Homemade Peanut Banana Oatmeal Baby Food + The New Guidelines For Introducing Allergens

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When Coen was born, I told myself to savor every moment, because babies don't keep. An entire year of infancy stretched out ahead of us, but I blinked and half a year was already gone. Coen is now 6 months old, and he's nothing like the helpless newborn he was just a short while ago. He's rolling, sitting, standing with support, trying to crawl, getting teeth, eating baby food, and sipping from a straw cup!

Gone are the hours upon hours I spent breastfeeding him. Now some of those nursing sessions are supplemented by solid feedings. Instead of pulling out my breast pump, I'm pulling out the blender to make homemade baby purees. So many changes happen within that first year of life. It's exciting and bittersweet at the same time!

Speaking of changes, a lot of changes have occurred since my four older kids were babies. Start solids at 4 months, start solids at 6 months, start solids between 4-6 months, skip purees and do baby led weaning, don't give eggs or peanut butter until 12 months...it's hard to keep up! Coen's wonderful pediatrician recommended starting solids at 4 months (we did) and slowly introducing foods, then adding eggs and peanut butter to his diet at 6 months old. Research shows that feeding peanuts between 4-6 months could prevent babies from developing a peanut allergy. We followed the recommendation, and it was so easy to do!

Liam's First Food

Liam turned 5 months old on Saturday!  Who gave him permission to do that?!?



Just before Liam turned 4 months old, he began to show an interest in eating.  His interest progressed to the point where his eyes would track our utensils, then he began reaching for them.  He was definitely ready to start!

Now, let's be honest.  Even though Liam has special needs, he is doing great.  He is also the 4th baby.  Which means he has had a sip of soup broth, a dab of mashed potatoes, and little taste of whipped cream.  We just hadn't made it to the official first solid feeding yet.

Every doctor will tell you something different.  Some say to start at 4 months, some say not until after 6 months, the AAP recommends around 6 months, but most seem to give the 4-6 month range. Every baby is different, and as a mom, you know when your child is ready.  I chose to start somewhere in the middle of that range, and his pediatrician agreed that he was ready, so we began on the day he turned 5 months old. 

I put Liam in his high chair, put on his bib, and prepared his cereal. I made all of Lily's baby food, and I will do the same for Liam, but I do start with organic baby cereal. Dylan, Lexie, and Grant stood nearby to see his reaction.




 


Our little guy was thrilled!  I can honestly say that he did the best at the first feeding out of all of my kids.  He willingly opened his mouth, ate properly off the spoon, and swallowed most of his food. 












Liam eagerly ate every bite, and finished the entire bowl.  I'm certain he could have eaten more, but I didn't want to give him too much on the first day.  He happily ate the remnants off his bib before I could clean him up!





Right now, it's all about teaching Liam how to eat off a spoon and introducing different flavors and textures. We are sticking to one solid feeding a day.   I plan to give the same food for 3 days before moving on to a new one, so I can keep track of any reactions. That's how I fed Dylan, Lexie, and Lily, and it worked perfectly.

Now it's time to make his baby food.  I have a bag of sweet potatoes ready to be cooked and pureed.  I can't believe it's time to do this already!  He is growing up so quickly!

Homemade With Love

When I was pregnant with Lily, I decided that I was going to make all of her baby food.

Let me preface this by saying that I have nothing against store-bought food. That is all I fed to Dylan, and mostly what Lexie ate. I did make a few purees for her, but never really put much thought into it. I even have a few "just in case" containers of store-bought food for Lily.

After much thought and reading up on it, I made my decision. I figured that I already make homemade dinners for my family 5 nights a week, so why not hers?

I began making her food shortly after she started solids, and have quite a collection stored in the freezer now!



I can honestly say that it's easy. It's incredibly inexpensive. It's healthy. I know exactly what goes into her food.

I've been making her food for almost two months now, and I have learned quite a bit!

{1} You do not need an elaborate baby-food making system. All you need is a blender, BPA free ice cube trays, and freezer storage bags.

{2} It's not very time consuming. I can make a batch of baby food in ten minutes or less.

{3} The vegetables have to be steamed before pureed (as do some fruits). If you serve steamed vegetables with dinner, set aside a portion to turn into baby food, before serving. Many times, I have pureed some vegetables while preparing our dinner.

{4} It saves SO much money! I can get the equivalent of 16 jars of stage 1 baby food from one bag of organic frozen peas, bought for $1.00 (with a coupon). If you know somebody with a garden, ask for extras. That's "organic" gardening at it's finest. I received a bag of home grown sweet potatoes for free!

{5} You can adjust the thickness and amount of cubes your child will eat as he/she grows.

{6} You thaw out only the amount of cubes your child will eat. If he/she wants more, it's easy to just thaw one more out. Less food waste!

{7} Most food can be stored in the freezer for 3-6 months. Because of this, you are likely to always have a wide variety to choose from!

{8} Food should be thawed in the refrigerator or it can be microwaved. Leaving it on a counter to thaw promotes bacteria growth.

{9} Homemade food looks a lot different than store-bought food. You can make it thinner by adding breast milk, formula, or water, or you can just simply puree it as is to make it thicker. A lot of store-bought food seem gelatinous in comparison.

{10} Soft foods such as bananas, berries, and avocados do not need to be steamed first.

{11} Think outside the box! There are many different flavors and combinations to try: Pumpkin, Avocado, Blueberry/Banana, Apple/Blueberry, Apple/Strawberry/Banana, Carrots/Apples, and Squash/Pear to name a few! Lily's favorite food is pumpkin!

There are many different ways of making your own baby food. After much research, I found a method that works for me.

I choose the fruits or vegetables I'm going to use, and then steam or boil them. I strain out the cooking fluid into another pot, and then transfer the food to the blender. I begin to puree, and add some of the retained cooking fluid to adjust the thickness. In the past, I've also used pumped breastmilk, but more often, I use the water the fruit/vegetable was cooked or boiled in.

Once the food has reached the desired consistency, I pour into BPA-free ice cube trays, and freeze.



After several hours in the freezer, I transfer the cubes to freezer storage bags. I write the date and flavor on the outside of the bag.

When it comes time for Lily to eat, I transfer the cubes to a glass bowl. Sometimes, I will do this in the morning, and allow the food to thaw in the fridge, but most of the time, I do heat the food in the microwave.



I typically microwave for 30 seconds, always in a glass bowl, and then stir to dissolve the remainder of the frozen sections. The food is the perfect temperature for Lily!



It took a few weeks, but Lily is finally starting to enjoy solids! She loves apples, pumpkin, and apple/strawberry/banana blend. I love the fact that I have a freezer full of healthy baby food to feed to her!