Help me - treat me like an idiot!

[charleepeters]

I have just gone to the fridge to pack ds bag for the day only to find that in 5 days all the jars of food we have brought ds have gone and i have decided im going to HAVE to make his food from now on i just cant afford to buy it. thats whre i need your help.

1. whens best to make it? probably evening for me as im out all day.
   
2. can i make it in bulk and freeze it?
   
3. if so when do i defrost it?
   
4. give me ideads last time i tried ds lived of veg puree!
   
5. i need pudding and dinners.
   
6. ds is dary intolerent.
   
7. he cant eat wht we do as we eat crap and milk loaded food
   
8. talk me through exacly what i need.
   
   PLEASE TREAT ME LIKE AN IDIOT!
   
   explain it to me i found it so hard last time i tried help!

[anorak]

When my children were babies I never fed them anything out of a jar. Our mainstay was bananas - mash with a fork immediately prior to eating.

Also used to make purees with fruit and veg. Depending on the age of the baby you can add a bit of meat or fish. Potato, pasta or rice cooked until very soft is good, mixed with fruit or veg. Defrost in fridge the night before or just put it in the bag frozen if there's a microwave at lunchtime to use.

How old is your ds?

[charleepeters]

hes 9 months, i always give him finger foods at lunch to get him used to them but i obviously want him to have a proper dinner and pudding at dinner time.
i litterally dont know what to do, do i put the food in bags to freeze or tupperware pots/, i have a hand blender.

i know i sound like a muppet but it lasted about 1 week last time and, ds either wouldnt eat the food i made and if i made apples they went brown before they could freeze it was a nightmare!

[TracyK]

what about mince and potatoes? just cook it as normal and then pulse the mince a little bit to make it a bit smoother.
The you can cook up a whole pot and freeze into little tubs. Take them out the night before and defrost in the fridge.

[Enid]

it doesnt matter if the apples go brown but you can add a bit of lemon juice -this will stop them going brown (then I added a bit of sugar to counteract the lemon)

you can make spag bol for you and then whizz it in the blender - keeps in the fridge for a couple of days but doenst freeze well.

I used to have a freezer full of pureed apples, pears, carrots, green beans, chicken, fish and mince. I'd then cook mash and mix a couple of cubes of whatever I fancied in (er not the apples and pears obviously).

puddings i never really bothered with - as dairy intolerant I would just give fruit

[anorak]

At that age I'd use mostly the same food as you eat but semi-puree it before you add seasonings. I'd make it slightly lumpy for a 9 month old to get him used to the texture.

Yes, use little pots with lids. That way you can just get one out of the freezer to thaw and feed him straight out of it.

If he's dairy sensitive why not try soya yogurts? Another thing I used a lot when mine were small were avocadoes.

[charleepeters]

right im going shopping in a while make me a shopping list please.
will start you off.

small pots
sweet potatoe
carrot
fish?
mince
chicken
brown rice
fruit


this is really helping girls keep it coming! i need it to be as easy as poss im a v.busy woman!

[Lonelymum]

Spaghetti Bolognese

One packet of mince (the smallest size)
One onion
One tin of tomatoes
One tube of tomato puree
2 carrots (optional but good way of getting veg down you)
1 red pepper(as above)
Some mixed herbs (dried)
Salt and pepper.

Do you want the method?

I am giving you this recipe as all my kids love spag bol and most adults do too and it is easy to make, easy to adapt for little ones, contains no dairy, freezes well, etc.

[LIZS]

brown rice might be a bit too chewy and hard to digest. Seasonal veg such as courgettes (quick too). Get frozen fish portions with no bones - cook in microwave or poach in water and mix with mashed potato. I used to put spare protion in clena yoghurt pots, cover and freeze. Same with mince/potato for cottage pie.

[RnB]

Message withdrawn

[oliveoil]

Another good book is the Lorraine Kelly book, she also had meals for the family at the back to serve 2 adults, 2 kids, which I sometimes use.

[munz]

my friend does the whole ice cube tray idea with the food for storage one cube = one portion or somehting?

[charleepeters]

thanks ladies ive been shopping andi got........

1x pack of cod fillets
1x pork loins
2x chicken breasts
1x bag of mince
1x avacardo
1x squash
1x baby pasta
1x bag of new potatoes
1x bag carotts
1x bac of sweet pots
8 little plastic tubs

so far im doing ok i just gotta make it now!

[angie0201]

My DD favorite food at the moment is mango puree with natural yoghurt for breakfast and mango is great because it can be made in bulk and put in the freezer. i have it too its delicious

[fatmomma]

I used the Annabel Karmel book too, there are loads of ideas and a menu planner. I didn't do 'puddings', just had lots of different fruit either pureed and frozen or just fresh and mashed with a fork.

I froze everthing in ice cube trays and found this made it quicker to defrost and easier to figure out how much ds was eating.

I would do one big cook of an evening and make enough to last two or three weeks, that way it doesn't feel like you are constantly peeling and mashing.

As ds has got older (he's 2 now) our own diet has improved as I like him to eat with us now and I don't want him eating the c**p that we used to eat.

Good luck.

[angie0201]

I feel exactly the same we are freezing all my little girls food but we eat rubish cant wait till she is older and eating with us will force me to eat veggies!!