After a lengthy discussion with the pediatrician I have decided to use my garden veggies to make baby food for little miss Emily. I thought it would be good for everyone concerned since it's much more affordable and in my opinion more healthy as there are no preservatives or additives. I was concerned at first because the pediatrician looked at me as if I were a crazy person, then she heard that I already had the garden in the making and she went on and on about the benifits that fresh home grown veggies would have for Emily. She was a bit shocked that I was working in the garden with Emily, I still don't know why but she did clerify that it was a good thing just "surprising". I have green beans, carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers, as well as okra that I will be using along with seasonings and possibly some meat (ie spagetti etc.) and I will be getting spinich and squash from my step father since I don't particularly like these veggies, but I was looking for other nutritious and flavorful veggies that I might add to the mix. Any suggestions would be much appriciated since I'm mostly a met and potatoe eater, something I hope my daughter doesn't pick up. I think I have plenty of fruit for her but veggies just stump me. Thanks in advance! Lily
How old is Emily? You might want to get a small jar of the different vegies offered in baby food or run some of the vegies your family eats now thru a processer and feed them to her when she starts on solids, just to see if she is going to like it or have an alergic reaction to anything before planting a lot of vegies. And you might want to make sure that other family members will eat the vegies you decide to grow too because little Emily will not be able to eat it all by herself. I would go easy on the tomatoes and cucumbers until she is older, tomatoes are acidic and can irritate the roof of the mouth and stomach....they do mine but I really like them anyway. Cucumbers don't cook or mash well enough for a little one and can cause stomach upset, even the burpless ones. Don't forget corn and beets. Anything you want her to experience but your family won't eat, you could buy from a local farmers market and process yourself.
I make some of the baby food I giv to my own daughter. Though I buy organic fruits and veggies for that. My baby loves the homemade peas. How about some squash, like butternut and zucchini. I have read that you need to be careful with homemade carrot baby food. They can contain high levels of nitrites that can cause a certain type of anemia in babys. So, I am getting the jarred carrots for now. Why not take a look at the baby food at the store, just for ideas. There are also tons of websites and books for making your own baby food. It's worth looking into!
Probably the best way to make your own baby food for the first time is to copy as near as possible the bought ones. The ingredients are usually listed (the greatest amount first and the least amount last) on the label. You cannot copy exactly unless percentages are given but you could make something similar. At least you'll know that certain veggies are suitable for a particular age child because the age (for which each meal is suitable) is printed on the label. It would need to be strained for the very young and become more rough and solid as a child gets older. Again, you can see what size pieces are in the particular jars. The strained variety (fruit or veggie) can be frozen using ice cube trays or very small containers and thawed out just when needed. Emma
Thanks so much everyone!I knew the stewbies here would have great suggestions! Toni: Emily is 2 1/2 monthes but solids are right around the corner so I'm planning ahead. Thanks for the tip on Tomatoes that would have gone badly, and as for the cucumbers, I plan on eating most of those myself but I heard they were good for teething babies to gum on being so soft on the inside. I will probably buy most of the veggies and process them myself but anything I can plant that I can pass on to the in-laws if I don't eat and she won't eat would be nice. Melissa: Thank you so much I hadn't heard about the carrot problem that will be something I'll have to look into before feeding them to her. Emma: Yes you are exactly right that's what I had in mind, processing it and straining it before freezing a few ice cube trays to begin with and then jarring the extra for use as she grows. Peas and butternut squash both have a sweet taste right? That's what I'm looking for mostly since I'm going to be giving her only veggies to start with and hopefully I'll be able to get her interested in veggies before moving to the really sweet stuff like fruits. I will definatly have to look into the books on this I just decided to try this last week so I'm only just learning about it.
