Why make your own baby food?
By making your own baby
food you can have total control over what you feed your baby and you
will know that what they are eating is free from salt, sugar, additives
and fillers which are sometimes found in shop bought food.
You can
choose to use only the freshest, highest quality produce and if you
wish to make organic baby food then use only organic fruit and
vegetables and away you go. However, if you are short of time then you
could use freshly frozen vegetables in your own homemade baby food. It
is very easy to make your own baby food - all you need is a kitchen or
hand blender and fresh ingredients. And as an added bonus, if you make
large amounts of his or her favourite meals you can freeze them and
you'll then be able to serve healthy, wholesome food in minutes and for
every meal of the week.
And if the thought of making your healthy,
wholesome baby food is not enough, then how about the added incentive
of saving money and the environment! Homemade baby food will cost much
less to make that the equivalent shop bought products - and you will not
have an endless supply of empty jars to have to recycle!
The cooking process...
Most
foods will need to be baked, cooked or steamed (the exception to this
are bananas, avocados and melons) until they are nice and soft. Once
cooked, put them in a blender to be pureed, add a little of the cooking
water to make them the necessary consistency and hey presto - wholesome,
homemade baby food just like that.
Steaming is the best way to
preserve nutrients, and it also is the best way to keep the fresh taste
of the fruit and vegetables. Why not buy a multi layered steamer and
cook different vegetables at once? The excess can be pureed and frozen
for future meals. Boiling is a perfectly good alternative if you don't
have a steamer, put the vegetables into a saucepan, just cover with
water, and boil until tender.
Why not try baking some of the
vegetables in the oven? Veggies such as potatoes, sweet potato and
winter squashes are great when baked. Cook them until tender, scoop the
flesh out of the skin and mash with a fork. What could be simpler?
Puréeing...
A
food processor can be used to purée large quantities of food - and is
also useful for many other aspects of home cooking. But if you don't
have a processor, or don't want to have to invest in one, why not buy a
hand blender? These tend to be cheaper - and it is probably easier to
find a space for one in your kitchen!
Storage...
If
you prepare a large batch of food it can be poured into ice cube trays
and then frozen - future meals in minutes! The flexible trays are
best, and once the food is frozen just store the cubes in well sealed
freezer bags - remember to label them though and it's also helpful to
add an expiry date (6 weeks from making the food is about right!)
And finally...
And
one last reason......homemade baby food is much tastier than its shop
bought equivalents. Your baby deserves to eat delicious, homemade food
just as much as we do!!
More tips and suggestions for homemade baby food recipes can be found at [http://www.homemade-baby-recipes.com]
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