So, last weekend when I went to the grocery store I picked up some squash and sweet potatoes to see what I could do. I baked the sweet potatoes today and put my little mini food processor to good use. I pureed them with water to a consistency that was a little thicker than the stage 1 foods we've been buying, but was still really, really runny. I got enough to freeze two ice trays full and keep a few servings in the fridge for today and tomorrow. I was so proud of myself. Yes, my kitchen was a wreck (while our dishwasher is out of commission). Yes, my little food processor was about to start smoking. Yes, it took forever. But, I was so excited to have finally taken on this task I'd planned for so long.
After I nursed her for her 4:45 feeding, we sat down to try some. I even added a little cinnamon to it, because I read today that it's an okay idea to add a little spice to baby's foods to give them new food experiences. Below, you'll see how our first meal of homemade baby food went!
Yes, she's gagging and making horrible faces. She hated it. She kept opening her mouth, but she made these horrible faces every single time. I think it might have been the texture, but I'm not sure. I finally mixed it with a little bit of carrots and she tolerated a little more. I was bummed, but I just had to laugh. Maybe I'll try again, but I doubt my expectations will be as high as they were today.
Homemade baby food attempt #1 - total fail.
Ugh. I was just thinking today that the baby food stage was my least favorite stage by far. If we have other kiddos, I think I'll just skip the baby food stage altogether and start feeding them real food at 9 mos! I'm kinda kidding... :)
ReplyDeleteHaha! She is so stinking cute - even while gagging! I'm sorry she didn't take well to your hard work; Finn was a little iffy about textures at first, too, but he got used to it. Good luck!
ReplyDeletebaby food stage IS SO HARD. I don't for one second think you're kidding, emu. :)
ReplyDeleteErin, I use a food processor (normal size) and for me it works great. Yes, it takes up a whole morning. But I just take a crap-ton of whatever's left in my fridge (produce, our own leftovers, etc) and puree it up and it makes enough jars for 7-10 days (she eats about 4-5 jars a day). For me, it's worth the effort because it's a lot cheaper. When I had a real job (like when Nathan was a baby), it wasn't worth the effort for anything except fruit -- I didn't want to cook AND puree, so I only did stuff that could be left raw.
You're right though, somehow it takes a lot longer than you think it's going to. Add lots of water (or breastmilk or chicken or veggie stock) to make it smooth for her!