Green common beans on the plant
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Preparing our own baby food is one of the best things we can give to our babies. With just a little bit of extra time and effort, we can give our baby the best food. It is very easy to make baby food. All you need is to cook it and then process it in a food processor. You will need to look at guidelines for when babies can be introduced to foods.

Babies can eat just about any fruit and vegetable. Bananas,of course, are very easy since all you have to do is mash them. Some of the first fruits and vegetables you can introduce baby to are apples, sweet potatoes, squash, pears, and carrots and these are also some of the easiest foods to prepare. It is a little trickier to prepare peaches, apricots, peas, green beans, zucchini and yellow squash, broccoli, cauliflower, but these are all doable. With peaches and apricots, you will need to first peel the skin from them, which you can often do by blanching. These are all packed with nutrients and babies usually like them.

Generally all you need to do is to steam or microwave the food for a short period of time. Steaming keeps more of the nutrients in the food. After cooking you need to process the food until it is completely smooth, adding water as needed to make it the right consistency. Even meat can be processed. You will need to add water to the meat to make it the right texture for baby.

I used the book, “Mommy Made and Daddy too! Home Cooking For a Healthy Baby & Toddler”, written by Martha and David Kimmel. According to the authors, steaming fruits and vegetables either in a steamer basket or in a microwave is the most nutritious way of cooking. They also recommend stove-top steaming since it is easy and inexpensive. They state that some of the nutrients are lost in this process, however, it can be regained by using the liquid from the steaming process to thin the foods. Baking, roasting, and grilling foods are also acceptable, especially for potatoes, squash and beets, which are best cooked in their skins.

The authors describe when to introduce each food, and how to cook and puree it. They also list many recipes for each food and suggest combinations for fruits and vegetables. It was really fun preparing these nutritious, fresh foods and trying them on my babies. I also enjoyed trying some of the meals and snack recipes for toddlers.

There is less waste when you prepare your own baby food because you can control the portions. I found that when I used store bought baby food I often threw away half a jar. After you have cooked and pureed the vegetables and fruits, you can then put appropriate-sized portions in an ice cube tray or in baby food jars and store in the refrigerator until the next feeding or in the freezer for longer storage.

I loved preparing my own baby food and then feeding it to my baby. I felt so good about what I was giving my baby. I knew it was the best, most nutritious food since it was fresh and wasn’t processed, and nothing was added.

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