anything frozen more than 3 months. I believe that is what every book I've read on the subject says.

[GeekLady]

Homemade baby food is still food, and (properly prepared and frozen) I fail to see why it isn't subject to the same rules for preserving any food via freezing.

http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/freeze/freezer_shelf_life.html

On the other hand, freezing 1 oz. amounts of food in open ice cube trays and moving them to ziploc bags isn't a proper way to freeze anything for long term storage. For the long term, I would use the smallest plastic containers you can find (max. of 1 cup) or maybe BabyCubes.

The Baby Cubes look very nice, but I have no idea how cost-effective they would be for preparing large quantities of food. One set of the jumbo baby cubes holds a total of 16 oz. for about 8 bucks.

But I would only go to the trouble of freezing those foods that require more prep. and aren't likely to show up on the dinner plate in a baby-friendly form: carrots, peas, green beans, apples, pumpkin, squash, other fruits that would require cooking just to name a few. Stuff like avocado and banana can be mashed with a fork easily. Other foods won't freeze well, so do a bit of research.

In fact, now that I browse a bit, that website I linked earlier has a ton of good information on properly freezing fresh food, including a list of what freezes well and what doesn't.

[GeekLady]

...second duplicate in as many days. This new computer logs me out of the boards randomly while I'm writing, it's very annoying.

[trales]

Wait.

I make and freeze all my own baby food now. Every few weeks I cook a bunch of sweet potatoes, a squash, apples, pears, peas, etc. and freeze in ice cube trays.

There are so many variables with food texture, how they will eat it, what they can tolerate. It is worth waiting.

We have had a lot of food issues, weight lose, reflux, constipation and have had to constantly tweak what we serve, what I mix ect, that I now make much smaller batches.

[tylersmama]

I would wait. From www.wholesomebabyfood.com: (http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com:)

How long will food cubes keep in the freezer & refrigerator?
We recommend keeping frozen baby food cubes in the freezer for a maximum of 3 months.
Many authoritative guidelines will say that most fruits and veggies will keep from 8 to 12 months in the freezer. This is mostly true of foods that are frozen in their natural state. This is also assuming that the freezer remains at a constant sub-zero temperature. Storing foods in a deep freezer is best should you wish to keep frozen foods for that time frame.
Remember that when certain books give freezer time guidelines, they rely on the typical guidelines for fruits/veggies that have NOT been cooked and turned into purees!
Due to the amount of water crystals that tend to build up with baby food purees, and due to the fact that nutrients may leach/evaporate upon thawing because of the water crystals, it is more prudent to use your frozen baby foods cubes as soon as possible - 3 months of storage tops. We always recommend using within 1 month if at all possible!
Baby food cubes are safe to remain in the freezer from 3 to 6 months. Using baby food cubes within 1 month to 3 months is really more prudent.
Don't be alarmed if you see ice crystals forming on your baby food cubes. As mentioned earlier, this is NOT freezer burn rather it is the excess liquid used to make the puree that rises and freezes at the top of the cubes.


Also, as a pp mentioned, you have no idea what your baby will or will not want to eat, so you could end up with tons of food that goes to waste if your little one just won't eat it. It really doesn't take that much time or effort to make the food. I usually spent one afternoon every couple of weeks steaming, pureeing and freezing and would have enough food for a month or more.

[elephantmeg]

what I would do now is read up on what to start with and maybe do a food introduction spreadsheet. I did one that looked like this

food day#1 day#2 day#3 day#4

Then I would pencil in the dates that I fed each food so I knew when I had done the 4 days. The making of food isn't hard at all.

[MontrealMum]

Just seconding everyone else with the advice to wait.

I will add that BAbycubes or covered ice cube trays (with a soft bottom) are very handy for freezing "extra" food. We buy organic produce for DS but with his picky eating he could take over a week to finish a banana, or something similar. I mash a portion for him, then freeze the rest. Or, if using jarred food, I serve it a few times, then if he's taking too long to finish the jar, I freeze the rest. You may luck out and get a good eater, but if you don't - it's nice to have the option to freeze what isn't eaten so that you're not wasting food. Also, I don't have organic food readily available in my neighborhood, so it's a special, and infrequent trip for me.