Why make your own baby food??

My dd will be starting on veggie or fruit this month and I am curious on why some moms chose to make their own baby food. I was thinking to start my daughter with vegetables first and also was thinking to use carrots first. I went to the super market this after to see what was in the ingredients of a carrot jar. The only thing that was in there was CARROTS & WATER. So why make your own? I would love to hear what moms have to say... so new to this ...

Re: Why make your own baby food??

I make my own because homemade always tastes better than store bought. I also do it so that I know exactly what's going into what my son is eating. I know the ingredients are listed on the label, but I worry about things being made in factories, on assembly lines, that sort of thing- there is always the possibility of error. How many times have we seen/read things about people finding mold in baby food, or bugs, or hair, or who knows what else? I feel much more comfortable knowing exactly what's going into it.

Re: Why make your own baby food??

A few reasons:
I've tasted jarred baby foods, they're gross and don't compare to fresh foods.
I like being able to give him more variety and introduce flavors more easily like cinnamon, garlic, lemon, etc.
I think the jars are extremely thin and he likes thicker foods.
Plus, it's just easier to me to make it. I'd rather pull out some of what I'm making for us and puree it quickly and not have to worry about stocking up on jars and what not.

Re: Why make your own baby food??

Re: Why make your own baby food??

It tastes MUCH better.

It obviously very fresh and all the vitamins are there!

It has no preservatives, because even organic jarred baby food has all kinds of stuff in it. It has to-how else does it stay fresh for so long...

There is greater variety with home made baby food and I could pick and chose what to give them rather then be limited by the few choices provided by the baby food makes.

I knew EXACTLY what was going into their tummies.

Re: Why make your own baby food??

I agree with what everyone else has said!

And I must mention, it's SO MUCH CHEAPER! I made 20oz of organic carrots for $2.99!

Re: Why make your own baby food??

- tastes better (steaming and baking brings out sooo much flavor)
- thicker and that's what DS liked
- CHEAPER. I'd go to costco get alot and freeze it.
- took up less room (bags in the freezer vs. cabinet space I don't have)
- I felt it was healthy and that it was the least i could do for DS.

Re: Why make your own baby food??

With DS1 my main reason was because I wanted to try and I liked the idea that there weren't any preservatives or added sugars. But really it was just to try. It was easier than I thought it would be and I really enjoyed it so for DS2 I did it again.

Re: Why make your own baby food??

99% because it tastes better and my goal is for her to eat what we eat and I'd rather get her palate accustomed to that now. I tasted a few jars - they were gross. I do draw the line at pureeing meats though and DD's gag reflex has made it hard to move fully onto table foods though we are making progress so I recently found a couple of brands that even I don't find to be too . At this point, I figure it's maybe another couple of weeks before she's off purees completely and just eating what we eat.

I also like knowing what's in her food, support organic produce, and I like to buy from local farms but those are all side bonuses - it's mostly about the taste and trying to develop her palate.

Re: Why make your own baby food??

First,IMO,it gives them more nutrients - I think most of the jarred baby food is watered down to the extreme and cooked to death. For ex. Earth's best fruits all have vitamin c in the form of ascorbic acid added back into the fruit - doesn't fruit have vitamin C? Ex. 2. Look at a chicken or turkey dinner jar - what does it have like 2g of protien in a 4oz jar? And 4% of iron? That just doesn't make sense if you think of even 2oz of meat. Also, as I said the organic brand, earth's best adds ascorbic acid to their fruits - it comes from CHina - USDA does not certify there so there is no way its organic and who know what's in it!

i do use jars sometimes when needed (out etc.) but, i try not to make a habit of it.

Re: Why make your own baby food??

I choose to get the food processor to make baby food because I want to know what I'm giving my baby. I know it will taste better and I can pick what goes in it. How old it is. Plus it gives me a chance to mix what foods I want too.

Re: Why make your own baby food??

I make my own b/c my mom made mine in the 80's. It is so easy. I like to use seasonal local food for us so it made sense to do the same for dd. Some stuff I will buy if we are traveling. I buy plum's organics for peaches b/c it is not peach season and I was getting a weird consistency from using frozen. It is also cheaper. I love having complete control over what I feed dd. Also jars are limiting. My dd loves avacado w/ banana. That doesnt come in a jar.

Re: Why make your own baby food??

Making home made baby food is a really lovely thing to do for your baby, its so easy and so cheap, and the proof is in the pudding really! The taste of home made baby food is sooo far superior than the taste of a jar! I do feed my 9 month old jars for lunch, but the satisfaction I get from making her food is so awesome.

And again, the taste of home made food and the nutrients that you get are great.

Re: Why make your own baby food??

I didn't exclusively make their food, but when I did, it was generally to make certain purees more appealing. The butternut squash that I roasted and pureed, then added a touch of cinnamom to, was waaaaaay tastier than the thin squash puree you could buy.

But I also have zero problem feeding the kids jarred food. Like I said, some stuff I made, some stuff I didn't.

I just wanted to clarify one thing I saw in this thread:

Re: Why make your own baby food??

Taste
You can expose them to so many more flavors. I was adding spices and my baby ate pureer everything... like pulled pork (after 9 months of course)
no preservatives. They are in there. They have to be. There is no way you can leave carrots in a jar without them. Just look at the jar of bananas if you aren't convinced. They are pink! And they taste nasty.
Homemade food is sooo much cheaper! You will save a ton.

And to be honest.. It's fun!

Re: Why make your own baby food??

Re: Why make your own baby food??

so much cheaper and very easy to do. also, there has to be some sort of preservative in there. if i made my own carrots, it wouldnt last in a jar at room temperature for very long like jarred foods do.

Re: Why make your own baby food??

I do it for all of the reasons listed above.

Re: Why make your own baby food??

Hmmm this thread is making me want to give it a shot. . .

Re: Why make your own baby food??

1. Way cheaper to buy an organic banana, blend it then to buy jar of banana in store. Also organic frozen...big cost difference. I like supporting local farmers during the summer months of shopping at their stands and blending.
2. Tired of recalls.
3. Second time around, I have taken a carbon footprint challange.
Really...what a waste...all the baby food packaging. If you blend up an apple and a squash together...zero to throw away. Imagine how many plastic containers and jars have to be produced each year, just to be disposed?

It was so much easier then i thought it would be. and it doesn't last forever...just a few short months.

Re: Why make your own baby food??

I made my own for both girls because #1 it was WAY cheaper. I made huge batches, froze the cubes and just reheated as I needed. You can be creative with your combinations.

It was super easy to do. It took some time, but I just set aside a few hours and made a whole bunch of batches.

I also knew EXACTLY what was going into my baby's food. No labels to read.

And you couldn't beat the yumminess

ETA - There are GREAT books out there for reference (annabel karmel, ruth Yaron) and recipes and the #1 website I know for most of us on here is wholesomebabyfood.com ALL your questions will be answered there.

Message edited 12/14/2010 8:19:31 AM.

Re: Why make your own baby food??

Pretty much what everyone else said.

Also, I liked being able to introduce her to new flavors/spices/etc and get her used to my 'style' of cooking.

Re: Why make your own baby food??

Thanks so much mommy's the the great feedback. I did buy a bag of organic carrots that I would like to start her off with. So basically I would steam it. once the carrots are soft I will add it to my Magic bullet with fresh water since I was reading that using the same water that you steam is no good for babies because of nitrates. Once it cools down I can add them to ice cubes but what than? Do I defrost all the cubes? I am excited to do this.

Re: Why make your own baby food??

I have read that it's cheaper, etc
I just don't have the time or patience for it so Gerber it is for us.
To me, time is money. Especially with a baby.

Re: Why make your own baby food??

what everyone else said!