Asper-Asper-grass-grass-grass

Sung to the tune of Amsterdam... :)
My dad was coming up to cook us some salmon he caught on a fishing trip, and I was going to make asparagus for us.  I was trying to decide if I would give it to our daughter, and ended up just getting "lazy" so instead of planning something for her, I figured I would just give her Asparagus too.  Worst case, she didnt like it.  I did think it would be too stringy the way we normally make it - grilled, so I decided to steam them.  I cut off the woody ends, broke the stalks in half, and put them in the steamer.  I steamed them for probably close to 10 minutes to make sure they were softened, and left them in the steamer once I turned the stove off.  I ended up pureeing the bottom halves, and saved the softer top halves to give to her.  In making the puree, I added some water, but the magic bullet had a hard time with how little was in there, so I think if I were to do it in the future, I'd make a lot more, just so it was easier to puree.

So we gave it a shot.  She seemed to like them, as per her pattern, the first night was very investigatory and somewhat uncertain, but she moved through them.  The second night she was actively reaching for them, and by the third night she was really reaching for them and nearly whining when we didnt get the spoon to her fast enough.

Because the asparagus was pretty stringy, I'm not sure she digested much besides what we pureed for her. She seemed to chew through the stringy-ness, and like the fruit skin, she just spit out the stringy parts and didnt really bother with them. It was certainly fun, but probably not a baby staple food in regular form.  We gave her some apple and plum to offset it.

Recommendation:
Asparagus: Steam tender stalks for 10 minutes.  Give top halves of stalk to baby.
Asparagus Puree: Steam stalks for 10 minutes, puree with some water, remove any super stringy parts.

Violet... you are turning PLUM!

Onto our next adventure! I bought two different kinds of plums at Whole Foods - White and Black I think.  I was still nervous that they might be a little firm, and was planning on making some into a puree, so I steamed them.  The recipe I had said 4-6 minutes.  I cut the 4 plums in half, and put 2 of each half on the bottom of the steamer, and sliced up half of each and put it on top of the other ones.  I think I ended up steaming them for 6 minutes because of the bigger ones on the bottom. I decided to leave the skins on since I was making a thick puree, and then just tossed them in the magic bullet with 3 tablespoons of water.

So the first night we gave her the slices and some puree.  Spoiler Alert - She LOVED plums.  I was a little hesitant because everything I read said to leave the skin on so they could grab it... but I figured we'd be chasing the skin out of her mouth.  I was completely wrong!! Somehow babies seem to know not to eat the skin and just pull it out once they have sucked all the flesh off of it.  It was AMAZING!! :)  And as you might expect, the black plums were pretty messy, so I'd just do the white ones in the future!  She made her typical
"hmm, not sure about this" face to start, but eventually was chowing down pretty good on them, and was definitely reaching for the spoon to get more and more!

Day two of plums went about the same, she was getting more used to how to eat them and mowed them down pretty quick.   We also mixed some of the puree into her morning oatmeal.  She liked them so much, I ran out of the ones I had steamed, so I picked up some more for Day three.  On Day three, we decided to be a little adventurous.  I had seen posts of people giving their kids half a fruit... half a plum, apple, whatever... I didn't really believe it, but I figured with us watching carefully we could try.  So we handed her half a plum! At first it was a challenge to pick up, but she soon figured it out and off she went!

And away went the plum!! She once again figured out the whole skin thing and just demolished the plum.  We were in awe!!  But our little girl had become a violet!!

Recommendations:
Plum: Wash plum and cut into 6ths or halves depending on baby's dexterity with food.  If plums are very firm, steam for 4-6min.  If they are soft, just give raw to baby!
Plum Puree: Cut plums in half, steam for 4-6minutes, puree with a few tablespoons of water.

Freezer Stash & Doing the Math

So as I bagged up some of my latest freezer stash (see the squash and sweet potato night) this morning, it got me thinking.  At first I started wondering how much of this I would need, and how I should manage ramping her up to eating 3 meals a day.

And then I figured, well while I was taking pictures of today's stash, I should run downstairs and take a picture of all of the baby food I had made.  But as I started setting up to do that, I realized I felt like I was doing a fast product shoot.  Product shoot led me to wondering if there was any sort of business model I was stumbling on.  Even before I lost my job, I had been into the opportunity cost of my time.  Was it worth my time to do X when I could pay someone else to do it much faster?  For example, we now have people that mow our lawn, and a woman who cleans our house - why?  Because I'd rather spend my time with my daughter, cooking, or doing a million other things.  I don't enjoy cleaning and my husband doesn't enjoy mowing the lawn.  Both things take time away from us as a family, so why not just have someone else do them?

Well, onto the business model... Making all of this food didn't really take me long, but I enjoy cooking.  For working families who want to give their babies fresh home made food, what is their time worth to them? So it got me wondering... is there a business here?  Hmm... I guess its time to do the math and some research to see if I have an option if finding a job takes too long... :-D

It got me thinking about the form I could set up - stage of baby food needed (1,2,3), delivery size (1oz cubes or 4oz baggies), and of course the fun part - choosing the ingredients, mixes, etc!   And hmm, do I deliver like peapod? or have people stop by my house?? Hmmmmmm.....

Butternut Squash

Next up, I bought an entire butternut squash, figuring we could have some ourselves, and I could use half to make her some sticks and puree!  I usually cheat and buy the precut stuff, but because I wanted to make her some sticks, I didnt think the chunks would be big enough.

Once again, we have success!  For the sticks, similar to sweet potatoes, I cut them in thick fry shape, and then tossed them in olive oil and baked them at 375 for 30 minutes (flipped 3 times).  They were reasonable to grab, though squishier than the sweet potato - that or she's getting a lot stronger... she'd generally squish them in her baby fist, but manage to shove some from the top side in her mouth. She got good at picking up the chunks and putting them in, and is definitely onto the whole chew/swallow thing.
 

We also gave her a puree - this time I felt like I was drifting less from the whole BLW thing because we were eating a puree ourselves! I roasted the halves of squash drizzled with olive oil and water in the hallowed out part where the seeds were for about an hour at 375.  It might take a bit more, as I had to leave in between and left the oven closed but off for about an hour.  I just tossed this in a bowl and mashed it, and then put into ice cube trays.

I also at the same time baked some sweet potatoes to make freezer cube food!  Those I just peeled off the skins after baking and mashed in a bowl with my hand until squishy (I think I was too lazy to wash a masher!), and spread into ice cube trays.

Recommendation
Butternut Squash - peel a small portion of the butternut squash, and chop into fry shapes.  Toss in olive oil and bake for 25-30 minutes at 375 (flip a few times). Cool & serve!
Butternut Squash Puree - Bake a half of a butternut squash at 375 for 1-1.5 hours until flesh is fork tender.  Scoop out, mash and spread into ice cube trays.  Freeze for later!
Sweet Potato Puree - Pierce the skins of the sweet potatoes, wrap in foil and bake for 1-1.5 hours.  Peel off the skins, mash the flesh and spread into ice cube trays.  Freeze for later!

Carrot Paint

Carrots - take two.  Being annoyed that our first try of carrots scared me, I was determined to find out a way to be successful with them.  This time I took organic carrots, peeled them, and cut them into sticks to steam.  I steamed them for 20 minutes once the steamer was hot, and then let them sit in the steamer (burner off) for another 5 minutes.  I washed them in cool water so they would be cool enough for her to handle.

And this time they worked!! Of course, I don't have exactly the same test subject.  At this point, she's now learned how to move food around in her mouth and swallow... two things she had no idea how to do with our first try at carrots.  So this is definitely NOT a good scientific experiment.  But my hypothesis is given a baby who hasn't eaten before, sticks of carrot that are much much softer than the steamed baby carrots I gave our daughter would probably work better.  Things in stick form seem to work well.  From what I read carrot medallions and other roundish objects present choking hazards, so maybe baby carrots wasnt the best idea I've ever had.  oops! I think the best idea would be to hold off on carrots until she's mastered the whole chew/swallow thing.

We also gave her some thick carrot puree.  I just tossed a couple of extra steamed carrots into my magic bullet with some of the water left in the steamer and pureed them to a chunky texture.  She loved it, and as she has been really good at grabbing the spoon and putting it into her mouth, she got good at letting us know when she wants more!  She also picked tonight to really examine the spoon and her dexterity in detail.  She took the spoon, passed it hand to hand (smeared it on her forehead in the process), and really examined every inch of it, trying to figure out how to get the small end of it in her mouth.  It was fun to watch her learn her hands/wrists and the spoon, and try to figure out how it all works!

Recommendation
Carrots - cut into 1/4 inch thick sticks and steam for 20-25 minutes until soft.
Carrot Puree - blend steam carrots and a little bit of water from the steamer to a thick consistency.

Oatmeal you say?

Although it didn't come with a fun baby hand food option, I figured it was time to get some carbs going.  I was going to start by making my own oatmeal, but in reading around, the fortified cereals seem to be a good way to get baby some nutrients.  I wanted to skip the crazy processed rice cereal, but found a good fortified organic oatmeal cereal.  And oatmeal is a breakfast food right??  So the first day we gave it to her for breakfast.  She loved it so much she was lunging for the spoon to get more!!  I mixed in some apples at dinner, but it certainly seems to be a hit, and may become one of the morning staples.

Millions of Peaches...

So easy, so yummy... glad they are in season!  Can't believe how easy these were for what a hit they were... cut up ripe peach, hand to child, done!!  I think it helps that she is starting to get the hang of eating - gumming, swallowing, etc.  I made sure they were good and ripe, but I didnt even have to peel the skin.. she figured out what to do with it!  And the peach puree was easy and went over well also.

This was also the first time we gave her water.  We actually start the meal by giving her the water cup and letting her go at it for a bit, and then give her the food for the night.  She seemed to be perfectly fine with water, and went back for the cup and sucks the water out pretty easily.

Recommendation
Peaches: Wash Peach, Slice into 3/4inch slices, hand to child!
Peach Puree: Toss in blender/food processor, puree, done!

Zucchini??

Did some more research for the next one, and it seemed like grilling zucchini spears was the best way to do zucchini so that she could pick them up easily but have them still be soft enough to grab.  I drizzled them with olive oil and grilled until soft.

The first night we tried it, she seemed to be a bit confused.  I was wondering if she didnt really like the taste.  She did fine with the puree, but nothing special.

But the second night... she was grabbing like crazy for them!  Not sure if she was just tired the first night or took a bit of getting used to.  She was also getting the hang of chewing and swallowing, as some zucchini definitely disappeared this time!!

Recommendation
Zucchini: Grill spears of zucchini with some olive oil.  Roughly 20 minutes cook time (rotate a few times until soft)
Zucchini Puree: Puree grilled chunks/spears with a little bit of water (not much!)

Ice Cube Trays... Everywhere!

So today I decided to jump in and make a whole tone of the baby food purees.  While I've found my magic bullet makes it insanely easy to fast puree some food for our little girl, I figured anything that will save me some time, especially at night would be a good thing.  I looked up a bunch of baby foods, and here is what I ended up doing.  I apologize for the lack of measurements, I tend to eyeball things in the kitchen.

Carrot: Roasted with Olive Oil - 400 for 40-50 minutes.  Pureed with Chicken stock.
Parsnip: Roasted with Olive Oil - 400 for 30-40 minutes.  Pureed with a little bit of Chicken stock.
Broccoli: Roasted with Olive Oil - 400 for 30-40 minutes.  Pureed with Chicken stock.
Cauliflower: Roasted with Olive Oil - 400 for 40-50 minutes.  Pureed with a little bit of Chicken stock.
Eggplant: Grilled as one inch slices with Olive Oil, 10 minutes per side. Pureed with a little bit of Chicken stock.
Zucchini: Grilled as one inch sticks with Olive Oil, 10 minutes per side. Pureed with a little bit of Chicken stock.
Peaches: Puree straight! Dont add water (I added a little, and they came out too thin!)

I was mostly making thick/chunky purees since our daughter is already eating soft whole foods.

I plopped each into ice cube trays since I hear those are good 1oz servings, and froze them for 24 hours, then transferred them to ziplock baggies and returned to the freezer.

Sorry no photos just yet... might take some photos of the cubes, but didnt photo the process...

Beans of Green

I have to admit, I was a bit skeptical on the green beans.  How on earth could a 6 month old not choke on a long string of a bean?  I dunno.  But apparently plenty of people tried it, and as I looked around, lots of babies seemed to enjoy chewing on them, so I figured why not.

I steamed up a bunch of beans so that they were soft but not soggy, and chilled them so we could take them with us.  I also pureed a bunch in my magic bullet so that she could get some nutrition from them as well.

And once again - success!! She loved chewing on them and they were the perfect size for her little hands to grab.  They were also a great tool for her to figure out how to put food that was in her hand into her mouth since they were sort of stick shaped.  I'm not sure she swallowed much of the bean part itself, but she definitely started to get the chewing/gumming them down and she got yet another new flavor.  These were probably the least messy so far, so they are a good "bring with you" food if you have to travel while introducing BLW.

Recommendation
Green Beans: Steam for 5-10 minutes, make sure beans are no longer crispy, but not yet soggy.  Chill and these can easily be saved for a couple of days in the fridge.
Green Bean Puree: Toss an handful of steamed beans into a blender/food processor with a little bit of water (beans are pretty watery themselves so they dont need much)

Apple and the Blender

I had purchased a number of potential foods, but figured we'd move onto apple next.  For the first night, I didn't have time to figure out how to cook it, so I just peeled it and gave her a few slices of Gala Apple, knowing she'd really just get a new flavor/texture.  She had fun with the apple slices, really seemed to like the sweet flavor.  By the end she had sucked on them so much that they were slimy and she couldn't really pick them up, and was frustrated, so I held onto a slice so she could just gnaw on it at will :)

On the second day, I baked a bunch of peeled apples with some nutmeg, cinnamon and water.  I had used my apple peeler/slicer/corer, so they were thin slices, but I basically left them as peeled half apples. I put them in a square glass dish and baked them at 375 for 45 minutes (until very soft).  I threw these into a blender and made a very smooth applesauce out of them.



While I was doing that, I decided to try and roast some apple slices for her to try for that night. They seemed to come out soft, but had this weird rubbery texture, so I put them in the microwave with some water for 15 seconds a side.  They seemed to soften a bit, but I wasnt real sure.  Sure enough, they werent quite soft enough.  She would try to gum them and ended up getting a big chunk once that freaked me out so I stuck my finger in to get it and ended up scaring her so she cried for a bit.  I stuck the apple in one of those feeder things and let her munch it to death that way.

We also took our first shot at pureed foods with the applesauce.  She LOVED it!! As per the BLW instructions, we were supposed to let her do it at her will.  Since she was getting good with foods, just putting the spoon near her, she reached out to grab it and shoved it in her mouth.  It took some maneuvering for her to get anything off the spoon, but she managed, and we probably got a tablespoon of applesauce :)

The next day I jumped online and read and read and read some more.  I found someone who mentioned steaming the apple slices with the skin on, and decided to try that.  WOW what a difference! It was perfect!  The skin gave her something to hold, and the apple meat was soft enough for her to gum off of the skin.  Amazingly enough she knew exactly what to do with the skin!

Also since we passed the 6 month mark, we gave her her first shot at the sippy cup with a little bit of formula in it.  She took to it right away, maybe because it was sort of a soft nipple like the bottle, or perhaps just because she is way too smart for us! lol.

Recommendation:
Apple: Steam slices with skin on!  Steam for 5-7 minutes, remove from pot and cool.
Applesauce: Peel and bake 3 apples (cored and halved) covered in foil with 3/4cup water, and maybe a half teaspoon of nutmeg and teaspoon of cinnamon.  Cool and process in a blender until smooth (or desired consistency)

Sweet... POOOOTAAATOOOO!!

Things were improving a bit.  I have to admit, I was still a bit skeptical.  It didnt seem like she was getting much food down at all, and I was still nervous as heck for her choking on something.  But we moved on... This time I read as much as I could on how to cook the food.  Many of the suggestions said to bake sweet potato "fries" in olive oil so that it made the insides soft but gave a skin for baby to grab onto.  So off I went... I peeled and cut half a sweet potato into somewhat thick fries, and baked it with olive oil.  They browned up a bit, and seemed to be nice and soft inside.  I discarded (aka ate) the ones that seemed to end up with dark crispy ends.  The rest I kept to give to her.

This was much more successful.  No real choking, and she was starting to get the concept of at least masticating the food to death.  She did gag a few times, but was able to get it moved around in her mouth quickly.  She might have even swallowed a couple of tiny pieces by the third time we gave it to her.  Either way, the sticks were easy to hold and the food softened in her grip.  And as a plus, they were easy to transport for food anywhere else if we wanted.

Recommendation
Sweet Potato:  This is great as an early food.  Peel the potato, cut into thick fries, toss in olive oil, and bake it at 400 for 10 minutes, then flip and bake for another 10.  Allow plenty of time to cool, then serve to baby.

Trees of Broccoli

With our first two foods under our belt, next up was Broccoli!  I steamed them for probably 15 minutes, until the stalks were fork tender.  I then dunked them in ice water so they wouldn't continue to cook, though I think the ice water did make them a bit more watery, but after the carrot, I figured smushy was good.

She had a lot of fun sticking the heads of the broccoli in her mouth and moving the little pieces around.  We arent sure she swallowed much of anything, but it seemed like pretty good fun. She did have a few gagging incidents, but everything we read said that was part of the process of learning to chew and swallow.

 It certainly ended up as the messiest of the foods!!  We were finding little sprigs of broccoli everywhere for days!!

Recommendation
Broccoli: Steam baby hand sized stalks for about 15 minutes.  You may be able to do enough for a few days and put it in a baggie in the fridge, but I just did it each day.  Cool and give to baby!