There is a growing trend in the United States to make homemade baby food for babies. As more parents are concerned with what they feed their children, it has become increasingly popular to make your own baby food.
The ingredients that you use will depend on how old your child is and if there are any allergies or intolerances that need to be taken into consideration.
If you have an older infant, then it is important to include iron-rich foods such as lentils and oatmeal in their diet. For younger infants, vegetables such as peas and carrots should be used because these foods can help reduce the risk of developing allergies later on in life.
It is also important not to introduce highly allergenic foods too soon, which will reduce the risk of developing an allergy to that food.
Although it is important for your child to have a varied diet, iron-rich foods are especially important for infants.
Both breastfeeding and non-breastfeeding mothers should be sure their infant receives adequate amounts of iron through foods or supplements. This is due to the increased need for iron once you start lactating since milk production requires large amounts of this important mineral.
Can You Make Baby Food In Vitamix?
While a baby food maker can save you a lot of time, it is actually possible to make your own healthy and nutritious baby food in a Vitamix blender.
In fact, the powerful motor allows you to blend even the toughest ingredients into smooth purees that are perfect for making homemade baby food. This means you will get all of the essential vitamins, minerals, and nutrients that your little one needs to keep them strong and healthy.
Why You Should Make Your Own Baby Food
Making your own homemade baby food has many benefits over store-bought brands.
By making your own, you know exactly what ingredients are going into your child’s meal which guarantees only the best.
Another benefit of making your own is that by doing so you can ensure that your baby consumes more vegetables and fruits than they would be using store-bought baby food.
Homemade Is Healthier For Baby
The ingredients found in some commercial brands of baby food can be less nutritious than the original fruit or vegetable itself.
In addition, many commercially prepared foods often contain added sugar or salt which you won’t find when making homemade baby food.
One important thing to note, however, is that there are times when you should never make your own baby food. For example, if certain ingredients contain a lot of bacteria it is recommended that you purchase these from a store instead of making them at home because contamination during the process could make your child sick.
Also, do not attempt to make baby food if any ingredients may have come into contact with raw meat.
Why Is Vitamix Good For Making Baby Food?
Here are the top five reasons why using a Vitamix blender is perfect for making homemade baby food:
1. Use Whole Ingredients
One thing I love about making baby food at home is that I can just use all-natural ingredients without any extra preservatives or chemicals.Â
And with the Vitamix blender, you don’t have to worry about chopping or peeling before blending your ingredients – just throw them in the blender and hit ‘GO’! That’s it!Â
For example, I enjoy adding chia seeds to my daughter’s breakfast fruit smoothies because it’s a good source of healthy omega-3 fatty acids, protein, and fiber.Â
The Vitamix blender lets me blend the seeds with the rest of our ingredients to break them down so my baby can safely eat chia seeds without any issues.
2. Add Texture
Another great thing about making baby food at home is that you have complete control over the final texture of your child’s meal.Â
I love adding chunky ingredients to my daughter’s fruit smoothies because she gets excited when she sees big chunks in her drink!Â
With a Vitamix blender, this is easy to do by simply adjusting the speed dial on top – either ‘STIR’ for chunkier textures or ‘FAST’ for smoother ones will work perfectly.
3. Make Extra To Freeze For Later
When I make baby food at home with my Vitamix blender, I can easily make enough of my daughter’s breakfast fruit smoothie to freeze for an after-school snack or another meal.Â
All I have to do is double the recipe and then pour some into ice cube trays to freeze.Â
Once they’re frozen, simply pop out the cubes and store them in a freezer bag until you’re ready to serve them!Â
This means that no matter how busy life gets during the day, you always know that your baby will be eating something nutritious!
4. Make It Organic
One good way of making sure your baby is getting healthy, wholesome foods without chemicals or preservatives are by buying organic produce.Â
Luckily, with a Vitamix blender, you won’t have to worry about chopping or peeling your ingredients before blending!Â
That’s because all you have to do is throw the whole fruit into the Vitamix blender-skin and all-and hit ‘GO’.Â
The powerful blade will then break down all of the ingredients so that they’re smooth enough for even little ones to eat them without any issues.
5. Make It Fast
Making homemade baby food is just as easy as making watery paste!Â
With a Vitamix blender, you simply take whatever ingredients are in your recipe at whatever ratio you want, add them to the blender jar, secure the lid over top, and press ‘START’ so it blends for about 30 seconds.Â
If you like your baby’s purees with a smoother consistency, let the blade run for another few seconds so it can break down slivers of fruit or vegetable even further.Â
The next thing you know, you have enough homemade baby food to last for days!
Ways to Make Baby Food In Vitamix
- Blend cooked and cooled vegetables or fruit with a small amount of cooking liquid into a smooth puree. Some examples include apples, carrots, sweet potatoes, and zucchini.
- Purée cooked beans such as lentils. This is especially important for babies over six months of age since it contains protein and iron your baby needs to grow up healthy and strong.
- Steam vegetables and then blend until smooth. Adding a small amount of cooking liquid will give your baby food the desired consistency. Steaming alone will not always make the vegetables and fruits moist enough to form a puree.
- Boil fresh or frozen fruit and vegetables until soft and tender and then blend until smooth. The time it takes for this process may vary but it usually takes about 15 minutes to boil most vegetables or fruit such as sweet potatoes, carrots, plums, peaches, etc.; however, if you are using frozen produce you can halve that time since they are typically pre-cooked before packaging.
Related Post: Blender Vs Food Processor For Baby Food
Which Is The Best Vitamix For Baby Food?
In my opinion, Vitamix Ascent Series A2300 Blender is the best Vitamix for baby food. It is one of the most advanced personal blenders in the market.
The A2300 features an Auto-Detect technology that senses what kind of ingredients are being blended and adjusts speed or presets automatically to achieve amazing results every time – just press a single button!
You will also love this blender because it is so versatile with its 10 variable speeds allowing you to do more than just make baby food, but also sauces, dips, smoothies, shakes cocktails plus so much more!
Vitamix 750 is a good Vitamix for baby food too. It has a powerful 2 Peak Horsepower motor that makes it ideal for blending everything from ingredients with hard skins such as sweet potatoes and coconuts to the more delicate soft-skinned items like bananas, berries and tomatoes!
It also features 10 variable speeds plus pulse so you can adjust speed or intensity easily to achieve perfect results each time – just press a button!
In terms of versatility, this blender will do far more than just blend baby food with its interchangeable cookbook containing many recipes – all tested by Vitamix chefs themselves!
The last option I recommend is Vitamix Explorian E310. This entry-level blender comes with many features found in higher-end models such as 10 variable speeds plus pulse! It also has a durable 2 peak horsepower motor that can handle all your blending tasks including baby food!
Shop more such blenders for pureeing baby food.
Vitamix Immersion Blender For Baby Food
Vitamix Immersion Blender is also a great option for making baby food if you are on a budget. It is compact and lightweight so it is perfect for traveling, camping, or for anyone who enjoys making smoothies but does not have much space.
With its powerful motor and one-touch control, this immersion blender will allow you to create delicious dips, soups, and spreads in a flash!
Be aware that, unlike the other two options mentioned above, this is not a full-size blender so you cannot blend large batches of ingredients. However, it will still do an excellent job if you are making food for one or two people.
The Easiest Homemade Baby Food Recipe
If you’re looking for an easy recipe that is perfect for making homemade baby food, try this simple carrot puree dish. You will need 3 medium-sized carrots or about 1 cup of grated carrots, 1/4 teaspoon of sugar, and just enough water to cover the bottom of a saucepan.
Put all ingredients into your Vitamix blender using the tamper to push down any large pieces.
Pour in just enough water so that it covers the bottom by about an inch or two deep since you should never fill above the MAX level on your blender’s container.
Blend ingredients at Variable Speed 4 for about 30 seconds until smooth.
Note: If you prefer thicker food, blend for less time while if you want thinner food, blend for longer until desired consistency is reached. Then test your food to make sure it isn’t too hot before you feed it to the baby.
The Best Vitamix Baby Food Recipes
If you’re looking for a few healthy and nutritious homemade baby food recipes that can be made in a Vitamix blender, here are a few of the best options:
Apple Puree
Cooked apples blended with a small amount of cooking liquid until smooth. This is perfect for your little one’s first solid foods because the apples offer the highest percentage of water among all fruit making them easy to puree without adding too much extra liquid resulting in runny food.
Avocado Pudding
Avocados, water, and vanilla extract blended together until completely smooth. This makes an excellent first-finger food (not to mention an exquisite pudding recipe for grownups!).
Cherry Puree
Fresh or frozen cherries blended with a small amount of cooking liquid until smooth. This is another great fruit option since it has less water than other fruits which makes it thicker after blending.
Peach & Apricot Puree
This two-fruit combo offers lots of vitamin A and C for your baby while also providing tartness that pairs well with any other flavors you decide to add in such as applesauce, steamed carrots, or bananas.
Simply mix one part apricot nectar with three parts peach slices and enough cooking liquid just to cover the bottom of the saucepan, then steam over medium heat just long enough so that the peaches can be pierced easily with a fork.
Blend ingredients in Vitamix blender at Variable Speed 4 using the tamper to push down any large pieces until completely smooth.
Apple, Mango & Banana Puree
This makes a sweeter fruit puree that’s perfect for those times when your baby is feeling under the weather and needs something extra yummy to help entice her appetite.
Simply mix one part mango nectar with two parts steamed apples and one sliced banana then blend together at Variable Speed 6 or 7 using the tamper to push down any large pieces that get stuck on the side of the container.
Read more about using your Vitamix as a food processor.
Vitamix Blender Benefits
Using a Vitamix blender makes making baby food even easier because it does all the work for you.Â
This powerful blender is also capable of mixing anything seamlessly in seconds, be it ice or vegetables.Â
A Vitamix blender can turn hard vegetables into silky-smooth purees your little one will enjoy-and you’ll love that they’re getting a healthy boost too!
There are so many benefits to using a Vitamix blender to make homemade baby food:
- The blades of the blender are made from surgical steel which makes them incredibly strong and durable.
- They come with patented tamper tools which ensure no air pockets remain while processing through thick foods like nuts and whole grains.
- All Vitamix blenders feature an automatic clean cycle that cleans itself after each use.
- They have a 7-year full warranty and a 10-year limited warranty.
- The self-cleaning function makes it super convenient to use! Simply add a drop of dish soap along with a bit of water, run the blender on high for 30 seconds, then rinse clean!
- All Vitamix blenders are BPA-free.
How to Save Money Using a Vitamix Blender… And Why You Should
Not only will you be able to make fresh baby food quickly, easily, and affordably by using your own ingredients (like organic fruits and vegetables), but you’ll also save money by not buying store-bought baby food anymore which can get quite expensive over time.Â
Not only that, since you’ll be cooking more, you can save money by buying in bulk which can also make your wallet happy.
Blending in Bulk
You can easily make larger batches of baby food in advance in order to save yourself time in the kitchen during meal prep.Â
Simply combine all ingredients into a large stockpot or saucepan then add water-cook until tender before blending.Â
Not only will this save time when you’re ready to begin making homemade baby food, but it’ll also reduce your energy costs since you won’t have to run the stove for as long too!
Making frozen cubes is another way to store extra portions so that you always have fresh batches available whenever needed.Â
For example, if you’ve made blueberry peach puree, pour it into an ice cube tray, freeze, then transfer cubes to a freezer bag for storage.Â
Frozen cubes can be used in the same way as fresh baby food when it is thawed-simply stir with a bit of breast milk or formula before serving to ensure that your little one enjoys every last bite!
Bottom Line
When making homemade baby food there are no limitations as long as your ingredients are healthy and nutritious. You just have to know how to prepare them properly so they become smooth enough for your little one.
If time is not an issue for you then I highly recommend using the Vitamix A2300 Ascent Series Blender since this advanced personal blender helps you save more time, since it doesn’t require any pre-chopping or water to achieve amazing results each and every time!
To ensure your child is eating healthy, please visit the Vitamix website for free recipes and guides.
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