I decided when I was preggo that I was going to make all of Turner McCartney’s food much to John Paul’s amusement. Let’s be honest…I’m super lazy and I rarely make my own food. But to everyone’s surprise I’ve been making baby food since TM started solids and it’s super fun! Yay!!!
I try to pick one day a week – usually Saturday or Sunday – to make all the food for the week. When we started at 6 months I was only feeding her solids once a day and waiting 3 or 4 days between new foods. Now at 8 months she’s eating 2-3 times a day so we go through a lot more baby food.
I use the baby bullet to make our food but you could use any food processor or blender or the baby cook if you have that.
The cute little batch cups with the smiley faces sold it for me! They have a little dial that you can turn to the date you made the food so you’ll know how long it’s good for. I keep prepared food in the fridge for 3 or 4 days and in the freezer for 1 month based on info in the cookbook that came with my baby bullet. Ice cube trays are great for freezing baby food and then transferring to a freezer bag for storage.
On the menu: peaches, apples, sweet peas, brown rice, carrots, squash, and sweet potatoes. I like to buy organic on things that aren’t peeled. And frozen versus canned peas because frozen peas contain no sodium. The fresh veggies are from our local farmers market. I LOVE shopping local and supporting our farmers!
I cook everything except avocado and bananas before turning it into baby food. I have a small steam basket that I use all the time. It fits in a medium pot and works perfectly for steaming food for the babe. I steam or boil just until the fruit or veggie is soft and I always leave the peel on while I cook it. I boiled the squash and sweet potato and steamed the carrots, peas, peaches, and apple. The brown rice you just mill to a fine powder and then cook with water later.
I’m still pureeing TM’s food to a smooth consistency because I’m terrified she will choke. This is what the finished product will look like. The peas are a little textured and the sweet potato makes the best puree. You can even bake it and then puree it.
The first foods we introduced were avocado followed by sweet potato and then bananas. She was not a fan of the avocado. So far she’s had apples, carrots, peas, peaches, squash, zucchini, blueberries, green beans, butternut squash, pears, prunes, and plums.
Most everything freezes well and keeps in the fridge. The only thing I make right before she eats is the banana. It turns brown pretty fast but I haven’t tried freezing it. Avocado also turns brown pretty fast but both these fruits can be mashed right before serving. I thaw the frozen food in the fridge the night before she needs it and I heat the food in a cup of hot water just like her milk.
So that’s how I make TM’s baby food. If you have any questions please let me know. I think making baby food is super fun and I love knowing exactly what she’s eating.
There are some things that I would love to know. Like when should I introduce meat?? And how can I get TM to eat like a champ?? She’s been refusing some of her fav veggies lately and really only eating fruit. Womp womp womp…..
