Baby Food - Second Taste Ideas

• I buy StoneyField Organic Plain Whole Milk Yogurt and mix in some fruit puree. It is much cheaper than YoBaby and has less sugar, all of which is natural.
• Make a big batch of Vegetable Soup. Drain the liquid and add a few cooked vegetables to a vegetable puree. This teaches baby to “gum” the food.
• Hard-boil an egg and chop it really finely. Add to a vegetable puree for protein and to teach baby to “gum” food. It is recommended to start with the egg yolk before the egg white if you are concerned about food allergies.
• Add some drained, rinsed beans to a vegetable puree for added protein.
• Mash some garbanzo beans (chickpeas) with some formula or breast milk. Spread thinly on a thin piece of whole grain tortilla and roll up. Let baby chew and suck on the beans.
• Add grated cheese to vegetable purees.
• Dip homemade crackers or homemade teething biscuit in fruit puree and give to baby to suck on.
• Add vegetables from vegetable soup to cooked quinoa or couscous. A little messy…but a GREAT meal for baby.
• Make a big batch of homemade pancakes with added pumpkin. Freeze individually. Give to baby to chew on. Great for teething when frozen.

Baby Food - Fruit Purees

Let’s face it, baby food is expensive! It is so much easier, cheaper and healthier just to make your own. All you need to get started is a blender/food processor, a steamer (or you can boil the vegetables in a saucepan on the stove), and an ice-cube tray or mini-muffin tin. I have purchased 2 silicon mini-muffin tins to freeze my baby food portions. I feel that the ice cube trays do not hold enough puree. I like the silicon because it is easy to un-mold the food. I will usually spend an afternoon making a few different purees so we have enough for a couple of weeks.

Apples
Peel and dice apples. Steam or boil in water until just tender. Mash with fork or blend in blender or food processor. Cook with a cinnamon stick for more flavor.

Pears
Peel and dice pears. Steam or boil in water until just tender. Mash with fork or blend in blender or food processor. Once baby is able to gum food, you can just mash a very ripe pear with a fork.

Peaches
Peel and dice pears. Steam or boil in water until just tender. Mash with fork or blend in blender or food processor.

Banana
Slice a very ripe banana and mash with a fork. Pairs VERY well with avocado. Does not freeze.

Berries
Steam a bag of frozen veggies or boil in water until tender. Mash with fork or blend in blender or food processor.

Baby Food - Vegetable Purees

Let’s face it, baby food is expensive! It is so much easier, cheaper and healthier just to make your own. All you need to get started is a blender/food processor, a steamer (or you can boil the vegetables in a saucepan on the stove), and an ice-cube tray or mini-muffin tin. I have purchased 2 silicon mini-muffin tins to freeze my baby food portions. I feel that the ice cube trays do not hold enough puree. I like the silicon because it is easy to un-mold the food. I will usually spend an afternoon making a few different purees so we have enough for a couple of weeks.

Sweet Potatoes
Wash a sweet potato and pierce a few times with a knife. Wrap in foil and bake in 350 oven for about an hour. Mash without peel. Add a little formula or breast milk to reach desired consistency.

Butternut/Acorn Squash
Pierce squash a few times with a sharp knife. Place on cookie sheet and bake in 350 oven for about an hour and a half. Scoop out flesh with spoon and mash with some formula or breast milk to reach desired consistency.

Peas/Broccoli/Green Beans
Steam frozen vegetables until tender. Blend/puree with added formula or breast milk until vegetables reach desired consistency.
*Note* Frozen fruits/vegetables CAN be refrozen once they are in puree form.

Tomatoes
Dice tomatoes and sauté in olive oil and a little diced onion and garlic (for flavor) until tender. Mash with fork. Tomatoes are not too great on their own because of their strong flavor, but they can be added to squash or green beans.

Avocadoes
Mash ripe avocados with a fork. Very tasty when mixed with mashed bananas. CANNOT be frozen.