Juice Pops

During the teething stage, which we are unfortunately stuck in at the moment, Liam has shown that he loves nibbling on anything ice cold.  From time to time Brian will sneak him a bite of his ice cream or his Popsicle and defend himself with, “his gums are hurting MaMa!” The more frequently it started happening the more I felt I needed to find something a little less sugary for my little man to chew on.  So we came up with our own way of making Liam his own personal popsicles to eat. (Now I am sure this is not a secret, unheard of recipe, it will not make your mouth drop in shock as I’m sure it has been done a million times before and can be found in any kids dessert cook book I am sure. BUT, this is how we make ours.)

What you will need:

Your choice of fruit, feel free to add as much of a variety as you’d like. (I know we did!)

A blender

A popsicle tray from your local grocery store. (A ice tray works okay if you cannot find a popsicle tray.)

Your choice all natural juice.

What you’ll do:

First select your combo of fruits, for us we picked several berries—blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries—and remove the stems if any.  Then blend in a blender until slightly chunky and stir in your choice of juice.  We chose to do a white grape blend with our berries to give them a slight “zing”.  Then pour or spoon into your popsicle tray and freeze solid.

We went on to do a variety of popsicles such as berries with orange juice; watermelon, melon, and cantaloupe mixed with cranberry juice; and strawberry, banana, mango with white grape juice. Whatever the flavor, as long as the child will eat it, these make great summertime teething treats and they are healthy too!

Homemade Baby Food

I was asked last week how Brain and I made our homemade baby food for Liam when he was 6 months old, so I thought I might post a “how to” on making homemade baby foods.  (Note: We started spoon feeding with Liam between 5-6 months old but only after we obtained the “go ahead” from our pediatrician.) I am a big believer in making infant meals yourself rather than feeding them the store bought kinds.  You should always know what goes into your child’s foods and the best way to do this is by making it yourself with fresh fruits and veggies. 

To start out: The Basics

We selected a variety of veggies, both fresh and frozen bags, and then individually steamed each batch until soft and tender.

Some of the veggies we started first with Liam: Butternut Squash, Carrots, Green Beans, Green Peas and Sweet Potatoes.

After a vegetable is steamed, dump all the pieces into a blender or puree machine with 1/3 cup water and blend. (We used the water from steaming the veggies in everything EXCEPT for the Carrots which leak out some toxins that you do not want to put back into the baby food) You will need to gradually add water until the mix is a consistency that your child can consume---usually at 6 months old this means it is a slightly runny consistency with no chunks that will easily slide off your spoon when tilted instead of falling of in thick globs.  If it becomes to thick after it has been frozen you can always add more water to each individual serving as you go or infant rice to thicken it if it becomes too thin.

Once it reaches the consistency that you are comfortable with for your infant, take out several clean ice trays (we had to buy new ones since we have an ice maker and do not use ice trays--$1.00 for a three pack at the dollar store) and use a spoon to fill the cubes. Once each tray is full, just stack them in the freezer overnight and dump each food group into separate freezer bags the next day. Be sure to label each bag with the food and the date you made the food. Baby food will last up to 3 months in the freezer but only 2 days once thawed in the fridge so be sure to always check the dates.  (Note: After three months in the freezer the food is not considered bad or inedible but the nutrients begin to decline after 3 months of being frozen and at that point is not considered healthy for your baby.)

The system for fruits is the same.  (For Liam we started fruits at 8 months old.) We started with: apples, peaches, mangos, avocados, blueberries, and raspberries.  For all of these EXCEPT the apples and avocados we used the steamer, but we were told that apples do best if boiled after being pealed and cored. Avocados do not need to be cooked they can be put directly into the blender once the seed is removed.  Fruits need much less water once blended since they have more juice in them than vegetables do so start with just adding a few tablespoons of water at a time. 

When you are ready to thaw the cubes of food, I recommend heating up a cup of water in the microwave, then place one or two cubes into a plastic sandwich baggie and set it down into the hot water until it is soft and ready to eat. (Note: Fruit thaws much faster than vegetables.) Now your baby has homemade baby food he/she can enjoy while you can sit back and enjoy knowing you saved money and know exactly what they are eating...or at least for now you do because once they start crawling anything on the floor will be fair game! 
MEMO TO MOM:  Always run the blender with a lid on it...or you will be wearing more baby food than you make. 

Roasted Treats

I will be the first to admit that I am a spaz about knowing what my child is being fed.  It started at three months old when we decided to make our own baby food rather than buy the store bought kind and never stopped.  Occasionally I have broken down and allowed my son Liam to have Gerber baby foods—like when we were moving and ran out of homemade baby food with all of our dishes boxed up, or when the sitter called to say the night before that she had run out of food for tomorrow—but for the most part Liam has been limited to only home made foods and snacks. Brian and I have found that we both love trying out new recipes with Liam—yes we do taste test them before giving them to him—from the hundreds of baby cook books we have purchased this year.  I thought I would start to share some of my favorites but there are just too many to count! So, to start with, here is the one we cooked up last night.

3 Red Plums

3 Apples (Your choice what kind but the softer the better!)

A glass baking pan

Butter (Just enough to grease the pan or you can add in three small slices.)

Ginger

What you do:

Slice and pit your plums and apples into thin wedges and place wedges peel-side-down in the baking pan. (Note: If you prefer you can choose to peel them all before putting them in the pan.  It will make for less mess but not as much juices left in the pan so it is your choice.  Sprinkle in a little water on top of the slices if you choose to peel them first.)

Sprinkle a little ginger over the top of the slices and then bake at 400 degrees until soft and juice is sitting in the bottom of the pan.  (Stir them occasional if they look like they are drying out.) Once they are soft enough for your child to eat, remove from the oven and peel if you have not already. Make sure to smash to a consistency that your child can handle whatever age they are, and store in the fridge (3 day maximum) or freezer (3 month maximum).

This is a great fast fix for a roasted meal (took us less than 30 minutes total) and even you may enjoy them (I know Brian did).  Enjoy!