Sorry this Monday Mash Up is a few days late!
I love making baby food for the Little Man. I’ve used a variety of ways for storage: the ice cube tray method, using small plastic/glass storage containers and homemade pouches. Each method has its benefits, and today I’m going to feature my favorite: homemade pouches.
I registered for the Infantino Squeeze Station and Pouches for my baby shower and of course I didn’t get them. BUT I did get awesome gift cards, so I ordered it from target.com and they sat in my kitchen cupboard for 5 months before I got it out to try. By the way, it’s awesome. If you’re into making purees, go buy it. I think you have to order it online, but its worth it. As of 10/1/14 it was on sale at target.com for $17.49
See, I know pouches are all the rage and kids love them (or learn to love them) but on average they cost $1.50 for 3.5 oz. The Little Man is a hearty eater and will eat over 6oz in a feeding (and eats more than once a day). I did some quick math and decided, nope, I’m not buying that many food pouches to feed him. Don’t get me wrong, I do buy them – but only when they are on sale and I have coupons and get them for around $0.75 or less (see my post from Monday on Couponing).
Anyhow, here’s how easy it is to use, clean and store:
Make your favorite baby puree (I use my magic bullet to whip up my baby concoctions). The key to the Squeeze Station is there cannot be any chunks otherwise it will jam, so just be prepared for that (I’ve found carrots, apples and peaches can get chunky if not baked/steamed long enough). If you’re looking to make food with chunks for texture, use the ice cube tray or storage container method. Anyhow, you add in a labeled pouch to the station, twist on cylinder, add in the puree, and squeeze! Untwist the empty cylinder, take out the pouch, twist on a cap, and you’re done! You can pop them in the freezer for future use or in the fridge for use within a few days. They even make a storage tray for them (they fit perfectly in a ice cube storage bin you can get at the 99 Cent Store too).
If you’re worried about price: the Disposable Pouches cost between $12-$16 for 50 (average cost of $0.29 a piece) and they hold 4oz compared to the commercial pouchs which are only 3.5oz. My average batch of food makes 2 magic bullet containers full and yields around 6 pouches (24oz). The food combination you see above is 3 Carrots, 1 small Apple, 1 Peach (cost about $1.50). Bringing the Grand Total Cost Per Pouch to $0.54 … sure beats the $1.59 sticker price.
If you’re looking for a more eco-friendly solution, they also have Keeper Squeeze Pouches that are washable for around $8 each. I don’t have a dishwasher and am not sure I would trust myself with getting them clean enough, but if I ever try them out, I’ll let you know how they work! I also purchased the twist on spoon feature so I can just grab and go! (Turned out Little Man figured out how to suck the food out pretty quickly, so we don’t use the spoons much).
Here’s a list of the food combinations I’ve made in pouches:
Banana-Avocado
Banana-Apple
Carrot-Squash
Peach-Banana
Carrot-Peach-Apple
Banana-Strawberry-Apple
Pear-Peas-Carrots
Peach-Strawberry-Pears
Banana-Avocado-Spinach
If you have a picky eater, I’ve found adding Pears to just about anything sweetens it up enough to eat. And it helps keep their digestive tract regular! Or throw in a banana – its sweet and has a creamy texture.
Do you have a favorite combination? Leave yours in the comments! I’d love to try it!
OopsiBaby 