Baby food maker recommendations

[Stickyvickyvee]

Just started weaning and as much as I love the convenience of buying ready made pouches, I think it will be more cost effective (maternity leave doesn't pay well!!) For me to do it myself. But, I'm not a cook at the best of times and don't have the time or inclination to be stood in the kitchen preparing food.
I'm looking for a gadget that can pretty much do it all and hoped you mums out there could recommend something?

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MNHQ

Honestly I wouldn't bother. I really cant see how they would help.

Just tub up portions of whatever you make for yourself.

Do baby led weaning - just give DC a bit of what you're eating.

DS is 17 months old and a total pro with cutlery etc. My three year old DN has worse table manners than him! 😂

Tommee Tippee steamer and blender looks good ( but could buy a cheap steamer and cheap blender separately)

I use my mini blender, OP.

Take your dinner, place in front of child!!!

I never bought pre-made baby food, and I never made baby food at home. My kids just ate what we ate. Don't be suckered into buying one of those useless gadgets.

I just used a stick blender for purée and it was fine.

Then DD stopped accepting a spoon so she mostly has what we have (or avocado..)

Agree with everyone else. Just give them some of what you're having. We started out with BLW but DD was starving and would open her mouth for me every time I gave her a preloaded spoon, so we started doing some chunky purées at around 8 months, but that was just our dinner whizzed up for a few seconds with a stick blender. Soon we stopped bothering with even that!

I will confess to having some back up baby food in the cupboard for when things have gone awry but 90% of the time DS has what we do. In the early stages I pureed it and now he eats pretty.much everything..he is a year and has now started spooning things out of a bowl. So proud!!

Thanks, some of your comments are helpful!
She's not quite 6 months so eating what we eat, is not yet an option! And, not being the healthiest of eaters myself, I would like better for my daughter than to be eating spag bol that came from a jar full of salts, sugars and additives. I'm looking for easy, and admittedly lazy, options!

I used a stick blender from Sainsbury's, was about £10

I used to spend a night every month making purées and small portions of shepherds pie etc for them and freeze

eBay is great for container, I used ones that you'd get coleslaw in at deli's

Boots does salt free stock cubes in their baby section

It doesn’t take a massive amount of effort to make baby food.

Just buy some pots:-

When your cooking peas put extra on ... sieve babies portions ( do enough for a few meals ) then add baby’s usual milk and use blender and portion to pots

Same with carrot broccoli etc

Later on if your doing a casserole just swap
Oxo for low salt option don’t put Worcester sauce in boil
Some sweet potato peas on the sauce and ladle some of the cooked Casserole in and purée and voila 10 portions done

I have a 10 month old I cook his freezable
Meals once a week and just rotate what I do

If you dont want to BLW just blend your food just watch the salt etc, I received a Infantino Squeeze Station as a gift and it was good for fruit pouches. Admittedly I didn't use it much as I went straight on to BLW. But whatever works for you.

I’m not one for BLW, I use a stick blender. The baby doesn’t have exactly what we have but I take some of our dinner and blend it up, before any salt is added, I split into muffin trays and freeze little portions. If you’re unsure what to make, look at the flavours of pouches and use that to help, but leave out any fruit they tend to add to savoury stuff.

I just used my mini chopped to blitz stuff. A stick blender would work as well.

I never bought baby food, just made purées of our food when they were small and then progressed to mashing food with a fork etc

I had a small Tommee Tippee food processor. Was handy for blending or chopping up quickly whatever we were having. I use it now for making breadcrumbs and applesauce.

just mash whatever you are having with a fork.

A fork and if you do mush a hand blender nothing special. BLW is oo much easier though.

Years ago I used a Beaba Babycook. It was great - it steams then blends food.

Not sure if you can even still get them but it was good for preparing blended baby food before they are ready for more substantial food.

I am the same so learning to cook healthier so we can all eat the same

Literally homemade tomato sauce isn’t that hard ( well the simple one )

Cook 1 chopped onion
2 finely chopped garlic cloves ( I crush the garlic as l am lazy ) in a little oil until translucent
Add one tin of chopped tomatoes
1 tablespoon of tomato purée
Handful of basil
Half teaspoon of dried oregano
1 bay leaf
Simmer for 20 mins voila!

You can freeze or refrigerate for upto 3 days.

I do small pots for bubba but will do one batch for a family meal.

If you make a stew or casserole just don’t season with salt , get some low salt stock cubes... I have just invested in a slow cooker and plan to experiment with the chuck it in and switch on all day method.

There are simple dishes you can make and freeze check out the Ella’s food app I paid for it but give you ideas on recipes

Or when you take your child in to get weighed I was given a lost of reciepe
But for now it’s just veg and baby milk really easy to make

Avocado / bananas / fruits in general are great to try them on.

Good luck it’s fun to see their little faces when they like something

It's a good way to force you to make healthier food, it's also brilliant when you go out if you go straight to proper food (blw) I used to order half a chicken, mash and veg and we used to share it.

I was exactly like you! Then I realised that I was responsible for feeding my children for the next 18 ish years so, if I didn't want them to eat the same processed rubbish I'd become reliant on, then I had to learn to cook properly!

You might as well start now as the better you get, the quicker it is and the less brain power it needs.

Start by picking your favourite 3 meals that currently use convenience foods eg jars or that ARE convenience foods eg a ready made paella and then find a recipe online. I try to find simple recipes without a zillion ingredients and with stuff I use in other dishes or that I can easily buy in my normal supermarket (Aldi).

It's fun and very rewarding to cook from scratch I'm really glad I learnt as I'm now a good cook who actually enjoys it!

I used a cheap hand blender, but DD didn't like to be spoon-fed mush for long. In fact, she's now 1 and I still have little pots of some pasta/veg creation in my freezer. Now I just buy foods I would eat eg chicken, eggs, veg etc. I don't usually eat the same meal as her but the ingredients I'd use in something else so nothing's wasted.
I found weaning very daunting and confusing at the beginning.