Add to my favorites
Homemade Ginger shows you how to make your own wholegrain baby food.
Do you have a fun and frugal DIY idea to share? I’d love to hear about it! Read the submission guidelines and submit it here.
Subscribe for free email updates and be entered to win $100!
Previous post: Better Homes and Gardens for $4.99 per year
Next post: Free 1-2-3 Collections Binder
Previous post: Better Homes and Gardens for $4.99 per year
Next post: Free 1-2-3 Collections Binder
MoneySavingMom.com is an upbeat and encouraging blog dedicated to helping you find great deals, stretch your hard-earned dollars, and live on less than you make so you can save more and give more. I'm glad to have you here!
Get the latest deals and coupon matchups from 110+ local and national stores. Click here to view a list of all the stores that are covered.
{ 13 comments }
THANK YOU!!! My dd just turned 6 months last week and I’ve been looking for something like this! YAY!
I loved doing this for my 2 when they were little. We lived overseas and buying baby food wasn’t an option. So easy and so inexpensive!
I been made homemade baby food for all for of my kids. My friends always teased me but I am able to make 100% yummy organic baby food for way less than half the cost of regular jarred stuff. It really doesn’t take much work and the saving to me is worth it!! My favorite kitchen tools for making food are mine mini Cuisinart food processor and a hand blender.
Mom of 4
(age 6, 5, 2, and 9 months)
My sister started this with her first, and then I followed in her footsteps…. so easy, and the savings are beyond belief.
When my cousin had her little one, I offered to make baby food for her little man. I was able to give her 6 months of food for about $20. (she purchased jars off CL)
I”m astounded at the prices they can charge in the store…when I was making it for my daughter, I bought a pie pumpkin for $.99, and it made 15 jars of baby food.
I still am amazed that more people don’t make there own! You pay more for a little jar of bananas than for a pound, organic, around here! And if you can buy in season at the farmers market, cook, puree and freeze, it saves you so much! My first was born in January (a few years ago) so I was able to stock up on fresh fruits and veggies all summer long at the farmers market. I cooked and froze like crazy. Then, come winter, I just pulled it out of the freezer. It was so easy, and saved us so much. Initailly, my husband thought I was crazy. But, when he really figured out how much we were saving, he got on board. Esp. after we had our second. Making your own yogurt is easy too. I insisted on whole milk organic yogurt for our kids. It’s expensive. I could make if for a couple of dollars a week. If you make non organic, its even cheaper. I recommend the book Super Baby Food by Ruth Yaron. Full of TONS of info on cooking baby food, lots of nutrition info, and a lot more. We jokingly refered to it as the baby bible. I got it used from amazon, don’t know what I would have done without it!
If you like cream of rice for yourself, this is also a way cheaper way to do it. I don’t know about where you are, but those little boxes are super expensive around here. And if you use a special rice like Jasmine, you can make it super yummy!
But, I have a question, what do you do about iron? My doctor is always recommending the storebought cereal for its iron content. I breastfeed so they don’t get it from the milk and it takes a little while to incorporate meat into the baby’s diet. So, I have made this before. Check out http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com. It is so helpful for making your own baby food. But, then I get worried about iron and end up buying a box of baby cereal anyway.
I second the Wholesome Baby Food recommendation! I used the site as a resource when I made baby food for my little ones. Of course, my babies are now 8yo, 6yo and 4yo – time flies!
Mary Ellen
The Working Home Keeper
I worried about iron too. You can always use commercial cereal till your baby is able to eat a bigger varitey of foods. You can start commercial whole grain cereal before it is advisable to start homemade whole grain cereal (for the sake of babies tummy!). Or, you could use commercial baby cereal for half of your cereal feedings. Whole grains are going to contain more natural iron. Iron absorption is greatly aided by vitamin c, so include a fruit or veggie rich in vitamin c with a cereal feeding. Other iron sources include: soy, beans, tahini, ect. My children had about half commercial whole grain cereal (almost always earths best) and half homemade. I breastfed, with no formula till after 10 months, when they started to wean themselves. I fed them a varied diet with tons of fruits, veggies, whole grains, and beans. With my first, no meat till he was over a year. NO iron problems, even though I was paranoid. My second had meat sooner, but still no iron problems. But, if you look at a jar of meat, the percent daily intake of iron is actually very low. I think it goes to show that babies bodies are very good at using the iron that is in breastmilk, and that it is just as important to make sure YOU are eating a healthy and varied diet too. But, that said, you should do some research and listen to the advice of your doctor. When I asked mine about whole grain homemade baby food, I got a look like I was crazy. Which angered me, and fueled me to do a lot of reseach on my own. Doctors aren’t always on board with breastfeeding and not useing commercial foods and formulas. More and more, this info is out there, you just have to do some research and trust your instincts!
Human milk isn’t high in iron, but my understanding is that what’s there is very easy for your baby to absorb. A baby under 6 months should also have iron stored from before birth. In other words, don’t worry, nature’s already provided for your little one.
Thank you so much for this post and to everyone for their comments! Our DD will be starting solids in a couple months, and we have been researching homemade baby food. Great to hear about positive experiences and get resource and recipe ideas!
Iron comes in all sorts of vegetables, but you can also give your infant liquid iron supplements. Ask you pediatrician for more information or check it out at the store =)
Even cheaper and easier is baby-led solids! Just let baby eat off your plate. I’ve never used purees with my son (18 months) and he eats like a horse, haha.
I think a post on making your own baby food is great! I made all my son’s food and it was very easy and empowering. It saved money and I knew exactly what I was putting in my little one’s belly.
However, I feel like I need to comment about grain feeding to infants. Anyone who’s trying to decide what to offer baby for first foods should really do some research on grains, starting with current research on phytates, lectins and gluten. I know people have strong feelings about the importance of grains in diet, so I won’t get into specifics, I think every parent has to decide for himself/herself.
I can only speak for myself, but iron deficiency never really worried me. How do people think humans survived before the advent of Gerber iron fortified cereals and formula?
Grains inhibit the absorption of iron (research “phytates” if you’re interested), so I also find it very odd that we would fortify cereals with iron.
Based on my own conclusions, I feel grains are entirely unnecessary in human diet, and they are taxing on digestion. In the end, I decided not to give grains as a first food, and to limit them in my son’s diet.