Baby Food Blast-Off!

   Baby Food. We all ate it at one point. And we are all certainly doomed to eat it in a similar fashion when we get older too. Although I can't remember exactly at what point I decided that I was not ever going to feed my son baby food out of a jar but I can tell you that I'm glad I don't. For many reasons, it just doesn't make sense. If I myself stick to a whole foods, non-processed diet why would I buy my son food that comes pre-packaged either? You don't want me to get started on the chemicals lining those cans and jars either. I hate being preachy. But go on and do the research yourself. It's not pretty.

   Health reasons aside, making your own baby food is Easy. Fun .Cost-Saving. Fulfilling. Yup, I said it. There's really no reason for you not to do it. And if you could actually save money by making your own baby food with it all being ORGANIC, then why wouldn't you? Those little jars of baby food are not cheap! A typical jar of Earths Best Organic Baby Food runs $.97 for about 2 ounces. I can make an entire head of organic cauliflower for about $2-3.00. Pop that steamed cauliflower into ice cube trays, freeze them, and you get about 18-24 ounces of fresh, organic baby food. And if you do a marathon baby food making session for a few hours like I do, you end up only having to make baby food about 1-2 times per month.

   Although I am super supportive of any mom or dad making their own baby food, I am not going to tell you what to feed your child. As a new parent I find nothing more obnoxious than someone putting their two cents in on ANYTHING baby related because so often it really is not from a place of encouragement. It is often times more of a " you realize what you're doing is not safe, healthy, or wrong". And honestly being a super health conscious yet laid back Mom, I just want to remind everyone out there that the beauty of parenting is this : Everyone who chooses so gets the privilege of parenting. Be grateful that we are given such an amazing opportunity. There are no rules. Therefore there are no two right ways on how to be a parent. Just do the best you can.

   There is also way too much conflicting information out there about what to feed your baby and when to feed your baby that I am certainly no expert. I do recommend checking out a few different resources and seeing what works for you. I also recommend to sticking to a whole foods diet and avoiding pre-packaged snacks like cereal bites or crackers or juices. My son gets a few Tablespoons of Organic Brown Rice cereal with a banana for breakfast and that's it. And that's because the HappyBaby brand I use has Pre/Probiotics, Choline, and DHA included which I think is a great added boost to his diet. (He will be switching to the multi-grain version with Quinoa and Amaranth soon)

   So without any further soap-boxing, I will impart on you the easiest way to make your own food. Start by purchasing fresh or frozen organic fruits and vegetables. Buying frozen organic vegetables is actually a great way to make food since they are typically cheaper and save you time not having to peel, chop, or dice them. My little dude loves green beans and it is easier to find organic green beans frozen than it is fresh.

   Make sure to wash your fruits and vegetables real well (Bet you didn't notice all those bugs in that pesticide-free food did you? GROSS). You will need to peel away the skins to any fruit or vegetable that contains them. Next, you have two choices on how to prepare the food. Either by steaming or baking. Do not boil or microwave your food. Both of those preparations ruin the nutrient content of the food.

   You will also need to purchase sturdy BPA-Free ice cube trays with a cover. I got mine in a Fresh Baby kit which is a great starter kit however I wasn't all about the microwave aspect it promoted in making baby food so it's not a book I entirely recommend. None-the-less it was very helpful in the beginning.

   After steaming or baking your fruits and vegetables, you will need to puree them. I use a regular old Ninja to puree mine, adding the left-over water from steaming the vegetables on the stove-top. Once pureed you can store your food in BPA-free Tupperware in the fridge for up to 24 hours before freezing. I choose to freeze my food since freshly prepared food must be used within a 3-4 day time frame as it starts to grow bacteria. So within the next 24 hours after preparing, transfer the purees into the ice cube trays and freeze for 8-10 hours. Once frozen, transfer the puree cubes into Ziploc bags. (With label and date prepared on bag). Once removed from the freezer, place into BPA-Free or glass jars and use within 24 hours.

And last but not least here are some of the resources I found helpful or items I use:

Fresh Baby
Feeding Baby Green
Wholesome Baby Food
Happy Baby Food
Earths Best
Glad Mini Round Containers (BPA, Pthalate, PVC Free)
Glad Freezer Bags (BPA, Pthalate, PVC Free)


Please Note:  You will need to do your own research on proper safe-handling and cooking procedures especially when it comes to meats.