Suggestions for homemade baby food

Tiffannie - posted on 09/22/2009

Yeah my daughter loves chicken and turkey we just give it to her in pieces she can pick it up and feed herself she just turned 8months, don't underestimate your little girl lol they know exactly what to do with the food you put on their tray lol... we do the baby led weaning it is messy but she loves feeding herself and has not choked once so much easier than puree', i started her at 6 months after trying the store bought baby cereal and foods, i could not feed her fast enough and she did not like most of it so we switched.

Rachel - posted on 09/21/2009

if you are puree things in a blender just add the meet to that, i shud worry too much coz my daughter at 7 months wasnt eating much meat but when we stopped blending food for her at about a yr she found it fun to hold the bits of meat like chicken from a korma in her hand at chew it like that, so i wouldnt worry too much, if ness just buy 1 or two jar meals for you little one they do help alot if you can think of what to make your child

Minnie - posted on 09/21/2009

Quoting susan:

Lisa, is that baby led weaning...? Ive heard of that but don't know much more about it. How does it work? I'd be scared they'd choke on things but i ve heard they don't. Did u use it? It would make things so much easier :o) I ve a 5 month old (nearly) and been thinkin about the joys of pureeing soon. Thanks X

Yup, definitely is baby-led weaning.

We waited until our daughter could pick up food, put it in her mouth, chew it and swallow it to offer solids.  This was about 9 1/2 months.  She's 11 months now, and eats everything we eat (save honey). 

The key to not having choking issues is 1.  Obviously be vigilant and 2.  Don't offer small pieces- those are really gag inducing.  You want to have big fist-size pieces that baby can chew off of at her own pace.

I've never pureed anything for her, never spoon-fed her.  She's always had a spoon or fork on her tray with appropriate foods, like oatmeal or pasta, and she's got a relatively good handle on how to use them now. 

Brandie - posted on 09/21/2009

I know when my girls were little we blended the meat with some gravy in a small food processor , you can always add potatoes or noodles....ex: chicken and noodles.

Jennifer - posted on 09/21/2009

I used a lot of ground beef, ground turkey, and ground chicken. Once cooked it was in small pieces and after putting it in the food processor it got even smaller! I also gave my son canned chicken because it was so soft and flaked very easily. There was an organic brand I use to buy but I can't remember the name of it.

Susan - posted on 09/21/2009

Lisa, is that baby led weaning...? Ive heard of that but don't know much more about it. How does it work? I'd be scared they'd choke on things but i ve heard they don't. Did u use it? It would make things so much easier :o) I ve a 5 month old (nearly) and been thinkin about the joys of pureeing soon. Thanks X

Minnie - posted on 09/21/2009

You don't need to puree anything at all. Give her big wedge shaped pieces of food and let her gnaw and chew on it herself.

Give her an entire chicken drumstick, or a square of a piece of fish. A strip of steak to suck and gnaw on.

Susan - posted on 09/21/2009

I know she can be a bit over the top but i used the 'Gina Ford, The contented book of weaning'. I didn't follow her guidelines (2 strict 4 me) but there was some great recipes in it. Also ananbel Karmels books are also full of some cracking menus :o)

Cristina - posted on 09/21/2009

Hi,

I make all my sons food at home, when he was her age I started to give him red meat and chicken, what I do is: one chicken breast, a piece of steak or stewing beef cubes, sweet potato, squash, if you have this -> Malanga is also called Taro root, it's great for their tummies, it helps digest meats better ( but, if you can't find it, it's ok.) one medium onion, 3 cloves of garlic, green beans, I usually do not add salt, but if you must, use as little as possible.

Place the meat and chicken with onion and garlic cloves in a big pot with enough water and cook for about 35 minutes, add the malanga, sweet potatoes, and squash cut into cubes, boil until everything is tender.

When done, use a food processor to blend it all together onions garlic and all, including a bit of the broth, let cool, and place in individual containers and freeze, they'll be good for at least 3 months I used to do this every three months, made enough for him. I also mixed the food, with rice that I might cook for that day, or added blended mixed veggies, he always ate it up, plus I think that home mommy made organic food is way better than those baby foods we spend so much money on.

Hope this one recipe helps.

Jennifer - posted on 09/21/2009

Try spaghetti with a meat sauce. I cut up the noodles so they're really small and when browning the hamburger, chop it up really fine. My daughter loves it. The rest of the meat we give her- like chicken, ham, etc, we just cut up into really small pieces (like pencil eraser size) and she gums it. If the meat is drier, we try to add it to something else we're having to help it slide down her throat better. Like ham with sweet potatoes or chicken with applesauce. My daughter can't get enough of it. Hope that helps!