First Foods Part 3: Making Safe and Nourishing Baby Food

Hi again!  So your baby is eating things now?  You've moved past the banana and avocado and now you are ready to REALLY expand their diet and feed them some MEALS!  (If you're not quite there yet, you might enjoy First Foods Part 1 or Part 2)

This means your baby is probably 7-10 months old.  You still need pureed food.  You're still trying to stay with food that is reasonably easy to digest, but are ready to try new things.  If you haven't read the first two entries dealing with 'First Foods', please do that first.  We cover a bit of ground there.

Now as I've said before, there are different approaches to this feeding babies business.  I would put people in two main catagories... Those who make batches of baby food, and freeze it for their babies.  And those who just make sure they can take something from the meal the rest of the family is eating and puree it for their baby at the table.  The both have their benefits and drawbacks.  And some people do some combination of the two.  Here, I will address making baby food to freeze.

Making your own baby food is easy.  You can make food that is very nutritious, cost-effective and safe for your baby.  AND it tastes good.  The first thing you need to do is find the most fresh and least chemically-treated fruit, vegetables, meat, eggs and dairy that you can afford.  I won't go on an organic or locavore rant.  But these chemicals really impact babies and children the most, so it's really worth it trying to minimize their exposure.

Making your own food is convenient even if you are going to do the 'share your own meal' approach.  Because it gives you some back-up food for when you want to eat something totally inappropriate for your baby, want to eat at a different time, or need to have a babysitter feed your child.  I should also add how important I think it is to not get too pure here.  Make sure you always have a few jars of store-bought baby food in your cupboard and your diaper bag at all times.  Gives you some flexibility where you really need it.

Here is what I think you will need to make your own baby food.  And remember... this is an important job... so get the kit you will need.  Some of you will need more convenience than I do because you are not such a kitchen witch or you are going back to work.  So get it.

• Sharpie and masking tape for labeling your food
• 2 ice cube trays (for freezing small amounts of food).  Regular ones work just fine, or you can buy ones with a cover on them.
• A little food mill, hand blender or food processor
• Ziplock bags or other containers to sotre frozen cubes of food
• A handful of small storage containers to keep food in the fridge while it thaws (jelly jars, tupperware)
• Bibs:  Rubber kangaroo bibs catch all and wash in sink ready for the next meal
• 4-5 spoons and one or 2 bowls.  NOTHING breakable.  I like the suction cup bowls... but it could be argued that until a certain age, you should not give a baby a whole bowl of food because they will hurl it across the room in sport.
• A box in your freezer to give your baby food a place to not get lost
• A source of nutritious food.

This is how you will make your food.  Let's start with something easy...

Carrot Puree
Note: This is for steaming carrots.  You can also roast them (or other vegetables) if that sounds good to you.  Just remember not to use salt.
  Ingredients:

• 8 large organic carrots

  Instructions

1. Scrub carrots, and trim tips and stem.
2. Cut carrots into 1-inch chunks and put into a steamer or pressure steamer.
3. Cook until carrots are soft enough to mash with a fork.
4. Put cooked carrots in a food processor and blend.  Add enough water to make them smooth with no lumps.
5. Spoon carrot puree into clean ice cube tray.  Cover with cling film and place in the freezer.
6. When frozen solid, tip carrot puree cubes into a clean ziplock bag.  Seal, label with 'carrots' and the date. Put in the freezer.

!!! You did it!!!

Now something more complicated...


Roasted chicken puree
If you're feeling confident, you can make a bit of a chicken-vegetable stew by either roasting with some vegetables, or putting it all in a pot and boiling it together before pureeing.  Just remember not to add salt.


  Ingredients:

• Whole chicken legs with bone and skin (get really good chicken).
• Olive oil

  Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375F
2. Place chicken legs in a roasting pan.  Coat chicken and the pan lightly in olive oil.
3. Roast in the oven for about 50 minutes, or until a meat thermometer reads 180F.
4. Remove from oven and allow to cool so you can handle it.
5. With CLEAN hands, pull chicken off the bone and place in the food processor.  Include SOME of the skin.
6. Puree with enough water or unsalted chicken broth until it is smooth.
7. Spoon chicken puree into ice cube tray.  Cover with cling film and place in the freezer.
8. When frozen solid, tip carrot puree cubes into a clean ziplock bag.  Seal, label with 'carrots' and the date. Put in the freezer.

Now... do this same thing with a few different fruits and vegetables.  Remember... don't use salt, sugar, corn syrup or honey for your children't food yet.  Their kidneys can't handle the salt like ours can.  They don't need to develop a taste for sugar yet, and the corn syrup and honey are risky for botulism until they are at least 12 months old.

Now here is a nice way to plan their meals and feed your kids.

Convenient Meal Planning

1. Before you go to bed, plan their day of meals for the next day.  Pull out your freezer box and place the puree cubes into jelly jars or tupperware and put in the fridge to thaw (put a date on them with your tape and sharpy).  
2. The next day, simply pull out the food.  Put a small amount into a bowl for their meal and put the rest away.  If they want more, get more out.  If they are not very hungry, you can safely keep that food in the fridge for a few more days if it hasn't had spoon-to-mouth contact.
3. Lunch can be something like egg yolk, broccoli puree and carrot puree mixed with applesauce.  Serve with water in a sippy cup, followed by a milk feed.

Babies and young children are more prone to food-borne illness than adults.  A little effort on your part to practice good hygiene while preparing their food and feeding them will go a long way.  Here are some guidelines...

Food Safety Tips

• Wash your hands well with soap and water before preparing food or feeding your child.
• Wash all equipment with hot soapy water before using.  Let air dry (dish towels just apply more germs). This is necessary and adequate.  Antibacterial products are not necessary.
• If food has had spoon-to-mouth contact, throw it out after the meal.
• Label everything with a date and content every time.
• Keep food in the fridge for 2-3 days, then throw it out.
• Keep food in the freezer for up to 3 months.
• Always test the temperature of foods you serve.  Microwaves can create hot spots.  Using a steamer is also a great way to quickly thaw or re-heat food.  And remember, kids often don't mind eating cool food.
• If in doubt, throw it out.  If you work with small quantities, that helps to minimize waste.