Monday, June 11, 2007

Freezing home made baby food

Freezing home made baby food. With our twin boys getting ready to start solid food, I have been reading about making and freezing my own baby food. It is very easy!You can make up large quantities of baby meals and freeze them for later use. Green beans are in season and were on sale at the grocery store, so I bought several pounds to prepare and freeze.

I steamed them in an electric steamer for about 20 minutes and then blended them in the blender with some water until they were pureed. I then poured the puree into ice cube trays. After the cubes were frozen I transferred them to a reclosable freezer bag and labeled the bag with the name of the vegetable and the date. These cubes can be stored in the freezer for 1-2 months.One cube is approximately 1 ounce of food and can be thawed out in the refrigerator or microwaved for a quick meal.

You can also mix cubes together (e.g. one meat, one vegetable) for a combination meal. The cubes also travel well, just place a frozen cube in a sealed container until ready to eat...it will be all thawed out and ready to go. Many types of foods can be prepared ahead of time and frozen. Try freezing cereals, pureed meats, vegetables, and fruits. Fruits (except bananas) need to be cooked before they are pureed and served to baby. Cubes of the same type (vegetables, fruits, meats) can be stored in the freezer together.

The possibilities are endless. When you have leftovers from a family meal, puree it and freeze it for baby. I also pureed some leftover chicken I had on hand for a later meal. Just make sure that baby's portion hasn't had any seasoning of any kind added to it.There are many resources that can help you get started. Here is a link to suggested meal plans for babies of different ages. It also includes information about storing and preparing food. By: Rachel Paxton

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