Making Homemade Baby Food IS Just as Easy as Opening a Jar...

...and tastes oh-so-much better. Trust me on this. With my first child, I bought a lot of organic jarred baby foods. I waited until she was 7 months old before I fed her because she was not very interested in food. In the end, she was not much of an eater until she was close to a year old, she preferred to nurse. I was all geared up to make her homemade baby food, but the few times I did she didn't eat much of it, so I stopped. I had cookbooks, a food mill, and storage containers all ready to go. I held on to it all. I am happy I did because our second little one recently started eating pureed food and she LOVES to eat. She is also nursing but she got to a point where she was so interested in food we actually started her at 5 1/2 months, which is a bit early. She insisted. And now, just a month later she wants to eat food if the rest of us are. So, now I get to make baby food, and I have a babe who can't get enough. I have not bought one jar of canned food. I have only bought organic fruits and vegetables, rice, and oatmeal, and have made it all myself. You can, too. It is truly simple!


A few tips on early feeding:
~ It is best to start with foods which are least likely to be allergenic. These include banana, brown rice cereal, and avocado. My first child started with avocado and my second with brown rice cereal. It is a good idea to avoid feeding acidic foods like berries, citrus, and tomatoes to new eaters as they can be allergenic.
~ There are theories on not starting your child with sweet items first as they might tend to crave them. My second child actually didn't like banana at first, she preferred cereals and vegetables.
~ Don't expect your child to eat a lot at first. Do not force a baby to eat. If they are interested they will open their mouths and if they close them or turn away when you try to feed them, stop. They should still be getting plenty of nourishment from breast milk or formula.
~ Do not save any leftover food from the serving your child has been eating from. Once the spoon has been used and put back in the food, bacteria is in the food and it should be thrown out. For this reason, when you make food, keep it in a larger container and spoon it into a smaller one.
~ Do not microwave your baby's food. I use a regular bowl, filled with hot water, and I put a small glass ramekin (bowl) into the larger bowl and mix the food to warm it up.
~ Most new parents have many questions about introducing food to babies. I can only cover so much here. Please see the resource links below for more information.


So far, Elle has eaten brown rice cereal, oatmeal, avocado, banana, potato, sweet potato, green beans, applesauce, and mango. My best friend gave me a wonderful Kidco food mill (see resources below). It is a super easy way to puree anything. I just put the chunks of food in it, add a bit of water and turn the crank. It is easy enough for my three year old to turn so she is happy to turn the crank and feels she is a part of feeding time. This food mill is really good for fibrous fruits and veggies, since it keeps the fibers, seeds, skin, and even bone beneath the medical grade stainless steel strainer and cutting blade set, which is not at all sharp to the touch. The body of the mill is made from BPA and PHTHALATE FREE plastic. The newer deluxe version has a skid proof bottom and crank, a snap on lid, and a travel case. Once you crank the food it fills the 4 oz feeding cup so you can feed from it. It is a snap to clean, in fact it is dishwasher safe, although I always hand wash mine. They are well worth their affordable price of about $20 Canadian. If you prefer you can also use a food processor or blender but they are more work to clean and you may need to strain the food before serving, depending upon the type.

Here is how I have prepared everything I have made so far.

Banana & Avocado
My daughter doesn't seem to like banana unless it is very ripe. It is easy cut up avocado and banana and to mash it with a fork. You can also put it through the food mill for the smoothest consistency. Because neither banana or avocado keep very well once mashed, I usually use about a 1/3 of the banana or avocado, and eat the rest myself.


Cooked Brown Rice Cereal
This recipe is from the book Simply Natural Baby Food (see resources below).
Place 1/2 cup of brown rice in 3 cups of water. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer for one hour.

Rice should be very soft so you can cook it for longer if needed. Water may not be completely absorbed which is fine. You can puree this in the blender, which I actually do, because it is a large batch. I keep about three days worth of feedings in the fridge, and freeze the rest in ice cube trays. I usually have about 24 cubes (see photo below). I take them out of the ice cube trays and store them in freezer safe Pyrex bowls with plastic lids. I keep the cereal that I store in the fridge quite thick, and I add boiling water to each serving to warm it up and thin it out when it is time to eat. For the frozen cubes I usually put two in a hot water bath, letting them thaw, and then put them through the food mill. They hold their shape as they thaw and they absorb enough water that they usually come out of the mill the perfect consistency.


Oatmeal
We like to put oatmeal powder in our bath water to guard against dry skin. I have an electric coffee grinder that I use just for grinding oatmeal and other grains. I spoon a few teaspoons of the powder into a small glass bowl and I add hot water. As it cools the cereal thickens so I add water once more right before I serve it so it is the desired thickness. It ends up about one part cereal to three parts water. You can also powder the oatmeal in a blender or food processor, a few cups at a time, and store it in a jar with a lid.

Potato, Sweet Potato, & Apple
Peel the potato or apple. Cut it into small pieces. Put in saucepan with enough water to cover, bring to a boil, then simmer on low until they are soft enough to puree, usually about 15 minutes.

Mango
I cut it into small chunks and put it through the food mill.

Green Beans
I cut the beans into small pieces then over cook them in boiling water. Once they are very soft I put some of the cooking water and the beans in the mill to make a smooth puree.


Resources
Food Mill
Kidco, Inc
Websites
~ wholesomebabyfood.com
~ HomemadeBabyFoodRecipes.com
~ Mothering Magazine Online
Books
~ New Vegetarian Baby by Sharon K. Yntema
~ Simply Natural Baby Food: Easy Recipes for Delicous Meals Your Infant and Toddler Will Love by Cathe Olson

I would love to hear your recipes for baby food and am always looking for good resources. Please leave me a comment if you have something to share.


If you are wondering where I got this adorable handmade bib, it is from Christine, at Barnyard Baby on Etsy. She gave it to me as one of the Etsy Virtual Baby Shower gifts I received back in June, after Emmanuelle was born. It is well made, beautiful, and washes up well. I love it!