The Saturday Question: What Are Your Favorite Vegetables and Fruits for Homemade Baby Food?
Our series on organic gardening has many parents planning a kitchen garden this spring. But what should you plant in it if you’re also wanting to whip up several batches of home-blended baby food this summer? Which vegetables are easiest to cook and process? Which ones have you found are sure-fire hits with baby? The easiest for my son were sweet potatoes, yams, and squash—all of which don’t mature until later in the season. Are there other veggies that have worked well for you? Thanks for providing some planting inspiration for other new parents!
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April 11th, 2009 at 8:08 am
Our daughter loved baby food peas because they were creamy and sweet. I didn’t grow them, though. I bought frozen peas, then cooked and pureed them. For awhile it was the only green vegetable she liked very much, so she had them a lot.
April 11th, 2009 at 11:37 am
I did squash, carrots, sweet potato, peas, green beans, blueberries, apple and mango (although we didn’t grow the mango ourselves). Mango was her absolute favorite and still is.
April 13th, 2009 at 12:31 pm
I didn’t grow them myself, but I made lots and lots of pureed sweet potatoes. They were super easy (microwave in the skins, peel, add a little water, then mash or puree) and he loved them. Occasionally also pureed peas and green beans. Tried apples and pears, but found it was much easier to just buy jarred unsweetened applesauce.
April 14th, 2009 at 5:57 pm
Butternut squash, by far, was my baby girl’s favorite. It’s so easy to prep and cook, too. Our farmer’s market had a ready supply of them as well. I went to the market at least once a week while she was eating baby food to get enough produce to make all her baby food. Pumpkin was a close second, and I could use the puree for boosting the nutrient quality of my son’s food, too.
May 28th, 2009 at 8:01 am
My baby loves zucchini, and I have a ton of it growing so it’s a good thing! She also likes yellow squash, green beans, and beets. I can’t wait to give her the carrots but they’re the size of my pinkie right now, but I mushed store-bought ones for both of my other girls and they were a huge hit (though now I worry about all the nitrates, so hopefully there aren’t as many in home-grown). I’m tempted to try tomatoes for the baby. I know they’re acidic, but I may give it a shot anyway. I have TONS of tomatoes, and they can’t be bad for her.
July 13th, 2009 at 1:14 pm
Banana, sweet potatoes, and carrots were the first three I gave my son (none homegrown though! My veges aren’t quite ready yet). He loves all three. One day, plums were on sale so I bought a 2 lb bag, peeled them, and cooked them. He wasn’t crazy about them however he likes them when I mix a small amount in with banana or sweet potatoes.
In my garden, I have zucchini and eggplant… hopefully he’ll like those!