Zucchinni And Apples

The past two days Connor has been having Zucchinni And Apples for dinner.  All I did was combine 2 tablespoons of each puree together.  The two purees almost look exactly alike....zucchini comes out a light green, and apples are a light yellow.

Connor had already tried apples awhile back.  I really am having so much fun making his food and then combining the different tastes together is even more fun! 

To make pureed apples (which is really Applesauce...I think I am no longer going to buy jar applesauce, I am just going to make my own!)

Wash and peel two apples.  Cut the apples into chunks and get out all the seeds.  Steam them for 8 minutes and then puree in a processor. 

Tomorrow Connor is going to try his first tropical fruit:  PAPAYA!

Cream Of Zucchini

This is a wonderful dish that you can actually do with any vegetable.  I started doing it with Carrots, and you can apply it to any vegetable.  Connor has loved all his "Cream Of..." dishes.  Today I gave him 4 tbs Zucchini puree mixed with 1tbs rice cereal and 2 tbs formula.  You can vary it...less or more vegetable, rice, etc...whatever consistency you want.  So far I have done Cream Of...Carrots, Butternut Squash, Green Beans, Sweet Potato, and Zucchini.

Zucchini

Today Connor tried Zucchini for the first time and loved it!  Zucchini among other things is very high in Vitamin C, potassium, and Vitamin A (betacarotene).  It promotes good heart health.  To make Zucchini for your little one do the following:

Get 1-3 zucchini (it depends on how much you want to make).  I always like to make more and freeze some for later.  So I made 3 zucchini and it made about 16 tablespoons.  I peeled the Zucchini, only to learn afterwards that you don't have to peel them because the skin is really soft (which you ca tell when you are peeling it).  The skin is rich in betacarotene, so you can leave it on.  I cut the Zucchini in about 1 inch slices and steamed them for about 8 minutes.  Then I just pureed them in a processor.  I didn't even need to add any water.  When I served them the next day to my son, I did add just a little bit of formula to thin it out a bit, but I think he would have been fine without. 

Tomorrow we are going to try Cream of Zucchini, and the next day I am going to try Zucchini with Apples.  He has already had apples.  As a rule of thumb, when trying something new, I always do it for 3 days to see if there is any kind of reaction to it.  Don't try more than one thing at a time because then if there was some sort of allergic reaction, you won't be able to tell what caused it. 

Bananas And Avocado

Sounds gross?  Like a weird combination?  Well, I thought so too.  But in my research I have read that babies love Avocado and its good for them!  And what baby wouldn't love bananas?  I heard of combining the two, so I gave it a try and guess what!?  My son LOVES it!  Then again, Connor will eat anything so far that I put in front of him.  Today when he had it, he was all smiles. 

Avocado, among other things, is high in protein, fiber, and promotes heart health.  Avocado is a fruit, and you can serve them to your baby raw.  Bananas are high in potassium and sugar.  You can also serve bananas raw.  Now I made Bananas and Avocado by making each ingredient separately and then stirring them together.  You can do it either way. 

To make Avocado:

Cut the avocado lenthwise, twist to pull it apart and pull out the large pit.  Scoop out the flesh and mash it well.  Since I want a finer consistency, I actually put my avocado (and banana) in a processer and pureed it.  But definitely for older babies you can just mash it up.  Which makes it great if you are on the go, or out of town without equipment with you. 

To make Banana:

Peel bananas and cut into small pieces, mash well.  Again, I wanted a finer consistency so I tossed my chunks in a processor and pureed them. 

When going to serve your meal you find the consistency is still too thick, add a little breastmilk, water, or formula to thin it out.  Likewise, to thicken you can add a little rice cereal.

Bananas and Avocados will discolor.  Don't let this alarm you.  Once your baby is old enough (12 months), you can add a drop of lime or lemon juice to preserve color.  But discoloring doesn't effect the taste and doesn't mean they have gone bad.  I read that you shouldn't freeze avocados. But I believe the only reason for that is because they discolor.  Discoloring does not affect the taste and isn't harmful...and honestly, baby knows no different!

Welcome!

Hello!  Welcome to my blog.  My name is Gina, and I am 31 years old.  I have been married for 3 wonderful years and we just welcomed our son into the world back in January.  He is 6 months old now and has been eating solid foods since he was about 4 1/2 months old.  When we were ready to start Connor on solids we didn't really want to give him store bought baby food.  I had been researching it and came to the conclusion that the best thing I could do for our son was to make his baby food at home.  This reduces the amount of additives/preservatives that are added to his food, making it healthier for him.  It also allows me to give him a wide variety of foods to try, and not be limited to what is on the shelf at the grocery store.  Another perk to making your own baby food is it is much cheaper.  I work full time and was worried if I would have enough time to make the food.  It actually takes no time at all.  It takes less time to make baby food purees than it does to cook our dinner!  The reason for my blog is simple:  I would love to share the foods/recipes that I make for my son with all mothers out there who are interested in making their children's babyfood for them.  Hopefully I can be one more source of information to help you figure out what is best for you.