cooking apples and pears for making babyfood

For those who make your own babyfood...when cooking apples and pears...do you steam,boil or bake them?

Tonight I dive in start cooking...so just trying to figure out the best way for apples and pears. Veggies I know I will steam. My hubby bought me some steamer bag, hopefully those will work.

Dianna

 

I put nearly everything in the microwave and cook in a bit of water then puree with a hand blender. It makes it so much easier. It is fun when you get the hang of it. Enjoy

 

Did start making stuff. Got some apples, pears and avocado done. Steamed it all , well except the avocado.

Had tons of fun!! Can't wait to make more tomorrow.

Dianna

 

I don't think I steamed my pears at all. I just used them when they were really ripe. I think apples are too much work, so I'm just using unsweetened applesauce from a jar (not the babyfood version). I think I read that avocados may turn brown if you try to freeze them. It shouldn't effect the quality, but it may not look the way you expect it to when you thaw it. I've read that if you freeze avocado you should freeze it in slices and then just mash it as you use it.

I did a bunch of carrots today. Tomorrow I'm doing peas. So far, I have sweet potatoes, squash, carrots, green beans, and peaches in the freezer. I had pears in the freezer, but we lost them when we were without power for two days after a storm. I think it's kind of fun too. I'm trying to stock up since I have to go back to work in a week.

 

For pears and apples I put a few tablespoons of water in a sauce pan and cooked peeled diced fruit on low until it was soft. I added cinnamon or orange zest too. The girls love it!

 

I too peeled them and put them in a pan with a little bit of water to steam/boil for a bit. For apples I eventually just switched to the big jars of unsweetened/natural applesauce, it's cheaper than babyfood (and sometimes even buying fresh apples) and a whole lot less work. I put a bit of cinnamon in mine too.

 

that is what I did with the avocado, sliced and frozen and just a drip of lemon juice(as suggested to do on wholesomebabyfood.com) We did noticed that with the apples we sure as heck didn't save any money. About the same as buying the baby food. Not a big deal. Doing this mostly so they can have a bigger variety. But the saving money part is a great factor too. Probably will look into the unsweetened applesauce.

I was wondering about cinnamon. I didn't know if I needed to wait a bit for that or not. When did everyone start to add that? Right away or did you wait for a bit?

Dianna

 

I also did them in a pan with a bit of water, cooked until soft and then pureed. But I didn't bother to peel them. I buy organic fruit, that way you can leave the skin on. It purees up just fine when cooked, and there are lot of nutrients in the skin.

 

I read no skins till 8 months...is that correct?

Dianna

 

I had a friend suggest putting the homemade baby food into ice cube trays before freezing in ziploc bags...then just grab a couple out of the bag and microwave and then you only have to unthaw what you need at that meal

I ended up giving my boys cinnamon only because it came in the jar of oatmeal/apple baby food and we were desperate for a jar while traveling....they didn't seem to mind it and didn't show signs of allergy but I've read that spices should be put off until later......

 

yeah that is what we are doing...frozen cubes, then ziplocing, working great.

Dianna

 

Dianna

Your boys are only 5 days old then mine! Anyhow, we did sweet potatoes last week. We are doing bananas this week. I make an ice cube tray at a time and cover it with saran wrap. I don't have a lot of freezer space to make a lot in advance. We'll do summer squash and green beans and peaches in the 4 day cycle. I wanted to do avocados but they are $3 dollars a piece!!! I am hoping they go down.

My ped was very excited about us making our own baby food. She said before we spice up the veggies we are having take some out for the boys and just throw them the food processor.

I always thought jar baby food tasted nasty but last week I found myself finishing the boys sweet potatoes! LOL
There is a peach orchard only 5 minutes up the road. I plan on hauling myself out there Wednesday after my girls start school to get some fresh peaches. The only problem will be keeping the kiddos from eating them up before I make the baby food.

evie

 

We have a freezer in the basement so tons of room. Figure I will make a months worth at a time since they can stay frozen for 30 days. Right now we are on apples, had them for two days now. So two more days. Will do pears next.

Yikes that is crazy for avocados.

Yeah baby food in the jars doesn't taste all that great. We have a peach and a pear tree in our yard but before they are ripe the birds get to them. O well.

Dianna