by Jessica on December 10, 2010
Okay, okay, so I am WAY late posting this particular baby food recipe. Like, I made it well over a month ago, late, but you know what they say: better late than never! This was my first foray into the world of beef for Knox. I thought about a good beefy recipe that included lots of veggies, and it came to me: shepherd’s pie. This recipe is not exact because I don’t cook in teaspoons and such, but here is the gist of what I used:
1 lb super lean ground beef
4 medium sized potatoes, scrubbed, peeled and cubed
1 small bag of baby carrots
1 small frozen bag (6-8 oz ish?) of frozen peas
1 carton chicken or beef broth
water (for thinning texture)
Generally, when I make Knox’s food, I only use organics. You may think they’re a lot more expensive, but we shop at Publix, and I can tell you that organic baby carrots are only about 25 cents more than regular ones. Not such a big difference! Potatoes are more expensive organic, so I try to buy them when they’re on sale. But when you’re looking at how much you’re spending per serving, even if you bought non-sale items, you’re still saving money versus buying jarred baby food (and it tastes a lot better). Now, off of that, and onto the cooking!
1) Brown your meat over medium heat. I chose to use ground beef because they had some great, super lean in stock. You could use chunks of meat, too, considering you’re going to be blending this up.
2) Add in your potatoes. Let them cook for maybe three minutes, just until they start to brown.
3) Add carrots and just cover your meat/potato/carrot combo with stock. Put lid on pot. Bring to a simmer, cook over medium high. Cook until carrots are tender, about 15 minutes.
4) Add in peas, cook until done, about four minutes.
5) Let cool slightly, add to food processor. Pulse or blend until desired consistency. Use water to thin, if necessary.
One of the things I love about making baby food is that you can really make each recipe work for babies of different ages and stages depending on how much you blend. For example, my kid has the world’s most sensitive gag reflex and only two teeth, so he can’t have his food as thick or chunky as a kid his same age with eight teeth.
This ended up tasting really good. Like, I would totally eat it if I could add a little salt, good. Baby food making is definitely not an exact science for me, I just think of things that would go well together, cook them and smoosh them. It’s as easy as that! I do love wholesomebabyfood.com for suggestions on what foods work for what age babies and such. They have a lot of recipe ideas there, too.
Enjoy!
by Jessica on August 31, 2010
One of my favorite, favorite fruits is the peach. We grow tons of them here in SC, and they’re delicious this time of year. I decided to make some for Knox, along with some black plums. I wanted to try out baking them as opposed to the steaming I’ve been doing. It was so easy, and they came out incredibly sweet and yummy.
Here’s what you do:
First, pick out some good peaches and plums. Wash them really well because you’re going to bake them with the skin on.
Halve and pit them.
Place them pitted side down in a pan with one inch of water. I did mine in separate pans since plums were new for Knox- I didn’t want to contaminate the peaches if he showed any allergic reaction (he didn’t).
Bake at 400 degrees until the skin blisters. For the plums, it took about 20 minutes, more like 30 for the peaches.
Peel. Have fun- that part kind of sucks. Then, puree the peeled fruit. Obviously, it didn’t take much pureeing on the plums.
Beautiful! Isn’t that plum color awesome?
Finished peaches.
My plums were a touch tart because they weren’t the ripest, so I mixed them with home made applesauce. That was seriously good, I could’ve eaten the whole batch myself! Knox loved it, too. It was one of his favorites thus far, and with the added bonus that it helps keep things “regular.” I’ve been making most of his food a good bit thicker, now, in preparation for adding finger foods in the near future.
by Jessica on August 10, 2010
The old poop. Man alive, this new solid poop is quite the pungent stuff. In the olden days (you know… a month ago) I could change a diaper without wrinkling my nose or saying “OH MY GOSH, KNOX, WHAT DID YOU DO?!” Things have, at least, firmed up a bit, making it much easier to remove poo from the cloth diapers- turdlets can be flung off much easier than that pasty mess. Just an FYI. But the poor kid, you should see him trying to go #2. His face turns red, he grunts and it seems to take a great deal of concentration. What’s better is that his chosen time to go is the second I sit him in the high chair. Try shoving applesauce into a clamped-shut mouth. Not so much. We switched from rice cereal over to oatmeal, and that seems to help “move things along” a good bit.
Now that you know all about Knox’s bathroom situation, onto a new, yet related topic: food. He now eats rice cereal, oatmeal, sweet potatoes, bananas, avocado, apples, carrots and nectarines. I also made peas over the weekend, but we haven’t started on those yet. I haven’t posted anymore Knox Noms entries because, well, they’re kind of all the same right now. Just peel, chop, steam and puree. Though, the nectarines I did were kind of under-ripe, so they’re a bit too tart. I am going to get some peaches and try baking them this weekend, so I’ll make sure to post that process.
I feel the need to say that Knox is asleep right now. This is an unheard-of event nowadays, so excuse me as I relish in this moment and try to get something done. It will never last.
by Jessica on July 27, 2010
It’s official: Knox is mad at me. Over bananas. Today was new food day, and I chose bananas. Good choice I suppose, but I may live to regret it because Knox will probably never want to eat anything else. I just peeled a banana, smooshed it and gave it to him. You would have thought I just fed him filet mignon- he said out loud : “Ohhhhhahhhmmmmmmm!” after his first bite this morning. I think that’s baby speak for “Oh dear me, that is delicious!” Today, for lunch, it was banana time again. He devoured 1/3 of a banana and then SCREAMED at me and cried when I had no more to shove into his little open mouth. He sat there looking at me, mouth agape like a baby bird, waiting. I felt kinda bad, but I had no more banana! It’s not like I was purposely withholding it from him. Oh well. He’ll get over it, I suppose.
P.S. Coming later this week: a cloth diaper giveaway. Because that’s the kind of thing I get excited about!
by Jessica on July 27, 2010
This is certainly one of the easiest baby food recipes EVER. Avocados are a great first food for babies and are probably one of the most complete produce items, nutritionally speaking. They’re loading with healthy Omega-3 fatty acids and good-for-you fats and oils. I used organic Hass avocados. To choose a good one, look for a dark green (nearly black) skinned oval fruit- it should give just slightly when you push on it but be firm- mushy ones are overly ripe. If you have never had avocado, it has a very fresh taste- it’s the main ingredient in guacamole and is also the green part inside of a California sushi roll.
You start with a ripe avocado:
Cut the fruit longways all the way around:
Twist and open. To remove the pit, wack it with your knife and pull out or use a spoon to scoop it out.
Score the flesh of the avocado down to the skin in a grid pattern.
Use a spoon to scoop out the chunks.
Mush ‘em up with a fork. Don’t be shy… really smooshy is the goal.
Voila!
Serve immediately or mix with rice cereal for this green concoction.
Avocado puree freezes very well, but if you store it in the fridge cut for more than a day, it’s going to turn brown on you, so eat it quick or freeze it! Knox gives it his seal of approval.
