Homemade Baby Food

Spring break is quickly coming to an end. I have enjoyed being with my girls and doing a few special things, but I am trying to clean up the house and get some things done while I have the time. One of the things on my list - stock up on baby food.

Now, I don't know where I went wrong with Kay. I must have done something horribly wrong because homegirl will NOT eat. She will not eat a lick. I continue to mix it up and make healthy lunches and dinners, and they continue to go untouched. Usually, she will not even take one bite. No snacks for you my friend. Don't even think about opening my pantry door. Most nights, she goes to bed hungry. It is horrible, but I refuse to make her anything different. I WILL NOT give up. I WILL NOT give up. I WILL NOT give up. It is especially hard because I am not in control of what she is given everyday since I am at work. This makes my job a million times harder. My. Worst. Nightmare.

I am so fearful to have another child that will NOT eat. My sweet Keira is a little different. She has not cried at any feedings yet and she already seems much more open to feedings. She has only had breast milk up until now (minus her hours in the NICU), and I am hoping we continue on this path to eating the very best. Unlike her sister, she has been open to the varying textures that comes with making your own baby food thus far.

So far, Keira has enjoyed pears, apples, and bananas. She has also had avocado, sweet potatoes, and peas.

Making homemade baby food is so easy, and I like to make big batches to freeze it. No fancy equipment needed. I use an old stock pot with a steamer basket insert (I'm talking like 30+ years old) and my food processor. For pears and apples, I simply peel, cut, steam, and throw in the food processor. They are so juicy that I never need to add any extra liquid.

For sweet potatoes, simply rinse, poke some holes in them, throw them in a 400 degree oven until they are cooked. Make sure you put a cookie sheet under them because they will leak sugary goodness and your oven will smoke and your fire alarm will continue to go off. You can even buy one of those handy dandy oven mat/liner things because if you are like me, you don't want things dripping in your oven so your smoke alarm goes off and your dog goes nuts. Even wrapped in foil, they leak like crazy! Consider yourself warned.

Pea are just as easy. Buy your favorite bag of organic frozen peas, throw them in the steamer, blend those suckers with some of the cooking liquid. It is so ridiculously easy. I have had some trouble with getting the peas to nice texture, and I noticed I had to add quite of bit of liquid or I add breast milk as I prepare it for her.

I think the thing I like best is the price tag. I bought a box of sweet potatoes on sale for $2.99! I got over 15 servings of food for Keira. If I bought 15 jars of Earth's best sweet potatoes, it would have cost me over $15.00. So much cheaper.

So we are stocked up for a few weeks. Next up, I am looking to buy some reuseable pouches to take this homemade baby food on the go. I saw some here from Mama OT's blog. I think amazon will be my friend for this one. Do you use any? Which brands are your favorite?