Lazy mother seeks weaning inspiration

[frogs]

6 month old dd2 is still mainly bfed but eating one meal of solids a day with varying degrees of enthusiasm.

I'm not wild about processed food, but don't want to do the full Annabel Karmel either as I have two older kids and frankly can't be bothered to spend 20 minutes cooking when the baby's only going to eat 2 teaspoons full.

Inspiration needed for food that is quick, easy to prepare, healthy and popular with babies!

What is her one solid meal at the moment? Cereal? Can she have meat yet (I don't know the recommendations in the UK).

Try things like Hipp packet mashed potato, which you can add bits of pureed veg to. And try mashed banana for pudding - really quick to make and you can eat the rest if she doesn't. When you cook veg for yourself, make double, puree it when cooked, shove it in ice cube trays then whip a cube out when needed - really quick and easy.

Her one solid meal is whatever happens to be available in my kitchen at the time. Mashed banana features prominently.

Her all-time fave is a vanilla-y rice porridge called Cerelac, unfortunately made by Nestle (very un-pc, my baby) and probably stuffed with sugar and other undesirables.

I've never quite got on with the ice-cube thing. Isn't it a real faff? We don't have a microwave. Doesn''t it burn when you heat it up?

frogs, the 'ice cube thing' is essential...can't believe you've got to baby no 3 without it! But it does require a microwave otherwise you'd have to remember miles in advance to defrost/reheat etc.
I can't really think of much that is really quick without using the ice cube trick....avocado; ready brek, weetabix; any kind of mashed soft fruit with yoghurt or ricotta cheese (great baby food as v bland, also good with savouries); tinned tuna mixed with yoghurt (maybe she's not quite ready for that?); small pasta with grated cheese; er that's about all I can think of. Veggies/potatoes a bit of a pain unless you can remember to cook extra and keep in fridge.
Know where you're coming from though - can't wait till ds2 (7 months) can at least eat the same as ds1, he eats mountains of food and it takes ages to prepare and feed it to him....

I hate to say it but ds2 also really likes baby rice with fruit puree - and it is really really quick! Or you can get packed mixes of 'rice with vegetables' or baby muesli. They don't look very appetising but I think the ingredients ar probably ok and, as I said, they are quick!

I'm afraid to say with baby no 3 that I fed her jars until she could eat what the older two ate but whizzed up in a blender

We cooked up loads of veg/fruit at a time and froze it in ice cube tray (emptied into freezer bags when frozen). Did this at a weekend and had loads of easy food for the week.

You can easily do ice-cubes without a microwave, just sit the cubes in a small bowl, pref plastic, and oput that into a larger bowl of boiling water - it takes no time to defrost/warm up.

Before we got our microwave I defrosted ice cubes in a little saucepan on the stove - maybe add a drop of water - and just stir to help it along.

Also - get the super huge ice cube trays - not those fiddly little ones!

When cooking for your other children you could just chuck in an extra potato/carrot/cooking apple or whatever and just mash it up for the baby. Any extras will keep in the fridge for next day and can be heated up with a little water or milk. That's what I used to do, using cereal or jars if we were having something unsuitable for babies.

Thanks, everyone -- guess it's time to make friends with the ice-cube tray!

Can I just ask how you go about sterilsing things for weaning? Do you sterilise weaning bowl, put ice cube on it and then microwave it? Or do you just sterilise the weaning spoon as if you were heating up in saucepan you couldn't really sterilse that could you?!

I just sterilise the spoons though I don't think you really even need to do that.

I don't sterilise anything but do put it all in the dishwasher. ds2 is 7 months. At the beginning I did sterilise the spoons but I can't really explain why!

No, don't sterilise anything either, just put it all in the dishwasher. Bottles too. But I did say I was a lazy mum. There again, all the medics I know do the same.

iv just started weaning & have done ice cubes.do you have to heat up the fruit,veg etc really hot (above 63oc)to kill bacteria or just warm it thru slightly?
Probably thick question sorry.
If not when do you have to start heating it up to really hot and what food?

Hi mum2oliver, I've been looking for a thread to asnwer exactly the question you posted.
I am under the impression that you have to heat all frozen food to 'piping hot' then let it cool again. But somehow this seems a bit excessive for fruit & veg purees, tho' i can see why it would apply to meat.
Anybody got an answer?

bumpity bump

ooh blimey - our ds2 is 4 months and we just defrost our ice cubes (carrot ones and pear ones so far) - not heat thoroughly and then leave to cool... We don't sterilise anything either - truly lazy Mummies...! (ds 1 survived under the same neglectful treatment though!).

Can highly recommend the Ikea ice cube trays by the way - nice and big and easy to get the food out of!

Hi Dot! Don't you sterilise bottles then? We don't ahve a dishwasher so I worry more...

oh yes, sorry - we do sterilise bottles for his milk - not that outrageous!! I meant his dishes and spoons for food - just give them an ordinary wash!