Homemade Baby Food (Stage 1 and 2)

from ButterYum

makes as much or as little as you like

INGREDIENTS

• steamed fruits and vegetables (see notes below)

• liquid of choice (water, formula, breast milk)

DIRECTIONS

• Steam or roast fruits or vegetables until soft (if needed - see notes below).

• Puree in personal blender with water, formula, or breast milk until the desired consistency is reached (very thin for Stage !, thicker for Stage 2).

• Pour into baby food jars leaving 1/2-inch head space, label, and freeze for up to 3 months.

NOTES

• Stage 1 Food Ideas: Start with easy to digest fruits and veggies like carrots, sweet potatoes, butternut squash, green beans, peas, pumpkin, mango, apples, peaches, pears, bananas (no need to cook).

• Stage 2 Food Ideas: try thicker consistency combinations like blueberry/strawberry/apple, spinach/zucchini/peas, sweet corn/green beans, carrots/sweet corn, pumpkin, apple/pumpkin/cinnamon, etc. This is also a good time to start introducing small amounts of herbs and spices. Hold of on added sugar or salt until baby reaches 12 months of age.

• Thaw frozen baby food in the fridge overnight, and use within 72 hours. If you feed directly from container, don’t try to save leftovers (they will liquify). If the entire jar isn’t going to be used, I suggest dispensing into a separate bowl before feeding.

• Bananas should be pureed as needed as they do not store well once pureed.

• Organic fruits canned in water with no sugar added can be pureed straight out of the can.

• For sweet potatoes, pumpkin, and squash, I prefer to roast them rather than steam them.

• Garden fresh fruits and vegetables are wonderful, but frozen are an excellent option when fresh fruits and veggies are out of season.