The moment I found out I was pregnant, I knew that I wanted to do three things: breastfeed, cloth diaper, and make baby food from scratch. I love to cook, so I figured it would be fun and more affordable to make baby versions of what my husband and I already eat. My husband and I attended several classes covering these things before baby J was born. I was particularly intrigued by the MYO (make your own) baby food class. The teacher gave everyone a paper plate with a leading baby food makers version of bananas and apples on it. Needless to say, I thought they were pretty bitter, but tolerable. My husband on the other hand thought that the bananas were absolutely gross. Then she handed out apples that she made in front of us with the food mill. They were delicious! I couldn’t wait until I could introduce my baby to the wonderful world of food.

Now that time has come. At his 4 month appointment, I got the “go-ahead” from his pediatrician to start solids. I went the traditional route and started with the three cereals (rice, oat, mixed) then moved on to veggies. We still aren’t on fruits yet. I really want to introduce as many safe veggies to him as I can before going to fruits. He has a great appetite. Right now sweet potatoes are his favorite.

MYO baby food seems a bit intimidating at first. But, all you need are a few items to get started, most of them you probably already own. As your baby grows, you can add more things to your kitchen.

Kitchen items that I use: 2-4 ice cube trays, food processor (kitchen aid makes a great mini one), peeler, cutting board, knife, liquid measure cup, freezer bags, snack bags, plastic wrap, baking sheet, large saucepan, and a small saucepan.

For my first batches, I made apples, peas, sweet potatoes, and carrots. I used organic foods to limit the number of pesticides. I recommend fresh foods when you can, but frozen works as well. It took me about 2 hours to finish and what’s great is that you can freeze the individual portions for up to 8 weeks!

I will post the recipes on a separate page so they will be easy to access in the future.