Preparing Your Own Baby Food

I've had some moms ask about making their own baby food. I haven't done this, but from what I hear it sounds fairly simple!

(Photo from: www.rookiemoms.com)

Some basic guidelines are:

• Always follow the 4 day wait rule when introducing a new food to baby - offer your baby the same new food for 4 days to test for allergies to that food. This applies even when you are making homemade baby food. Never introduce more than 1 new food at a time.
• Not to put any additives in the food - things like sugar, salt, or seasonings aren't needed. Added fat isn't needed either. 
• Steam, pressure-cook, or waterless-cook vegetables, exposing them to a minimum of light, air, heat, and water. 
• Boil or bake potatoes in their skins (then you can peel) to preserve vitamins. 
• Avoid using copper pots - it can destroy Vitamin C.
• Don't cook acidic foods in aluminum - this can cause small amounts of aluminum to dissolve and be absorbed into the food. 
• Don't add baking soda; it helps to preserve the color of foods, but also depletes vitamins and minerals. 
• Soak dried legumes (peas or beans) overnight or boil them for two minutes and let them stand for an hour - then cook them in the soaking water. 
• You may want to use an ice tray, put pureed food in the tray, cover with wax paper, and freeze. You can remove one food cube at a time and thaw it out for the meal. 
• Make more than one meal at a time or you might get really sick of having to make your own baby food.

Basic Recipes:

• Apples or Pears: Place 3 apples or pears in about 2 inches of water. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook for about 7 minutes or until soft (until you can poke a fork all the way through) then let them sit and cool off. Core them and stick them in the food processor or blender. Refrigerate for 5 days or freeze for up to 6 weeks. Additional ideas for apples & pears: Add one banana to thicken the mixture a bit and/or mix the fruit puree with baby cereal.
• Sweet Potatoes and Squash: 2 cups of sweet potatoes (peeled and diced) and/or 1 cup of squash (peeled and diced); place in 2 inches of water. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a medium low. Cook for about 6 minutes or until tender. Remove with a slotted spoon and place in blender. Add 1 cup of the cooking water. Blend until smooth. Refrigerate for 5 days or freeze for up to 6 weeks.
• Green Beans: Fill pan with 1 inch of water and one pound of green beans. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a low simmer. Cook for around 15 minutes. Puree with 2 tbs. of your cooking water. Refrigerate for 5 days or freeze for up to 6 weeks.
• Broccoli: Take 1 medium head of broccoli and cut it up. Boil until it is bright green (usually about 3 minutes). Puree with 3 oz of water, formula, or breast milk. Refrigerate up to 5 days or freeze for up to 6 weeks.
• Chicken and Peas: Dice up one chicken breast, place in water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for about 5 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of frozen peas and cook for an additional 2 minutes. Puree with 1/2 cup of your cooking water. Refrigerate for up to 2 days or freeze for up to 6 weeks.
• You can also buy the frozen bags of veggies and mixed veggies and cook them, stick them in the food processor, add water, and there you have pureed mixed veggies.  
• Also, Avocados are super easy to introduce since, like bananas, they're already nice and soft. Just peel it and mash it up - waa-laa! When your baby gets older you can simply dice the avocado up and it makes a wonderful finger food. My son LOVES them!!! 

Food Safety: 

• Always wash your hands with soap and water before feeding your baby. If you do anything like touch raw meat, blow your nose, or touch your mouth during feeding time, wash them again. 
• Store any cereals or unopened baby foods in a cool, dry place. 
• Wipe the tops of the baby food jars and run them under water before opening. 
• Make sure you hear a "pop" when opening baby food to make sure the seal was intact. Don't use any food that was in a liquid that should have been clear, but is now looking cloudy or milky. 
• Don't feed your baby directly from the baby food jar and don't save a bowl of food that your baby's been eating from for the next meal. Enzymes and bacteria from your baby's saliva begin "digesting" the food, turning it watery and causing it to spoil quickly. 
• When removing a serving from the baby jar at meal time, always remove each serving with a clean spoon. Use the baby food within 3 days (for fruits and juices) and within 2 days for everything else. 
• You do not need to heat up baby food. 
• Do no feed unpasteurized juice, milk, cheese, or other "raw" dairy products. 
• Peel vegetables and fruits unless  they are organic - and wash all fruits and vegetables well. Melons should be scrubbed before cutting.

A book that seems to be popular (I have no personal experience with it) is Super Baby Food - Check it out: http://www.superbabyfood.com/
It includes a list of foods that you can introduce each month - sort of like a cheat sheet!! It lists them from infancy to toddlerhood. Sounds awesome!

An seriously AWESOME baby food website is: 
http://wholesomebabyfood.momtastic.com/
Just click on the Baby Food Recipes section to find tons of great recipes for your little one!

(Reference for recipes: www.chow.com)