Pea Puree

Pea Puree
Makes 24 1 ounce servings

Ingredients:
1 lb. frozen sweet tender peas (I used frozen for convenience, but you could use fresh)
water

Directions:
Bring a cup of water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add peas, cover and reduce heat to low. Steam until just tender/thawed, but not mushy. Drain peas and reserve some cooking water.

Place peas into your preferred pureeing mechanism. I used a food processor. Puree until smooth, slowly adding cooking water until you achieve your desired consistency. Serve immediately once cooled or pour into ice trays, cover and freeze. Once frozen, dump into freezer storage bags. Serve within 4 weeks. To thaw, place one or 2 cubes in covered container in fridge overnight or microwave until thawed (be sure to allow to cool before serving).

Apple Puree

Apple Puree
Makes 16 1 ounce servings

Ingredients:
5 ripe apples
water

Directions:
Peel apples, core and cut into cubes. Steam until tender (about 5 minutes). Reserve cooking water.

Place apples into your preferred pureeing mechanism. I used a mini-processor. Puree until smooth, slowly adding cooking water until you achieve your desired consistency. Serve immediately once cooled or pour into ice trays, cover and freeze. Once frozen, dump into freezer storage bags. Serve within 4 weeks. To thaw, place one or 2 cubes in covered container in fridge overnight or microwave until thawed (be sure to allow to cool before serving).

Butternut Squash Puree

Butternut Squash Puree
Makes 20 1 ounce servings

Ingredients:
1 butternut squash
water

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400. Cut butternut squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Place flat sides down in a deep dish (I used a 9x13 casserole). Pour about an inch of water into the dish and bake uncovered for 45 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Reserve cooking water.

Scoop flesh from skins and place into your preferred pureeing mechanism. used a mini-processor. Puree until smooth, slowly adding reserved water until you achieve your desired consistency. Serve immediately once cooled or pour into ice trays, cover and freeze. Once frozen, dump into freezer storage bags. Serve within 4 weeks. To thaw, place one or 2 cubes in covered container in fridge overnight or microwave until thawed (be sure to allow to cool before serving).

Pear Puree

Pear Puree
Makes 10 1 ounce servings

Ingredients:
3 ripe pears
water

Directions:
Peel pears, core and cut into cubes. Steam until tender. Reserve cooking water.

Place pears into your preferred pureeing mechanism. I used a mini-processor. Puree until smooth, slowly adding water until you achieve your desired consistency. Serve immediately once cooled or pour into ice trays, cover and freeze. Once frozen, dump into freezer storage bags. Serve within 4 weeks. To thaw, place one or 2 cubes in covered container in fridge overnight or microwave until thawed (be sure to allow to cool before serving).

Sweet Potato Puree

Sweet Potato Puree
Makes 10 1 ounce servings

Ingredients:
1 large sweet potato/yam
water

Directions:
Peel sweet potato and cut into 1 inch cubes. Steam until tender. Reserve cooking water.

Place potatoes into your preferred pureeing mechanism. I used a mini-processor. Puree until smooth, slowly adding water until you achieve your desired consistency. Serve immediately once cooled or pour into ice trays, cover and freeze. Once frozen, dump into freezer storage bags. Serve within 4 weeks. To thaw, place one or 2 cubes in covered container in fridge overnight or microwave until thawed (be sure to allow to cool before serving).

Avocado puree

Avocado puree is probably pretty self-explanatory, but unless you plan on feeding baby the entire thing in one sitting, you'll want to freeze some for later. Avocado can be a little tricky with it's tendency to brown almost immediately. I figured I'd share the method I used.

Avocado Puree
Makes 6 1 ounce servings

Ingredients:
1 ripe avocado
breast milk, formula or water

Directions:
Slice the avocado in half and remove the seed. Running a tablespoon along the inside of the skin, gently scoop out flesh and place flat side down on the counter. Slice lengthwise into 1/2 inch slices. Keep 1-2 slices out and place the rest in a freezer bag or plastic container. Take the 2 slices and mash with a fork in a small feeding bowl until smooth. Add breast milk, formula or water until you achieve your desired consistency.

Now with those frozen slices, I just remove 2 and drop in a bowl and nuke for 15-20 seconds and mash and add liquid as described above. It works great for keeping the avocado from turning brown.

Acorn squash puree – baby's first vegetable puree

I'm making my own baby food, surprise of all surprises. So far baby has had avocado, rice cereal (not homemade) and oatmeal(not homemade). Earlier this week I prepared her first vegetable, acorn squash. It was super easy. I can't wait until she's old enough for me to begin adding spices to things. The squash was a hit!
Acorn Squash Puree
Makes 12 1 ounce servings

Ingredients:
1 acorn squash
water

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400. Cut acorn squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Place flat sides down in a deep dish (I used a 9x13 casserole). Pour about an inch of water into the dish and bake uncovered for 40 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Reserve cooking water.

Scoop flesh from skins and place into your preferred pureeing mechanism. I dropped mine in a bowl and used an immersion blender. In retrospect, this was messy and splattered me and my kitchen! I'll be using a mini-processor from now on. Puree until smooth, slowly adding water until you achieve your desired consistency. Serve immediately once cooled or pour into ice trays, cover and freeze. Once frozen, dump into freezer storage bags. Serve within 4 weeks. To thaw, place one or 2 cubes in covered container in fridge overnight or microwave until thawed (be sure to allow to cool before serving).