Anyone make baby food?

*Emma Jean*

I am lightly toying with it. Any suggestions, must haves, advice? I cook quite a bit and am not really worried about that part but more concerned with pureeing it to the right consistency and freezing it. If I was a SAHM I would totally do it but not sure if I want to tackle it and take away from my time with DD. Can anyone share their cost savings?

Thanks so much!!

mhop

I did it and loved it and I don't cook very much.  It was very easy and DD ended up transitioning early to table food and I think it was partly because the food I made could never be as smooth as commercially prepared foods so she was more tolerant of texture. 

The easiest way I found to make it was to steam/bake the food, puree it with my magic bullet, then put the food into silicone ice cube trays.  I'd freeze the food then transfer the cubes into freezer bags.  Then all I'd have to do is pull out the cubes I needed and thaw and serve.  Very easy, actually.

 Check out wholesomebabyfood.com.  It's a great resource!

mhop

Also, here's a post on my blog about making baby food.  In it I reference another post I did about making baby food.  https://robbieandmartha.blogspot.com/2009/01/crazy-concoctions.html

mek10976

I'm a working mom and make baby food.  My mom bought me the Beaba Babycook ($150).  It's pricey, but I like that I can steam in the same container as pureeing.  Plus I think the food processor part does a really good job of making it smooth.  If you don't want to spend that much, a steamer basket and food mill or small food processor is all you need.  We started with things like sweet potato, carrots, bananas, peaches, blueberries, avocado, apples, plums, etc.  I have no idea what the cost savings is, but I am banking on the health aspect.  We do organic 95% of the time, but even then, I'm sure we are saving money since a small jar of baby food is around $1.00.

lemen99

I work part time, but honestly, it's not very time consuming.  The first time I did apples -- I did about 5?6? apples at a time, and he's still eating off of those!  It makes a lot and you can freeze them so it's not like you'll need to make purees every day. :-)  I don't even do it every week.  And I do give him some jarred, like peaches, b/c peaches aren't in season now and I wasn't on the ball when it was peach season.

I also recommend wholesomebabyfood.com

and...I LURVE this book.

I like having the "recipes", cooking times, freezing guidelines, etc. all right at my fingertips in one handy book.

 

 

lemen99

p.s. You'll need a food processor if you don't have one - - I just use my regular food processor (I don't have a baby food maker).  My friend has a  baby food maker and I used it once. It's neat and can save a step (they can cook/steam and puree all in one) but it's an additional item you have to purchase so that's a personal decision. 

As far as how much to puree the foods - at first, you'll want to get them perfectly as smooth as possible and go from there.

meldoo2002

I am doing it mainly because of the cost.  I just steam or bake most of the foods and then puree either in my blender or food processor.  I have to say my guys eat almost anything so I haven't had to worry too much about having the perfect texture.  Though apples, sweet potatoes, carrots, pears, and peaches all come very smooth.  I do freeze most foods and just pull out what I need for a couple days or that day.  I freeze them in ice cube trays with covers.   Baby food would cost me at least $8-10/day for the boys and with making their food I end up only spending $1-2/day.

Ali05

I'm like you. I'm toying with the idea. I have several friends who get together on Sunday and steam/puree for the week so I'm might invite myself and test it out. 

clyoungsey

My first son never had one bite of commercial baby food....and spit it out.  I had made all of his and we were traveling so I tried the easy way out.  NOPE!  So,yes, I did and will with this one.  I second the magic bullet, it was great.  I was able to get it as smooth as commerical baby food with it though.  Plus I was able to use BM instead of water so he got even better food!

clyoungsey

oh yeah, cost savings....I did a lot of sweet potatoes, squash, bananas, and those were all cheap.  I could get about 20 1 oz servings from 1 big sweet potato.  I think the jars are 2-3 oz, which are about 50-60 cents on sale I think.  1 big potato is about $1-$1.50...so:

20 servings - $1-$2

10 cans - $5 -$6 on sale

jennigator3

I did it and I loved it! Nate eats a large variety of foods now and I think that's the reason. I used wholesomebabyfood.com as well. I made a lot of squash, cinnamon apples, carrots, and some meats like chicken with squash. It worked out really well.

goblue

We found the book Super Baby Foods to be really helpful.  The author is a little over the top but it is an all-around great reference guide on how to make baby food, what foods to offer when, etc.  It is super easy to make your own.  Good luck!