I know what you’re thinking: I have a baby screaming for attention, there is an ever-growing pile of laundry in the laundry room, the breakfast dishes haventt been done, my three year old is sampling the cat’s dinner, and you expect me to make baby food?!

Believe me, I know that you don’t feel like you could possibly fit an extra chore into your already hectic life, but you can! Making your own baby food is not a labor intensive process and is worth the little bit of effort required when you consider the benefits:

• Over the course of your child’s infancy, you can save hundreds of dollars by making your own food.
• Commercial baby foods can contain starchy additives or preservatives.
• By making your own baby food, you can mix and match your baby’s favorite foods for increased variety.
• When you make baby food yourself, you know what goes into it and how fresh the ingredients are.

Baby Food

Intrigued? Here’s how I do it in just a few minutes a day:

While I’m cooking dinner (and therefore am already in the kitchen), I pour about a pound of veggies or fruit into a microwave safe bowl. I either use frozen (considered to be as healthy as fresh by most nutritionists) or fresh that I have washed, peeled, and cut into chunks. I add about two tablespoons of water and cover the bowl with a lid. Then, I just pop the bowl into the microwave and cook on high until the fruit or vegetables are very tender. I let the steamed produce cool and then pour the contents (including the water which now contains valuable nutrients) into a blender. I then puree the fruits or veggies to the desired consistency, adding a little water to thin it out, if necessary. I reserve enough of the pureed food for baby’s meal and then I pour the rest into an ice cube tray and freeze (you could also use baby food storage containers). When the cubes of food are completely frozen, I pop them out and store them in labeled freezer bags. When I need them, I just pull out a cube or two and warm it in the microwave for a few seconds to thaw. Repeat this process every night for a couple of weeks and you will have enough baby food for a couple of months!

Tips for Homemade Baby Food Success

• Always talk to your pediatrician to determine which foods are safe to introduce to your baby (click here for some popular first foods).
• Don’t bother buying a baby food maker or a food mill. This is The Frugal Baby! Use an appliance you already have on hand like a blender or food processor. For finer purees or to eliminate strings or skins from some foods, push the pureed food through a fine mesh strainer.
• Soft foods like bananas, avocados, and even watermelon do not need to be steamed prior to pureeing.
• Breastmilk, formula, or even water can be added to baby food to thin it out, if needed.
• Do not add seasonings to your baby’s foods. It is much healthier to get your child accustomed to the natural taste of vegetables.
• Check out which foods are appropriate for which ages.

Photo by Ross Catrow, Creative Commons license

That being said, the following homemade foods are usually appropriate for babies without allergy restrictions and who have been given the green light to begin eating solid foods. Again, if you have any questions about what to feed your baby, always consult your pediatrician.

In addition to the above, milk products such as yogurt and cheese may be offered to older babies, usually at eight to ten months of age.

• They provide nearly 20 vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients including vitamin A, vitamin C, folate, and iron.
• They are low in saturated fat and rich in mono and polyunsaturated fat (good fat).
• They are cholesterol and sodium free.
• They can be mashed or pureed to a smooth and creamy consistency — without cooking.

With these benefits in mind, it is no wonder that more and more babies are being fed avocados from an early age. If you want to introduce avocado to your baby (age 6 months or older), the following recipes will get you started.

Just Avocado
Ingredients
1 avocado
Directions
Cut the avocado in half and remove the pit.
Scoop the meat out of the shell.
Blend, puree, or mash the avocado until the desired consistency is reached.
For a thiner consistency, breastmilk, water, juice, milk, or formula may be mixed in.
Freeze unused avocado puree in ice cube trays or baby food storage containers. Note that thawed avocado may brown slightly but this will not effect the nutritional value of the food.

Green Mashed Potatoes
Ingredients
2 potatoes, peeled, cooked, and cubed
1 avocado, pitted, scooped, and cubed
Directions
Add potatoes and avocado to blender or food processor and blend until smooth.

Spiced Avocado
Ingredients
1 avocado, pitted, scooped, and mashed/pureed
8 oz. canned pureed pumpkin
Sprinkle of cinnamon
Directions
Mix avocado, pumpkin, and cinnamon together until thoroughly blended. Note that the color of this mixture will be rather unappetizing but your baby shouldn’t mind.

Orchard Avocado
Ingredients
3 of either apples or pears (or a combination of the two), cored, peeled, cooked, and mashed/purred
1 avocado, pitted, scooped, and mashed/pureed
Directions
Mix avocado with apples or pears until thoroughly blended.

Avocado Yogurt
Ingredients
1 avocado, pitted, scooped, and mashed/pureed
1 cup plain or Greek yogurt
Directions
Stir avocado into yogurt and serve plain or as a dip for finger foods.

Meaty Avocado
Note — if your baby dislikes the grittier texture of home-pureed meats, the avocado will provide a creamy texture that helps to mask the grittiness.
Ingredients
1 cup cooked and cubed beef, pork, or chicken
1 avocado, pitted, scooped, and cubed
Directions
Add meat to a blender or food processor and blend until there are no large bits of meat remaining.
Add cubed avocado and blend until smooth.

If your baby readily eats sweet potatoes but shies away from some other foods, you can try mixing some of the rejected food into a serving of sweet potatoes, gradually increasing the amount until your baby begins accepting the other food.

I find that the easiest way to prepare sweet potatoes is by washing them, pricking their skins, and microwaving them until tender. Allow the potatoes to cool for a few minutes and then you can easily slip the skins off. Pop the potatoes into a blender or food processor with a little water and blend until smooth. Remaining pureed sweet potatoes can be frozen in ice cube trays or baby food storage containers.

If you want to add a little variety to your baby’s sweet potatoes, try the following recipes.

Spiced Sweet Potatoes
Ingredients
1 sweet potato, cooked and peeled
1/4 cup crushed pineapple
Dash of cinnamon
Directions
Cut sweet potato into chunks and add to blender or food processor with remaining ingredients. Blend until smooth.

Thanksgiving Dinner
Ingredients
1 sweet potato, cooked and peeled
3 oz cooked turkey (or chicken)
2-4 tablespoons water, as needed for desired consistency
1 tablespoon cranberry sauce (optional)
Directions
Cut potato and turkey into small chunks. Add all ingredients to a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.

Peachy Keen Sweet Potatoes
Ingredients
1 sweet potato, cooked and peeled
1 peach, peeled and pitted
Directions
Cut potato and peach into chunks and blend in a blender or food processor until smooth.

Sweet Potato Pancakes
Ingredients
1 large sweet potato, cooked and peeled
2 cups whole wheat flour
3 tablespoons apple juice
1 cup plain or Greek yogurt
4 eggs
1 egg white
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Directions
Puree sweet potato until smooth
Heat a skillet coated with cooking spray over medium heat
Pour desired amount of batter into heated skillet (1 tablespoon for silver dollar pancakes, 1/4 cup for regular pancakes)
Cook until the batter bubbles on top, then flip and cook on the other side until cooked through.

Sweet Potato Oven Fries
Ingredients
1 sweet potato peeled and cut into 1/4 to 1/2 inch sticks
1 teaspoon olive oil
Directions
Preheat oven to 425
Drizzle olive oil over sweet potato sticks and toss to coat
Place potatoes on a foil-lined cookie sheet in a single layer
Cook in preheated oven for 15 minutes
Flip the fries and cook for another 15 minutes

Unfortunately, there is some concern about feeding spinach to babies due to its high levels of nitrates. The American Academy of Pediadrics, however, says that the nitrates in spinach and other vegetables do not pose a threat to babies who are over three months of age. Sincethey further advise not introducing solid foods until 4-6 months anyway, the point should be moot.

Below you will find easy ways to prepare spinach for your little one. Keep in mind that the plain pureed spinach can be added to any number of foods for a variety of tastes.

Just Spinach
Ingredients
1 bag baby spinach leaves
1/2 cup water
Directions
Wash spinach (even if pre-washed).
Bring water to boil in a saucepan.
Add as much fresh spinach as you can to the saucepan. The spinach will shrink as it cooks (in a matter of seconds), allowing you to add the remaining spinach to the saucepan.
Cook until it is totally wilted and dark green. Pour spinach and water into a blender or food processor.
Freeze unused spinach puree in ice cube trays or baby food storage containers..

Chicken and Rice Florentine
Ingredients
1 1/2 oz cubed cooked chicken
1/4 cup cooked rice
1/4 cup fresh spinach, cooked (or 1 tablespoon pureed spinach)
2 tablespoons milk (more or less as needed for desired consistancy)
Directions
Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend to desired consistency.

Popeye’s Potatoes
Ingredients
1/2 cup mashed potatoes
3 tablespoons pureed spinach
Directions
Mix ingredients together until thoroughly blended.

Spinach Smoothie
Ingredients
1/2 banana
1/4 cup frozen blueberries
1/2 cup plain or vanilla yogurt
3 tablespoons pureed spinach
Splash of juice (any flavor)
Directions
Combine all ingredients in a blender until smooth

Spinach Quesadilla Fingers
Ingredients
4 baby spinach leaves finely chopped
1 1/2 slices American cheese
1 whole grain tortilla
Directions
Place one slice of American cheese onto tortilla.
Sprinkle chopped spinach over cheese.
Top spinach with remaining half slice of cheese.
Fold the tortilla in half and grill it in a skillet sprayed with cooking spray until cheese melts.
Cut the quesadilla into strips small enough for your baby to handle.

Spinach Juice
Ingredients
1 cup water
1 bag baby spinach leaves
Juice (any flavor)
Directions
Bring water to a boil in a large saucepan and add spinach.
When spinach is wilted and water returns to a boil, cover the saucepan and reduce heat to a simmer.
Simmer for 10-15 minutes.
Strain the water from the spinach.
Add two to three tablespoons of the spinach water to your baby’s juice for an extra nutritional boost.
Remaining cooked spinach can be pureed and fed to your baby.