Making Baby Food: Pears

Last night, between Pat snoring, Lou Dog snoring, Cricket being a cat and Bear grunting in his sleep, this mama only got about 4 hours of constant sleep. So, what better thing to do in the morning during Bear's morning nap? Nap myself? No. Ain't nobody got time for that! 

I started making this week's baby food. People think I am nuts, but I think making it myself is 1.) more cost effective and 2.) I have control of everything that goes into my pure little baby's body. 

So far he is eating oatmeal cereal, sweet potatoes, avocados, bananas (which he doesn't like much), pears, apples, and prunes. The prunes are actually store bought because we needed them ASAP! I think the apples and bananas backed my little guy up. No one is pleasant if they haven't pooed for a few days... especially babies! Prunes are magic folks. They work for the olds, and they work for the beebs. We used Plum.

We are making sure to follow the rules of the Dirty Dozen, which most first solids fall into. I just can't imagine Bear's little body fighting all the pesticides and junk that is found in our foods these days. I know that there are MANY organic choices for pre-made baby food, but there are always other ingredients, like citric acid. I know this is a preservative, a natural one at that, but babies aren't supposed to have citrus for a year or so. Yikes! I also don't know how many hands, processors, conveyor belts this stuff has been on. This is where food poisoning comes from people!!! 

And let's talk about cost here too. I bought two, 2 lb bags of organic pears at Trader Joe's for about $6. This is about 20 servings of pears. TWENTY! Do you know how much 20 servings cost in store bought baby food? From my research, we are saving about 50% here. 

So, for a gal that feels like her life is a little hectic and out of control, it is nice to have control of this. Even if it means I sacrifice a nap or two along the way. 

Ingredients:

Organic Pears (I have about 3 lbs, purchased from Trader Joes)

Tools:

Knife

Cutting Board

Vegetable Peeler

Blender

Ice Cube Tray

Step 1:

Wash pears with warm water. Warm water will help soften the peels as well as get rid of any junk that has collected during shipment. - I would love to pick all this stuff from an organic farm!

Step 2:

Peel and core the pears.

Step 3: 

Chop the pears into 1" cubes

Step 4:

Toss into blender and blend to desired consistency. Careful, pears liquefy fast!!! 

Step 5:

Pour pears into ice tray and freeze.

Each cube is supposed to be one serving. Bear eats about two.

Step 6:

Put cubes into Freezer bags and label with the date. The frozen goods should keep for about 3 months. 

To serve, let pears thaw in the fridge overnight, or place in a container and place the container a warm bath.