1. Electric Vegetable Steamer – Every few days, I load this up with big chunks of organic fruits and frozen vegetables. Mine has two stacking compartments (only one compartment shown above), allowing me to steam vegetables, chicken, or fish at the same time for the rest of the family. Yes, you can steam fruits to make delicious apple/pear purees without ever having to finely chop or peel anything!
This wonderful appliance turns off whenever the timer goes off. (Read: no more watching/burning things on the stove while you leave the room to change a diaper.) After removing the lid and letting things cool a bit, you can easily scoop the soft delectable apple from its skin and it’s ready to be pureed for babies or cut up as toddler food. The pears can be pureed with their skins on. Warning: you may be tempted to sprinkle a little cinnamon on the steamed fruit and eat it yourself!
2. Immersion Blender – Next, I throw the steamed vegetables and fruit into the large cup that came with my stick blender/immersion blender. You can combine peas with carrots, for example, or keep all of the flavors separate. Between flavors, I just rinse the blender and cup quickly under running water. Easy!
I was really frustrated by my experiences using the food processor or the blender to make baby food. There were always big chunks of food that wouldn’t get touched by the blade. I have a strong aversion to scraping the sides down too. The stick blender is light years better because you have the control to guide the blades and you can do so many fun things with it!
Have you ever tried these?
This is part of Works for Me Wednesday.
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Very cool! I’d not thought of either of these. My husband and I hope to adopt newborn twins next month, and I’m looking for great product ideas, especially for making my own baby food. I would love your advice on baby products that are great for small spaces. There’s so much baby stuff out there and it all seems to be huge! High chairs, bouncy seats, playpens, swings. . . . In your opinion, what are the must-haves for raising babies in small living quarters?
hi robin, wow–newborn twins! so exciting! i’m going to think about the small space must-haves and put it into a post for you. i know of at least one of our regular readers and friends who has twins of her own. i bet she might have some twin-specific advice too!
Perfectly timed! As I loaded up my cart yesterday with tiny jars of baby food that were nearly $1 each, I thought I should really make it myself. Especially since once they get to the “2nd” foods, there were a lot more ingredients than just the food. I love the idea of these things instead of a food mill, because they’d have other uses as well. I love steamed vegetables for myself.
glad to help! check out wholesomebabyfood.com if you haven’t already. it’s a lifesaver!
Great pic! I often find myself spying Newbie’s food with envy. His teething ring, too. I should probably go to the dentist.
of course i always eat the leftovers. they taste even better than they look!
Wow, I love my hand blender for baby food! It’s one of those wedding gifts you get and think you’ll never need and then end up using daily:) Haven’t tried an electric steamer… I just have been using a regular basket steamer, but that looks like an awfully handy gadget!
yeah, i think ours was a wedding gift too! i still regret throwing away the little bracket that would have enabled me to hang it on the wall. or maybe i should just invest in a toolbelt and hang it on that along with various baby toys?
Love my hand blender! We are big hummus fans around here, and the hand blender is SO much more effective (and easier to clean) than the regular kind! I’m going to have to look into that steamer, because as someone who almost sets the house on fire yearly, I need something with an auto shutoff.
‘someone who almost sets the house on fire yearly’ hahahaha
i think hummus is what made me first dust off the blender after years of neglect. yum.
great info – thank you so much! wondering, what make/model of electric steamer do you use?
I have the Black & Decker Flavor Scenter Steamer Deluxe. It’s a double-decker one I found a few years ago at a garage sale. Best garage sale find to date! I’m not sure if they still make it, but would definitely recommend the large capacity–more efficient.
great info – prepared food are much better than the jars I am buying!
and usually cheaper too!