Has anyone ever made Homemade babyfood?

Janet - posted on 03/29/2013

With both my kids (3 and 2), I first started by giving them mashed bananas and avacados before moving to pureed veggies. These included (not always all in one pot but varied) : potatoes, sweet potatoes, squash, carrots, peas, spinach. Sometimes I would also soak the soft part of bread in milk and feed it to them. As they got older and they got more teeth I introduced rice, and pasta with beans. Today they eat almost everything including meat, but they still don't seem to like fish much and chicken not at all.

Lisa - posted on 08/29/2009

My my boys were little I didn't even puree the veggies. I would use my pampered chef chopper and chop them super fine so they would still get the texture without it being a choking hazard.

Jenny - posted on 08/21/2009

when my son was little i started him off on baby rice but as soon as he could eat proply i made my own meals i think its important to do ur own u no wat goes in them and they are healthyer for them

Ashley - posted on 08/05/2009

I've been making my boys baby food and they like it way more than the jar stuff. I normally will pick a fruit or veggie and cut it up, steam it, and then blend it up in the food processor (or blender for green beans, it seems to work better for me) and then freeze it in a tray made to give 3 oz. servings. I also go to the wholesome baby food site Renee suggested and it has a lot of information for parents just starting to make their own baby food.

Linda - posted on 08/04/2009

my grandson bobby gets fed with a feeding tube and whatever we eat he eats we just put it in the bullet that works cant get any more natural then that fruit meat veggies potatoes, chicken. whatever is going it gets he is 3 1/2 now and he also get a supplement formular too. he does very well with the food inthe bullet. its the best you are cooking for your family so why not give him some too. and as we all know we always have plenty of food at our dinner table. breakfast he will get yogurt fruit even oatmeal or cereal all in the bullet and then fed through his feeding tube in his stomach. good luck

Tina - posted on 07/29/2009

My husband cooked and pureed all my third child's baby food (he is the cook). We used a store bought jar in a pinch and it was so soupy. At 10 months, he is already eating cut up bananas, diced tomatoes with brocolli, etc. freezing in ices worked great. I'll have to check out the mypramid.gov site. I strive not to give snacks. He isn't acting hungry so why give food? That just leads to bad eating habits. We already had a food chopper so we didn't even need to buy anything special to make it? He gets a lot more variety than bought food offers. That is a great plus!

JC - posted on 07/12/2009

It takes time but its so easy. You can bake sweet potatoes then mash it up or blend it. Just google home made baby food. I wish everyone knew how easy it was.

Yvonne - posted on 07/11/2009

beaba babycook :-)

Kathleen - posted on 06/25/2009

My son is 10 months old, and since he started solids i've been making his foods. I started with sweet potatoes, squash and carrots. Eventually I started to mix those items together. He loves it, and he eats everything. I've had a few people comment on how well he eats because he's not picky at all. My Dr. was surprised at the variety of foods I have introduced. I still haven't introduced spices, but I use alot of fresh herbs that i guess provide more taste.

Emma - posted on 06/25/2009

Quoting Debbie:

YES YES A THOUSAND times YES ! Home made baby food is all my daughter ever ate and she is now two and LOVES food. Eats just about anything you put in front of her,as long as its not meat. Were vegetarians.
. I had SO MUCH FUN experimenting with different spices and flavors in her baby food to introduce her to thatn ow she is eatintg table food I dont have a pickye ater on my hands,,, The books I used that I LOVE and used often were
"ORGANIC BABY AND TODLLER COOKBOOK- lizzie Van
"FIRST MEALS" Annabel Karmel

 hi. i saw that you are a vegetarian.. i was just wanting dome advise really.. my son who is 7 reuses to eat meat.. he says he does not like it.. what could i use as a substitute to meat that has everything in it meat has? because he has been so lethargic lately due to his diet.. thanks in advance x

Jeannie - posted on 06/25/2009

Hello Samantha...I am an older Mom who has raised 5 children...People don't realize how easy it is to make your own baby food...My eldest Son is now 31...I started with him giving him Bananas first and then avocados...with my other Children I introduced them to many other vegetables and fruits...Steaming was the best way to soften many of the harder items before putting them through a grinder that we had way back when...I am sure they have very handy gadgets now...Making your Own Baby food is as easy as opening a jar...Start them out with a healthy choice...Good Luck Mommies and Daddy's..

Pam - posted on 06/13/2009

Yes I do make homemade baby food for my daughter although I have not gone organic. I use the magic bullet for purees and chopping. I have to do cooking by scratch for my family due to a milk allergy that my husband and daughter share. I have only recently started making food so am still experimenting. Thankfully my daughter is adventuresom and not a picky eater.

Katy - posted on 03/07/2009

My 6 month old has only had organic homemade food. So far so good! Everything we've offered him has been devoured! So fun- I love to cook for him!

Alison - posted on 03/04/2009

Yep, I made my own baby food for my daughter now 4. Except for when we had to travel somewhere then I would get a couple of organic jar baby food til we get to wherever and can make more fresh baby food; but by then she had gotten so use to the homemade food she didn't really like the jar ones as well. It's so easy and cost effective AND healthier I don't know why everyone don't do it. I didn't have any of the fancy equipment though and just used what I had in the kitchen and a few ice cube trays. I'd make big batches once every couple of weeks, freeze them in the ice cube trays and then transfer to ziplock bags. I had a baby food cook book as a guideline and it helped me know how much to cook different veggies and fruits so as to retain as much of the nutrients as possible. I plan to do it again for my next child due in 3 mos and I want to at least get some freezer trays with lids on them this time.

Kristin - posted on 03/04/2009

Yes I started making my own baby food when my son turned 3 months. and I still do it. Its the best and easiest thing to do. Just think you know exaclty whats in it and its all freash. Some people think I'm just to stricked since I don't allow my 14 month old son to have any sugar ( unless its natrual and in apples or something) I just say hey he dosen't need it. Just look at all the fat children out there. Thats what scares me. So I'm just trying to do my part as a good mother. Good luck . let me know if you want some food ideas or cook book ideas. kristin

Jacynthe - posted on 02/26/2009

My friend got the Beaba babycook and swears by it. She found it a Williams-Sonoma. Here is a description of it from the website. It makes making homemade babyfood a lot easier.

"The French baby-food maker that has won praise throughout Europe is finally available to American families. This compact countertop appliance multitasks as a steamer, blender, warmer and defroster to prepare fresh, healthy meals for baby. It starts by steam cooking vegetables, fruits, meat and fish in less than 15 minutes, preserving their vitamins and flavors, then purees or blends them to your desired consistency. You can also use it to quickly reheat or defrost precooked foods. "

Jakki - posted on 02/21/2009

Ah! That's exactly what I was going to say. My freezer used to be packed with zip lock bags with differeny colour combinations in it.



There's no limit to it, and hey, what a lot of money you save! I'm incredulous when I see people feeding their baby pureed apple or whatever from a jar, it's so easy to make it yourself!



The trick is to cook something for the rest of the family and then just puree some of it for the baby, and freeze any extra.

Jakki - posted on 02/21/2009

Quoting tenelle:

i use to boil some vegetables up seperatly with a little bit of water cos i doesnt take to long then puree them and would freeze portions of it into ice cube trays at meal time all you need is a couple of cubes and that way you can vary each meal you can even cook up bits of chicken andchop up really fine and puree and freeze that too once frozen put in zip lock bags and just mark what it is

 

Samantha - posted on 02/20/2009

Oh thanks for the sneaky food tips..my son is very picky lol...

Candice - posted on 02/20/2009

The best investment I made for making my own baby food (and even STILL use for making purees to "sneak" into their everyday foods) was my Kitchen Aid Food processor. I highly recommend getting one and have fun experimenting!! Check out my fav book, too: the Sneaky chef by Missy Chase Lapine. I took her concepts of making highly nutritious food purees and work them into my kids' everyday diet. My little girl still doesn't know eggs are supposed to be yellow as hers have always been green! lol (spinach and broccoli purees)

Have fun!

Christine - posted on 02/19/2009

Yep my bub only has homemade, I used a great book as my resource called Yummy Baby. Its been awesome and he just loves all the food I give him. It also means that I can taylor that into the family meals and its really easy. Plus I got some new recipes..

Debbie - posted on 02/18/2009

YES YES A THOUSAND times YES ! Home made baby food is all my daughter ever ate and she is now two and LOVES food. Eats just about anything you put in front of her,as long as its not meat. Were vegetarians.

. I had SO MUCH FUN experimenting with different spices and flavors in her baby food to introduce her to thatn ow she is eatintg table food I dont have a pickye ater on my hands,,, The books I used that I LOVE and used often were

"ORGANIC BABY AND TODLLER COOKBOOK- lizzie Van

"FIRST MEALS" Annabel Karmel

Tenelle - posted on 02/18/2009

you can also do it with most fruit aswell

Tenelle - posted on 02/18/2009

you can also do it with most fruit aswell

Tenelle - posted on 02/18/2009

i use to boil some vegetables up seperatly with a little bit of water cos i doesnt take to long then puree them and would freeze portions of it into ice cube trays at meal time all you need is a couple of cubes and that way you can vary each meal you can even cook up bits of chicken andchop up really fine and puree and freeze that too once frozen put in zip lock bags and just mark what it is

Renee - posted on 02/15/2009

TJ's???  Are they by the chips and stuff? Can't believe I never thought of that!  I LOVE TJ's, buy all my food there and I can't believe I never thought about those veggie crisps - seen 'em on the shelf, but never thought of them as "baby food"!  Ha! Thanks for the tip.

Samantha - posted on 02/15/2009

I got mine at trader joes! They have lots of organic stuff in there.

Renee - posted on 02/15/2009

Where can I find organic veggie crisps? I'd love to give him something like that, but the Gerber Graduates puffs have a ton of crap in them (wheat, chemicals, things you can't pronounce). 

Samantha - posted on 02/15/2009

Yes Kaitlyn has seemed to be enjoying her food more andt ends to like a variety. I too have been trying the veggie organic crispas which she loves!

Penny - posted on 02/15/2009

All I've ever done for her is cook and puree fresh organic food. Now she is also having meats, omlettes, whatever I cook and I'm mashing instead of pureeing as she is 7 months and can chew now. I buy her organic baby crisps made from puffed vegetables too, and let her have granary bread cut into hand sized chunks with her meals. My sister made her some organic veg soup which she loved, and I gave her a couple of curries this week which she loved. She also shares our pasta bake and our tuna and egg mix that we have with baked potato. The only thing I havent given her is honey, and I never give her any processed foods unless they're organic and have no preservatives, or added salt and/or sugar. I've always checked ingredients for us anyway, so it wasnt a big deal to cook from fresh for her either. She just had things more simple to start with when she first tasted them, and now she's moving to more complex adult meals.

Renee - posted on 02/13/2009

Homemade is all my baby has eaten!  I consulted the following sources: www.wholesomebabyfood.com, www.weelicious.com, Dr. Sears books, and a book called "Naturally Healthy First Foods for Baby" by Jacqueline Rubin. I have made everything at home (okay, except rice cereal - tried that and it was a waste of time!) and he loves everything he eats. It doesn't take a lot of time to do and the health benefits are huge!  I work outside the home and I make the time to make this healthy food for my baby because I know it is the best I can do to give him a good start (in addition to breastfeeding!).