While you may be very anxious to get a lot of baby food made at once,
remember that there are storage limits and babies eat very little. If your baby
food contains meat or eggs, for instance, you should plan to use it immediately
or at least within 24 hours. If you have prepared fruit or vegetables, it will
last a few days longer with regular refrigeration and covered, but not more
than 3 days.
It is perfectly fine to freeze most of these foods for baby, and many
parents find it very convenient to use ice cube trays to do the job. Babies eat
very little at first, so when you freeze these small cubes of foods and then
store the cubes in freezer storage bags, you can just remove a cube or two when
you need them. If this is the method you choose, be sure to throw any leftovers
away and do not reheat any of it.
So how do I start?
You will discover through research or talking to the pediatrician that the
foods to begin with are fruits and vegetables. Do not spend too much time
agonizing over which to start the feeding of solid food with because 50% of
people will recommend one and the other 50% will swear by the other. The best
advice is to follow what your baby's doctor recommends or what you have chosen
after research. Children thrive whether you start with fruits or vegetables.
Meats will not be started immediately, however.
Preparation: (Ways to prepare baby's food for freezing)
Use a fork to mash foods like
bananas and soft cooked vegetables. Cook harder fruits such as apples,
too. A fork can be used to mash hard cooked egg yolks.
Use a blender or food
processor for fruits and vegetables when you are making larger amounts at
one time. You may want to add a little liquid to some of the vegetables.
Formula works well, or a little bit of fruit juice, preferably apple
juice. Citrus juice should not be given to babies until they are older.
When you are ready to
introduce mixed food meals and meats (not before 9 months) you may want to
use a food grinder for the preparation.