Store Bought Baby Food

We are getting ready to travel to Florida for about 6 weeks this weekend, and I feel as if I am closing up my house for the summer.  Yes, Zar will be here, but I'm pretty sure he won't be cooking many meals so we are doing our best to raid the pantry this week and avoid buying nay new perishables.  Zar will also be out of town for the rest of the week until we head out, so I am on my own with the little ones.  In an attempt to keep my sanity, I am not making Finn any foods this week and I have stocked up on some awesome store bought brands.

I have always been a fan of Earth's Best Organic Baby.  They make some great combo meals.  I find that they are really thin however and I usually plump up a jar with a few tablespoons of Happy Baby Brown Rice or Oatmeal. Finn is particularly fond of the vegetable dinner.

I also found some very unique combinations of foods from Plumb Organics.  I haven't tried them before, and I'm a sucker for the neat packaging. So far I tried plain peaches (Finn was not a fan) and a Spinach, Pear, and Pea combination.  Finn loved the green stuff!  This is great because I am having a hard time adding in greens to my homemade repertoire. Maybe it will be easier once are in Florida and away from all of these winter root vegetables!

Baby Food Blunders

I have decided to make some more posts about the baby food that I am making for Finn because I am learning quite a bit along the way.  I have been reading a lot about this again (refreshing my memory, really) and I am starting to get in the groove.  I am also on this new kick to try to cook more 'seasonally' since I live in a climate where there are four full seasons and the farmers market actually does change seasonally.  I think that having this mindset when making menus and planning our meals will allow is to eat the freshest produce available and eat locally as much as possible (with one BIG exception--avocados.  They are a main staple in our house year round).

My main source of recipes right now are from a fantastic book, Super Baby Food by Ruth Yaron. My sister gave me this book a couple of years ago and it is such an awesome resource! The book is organized very well to use as a reference on how to cook vegetables and fruit you may have never prepared, as well as the nutrient content of EVERYTHING and some great recipes for toddler food as well.  I don't completely follow her system yet (she prepares a lot of food in advance and freezes it, and I just don't do it that way) but I may try while I'm in Florida visiting my family.

This week I am inspired to introduce parsnips into all of our diets (probably do pureed for Finn, mix with some sweet potato puree) and try some pureed noodle recipes.  I always have leftover noodles because that it all Maeve will eat lately.  She is becoming a very picky two year old.... I'll let you know how it goes!

Back to Basics...Making baby food once again

Taking care of an infant the second time around is totally different than the first.  I am much more relaxed, I hardly read any books and I have learned to trust my instincts and go with the flow.  However, there are a lot of times where I look at Finn and the new milestone he is crossing, and I immediately remember where I was with Maeve at that same moment.  I was so focused on her and only her for that first year that there wasn't room for much else in my life.  Now that I have them both I feel like I am bursting at the seams with joy, frustration, sadness, and love all at the same time. 

One thing that I have been particularly dreading the second time around is baby food. I know I should be excited about. I mean, I am a registered dietitian, specializing in pediatrics.  Food was my profession for over five years.  Not just food, but KID FOOD. Yet, I hate it.  I hate the tedium involved, the preparation and organization that is required.  Yet, I know enough that I am avoiding jarred/boxed foods as much as possible if for no other reason than I did it with Maeve, and Finn deserves it at well.

So, I have tried making foods in batches, I've tried individual servings, I have tried high quality forzen stuff. I have tried it all. Now I am getting ready to try it all again, seeing how it fits into my much busier life.  And while I may complain about it, making food for Finn does make me feel like a good mom.  He doesn't get all of my attention like his sister did at his age, and he never will.  I will probably feel bad about that for the rest of my life.  But, I can do little things to make up for it along the way.

So, today he will be getting a gourmet dinner of pureed chicken and sweet potatoes.  I'll let you know how he does!