Baby Food Crisis!

If you've read my profile, you've noticed that I have one child, Snugglebug. And if you have surmised correctly, I am a first-time mom, thus not a supermom as yet.

So, when we had our first baby food crisis, I was all in a quandary. Shortly, after New Years, Snugglebug decided to go on a food strike. He just wouldn't eat. He had been eating anything I put in front of him: veggies, fruit, mixes, cereals of any kind. But, now, nothing suited him. Even his favorites he pushed away after one bite.

I called my sister, a supermom and a mom of three, and asked what to do. "Have you tried finger foods?" she asked. Yes, we had been "trying" finger foods for months but they just ended up on the floor with Snugglebug leaning over the side of his high chair watching them bounce across the floor. Handfuls upon handfuls of Cheerios had been wasted in recent months in an effort to get him to eat finger foods. My almost 12 month old wasn't interested in eating with his fingers, and when I fed it to him, he choked on it.

But, my sis explained that despite all this he was in transition. Transition! That can't be good. "He's wanting food with chunks," she explained. Chunks...Hmmm. My next thought was how to do that when you are pureeing your own baby food. I'd like to say I found a formula online where x times y plus 2 to the nth power will tell you how chunky to make the baby food, but no such luck. I resorted to the old fashioned trial and error. I over pureed several batches which in turn were refused after one or two bites. I finally resorted to purchasing several jars of level 3 baby food just to see how chunky it was. I discovered that it wasn't that chunky and to my relief (oddly) he refused the store food as well.

I accidentally discovered that pureed chicken added to any vegetable or veggie mixture was the perfect amount of chunkiness for him. I used water to make my chicken puree and buzzed away on my food processor. In minutes, the chicken was mush! I mixed 1 ounce of meat in with 2 to 3 ounces of his favorite veggie and WALLAH!! Crisis averted or at least temporarily stalled till we reach another transition.

So for now, he is getting his protein and eating most foods again. And only yesterday, he discovered that he could eat with his fingers. And for the very first time a Cheerio entered his mouth, was chewed (baby style), and swallowed!! What a feat! I felt quite proud of my little boy! I was actually cheering for him!!

On a side note, I froze the remainder of the pureed chicken in ice trays, later storing them in Ziploc bags. I just add one cube of chicken to 3 or 4 cubes of veggies. For the pears, I puree one batch as usual and a smaller batch I only partially puree so that there are a few small chunks. I have only tried this with pears though because their chunks are easy to mush up in his mouth.

I've also started adding a few seasonings to his foods to enhance the flavor, such as cinnamon to his carrots. I am, however, staying away from salt and sugar though. Just the inexperienced mom speaking here, but I think it is still too early to be adding those two ingredients.

How to Make Your Own Baby Food

Making your own baby food seems like a daunting task, but really it is simpler than it seems. The key is knowing the consistancy your baby will need. If you are making baby food for a 4-6 month old it needs to be quite thin with no lumps whatsoever. An older infant, could be fed a smooth, thicker version, and one the age of Snugglebug around 9 or 10 months will be ready for a few lumps to test out those new teeth. A good rule of thumb for determining the consistancy of your purees will be to make your foods the same consistancy as your cereals.

So, without further ado...On to the kitchen...

Step 1--You can use either fresh fruits and vegetables or frozen. My preference is to use fresh when it is in season and frozen when it is not. For frozen items cook according to package directions. For fresh vegies, peel and chop in rough chunks. Place them in a pot and cover with water. Cook until fork tender.

Do not add salt, sugar, or seasonings to the vegies. Keep them plain until you know what allergies your child may have. And remember to introduce the seasonings one at a time just like your solid foods to determine any allergies.

Tip--For older infants you can also roast vegies such as winter squash, just make sure you scrape off the carmelized portions, since it won't puree smooth. Also if you want to keep the vitamins from leaching into the water, you can steam you vegies. It just takes a little longer to cook.

Step 2--Place the fruits or vegies in a food processor along with a spoonful or two of the water and juices from the pot. This will help the vegies to puree smoothly. Pulse the machine a few times to see if you need to add more water. Remember, the younger the infant the more water will need to be added. If you get it too thin you can always add cereal to thicken it later. Once pureed spoon or pour mixture into a bowl and stir with a spoon. You are checking the consistancy. If it still seems too thick or chunky add it back to the food processor and pulse again a few more times.

Step 3--Your baby food is either ready to serve or preserve. I'm not an expert in canning, so I suggest freezing, and if your child eats like my Snugglebug, it won't last long in the freezer anyway.

The best way to freeze baby food is in ice trays. Fresh Baby makes an ice tray with a snap on lid that is especially designed for freezing baby food. I have two trays, and they work well. Unfortunately, after a few dozen uses the lid doesn't snap on tight and tends to come off far too easily. And since my favorite thing to do is to multi-task, I turn to standard ice trays. The standard trays stack nicely in the freezer, and it is easy to remove the cubes for storage.

Each cube of a Baby Fresh tray or a standard ice tray is equivalent to one ounce and hold approximately 12 cubes or 12 ounces of baby food. Depending on your type of fruit or vegie you get 1 1/2 to 2 trays per pound of fresh or frozen vegies.

Step 4--To store the cubes, run a little hot water over the bottom of the trays, then turn out the trays on a clean plate. Place the cubes in a marked freezer storage bag of your choice and place in the freezer. You now have baby food at your fingertips.

Step 5--To serve, thaw the total number of cubes in a microwavable bowl for 30 seconds to 1 minutes (depending on microwave wattage) on 50 percent power. Stir and microwave again for the same length and power.

I have an older microwave and it usually takes two minutes at 50 percent power to completely thaw and warm the vegies. If you overheat the cubes, then stir with an ice cube for a couple of seconds.

Happy Eating!!

Gadgets to Aid in Making Your Own Baby Food

There are several really great gadgets to help in the making of baby food.

1. Potato Ricer:

This little gadget is a multi-purpose kitchen tool. It makes great mashed potatoes and mashes bananas beautifully. One quick squeeze and a ripe banana is ready for Snugglebug's mouth.

2. Kidco Food Mill:

This hard-to-find gadget is the perfect portable baby food grinder. The hand crank will grind almost anything but some things such as chicken or turkey require some arm muscle. It generally costs around $15 and is worth every penny. My mother had one of these and she used it for all five of her kids then passed it on to my sister who is still using it with her third child. So even if you don't use it everyday, which I don't, you know it will be of use many years or even generations down the road. You can type in Kidco food mill in a search or you can go to Target. com.

3. 2 Qt. Food Mill:

If you are more into versatility, then the regular size 2 quart food mill will be your choice. It will do the same jobs as the portable Kidco model but will also make a nice batch of tomato puree for meatloaf or spaghetti sauce. It generally costs about $25 and can be found in the kitchen section of most tores.

4. Food Processor:

Generally, speaking all you really need to puree a batch of peas or carrots or even a chicken breast is a food processor. And while I would love to have a standard size food processor, I don't. So, I can honestly say a mini-food processor will do the job just as well. It just takes a little longer.

Baby Food--The healthy and frugal way

I've been making Snugglebug's baby food since he started solids at 5 months. It has been quite an experience. You would think it would be easy to puree foods but apparently it isn't. Snugglebug is 10 months old now and eating quite well, and I am proud to say that I have figured it out.

My first inclination to make baby food was simply because I wanted to make sure it was healthy. With my own food allergies and sensitivies, I felt it was adament that I make sure the ingredients were healthy. Along the way, I discovered I was saving a lot of money.

Today, I cooked 3 pounds of Organic sweet peas, pureed them, and froze them. I got 16-3 ounce servings from those 3 pounds. Organic baby food runs 95 cents a jar and I spent $9 thus a savings of $6.20 or 40%. Granted the total savings could be much better if I wasn't insistant on organic. (I'll explain the importance of organic in a later post.)

Store brand frozen vegies that are not organic but still just as tasty cost on average of $1.25 a pound. And if you bought the regular not organic baby food, you would spend on average of 50 cents a jar. The same peas would then save you a grand total of $4.25 or a 53% savings.

In my next post, I'll tell you how I did it!