Guest Post: Home Made Baby Food

September 29, 2008 by Brenda
Filed under Featured Posts, Food & Drink, Lifestyle, News & Reviews

Brenda writes…

One of my favourite websites is the Ecofriendly kids one. It is always full of helpful and handy tips and is a great resource tool for helping kids understand about green living. Reading the site recently I read an article on Homemade Baby Food and many thanks to the author Clare and the team from EcoFriendly Kids for letting us share it with you.

Home Made Baby Food

Baby food is for babies, right? Yes, but many children and even adults enjoy natural baby food as a delicious and healthy snack. Making homemade baby food is a great kitchen activity for parents and kids, and it also helps everyone keep track of what is being put into the baby food and how the baby food is stored. Though organic baby food can be bought at the store, making your own is easy and quick and besides, everyone knows food tastes better when it´s made with love!

Finding Baby Food Recipes

Baby food often seems like a bunch of things mashed up together, but there are a variety of outlets that offer baby food recipes designed to offer maximum taste and nutrition. Midwives and GP´s may offer quick recipes for baby food, and a variety of cookbooks and websites now exist which offer baby food recipes as well. If you do decide to search the Web, however, remember to search for both “baby food” and “babyfood” as both options circulate and some pages are even titled with “babyfood”. Of course, asking friends and relatives for baby food recipes always remains an option, and getting together with other families with young children may well result in a few recipes too.

Ingredients for Organic Baby Food

Many families make their own baby food in order to keep track of exactly what goes into it. Families that are committed to making only organic baby food must remember that using organic ingredients is the only way to fulfil this mission. This means selecting organic fruits and vegetables, organic juices and even organic meats. To make sure that this baby food is as good to the earth as it is to the family´s body, looking for local food that has not had to be shipped many miles is also a good option.

Kitchen Safety with Kids

Babies should not be brought into the kitchen while baby food is being made, but older children might enjoy being involved in this process. Proper kitchen safety should be followed at all times when children are present and children should not be allowed to use knives, fire or electrical equipment. An adult should remain in the kitchen at all times when children are cooking, and investing in tools and equipment designed for children may be smart if kids are often involved in family cooking.

Storing Homemade Baby Food

Homemade baby food should be frozen or refrigerated the same as commercially produced baby food. Using sterilised glass jars is an option, but many parents find that freezing baby food in an ice cube tray is more helpful. In doing this, parents are actually measuring out small servings and the cubes can be popped into plastic bags for easy access once they have set. After baby food has been defrosted and/or opened, parents should use immediately as bacteria can grow quickly in homemade baby food.

Enjoying Natural Baby Food as a Family

Though baby food is designed for the tastes and nutrition needs of babies, many families find that older relatives enjoy it as a snack or even a side dish as well. For example, fruit purees can be tasty on their own, and blended vegetables can make an easy base for soups. However, if other relatives will be eating homemade baby food then enough must be prepared so that everyone, most importantly the baby, can eat his or her fill.

Homemade baby food is a tasty alternative to mass-produced foods. Just remember to make large batches as these foods often prove popular with the whole family.

One of the most popular kitchen aids in helping you prepare homemade baby food is the Beaba Babycook and Blender see it at the top of the post, it was a favourite with our publisher Natalie. Available from John Lewis for £65.