basic baby food purees

Yummy note: Being a new mommy all over again, I decided to be a bit braver than what I was with my first. Once little Ben got the green light from the pediatrician to start trying fruits and veggies, I decided to jump right in. I found out that it is cheaper and tastier than that jarred baby food out there. Even if you use organic fruits and vegetables, it is still cheaper than already prepared baby food. It does take a few minutes of your time to prepare, but really you can make several batches of different foods for your baby in just an hour. So cook for a few hours one day a month and get a bunch of frozen little baby meals!  Ice cube trays work wonderful for easy portions, so if you don't have special baby food containers, it's ok. The containers and trays I used were about 1 ounce each, so it worked well for freezing little pods of food. Then when it comes to defrosting it, it goes pretty quick since it is a small amount. If you can't find quality fresh veggies or fruit, don't worry the frozen counterpart is healthy too.  I found out that these little frozen steamer bags of veggies or even fruit work great for this. When starting out, I found this handy website that I've referred to a number of times for ideas, and also talking with our pediatrician if particular foods were ok to experiment with.  http://wholesomebabyfood.momtastic.com

Basic Baby Food - Fruit and Veggie Purees

Peach Banana Puree 


I always have ripe bananas to use up, so this was a nice way to save those browning bananas. Plain banana puree freezes  and tastes ok, but it looks a bit brown, so incorporate those bananas with other fruit to avoid browning. 

Ingredients:

1 bag of frozen peaches 

1 ripe banana 

* optional - water or apple juice 

Directions: 

Place frozen peach slices in steamer bag and steam in microwave for about 3-4 minutes or until fruit becomes tender. You could also place frozen peaches in a steamer basket and steam in a pan of boiling water on the stove. (Do whatever you are more comfortable with, but we careful to not scorch or let your pan go dry, or else it will burn... yeah...did this, as I wasn't able to keep close eye on it and yuck, had to throw out an entire batch of food since it was nasty gross.) Once peaches are cooked and tender, begin to puree the fruit.* Add in cut up banana and puree until desire texture for baby is achieved. May need to add in a little bit of water from steaming liquid or apple juice to achieve thickness consistency. Pour into 1-2 ounce containers for either storage in the freezer or refrigerator. Can store for 2-3 days in the refrigerator or for about a month or so in the freezer.    

Apple Strawberry (Banana) Puree 


This is one of our favorites to make. My husband and I liked it when we taste tested Ben's batch, that we have since made larger batches for us to enjoy too! Always taste test your baby's homemade food.

Ingredients:

1-2 apples, peeled, cored and chopped

couple of ripe strawberries, hulled
* optional apple juice or water

* optional - 1 ripe banana

Directions: 

Put the chopped apple into a saucepan with couple tablespoons of apple juice. Cover and simmer for 5-10 minutes or until tender. Add the strawberries and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes. Let mixture cool and begin to puree. *Optional: Add in your cut up banana. Blend until smooth or desired texture is achieved and pour into storage containers for freezer or refrigerator.

Basic Veggie Puree

Ben didn't care for the peas straight, so when I mixed some apples and carrots in it, he was better receptive of eating his peas! 

Ingredients:
1 bag of frozen peas
Couple of carrots, peeled and chopped up
1 apple

Directions:
Steam veggies and fruit whichever method you prefer, either on the stove or microwave. Once tender, puree fruits and veggies together.* May need to add a little bit of the water from steaming the vegetables to achieve consistency you'd like. Pour into 1-2 ounce containers for either storage in the freezer or refrigerator. Can store for 2-3 days in the refrigerator or for about a month or so in the freezer.  

*Options for the puree method: You can do that with a blender, food processor, food mill, or a Baby (Magic) Bullet machine. If making double or larger batches of food, a food processor works well, but it you are only making a smaller batch, a blender does fine.  

***Final Yummy note: Some various flavors/ingredients I've made have included: carrot, carrot/parsnip, sweet potato, squash, pumpkin/squash, avocado/banana, banana/strawberry, green beans, peas, apples, pears, beef stew, beef and noodles, chicken and rice, sweet potato/apple, apple/squash, and many others. Just have fun and experiment with your baby's variety of food and enjoy mixing up a batch!  Please discuss any concerns of food allergies and what your baby's feeding schedule is with your pediatrician before giving your baby any solid foods. Once your baby is ready for various foods, gradually incorporate into their diet then to make sure there are no allergic reactions.

This recipe post is shared with these other blogger's parties! Make Ahead Meals for Busy Moms, These Chicks Cooked, Whole New Mom, The Better Mom, Polka Dots on Parade, From Mess Hall to Bistro - Made from Scratch, Allergy Free Cooking, and The Lady Behind the Curtain.