Making your own baby food is not only easy but really economical.
I always try to make my baby food from fruits as well as vegetables I already have and am serving the rest of my family. The fun part about making your baby food in small cubes like this is that you can try lots of flavour combinations! Just pop 1 cube of each flavour from your freezer and then heat.Some of our favourites are:
- Pear + Spinach
- Banana + Squash
- Apple + Sweet Potato + Blueberry
- Carrot + Squash + Apple
- Peach + Banana + Carrot
- Apple + Blueberry + Kale
- Pear + Carrot + Peas
- Pear + Zucchini
- Squash + Peas
Fruit/Veggie |
How to Prepare |
Apple/Pear
|
Place fruit in a pot and add enough water to just cover the fruit. Cover and cook on high until fruit is soft. Drain water and puree the fruit in a blender. |
Peaches/Nectarines/Plums
|
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Place fruit (with skin) in the pot and blanch for 1 minute. Immediately transfer blanched fruit to the bowl of ice water using a slotted spoon. Leave in the ice water for another minute. Remove fruit and slip skins off. Cut fruit in half and remove the pit. Puree in a blender. |
Banana/Avocado
|
Remove skin from the fruit. If your baby is just starting solids, puree in a blender. If they have been eating solids for a while, mash with a fork. |
Blueberry
|
Puree fruit with a small amount of added water in a blender. |
Sweet Potato/Squash/Pumpkin
|
For the sweet potato, poke holes in it with a fork and place on a baking sheet. For squash, cut in half and remove seeds; place on a baking sheet. Bake in the oven at 400 degrees for about 1 hour depending on the size. Once baked and soft, scoop the flesh out. If your baby is just starting solids, puree in a blender with a small amount of water. If your baby is more experienced, mash with a fork and serve. |
Carrots/Cauliflower/Broccoli
|
Peel carrots and cut in half. Cut cauliflower and broccoli into small pieces. Steam veggies until tender. Puree with a small amount of water in a blender until smooth. |
Peas/Zucchini
|
Cut zucchini into pieces. Steam veggies until tender. Puree in a small amount of water until smooth. |
Green Beans
|
Cut ends off and steam until tender. Puree in a small amount of water until smooth. |
Kale/Spinach
|
Trim ends off of leaves. (Use baby Kale) Puree in a small amount of water until |
Storing Homemade Baby Food
If you are going to use your baby food right away and you only made a small portion, you can just store in your fridge for up to 3 days. If you make your baby food in bigger batches then freeze it. The best way to make baby food into single serving size is to use ice cube trays! Spoon the pureed food into the tray and then freeze. Once it is frozen (2 hours) then pop the cubes out and store in an airtight freezer container for up to 3 months.Heating Homemade Baby Food
When you are ready to use the baby food that you have frozen, remove as many cubes as you will use in a sitting. Once reheated, you should not freeze again.- Place in a microwave-safe container and heat in 15-second intervals until the desired temperature has been reached. Stir between each heating interval. Before serving to your baby, stir thoroughly and test the temperature again to avoid any hot pockets.
- Use a smaller saucepan and place the food into the saucepan. Heat on low and stir frequently until the desired temperature has been reached.
| Fruit/Veggie | How to Prepare |
Apple/Pear 
|
Place fruit in a pot and add enough water to just cover the fruit. Cover and cook on high until fruit is soft. Drain water and puree the fruit in a blender. |
Peaches/Nectarines/Plums 
|
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Place fruit (with skin) in the pot and blanch for 1 minute. Immediately transfer blanched fruit to the bowl of ice water using a slotted spoon. Leave in the ice water for another minute. Remove fruit and slip skins off. Cut fruit in half and remove the pit. Puree in a blender. |
Banana/Avocado 
|
Remove skin from the fruit. If your baby is just starting solids, puree in a blender. If they have been eating solids for a while, mash with a fork. |
Blueberry 
|
Puree fruit with a small amount of added water in a blender. |
Sweet Potato/Squash/Pumpkin 
|
For sweet potato, poke holes in it with a fork and place on a baking sheet. For squash, cut in half and remove seeds; place on a baking sheet. Bake in the oven at 400 degrees for about 1 hour depending on the size. Once baked and soft, scoop flesh out. If your baby is just starting solids, puree in a blender with a small amount of water. If your baby is more experienced, mash with a fork and serve. |
Carrots/Cauliflower/Broccoli 
|
Peel carrots and cut in half. Cut cauliflower and broccoli into small pieces. Steam veggies until tender. Puree with a small amount of water in a blender until smooth. |
Peas/Zucchini 
|
Cut zucchini into pieces. Steam veggies until tender. Puree in a small amount of water until smooth. |
Green Beans 
|
Cut ends off and steam until tender. Puree in a small amount of water until smooth. |
Kale/Spinach 
|
Trim ends off of leaves. (Use baby Kale) Puree in a small amount of water until smooth. |
