There seems to be alot of talk lately about baby food on the mama blogs that I follow, so I thought I would do my own post about what Owen has had, liked, hated and some tips to make life a whole lot easier on yourself if you're making your own baby food.
Owen's LikesPeas Carrots Turkey Chicken Pork Beef Beets Potatoes Corn Squash Apples Peaches Oats
Owen's Dislikes
Rice Apricots
Owen's Absolute FAVOURITES
Cherrios Rosemary Turkey+Carrots Cinnamon Applesauce+Oats
I absolutely LOVE cooking with herbs and spices for him. So far, he's had
(and loved them all)
Sweet Potatoes+Apples+Cinnamon
Roasted Carrots+Nutmeg+Cinnamon
Baked Squash+Ginger
Roasted Carrots+Basil
Crock pot Pork+Garlic
Crock pot Beef Roast+Garlic+Rosemary
Crock pot Turkey+Rosemary+Carrots
Noticing a theme??
I love to use my crock pot for making baby food! It makes the entire process SO easy! Last Thursday, I threw in about 7 chopped apples and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon...flicked it onto high and 2 hrs later...applesauce! Today, I used it with about 12 small porkchops and 2 cloves of smashed garlic...flicked it on low and 4.5hrs later...80 (yes...EIGHTY!) cubes of shredded pork that Owen ate by the handful at dinner.
Now that we're onto finger foods, he eats everything that would have been pureed, only diced! Apples, we either puree into an applesauce or I will chop and boil until slightly tender, drain and scoop into ice cube trays.
Mama's Methods & TipsI already talked about the crock pot, which is great if you know that you're going to have a busy day or week since whatever you're going to make your kiddo, you can save some and have it for dinner! It's perfect for bigger batches and one pot meals as well! Try a pork roast and with 2 hrs left of cooking time, throw in some quartered potatoes. With 1 hr left, throw in some chopped apples - one pot meal, and it purees
very smoothly!
Another method I love is roasting. Owen absolutely LOVES his roasted carrots+nutmeg+cinnamon, but also really enjoys roasted potatoes+carrots+corn. Roasting is great for big batches, which is how I
make everything, and great for keeping the flavours fresh and concentrated. It's great to throw everything into a roasting pan with an inch of water and whatever spices or herbs you like, and bake it in the oven for an hour! Set it and forget it!
I hate hate hate steaming. It takes forever, and I'm just not that patient! I also don't have a tonne of free time these days, so I need quick prep and long cooking times to be able to get other thins accomplished while his food is doing its thing. When I was steaming, though, I used a metal colander over a pot of boiling water as opposed to a steamer basket or a fancy baby cooker. It worked just fine and we had it in the house, so why not!
My biggest and best tip is to cook in big batches. It saves so incredibly much time in the long run, and you can do it for finger foods as well; just shred your meats!
I really enjoy the
Wholesome Baby Food website, and they have some great methods and recipes for beginners. It's definitely where I started, then I branched out and got adventurous. I still reference it to see what herbs and spices go with which veggies and fruits, and to check on the nutritional information for certain veggies if we're having digestive issues (one way or another! I try to treat Owen's ills with diet and so far, so good!)
Every few Tuesday's over on
Sweet Stella's, I blog about baby food prep and give some tips and recipes so if you're ever in need of some advice or some inspiration, look over there!
Have questions? Drop me a line!
*Edit - he also LOVES frozen wild blueberries and they are a sinch to make! Just defrost what you need in your kiddos dish in the microwave, or overnight in the fridge! Chalk full of fibre, awesome for constipation! They're also pretty small, so not a choking hazard once they're at the finger-food stage!
