Baby girl is starting out on solids now, so that means I get to make baby food again! {Another hobby of mine} Today I decided to make pears. Partly because they're watery and will do well in a blender.. our bullet thing broke which was the only thing I had found that would properly puree the thicker foods like potato and avocado. Could be just me and my blender too, I might just have to figure it out. :) So... follow along with me here {I have pics!} and I'll show you how I did it.
What you need:
What you need:
- Steamer {I use our rice steamer}
- Blender {or other means of pureeing}
- Cutting board
- Knife
- Peeler
- and pears!
I rinsed the pears, removed those pesky stickers, and then peeled them. {I had a pick of the peeling and cutting, but it didn't turn out.} Then cut into chunks, not tiny, you don't want them to melt away in the steamer.
Add the cut pears into the steamer and put the lid on. Stir up the pieces now and then so they get evenly heated. Mine steamed for about 15 minutes until they got to the consistency I wanted them. Which was softer, and the ones of the bottom were starting to dissolve. Actually, if you're making this for a 6 mo old or up, you don't really need to steam them. But I like to, so I did. :)
Add the cut pears into the steamer and put the lid on. Stir up the pieces now and then so they get evenly heated. Mine steamed for about 15 minutes until they got to the consistency I wanted them. Which was softer, and the ones of the bottom were starting to dissolve. Actually, if you're making this for a 6 mo old or up, you don't really need to steam them. But I like to, so I did. :)
Once the pears were cooked, I tossed them into the blender and hit PUREE. It took a bit of stopping, stirring, and more pureeing to get everything nice and smooth. While the blender was going I pulled out my ice cube trays for freezing the baby food. I LOVE these with the lids. We bought them from Bed Bath and Beyond. But you can just easily do this with a regular ice cube tray and cover with a couple layers of plastic wrap. Which I also do because sometimes I ending making more than what my two trays with lids can handle.
Once the pears are pureed, I add in this last step. I have this hand bowl like strainer/sifter that I pour the puree into and then push it through with the back of a ladle. At first you'll probably just get pear juice, but keep pushing and the pear will make it's way through as well. This assures me that there aren't any chunks left that the blender missed. Makes this paranoid mama feel better. :)
Now I have this pretty, smooth, pear baby food! Ready to freeze. Spoon it into the ice cube trays, cover, and place in the freezer until frozen solid. I usually leave mine in for several hours, or the day, before popping the cubes out. Then I use a gallon size freezer bag to store them in the freezer, labeled with the name of the food and the date made. Ta da! Homemade pear baby food. :)
My go to for baby food information is this wonderful site - Wholesome Baby Food. TONS of information, monthly food charts, and more.
> Next up is going to be sweet potatoes!
> Next up is going to be sweet potatoes!