Make It: Baby Food

Inspired by another busy mom, Jessica Seinfield, I set out a few months ago to make my own baby food for our little "dub-ya." I can't say that I've made a meal out of it for myself, but he seems to enjoy it.

If you are anything like me and thought that making your own baby food was a huge time sucker and only for the truly devote foodies- think again. It's super easy, not to messy, actually does save you money, and it can't be worse than the stuff I ALSO buy in the jar. Because yes folks, although I learned I can make my own, I don't think I'm ready to tackle pears, peaches, and apples just yet.

Here's what you need:
A regular size food processor ( Jessica showed off her mini-Cuisinart on Oprah, but that was too small for my first round so I pulled out the big dog.)
Jelly Roll pan
Steaming Pot (or pot and basket- whatever you like)
2-4 Ice Cube Trays
Wax Paper
Freezer Bags
Cling Wrap
Permanent Marker
Knife, Spoon, Spatula

I first made Butternut Squash and 1 Sweet Potato- Here's how I did it:
1. Called mom to find out how to cook a squash! (no joke!)
2. Per mom- Turned on oven to about 375f. Cut squash in half -lengthwise- and laid them skin up on Jelly Roll pan.
3. Scored sweet potato with knife all over. (Btw- WASH YOUR VEGGIES FIRST! duh!) Add sweet potato to pan.
4. Add about 1/2 cup of water to pan. Enough that most of the pan is wet. This will help steam the veggies and keep them soft.
5. Cook for most of Oprah (45min - 1 hr).
6. Let cool.
7. Scrape squash out into food processor. Discard skin.
8. Puree on low adding water to make a smooth consistency. Should be similar to applesauce.
9. Spoon squash into clean ice cube trays.
10. Repeat 7-9 for Sweet Potato. Filling remaining ice cube holes.
11. I like to tap the trays to settle the veggies before I wrap them up.
12. I also like to put wax paper between the layers of trays, but this is totally a skipable step.
13. Wrap stack of trays in cling wrap. Put in freezer.
14. Then before bed, the next morning, whenever you remember, dump out the trays (assuming they are frozen solid).
15. I put four cubes in each snack size zip lock. This is a great portion for my kid and defrosts easily.
16. Label each bag with it's contents. I throw all the little bags into a giant size one marked BABY FOOD (Just incase the hubby is clueless.)

To serve-
I put the contents of one bag in a bowl and microwave for about 40 seconds. Add cereal, yogurt, or whatever, and serve. (Check that there are no hot spots first!)

This also works great with:
Spinach- steamed in a Steaming Pot and pureed. We like to add plain yogurt and a bit of garlic powder to this one.
Broccoli- Cut nearly all the stalk off before steaming and pureeing. Again- great for the babe with yogurt, and garlic powder. Sometimes we add some applesauce or squash to this one if he's not feeling the broc.

That's it. I know it looks like a lot of steps- but it's really easy. I actually made a batch of our orange veggies the other night after I put dinner in the oven. It really only took about 15-20 min to do the pureeing.

If you're thinking GREEN here's what we didn't use/saved:
No baby food packaging. (except cling wrap and wax paper- both of which you could do without.) And you can re-used the zip lock bags.
No chemicals.
Saved about 30 cents a meal (vs. baby food jars).

Happy cooking!
Resa

Make It: Christmas Ornament

When I was a kid my mom had me make ornaments for all my family members every year. It was a drag as I got older, but now I half a tree full of home-made ornaments from my brothers and I. It's fun to look at them and remember the sights of us in the basement sanding or painting. And the smell of the clear spray mom would spray on everything when it was done.

This year I decided to continue the tradition with my three year old. You can too! It was easy, fairly 'un-messy', very inexpensive, and he had a blast.



Here's what you need to make our Tree Ornament:
Wooden cut-outs. (Available at local craft stores. This one cost only 25 cents!)
White spray paint. (Left over from a previous project, but $1)
5 Bright colored acrylic paints. (Left over from previous project, but 97 cents each.)
Funky ribbon. (Also available at local craft stores. We used almost a whole spool for our 20 trees. Cost $1.97)
Paper plate or old muffin tin (as shown) for paint.
Large sheet of paper to keep things neat and clean.
Smock
Hot glue gun
Permanent Fine Point Marker


1. A few days before I let "H-Dog" at the trees, I sprayed several coats of white spray paint on both sides. I did this on an old piece of poster board which worked great because they didn't stick they they would to newspaper.

2. Before the big event I covered the counter with packing paper for easy clean up. I also squeezed about a quarter size glob of paint in each of five holes in an old muffin tin we use for projects like this.

3. "H-Dog" found his 'mock' as he likes to call it and we got to work. We did one color at a time and he stuck his finger in the paint and dotted each tree 3-5 times. We did this for all five colors.

4. After the trees were dry I cut 4" sections of ribbon. I hot glued them to the back forming a loop for each ornament.

5. Finally I wrote his name and 2007 on the back of each one.

They look super cool. A traditional Christmas Tree with a modern twist- fits our personal style perfectly. I'm sure Nana will be proud!

P.S. Since we have to ship most of our gifts to far away states, I wrapped each in white tissue paper and had H-Dog seal them with a sticker from his collection. Safe packing and great wrapping!

Merry Christmas!
Resa