I knew pretty early on in my pregnancy that I wanted to make my own baby food. The storebought stuff looks funny and is so much more expensive. I think it tastes funny, too - and there's no way I'm making my kid eat something I wouldn't eat.
Luckily, there are so many resources available and I have a good friend who made all of her kid's baby food and had a great experience with it. Even though Coop began eating baby food in the summer which was super hectic for me, it was so easy, so I'm glad I did it! We've saved a ton of money, and he's loved it.
First off, there is a great website to reference, www.wholesomebabyfood.com. If you have even the slightest idea that you might want to make some of your own purees, bookmark it. Now.
This website is so helpful, because it not only makes recommendations based on baby's age, but also gives tips on how to puree, store, etc. I referenced it a lot for ideas, or to see when a food was "OK" for Cooper. Aldi has a lot of produce sales, so I wanted to take advantage of them, but not buy the food so soon that it was in the freezer for a long time.
I also spent a lot of time in the baby food aisle, looking at combinations that are sold :)
Anyhow, for every pin and website, there is a different suggestion on the best way to make baby food. So now I'm going to share mine!
I used both fresh and frozen produce. It depended on what was in season and how much time I had. When I purchased frozen, I would buy the cheap bags at either Aldi or Walmart.
Anyhow, I would cut it up (if fresh) or pour out the bag and put in a saucepan, just covered with water. As a rule of thumb, your fruit needs less, because it has so much water in it.
Boil until done. For frozen, it's pretty much ready once boiling, but obviously fresh takes longer.
Once done, use a slotted spoon and put the food in your food processor. We bought a Ninja and it works great! As an added bonus, we can use it well beyond making baby food :)
Then, add some of the water from cooking. I usually would add about 2 inches. I've read where you can also use formula or breastmilk for this step, if you want to add a little more fat to your food, but I've always done water. Even for foods I bake, like sweet potatoes, I would just add filtered water.
Next, go ahead an pulse to puree. And I eyeball the consistency. In the beginning, it was more whipped, but now it's like a chunky salsa sort of consistency, since he has teeth and can chew.
Now all you need to do is spoon it into your ice cube trays and you are done! I would typically allow mine to freeze overnight, if not, I felt like they had some ice crystals on them. I'd then bag them up in Ziploc bags. Bananas and avocado were two of my favorite to make, because you skip the cooking step!
Of course, we followed the four-day wait rule in the beginning and had veggies for about a month before introducing any fruits. Like I said, Coop likes all foods, except has decided in the past month or so that he is no longer a fan of avocado.
Once we decided Coop was ready for meats and more "meals," I also consulted WBF. For the most part, he has three suppers: spaghetti (made normally - 1/2 lb. meat, 1 can sauce, mixed with 1 box noodles), chicken & rice, turkey & rice and regular chicken and regular rice. My friend who taught me how to make the food told me she would sometimes make casseroles and puree them as well.
I probably won't be doing that because right now, I am really working on transitioning Cooper to table food. I strive to get supper prepared early enough that he can eat with us - last night, he had chili! But the baby food works great for when we are on the road, in a rush, and for daycare, where he probably won't transition to table food until he is 1.
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