DIY Organic Baby Food Here is a simple guide to starting your little hungry hippo out right... The task of making you own baby food can seem daunting , but in fact its pretty easy! All you need is the right tools and right tips and you'll be wipping up puree's like the Gordon Ramsey of  the baby world in no time!  I always knew I would want to try and make my own baby food and after reading how most store bought baby food has MSG in it...yes, thats right MSG and a ton of other additives ( see link here...http://www.thealphaparent.com/2013/02/the-truth-about-baby-food-jars.html) I knew making my own was the best option. Not to mention it really saves you a lot of money! Those little jars add up fast! Every baby is different and will be ready to start solids at different times (Usually around 6  months) , so just watch your baby and look for signs they may be ready such as: grabbing at your food, watching you eat ( this gets kind of weird and awkward by the way, Every time you put something in your mouth your little one will stare at you with beady eyes and watch you eat every last morsel...), can sit up in a high chair or bumbo, making "chewing motions" with their mouths. Some tools I recommend:  Rice cooker/ steamer: These babies are awesome! They are super handy to help steam those veggies to make a puree and you can cook your own dinner in them! So worth investing in, and you can find some amazing deals on amazon! Or search on a swap and sell group on Facebook if your on a tight budget! I prefer  steaming the veggies rather than boiling because it doesn't take as many of the nutrients away and way easier in my opinion! Baby Bullet: ( or some kind of food processor with a "mill" blade option.) Register for one, search local thrift stores, borrow one from a friend with grown kids...what ever you need to do to get your hands on one of these handy dandy tools!  Veggie wash:  I like the honest company wash because its conveinent, or you can make your own....http://www.wikihow.com/Make-an-Organic-Fruit-and-Vegetable-Wash This step is important because even if its organic, and you are taking the skin off there can still be some pretty nasty things on them.     I like to get all my organic produce from Sprouts Market. I feel they have the widest  selection of organic fruits and veggies, but there are many other places. I also like to stock  up so that I can do one huge batch and be good for awhile since you can store baby food in the freezer for 2-3 months.       The other question I found myself constantly googling was "what foods to start with and what is safe?" Most people start off with baby cereal. In my opinion I was not that impressed with the nutrition of the rice cearal and grains can be very hard for them to digest, so some skip it all together. I tried rice cereal for one week to get my babe used to this whole "food" situation and then moved on to baby oatmeal. Making your own is VERY easy and WAY better than buying then box kind (even the organic box kind has some added ingredients.) Once my babe was getting the hang of things I moved on to purees because of the nutionial value. I still make some baby oatmeal in the mornings mixed with some purees.  here is my list of "beginner fruits and veggies" for your new little foodie to try! -Short grain brown rice ( buy the dry organic kind, doesn't have to be quick or instant) - Organic oats ( the regular big kind, we also did gluten free ) -Sweet Potato  -Avocado -Zucchini  -Squash  -Carrots  -Pears -Banana  -Apples  Keep in mind that you want to introduce new foods one at a time, and give it a few days before adding something new...so that if they do have a reaction you will know exactly what it is. These foods are considered extremely low on the food allergy list, hence why they are great starting foods! So try some sweet potato for a few days and if all goes well, add some zucchini into the mix ...ect! TIP: I  recommend doing a lot of veggies first before fruits, then they want always be wanting/expecting the sweet ones.  How to make Rice Cereal/ Baby Oatmeal:  Take your baby bullet and place the "mill" blade in the bottom...it has only two blades and they are not risen like the regular puree blade. Take one cup of long grain rice, or once cup of oatmeal and dump it inside the bullet. Turn on and mill away, until completely smooth and no little lumps or chunks appear ( double check by sifting with a fork. ( PS: this is VERY loud and might back your baby cry....well it did mine.) Once smooth store in an airtight container in the fridge.When ready to serve  bring a half cup of water to boil in a small pot. Sprinkle in 2 TBS spoons of the ground rice cereal or oatmeal. Whisk for 30 seconds or until smooth and creamy constancy. Allow to cool and serve! ( You can also add a little breastmilk once it is cooled. This also helps the baby be more interesting because it taste and smells similar to what they have always had!)  How to make sweet potato puree:  ( I like to start with the sweet potatoes because they take the longest. While they are cooking I work on the other goodies) Preheat oven to 400, and line a baking sheet with foil. Place as many sweet potatoes as you want/can on the sheet.    Then take a fork and stab all the potatoes multiple times on both sides.(this helps them cook faster!)  Bake in the oven for 60 mins or until tender all the way through. Test with a  fork or knife. Take them out and let them cool off for about an hour. Once cool, you should be able to easily peel the skin off. You should be left with just the soft inside of the potato. Take your baby bullet ( or food processor) and attach the regular blade( one with 4 risen blades) place 2-3 sweet potatoes ( depends on how big they are,don't overload the machine...) and mush them down a little with a fork. Add some purified water about 3 tablespoons to start and blend away.  Add as much water as needed until you get a smooth constancy. ( you can also use breastmilk/formula but I like to add it just before I am feeding it to the munchkin.) Pour into the silicone baby bullet molds or icecube trays, cover and place in the freezer.  Then just repeat until all your sweet potato has been pureed! Once they are frozen place in freezer safe bags, label with date and bam your done!  I take one or two out and place them in the regular baby bullet cups and stick those in the fridge to thaw for the next day.  TIP 2: I always serve it cold out of the fridge...you can heat it up in the microwave or over the stove but you will be zapping more nutrients out of it and its not very convenient. My little one has never had a problem eating it right out the refrigerator  How to steam and puree the rest of the produce:  Fill the bottom of your rice cooker with water to the "steam" line. place the steamer basket on the top. Wash all fruit and veggies according to your wash directions.  Take a peeler and peel the skin off ( even the pears... you can leave a little on the zucchini its easy for them to digest but I don't love the consistency  so I take most off!)  Cut the ends off.    Place veggies or fruit in the basket. Set steam time for 15 minutes. Once done check to see if they are tender, if not keep on steaming.  Once tender place a cup or less at a time ( depending the size of your veggies) in your bullet with the regular blade attached. Add  water as needed or until consistency is smooth and non chunky.  TIP: zuchinni and squash and some other veggies have a VERY high water content so you shouldn't need to add any water...they are more on the runny side so I like to add them to thicker purees, like sweet potato or carrots . Pour into silicone containers or ice cube trays. Freeze then transfer to freezer safe bags, label, and take out to thaw in fridge as needed.  There is no need to puree or cook some food, such as avocado or banana. Produce that is already naturally soft you can just scoop into a bowl and mush with a fork! Easy peasy!  ' WHELLA! you are now a baby food pro! OK ok you still have a long road ahead but this is a great start. Enjoy this time with your baby, its so fun to watch the excitement and hilarious facial expressions as they discover these new tastes and textures. Pretty soon they will be wanting to feed themselves and grabbing, and chewing like big kids.   Last tips: -Don't be to afraid of choking, they have amazing gag reflexes!   -Now is the time to try and introduce a sippy cup with a little water ( they don't need much!) I love the playtex starter cups we got. They have handles and comes with two option lid. It also has a tiny filter so that they don't gulp to much all at once. Check them out by clicking the button down below. - Things get VERY messy VERY quickly, so learn to laugh at the fact that you actually did your hair and make up and now you have zucchini all over you...( really though, it happens EVERY time!), and invest in a good plastic bib that is easy to clean!  Happy eating!! -Kristen  ~Feel free to comment below with anymore questions!~ Check out the sippy cups!

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