Homemade Baby Food

Photo courtesy SXC

We often come home and make dinner for ourselves and our family, but why not baby food? Why do we trust mass production when it comes to what the smallest and most helpless members of our household grow on? Jarred baby food is really all about convenience, but it is neither economical nor sustainable. Whatever you buy, organic or not, you never really know what is in those little jars and if there is any unknown contamination, moreover the nutritional content is never the same as fresh food. Why not treat your little one to fresh steamed veggies and fruits, blended or pureed? To save time you can always make extra to keep in the fridge for the next day, or freezer for the following days. While fresh is best, freezing baby food will not have a big impact on the nutritional content.

Making your own baby food is great throughout the year, but has a lot of advantage in season when local farmers harvest their crop and you can get fresh produce right from the farm stand to your kitchen (grow your own maybe?). Try buying organic for the fruits and vegetables with the highest pesticide content and save money by getting the rest at a regular supermarket - or sometimes you could be paying less at a local farm if the crop is in season. Below is a list of the top 12 crops worth buying organic:

1. Peaches
2. Apples
3. Sweet Bell Peppers
4. Celery
5. Nectarines
6. Strawberries
7. Cherries
8. Lettuce
9. Grapes (imported)
10. Pears
11. Spinach
12. Potatoes