Tips and Tricks For Making Homemade Baby Food

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZPrafvLUGQpEke5m_qP5mCdF_7M91bn7n0gwbmqoaV6ZuIf5VBYkcdyPPGXRdgW9BMRJE9QC4wq3EANrfj7jNb-1v_NcCPEVgE6jLoO3awcoLoeOZ8jgrT47KLnAh6J8yVwyAYkvPhT4R/s1600/homeade_baby_food.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Jar full from making homemade baby food. " border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZPrafvLUGQpEke5m_qP5mCdF_7M91bn7n0gwbmqoaV6ZuIf5VBYkcdyPPGXRdgW9BMRJE9QC4wq3EANrfj7jNb-1v_NcCPEVgE6jLoO3awcoLoeOZ8jgrT47KLnAh6J8yVwyAYkvPhT4R/s1600/homeade_baby_food.png" title="jar of homemade baby food" /></a></div> <div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 4pt; margin-top: 4pt;"> <span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.2; white-space: pre-wrap;">Introduce your babies to eating clean right away by making homemade baby food! This is an awesome way to start your kids off on a healthy foot right away. If you have older kids, they can help with making homemade baby food and learn about the health benefits of each ingredient.</span></div> <b id="docs-internal-guid-b06ed009-a355-7f58-184b-b1214728dc36" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span></b> <br /> <h4 style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 4pt; margin-top: 4pt;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444;">Benefits of Making Homemade Baby Food</span></span></h4> <div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 4pt; margin-top: 4pt;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444;">I love being able to see all the ingredients that go into my food and my baby’s food. That’s why making homemade baby food is a great option! All the ingredients are fresh and have no preservatives or added sugars, making it the most nutritious option for babies. </span></span></div> <b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span></b> <br /> <div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 4pt; margin-top: 4pt;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444;">Allergies are less likely and easy to pinpoint in babies when they eat homemade baby food, since you know exactly what went into each meal. It takes a little extra time to start making homemade baby food, but I highly encourage it! You can usually start incorporating baby food into the diet when your baby is around six months old, but make sure to check in with your pediatrician first.</span></span></div> <b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span></b> <br /> <h4 style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 4pt; margin-top: 4pt;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444;">Precautions for Making Homemade Baby Food</span></span></h4> <div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 4pt; margin-top: 4pt;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444;">Be sure to use the highest degree of cleanliness when making homemade baby food; you don’t want any bacteria making it’s way into the food or getting your baby sick. </span></span></div> <div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 4pt; margin-top: 4pt;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444;">Remember, all kids have different taste preferences, so they won’t always like everything - it’s not your fault! Pay attention to if the child has any allergy-like symptoms so you can narrow down which ingredient your baby might be allergic to.</span></span></div> <div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 4pt; margin-top: 4pt;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444;">Always consult your pediatrician before trying any new foods with your infant to make sure they are safe and will have nutritious value to your growing baby.</span></span></div> <b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span></b> <br /> <h4 style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 4pt; margin-top: 4pt;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444;">Making Homemade Baby Food</span></span></h4> <div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 4pt; margin-top: 4pt;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444;">When you start incorporating foods into your baby’s diet, try using just one ingredient to start off with. Avocados, bananas and sweet potatoes are great options for first-time food eaters because they are delicious, nutritious and easy to digest.</span></span></div> <b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span></b> <br /> <ul style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"> <li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 4pt;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444;">For avocados, de-pit and scrape out the soft part of the avocado. Then, simply mash until smooth. </span></span></div> </li> <li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444;">For bananas, peel the banana and then puree in a blender or food processor. Make sure it is a ripe banana so it is nice and soft when pureed.</span></span></div> </li> </ul> <ul style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"> <li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 4pt; margin-top: 0pt;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444;">For sweet potatoes, wash and poke holes in the sweet potato with a fork and then wrap in tin foil. Cook in an oven at 400 degrees until soft, about 30 minutes. Puree with blender or food processor.</span></span></div> </li> </ul> <b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span></b> <br /> <div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 4pt; margin-top: 4pt;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444;">You can also add formula or breast milk to any of these if the consistency doesn’t seem smooth or soft enough for your baby to eat. </span></span></div> <br /> <div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 4pt; margin-top: 4pt;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444;">Making homemade baby food is such a fabulous way to get into the clean eating habit. I recommend talking to your pediatrician about it before you begin. Your pediatrician should be able to direct you to some great resources with recipes and the best ingredients to try!</span></span></div> <div> <span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div>

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Tips and Tricks For Making Homemade Baby Food

Introduce your babies to eating clean right away by making homemade baby food! This is an awesome way to start your kids off on a healthy...

10 ways to get your children to adjust to a clean eating lifestyle

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I don't know about you but, I really struggled and still do with getting my three kids on board with clean eating. My oldest Son Gavin was never a good eater! I mean he ate NOTHING! It was a very tough thing for my husband and I to go through watching our child refuse to eat food. My pediatrician had told us when he was two that we should not worry at this point about "healthy" foods but, just make sure that he is eating. I think his approach was anything is better then nothing. So, now that he is older and quite a good eater, I must add, we have really been working with our kids to eat healthy and make good choices when it comes to food. This is definetly a work in progress but, continue to educate my children because I feel like it is very important and want them to feel as good as I do from consuming whole, real foods!!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGw9GzSVJwMIa8EGfUm-M2CgVwcNcT4rZKveqtklRSjNwdY-l7qQfp1l-sZjeIl4zXCHuVDnWY2iGBpwr4R7PhohSBaHCB30exBNHEDkoa3-lKxK_1DwXDYZeaqngeBVa2ezNBgltM2w_7/s1600/How-to-get-your-kids-on-board-with-healthy-eating-and-living.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="331" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGw9GzSVJwMIa8EGfUm-M2CgVwcNcT4rZKveqtklRSjNwdY-l7qQfp1l-sZjeIl4zXCHuVDnWY2iGBpwr4R7PhohSBaHCB30exBNHEDkoa3-lKxK_1DwXDYZeaqngeBVa2ezNBgltM2w_7/s640/How-to-get-your-kids-on-board-with-healthy-eating-and-living.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">These are some of the ideas and things we have been doing to incorporate our children into eating clean foods....</div>1. <strong>Serve vegetables as an appetizer.</strong> While you set out the rest of dinner, keep hungry kids occupied with veggies. (I love carrot sticks and fresh cut bell pepper.) When you serve veggies before dinner, they’re more likely to be eaten.<br /> <br /> 2. <strong>Offer control. </strong>Picky eating is often about control, not taste. Offer two options (“Shall we have peas or broccoli trees with lunch?”) and give your child the power to choose one.<br /> <br /> 3. <strong>Remember tiny tummies</strong>. Do you often think that your toddlers aren’t eating enough? But when they describe all the child ate that day, it’s really plenty of food. Children’s tummies are quite small, about the size of their clenched fist. What looks like a reasonable snack to grown-up eyes might be an overwhelming portion for little ones.<br /> <br /> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIwfRKazprAfT_vzzsBsrH1tZAU0kDDY4RzNu0otLK1scgCtpQep6Ux5oV5nFWlwU_jWse4vVDSkqSww0Jd0Puuc_A_MbGt772ar-oKRkyNeWnbGVkUx7D3yPh6rCJpsKgVKbeW0ysjqfF/s1600/healthyfood.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIwfRKazprAfT_vzzsBsrH1tZAU0kDDY4RzNu0otLK1scgCtpQep6Ux5oV5nFWlwU_jWse4vVDSkqSww0Jd0Puuc_A_MbGt772ar-oKRkyNeWnbGVkUx7D3yPh6rCJpsKgVKbeW0ysjqfF/s320/healthyfood.jpg" width="320" /></a>4. <strong>Never underestimate the power of a silly face or use animal shapes.</strong> At snack time, try arranging cucumber slice eyes with a ranch dip smile and carrot teeth, or peanut butter eyes and a celery mouth on an apple slice head. And what kid can resist this BEAUTIFUL butterfly!<br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> 5. <strong>Make it interactive.</strong> Who says you shouldn’t play with your food? Steamed artichokes with lemon butter for dipping, roasted asparagus with a little cup of grated parmesan, lettuce wraps for stuffing with seasoned chicken or beans and veg — kids love interacting with their food! For bonus points, give each component a cool name — “trees with snow” will add a dash of giggles to a dish of broccoli with parmesan.<br /> <br /> 6. <strong>Delegate sous chef duties</strong>. At the market, have everyone pick out one fruit or veggie they’d like to have that evening. Then, let them add their chosen food to the pizza, soup, or salsa. When children are involved in the cooking, they’re much more likely to try the result.<br /> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://media.tumblr.com/523b9617c80635ef92a6140b840530ed/tumblr_inline_mn0l3kjUl51qz4rgp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="image" border="0" class="toggle_inline_image inline_image constrained_image" height="400" src="http://media.tumblr.com/523b9617c80635ef92a6140b840530ed/tumblr_inline_mn0l3kjUl51qz4rgp.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>7. <strong>Be a veggie pragmatist.</strong> As a busy mom, I know it is not always possible to browse the market with your children. And to be honest with three kids grocery shopping can actually be quite enjoying when I get the oppurtunity to go by myself. When that happens, reach for frozen vegetables. The nutrient profile on vegetables that are flash frozen are just as good  and frozen veggies are more forgiving of busy schedules and fickle toddler tastes.<br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> 8. <strong>Zucchini bread is not a vegetable. </strong>Quite a few recent books suggest ways to “sneak” fruit and veg into children’s meals. Boosting nutrition is all well and good, but it’s also important to teach children what things look and taste like in their natural state. Don’t just sneak a cheeky puree into the pizza sauce. Let them know it’s there, and let them see how it’s prepared.<br /> <br /> <br /> 9. <strong>Don’t give up.</strong> Studies show that children have to try a food 10-15 times to like it, and I’ve certainly found that to be true. Encourage children to play with a new food, touch it, smell it, and above all taste it, but keep things lighthearted. Remember your child isn’t just being contrary being suspicious of new food is an entirely reasonable instinct, especially for children.<br /> <br /> 10. <strong>The no-thank-you bite</strong>. If your child refuses outright to try new things, introduce a “no-thank-you bite” rule. With this rule, if a child doesn’t want to eat something, that’s fine  so long as she takes a small bite and says “no thank you.” If she still doesn’t like it, chalk it up to one of those 10-15 necessary new food exposures and move on.<br /> <br /> I hope you find these tips helpful! Remember it is a work in progress and your children will eventually start eating more real foods over time!<br /> <br /> Alyssa<br /> XXOO<div style="float: right; margin: 4px;"><a href="javascript:void((function(){var%20e=document.createElement('script');e.setAttribute('type','text/javascript');e.setAttribute('charset','UTF-8');e.setAttribute('src','http://assets.pinterest.com/js/pinmarklet.js?r='+Math.random()*99999999);document.body.appendChild(e)})());"><img alt="Pin It" class="aligncenter" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v419/green_tea/pin.jpg" /></a></div>

appetizers, bite, children, clean eating, cooking, food, healthy, interactive, nutrition, real foods, snacks, toddlers, vegetables, veggies

10 ways to get your children to adjust to a clean eating lifestyle

I don't know about you but, I really struggled and still do with getting my three kids on board with clean eating. My oldest Son Gavin w...