We are moving right along with the solid foods at our house and I thought I would take a moment to share our journey. When I tell people I have been making baby food for Miles I get mixed reactions... so I want to let you see how easy it really is. The "Bradley Girls" got me hooked on the book
Super Baby Food by Ruth Yaron. Once I got over the initial shock of the very verbose book that could probably distilled into an informational packet... I found it was a good reference book to help me start making healthy nutritional food for our little man. The other companion guide in our kitchen was a thoughtful gift from Yia Yia Liz. Simply titled
Cooking for Baby this book offers fun and simple recipes, like green beans and mint, that begin to broaden baby's food horizons.
We start by grinding either brown rice, millet, barley, or lately oats... and then making a porridge. I make a large batch and then divide it into smaller portions suitable for each meal. This way I can prepare food for a few days at a time.
Next I prepare all the beautiful produce coming from our garden and local farmer's markets this time of year! Each time I harvest or shop I make sure to make at least one large batch of food for Miles to taste and freeze for later. The Super Baby food book has a great section about how to process and store each fruit and vegetable. I also love my "
Asparagus to Zucchini" cookbook when I have questions about how to best prepare and preserve a particular fruit or veggie.
Then each batch is frozen in ice cube containers... and stored for later. We finally purchased a much needed freezer for storing our summer's bounty. This year it is quickly filling up with batches of baby food. As you can see the "organizer" in me has created a system to keep track of what I made, and the "use by" date. I am always looking for ways to simplify and streamline a process :-) I wonder if Miles will appreciate that quality, or be totally annoyed by it one day?
For now he seems to appreciate the taste of whole foods. The taste of zucchini and brown rice cereal makes him happy. For that I am happy. He still waits for each bite like a little bird opening his mouth. When the bowl is empty he gets frustrated, even when he has had more than his fill. Perhaps he will be like his mother and simply LOVE food just for the sake of eating and experiencing each new flavor in his mouth. I hope he also gains an appreciation for fresh delicious seasonal food, and learns to cherish the fulfillment of a beautiful meal paired with the fellowship of friends and family. I know that is a tall order for baby food, but we are also building the foundation for a relationship with food around here... along with the sticky fingers and cereal smeared cheeks that come along with learning how to eat.
We are moving right along with the solid foods at our house and I thought I would take a moment to share our journey. When I tell people I have been making baby food for Miles I get mixed reactions... so I want to let you see how easy it really is. The "Bradley Girls" got me hooked on the book Super Baby Food by Ruth Yaron. Once I got over the initial shock of the very verbose book that could probably distilled into an informational packet... I found it was a good reference book to help me start making healthy nutritional food for our little man. The other companion guide in our kitchen was a thoughtful gift from Yia Yia Liz. Simply titled Cooking for Baby this book offers fun and simple recipes, like green beans and mint, that begin to broaden baby's food horizons.
We start by grinding either brown rice, millet, barley, or lately oats... and then making a porridge. I make a large batch and then divide it into smaller portions suitable for each meal. This way I can prepare food for a few days at a time.
Next I prepare all the beautiful produce coming from our garden and local farmer's markets this time of year! Each time I harvest or shop I make sure to make at least one large batch of food for Miles to taste and freeze for later. The Super Baby food book has a great section about how to process and store each fruit and vegetable. I also love my "Asparagus to Zucchini" cookbook when I have questions about how to best prepare and preserve a particular fruit or veggie.
Then each batch is frozen in ice cube containers... and stored for later. We finally purchased a much needed freezer for storing our summer's bounty. This year it is quickly filling up with batches of baby food. As you can see the "organizer" in me has created a system to keep track of what I made, and the "use by" date. I am always looking for ways to simplify and streamline a process :-) I wonder if Miles will appreciate that quality, or be totally annoyed by it one day?
For now he seems to appreciate the taste of whole foods. The taste of zucchini and brown rice cereal makes him happy. For that I am happy. He still waits for each bite like a little bird opening his mouth. When the bowl is empty he gets frustrated, even when he has had more than his fill. Perhaps he will be like his mother and simply LOVE food just for the sake of eating and experiencing each new flavor in his mouth. I hope he also gains an appreciation for fresh delicious seasonal food, and learns to cherish the fulfillment of a beautiful meal paired with the fellowship of friends and family. I know that is a tall order for baby food, but we are also building the foundation for a relationship with food around here... along with the sticky fingers and cereal smeared cheeks that come along with learning how to eat.
Wow if I were to actually post pictures of my food making process you would faint. It is like chunks of food everywhere, juice on the floor, peels in my hair... then chicken scratch on the freezer bag, which is then chucked in the freezer between some vodka and chicken nuggets ;o)
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