Green Beans

Green beans are a staple food in our family. We (my husband and I) eat them all the time--in every way shape or form: sauteed, boiled, canned, frozen, with toppins and without. We love them. So, it is imperative that Little Joy learn to enjoy green beans!

Ingredients:
Frozen Green Beans (organic as available)
You can use fresh of course, but since this blog is about our adventures, I wanted to share what I did
Steps:

• Cook according to package directions (watch for any salts added), cook until tender!
  
• Puree in your food processor of choice; the green beans will not get completely smooth like other foods we have posted about
• Allow to cool
  
• Pour into your freezing method (I prefer to pour into ice cube trays and cover with plastic wrap)
• Freeze until frozen solid (about 12-24 hours)
• After frozen, place in freezer zip lock bags until ready to use (I like to save about 2 servings in the refrigerator)

**NOTE: one ice cube is about an ounce of food**

Timing: Many resources recommend introducing green beans around 6-8months months. I introduced them at 6 months and then later discovered that many babies reject homemade green beans since they cannot be completely smoothed in the puree process. To test this theory, I am going to offer store bought green beans which ARE perfectly smoothed. I will post a blog about the results.

Storage: According to "Super Baby Food" by Ruth Yaron, green beans can be in the freezer for two months.

Epicutie Rating: Sour Puss--see right side of page for rating descriptions.
Epicutie Joy has been offered green beans 4-5 times. Although she takes 2-3 bites fine, she will not take more than that. Based on the discovery that many babies do not like homemade green beans until much later, we will wait to attempt green beans again until 7-8 months. Remember, if you do not succeed, try, try again!

Difficulty: 1 out of 5

Green bean puree, notice the texture

I learned that the foods are much easier to "load" in the ice cube trays if I place them in a measuring up to pour. It is also less messy :)

Applesauce

Apples (and applesauce) are not only tasty, but it also goes good with many other foods (winter squash, cereals, other fruits). Do not be afraid to mix foods together and taste your baby's pallet! Here is some additional information about apples that is GREAT!

Little Joy loves apples, by themselves or mixed with other foods---its always a hit. However, Little Joy has shown a tendency to prefer apples warm or room temperature vs. cold. So, if your little one does not like them at first, try warming them to see what happens.

Ingredients:
Fuji Apples
Steps:

• Wash, peel and core apples
  
• Chop into medium sized chunks
• Place in pan and fill with water just covering the apples(OR you can steam them, but I do not have a steamer so I boil)
  
• Boil until tender (be careful not to boil too long since the nutrients will all come out if you boil too long)
• Puree in your food processor of choice
• Allow to cool
  
• Pour into your freezing method (I prefer to pour into ice cube trays and cover with plastic wrap)
• Freeze until frozen solid (about 12-24 hours)
• After frozen, place in freezer zip lock bags until ready to use (I like to save about 2 servings in the refrigerator)

**NOTE: one ice cube is about an ounce of food**

Timing: Many resources recommend introducing apples around 6 months

Yield: 1/2 cup applesauce per apple

Storage: According to "Super Baby Food" by Ruth Yaron, applesauce can be in the freezer for two months.

Miscellaneous: I found that peeling them shortways rather than around in a circle was faster. But a warning---your hand will get sore after all that peeling!

Money Matters: Please keep in mind, these calculations are approximations and prices vary depending on where you live. The standard of living where I am at is signficantly higher than other places in the country. I bought 12 apples (about 5.5 pounds) for $7.99 which yielded approximately 56 ice cubes of applesauce; $.14 per cube. I guesstimate that it takes 2-3 cubes to equal ONE Gerber apple container. There are TWO containers packaged together when you buy Gerber applesauce; they cost about $1.09 per package here. SO...
.14 per cube * 3 cubes per container * 2 containers = .86 (this is how much it cost ME to make one Gerber applesauce package)
Total savings PER PACKAGE making at home vs. buying = .23
That does not seem like much until you think about baby eating one container per meal several times a week---it adds up!

Epicutie Rating: Yummy in my Tummy--see right side of page for rating descriptions. Epicutie Joy prefers apples warmed or room temperature. Also, when I made my second batch I left a little texture in them and she did NOT enjoy that at all.

Difficulty: 2 out of 5

I bought these two crates at Costco. $7.99 for 12 apples, about 5.5 pounds. I made one crate in the pictures below.

Peeling, coring and dicing the apples

There were two pots like this to make 12 apples worth of food.

After cooking, pureed them until smooth.

I froze this many and reserved about 8 servings in the fridge or for my husband and I to eat (they are THAT yummy that we ate some)

Basic Carrot Puree

Basic Carrot Puree is easy and delicious!

Ingredients:
Raw Organic Carrots
Preferred Liquid of Thinning (I use breast milk but water or formula is good too!)
Steps:

• Wash and peel carrots
• Chop carrots into medium sized chunks
• Place carrots in pan and fill with water just covering the carrots (OR you can steam them, but I do not have a steamer so I boil)
  
• Boil until tender (be careful not to boil too long since the nutrients will all come out if you boil too long)
• Puree in your food processor of choice
• Pour into your freezing method (I prefer to pour into ice cube trays and cover with plastic wrap)
• Freeze until frozen solid (about 12-24 hours)
• After frozen, place in freezer zip lock bags until ready to use (I like to save 2 servings in the refrigerator)

Timing: Many resources recommend introducing carrots around 6-7 months
Yield: 1-1.25 cups puree per pound of carrots
Storage: According to "Super Baby Food" by Ruth Yaron, pears can be in the freezer for two months and refrigerator 1-2 days.
Miscellaneous: Carrots can be mixed with many things (peas, apples, pears, etc). See www.wholesomebabyfood.com for other ideas on carrots!
Test Subject Rating: Yummy in my Tummy--see right side of page for rating descriptions (Little Joy enjoys carrots with apples too)
Difficulty: 1 out of 5

Pear Puree

Making pear puree is simple, fast and tasty!

Ingredients:
Bartlett Pears (these are the yellow/greenish pears)
Steps:

• Wash and peel pears
• Puree in your food processor of choice
• Pour into your freezing method (I prefer to pour into ice cube trays and cover with plastic wrap)
• Freeze until frozen solid (about 12-24 hours)
• After frozen, place in freezer zip lock bags until ready to use (I like to save 2 servings in the refrigerator)

Yield: 1/2 cup puree per pear
Storage: According to "Super Baby Food" by Ruth Yaron, pears can be in the freezer for up to a year and refrigerator 1-2 days.
Miscellaneous: Pears can mixed with many things to make foods more appealing (prunes, cereal, etc.). Pears are also good at moving the digestive system along!
Test Subject Rating: Yummy in my Tummy --see right side of page for rating descriptions (Little Joy has found a favorite food)
Difficulty: 1 out of 5