EXPERIMENTING WITH BABY FOODS

It’s mind-blowing to me that we have already had baby Harrison in our lives for over 6 months! Time is going so fast and as much as I want it to slow down, seeing his recent developments have been so rewarding. With the encouragement of our pediatrician, we have started incorporating some purées and other baby food into Harrison’s daily routine. It’s been really fun to see him try new flavors and get to eat some of the same things we have for dinner! Here are some tips for experimenting with baby foods that I’ve been following since we started this new journey of parenthood!

EXPERIMENTING WITH BABY FOOD

SET UP YOUR FEEDING AREA

We set Harrison up in his Nuna ZAAZ high chair at the head of our dining table so that we could all eat together as a family and each be on one side of him to take turns doing spoonfuls while we eat our dinner too.

sit up tall!

CHOOSE A VARIETY

One of the best pieces of advice I got when establishing with purees and soft foods with Harrison, was to get a variety of foods to try. Not all of the textures and tastes resonate with babies right away. In fact, it often takes 3+ times of trying a food for a baby to know whether they like it or not. We decided to get mostly vegetables to start, with the hopes of shifting to fruits and other food groups in the coming months. Please note: when we first started, we only introduced one new food per week to check for allergies or intolerances. Once you’ve ruled that out, we offer a variety of choices. As always, follow your doctor’s advice!

MEAL PREP AND STORE

A great tip for experimenting with baby foods I got from a friend, was to make a HUGE batch of whatever food you plan to puree. You can buy ice cube trays and portion the puree into them and freeze. Then, next time we want to give him that food we can pop out the appropriate portion, defrost in the microwave (or the night before in the fridge!) and feed. Some of the purees I have made in small batches, I store in the refrigerator for up to 4 days but if I know we won’t get through them, into the ice cube trays they go!

containers to store your batches

contain the mess (or try!)

Here are some types of foods and preparation methods that we have and will continue using!

SWEET POTATO

I am really excited about the diversity of sweet potatoes and making it suitable for baby! I’ve been making Harrison some sweet potato puree right now, but know families that have gone right to sweet potato fries if they’re doing baby led weaning right away. I have found a few ways to make the purées but adding water is KEY. I’ve baked, boiled, and roasted the sweet potatoes trying to get better flavors each time. It’s been fun to add some cinnamon as well, and to let him try a different flavor!

AVOCADO

This was a food I would have never thought a baby would have as part of their “first” foods. It’s been a huge hit with Harrison and I can’t wait to incorporate it into some more of his foods as he gets older. We’ve been mashing them up (when they’re perfectly ripe) and adding a bit of milk (breast milk or formula) to soften them even more. A fun food that we always have on hand, avocados will definitely be a staple of Harrison’s baby food journey.

SPINACH

As we are trying to give Harrison a wide variety of  foods, spinach was definitely one we wanted to get him used too as soon as possible. We include spinach in so many of our dishes so I loved the idea of him having something that was the same as what we were eating! I sauté the spinach with water and once it is cooked through, I run the mixture through a blender or food processor. Since it can be a challenge to get a good consistency, I’ve been blending the cooked spinach with some other purees in order to thicken the contents.

OATMEAL

While this isn’t a puree, oatmeal makes for a great vessel to try out other flavors and foods. When we are ready to introduce some of the allergens such a peanuts and other tree nuts, we will likely mix them into his oatmeal! We have also had so many of our friends with kids recommend introducing fruit via oatmeal as well, so when we get there, we are looking forward to it!

BUTTERNUT SQUASH

This sweet veggie has been Harrison’s favorite so far! Our local supermarket sells them already chopped in cubes, so steaming and putting in the food processor was all it took. Similar to sweet potatoes, we have sprinkled some cinnamon on these and he can’t get enough. For those taking the puree route, I highly recommend adding this into your rotation.

FRUITS

Since we were encouraged to try as many vegetables as possible, we are still working through those. We will be introducing fruits in a few weeks, but through research and talking to other moms, these are the ones I am excited about making into a puree and giving Harrison!

• Watermelon
• Apples
• Pears
• Peaches
• Prunes
• Mango
• Banana (mashed very well)
• Strawberries
• Blueberries

keep them clean (doubtful!)

Don’t feel like making your own? Try these pre-made baby food options to get you started:

I am so excited about this next milestone for our family to go through together! Watching Harrison eat food that I made has been so rewarding and I can’t wait to give him new flavors to try. Do you have any tips for experimenting with baby food? Drop them in the comments!

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