One of the things I have committed to since baby RB40 was born was making sure that she eats cleanly – especially in her first year of life. I believe it is extremely important that she have a good nutritional basis, as well as give her the best immune support that I can during this critical time of development. This means breastfeeding – pumping at work, and making baby food ourselves. When I first committed to doing this, I was super scared that the process would be time-consuming, but come to find out, it is super-easy. In fact, I found that I kind of enjoy the process!
The Necessities: My absolute favorite ice cube tray for freezing the food are the ones pictured above. I have no idea what brand they are, but you can get them at dollar tree for, well, a dollar apiece and they’re awesome! See those little colored parts in the bottom of them? Those are silicone, so when I go to pop out the baby food pieces, I can pop out one at a time without having pieces falling everywhere. Seriously awesome!
The next thing you need is a good food processor or blender. My personal favorite is my Ninja Blender. The way the blades are shaped makes it like both a food processor and blender all-in-one, and let me tell you, this thing is a beast!
Also, you’re going to need something to store the food in. For a long time while I was pregnant, I had friends and family who bought baby food save their glass jars for me. Consequently I have about a week’s worth of jars, so I freeze as much food in those as I can, and then then freeze the leftovers (I do a month’s worth at a time) in the ice cube trays. If you don’t have glass containers, have people save them for you, or consider purchasing small plastic storage containers from Amazon. While the ice cube pieces are nice, having it already in the jar is even nicer! If you choose to go the ice cube route, make sure you have plenty of plastic bags on hand as well as a sharpie for labeling!
How It Went Down: Waaay easier than expected. I did pears my first time, so I cut them in quarters, removed the seeds, and steamed them until they were super soft. I have no idea how long – maybe 20 minutes?
Then I popped them in the blender (no water needed) and blended them until there were no skin pieces left visible. Once that was done, I simply filled as many baby food jars as I wanted and spooned the rest into ice cube trays. The whole process took literally 10 minutes (minus steaming time).
What are good first foods for baby?
Green Beans
Carrots
Squash/Pumpkin
Sweet Potato
Sweet Peas
Avacado
Spinach/Kale
Applesauce
Bananas
Pears
Peaches
Mango
Raspberry/Blueberry
Turkey
Chicken
Some Notes: Be careful making more than 1 month’s worth at a time – because homemade baby food does not have preservatives in it like the store bought stuff, it WILL spoil faster.
Green Beans, Carrots, Pears, Peaches and Bananas require no added water
Sweet Potatoes, Sweet Peas, and Mango do require extra water
Turkey and Chicken are good mixed in with vegetables. Baby girl loves turkey mixed with her sweet potatoes! When mixing in meats, you will probably have to add a little water…just FYI
Avacado, Spinach, Kale, and Berries are good mix-ins with other foods. I wouldn’t try feeding them alone – you WILL get spit on! However, those foods are really good for them and it is always good to introduce your baby to lots of foods!
Of course, I couldn’t let you go without doing a cost breakdown:
6 jars of baby food per day x 5 months = 900 jars of baby food
Cost per Jar @ a store: $0.50 x 900 = $450.00
Cost per Jar Homemade: $0.10 x 900 = $90.00
That’s an 80% Savings!
Personally, I make a month’s worth of food at a time. 2 hours on a Saturday and I’m done, which is not bad considering that my daughter has healthy baby food that is free of artificial ingredients, GMO’s, all dyes and coloring – plus and I’m saving 80% to boot!
Have you made your own baby food? Did you find that you enjoyed it, or did you prefer to buy it?
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Michelle says
My sister received the baby bullet for her baby shower. It has saved her a TON of money on baby food, and my niece seems to prefer the food over the store bought kind. She even started making pureed chicken with it!
[email protected] says
I have heard really good things about the baby bullet, but they’re pretty expensive! Lucky your sister got one as a gift!
Jennifer Johnson says
I made most of my daughter’s baby food. I loved it!
[email protected] says
I think most people think that it is really hard and time consuming to do, but I agree with you – I loved it!
Stefanie @ The Broke and Beautiful Life says
I love this! The more I can stay away from processed stuff the better, plus the savings. Nowhere near ready to have a baby, but I’m bookmarking this :)
[email protected] says
I agree! No matter how you look at it, making your own is the way to go!
Susan W says
Great! Thanks for sharing at the Thoughtful Spot Weekly Blog Hop!
Jill says
That is amazing to see how much it costs to feed a baby only prepackaged food. Now imagine adding formula into that figure. Aye Aye Aye. If I will be considering the gift of the supplies to make baby food for the next baby shower I attend.
Thank you for stopping by the Thoughtful Spot Weekly Blog Hop this week. We hope to see you drop by our neck of the woods next week!
Felissa (Two Little Cavaliers) says
Not only do I love the idea of saving money but knowing what is in the food is important too.
I found you at Something Fabulous Wednesday.
KK @ Student Debt Survivor says
No babies for us yet, but when we do have little ones I absolutely want to make their food. I think you’re totally right about those first few years being so important for growth and development and there’s no way I want to feed my baby a bunch of chemicals and artificial colors and flavors. Like you said, making homemade is not only way healthier, it’s also way cheaper which is just an added bonus in my opinion.
[email protected] says
You are so right! I am glad that other people are on the same page with me, rather than thinking I’m nuts for being really careful about her food!
Sam M. | Atkinson Drive says
I make my own baby food, and not only is it fun to be able to bring a healthy variety into their diet, but it’s insane how much money it saves! And, you’re store costs are conservative, especially if you buy organic!
[email protected] says
For sure!
Simple Nature Decor says
This is so amazing! very healthy way to bringup your child> Love if you share this on
Fabulous Friday Party
http://www.simplenaturedecorblog.com/fabulous-friday-partyinspiring-features/
Thanks
Maria