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September 3, 2008
Baby Food 102
(Top to bottom: peaches, carrots, sweet potatoes, yellow squash, chicken, black-eyed peas)
Well, the last batch of baby food lasted us a looooong time. Partly because we started them out slowly, partly because it was just a whole ton of food. See Baby Food 101
So, I got together with my terrific aunt and made a bunch more. Here's what we made, notes on how we made it, and the approximate cost. Again, it took about 2-3 hours for the whole process (minus shopping, which we needed to do anyways), and we have at least enough for a month. We put them into approximately 9 oz. containers.
2 lbs. blackeyed peas @ .85/lb. (see earlier entry) =$1.70 Made 10 containers
2 lbs. peaches (a gift) =5 containers =$0.00 Made 5 containers
4 lbs. carrots @ .70/lb. = $2.80 Made 9 containers
7 lbs. whole, hormone/antibiotic free chicken @.89/lb.= $6.25 Made 10 containers
3 lbs. sweet potatoes @ 1.00/lb.= $3.00 Made12 containers
2.5 lbs. pears @.90/lb. = $2.25 Made 5 containers
3 lbs. yellow squash @.80/lb. = $2.40 Made 5 containers
56 containers x 9 oz. = about 500 oz. of food
Total cost approximately $18.50, round up to $20.00 for tax, etc.
$20 divided by 500 oz. of food = $.04 per ounce. Or $.16 per 4 oz. jar
- Blackeyed peas, sweet potatoes, carrots: see earlier entry
- We cooked the fruits (pears and peaches) in their own juices with a small amount of water to keep from burning. Same for the squash, except we added water to cover the bottom of the pan.
- We boiled the chicken, allowed to cool in the broth it made, shredded it off the bone, and pureed it with some of its broth in a food processor. The chicken seems kind of expensive at first. But it's really good quality chicken, and I think a lot of the baby foods combine chicken with less expensive stuff, like rice. We'll get a similar effect through mixing it with veggies and rice cereal, so actually I think it's a really good deal for what we got out of it.
- Sweet potatoes and black-eyed peas are the cheapest, and both incredibly nutritious.
- We decided not to do apples this time around. The cost and labor just wasn't worth it with the price of apples right now. I think we'll just get some organic, unsweetened apple sauce next time it goes on sale. I also want to do some spinach or other green veggie for them, perhaps in the crockpot.
- BTW, there's a great entry on making crockpot/slow cooker baby food here. I'm definitely going to try this out. I was thinking that pumpkin or other winter squash, when they're in season, would be a good choice.
- Also, we would have saved a ton of money if we had gotten our food at a farmer's market. Take advantage of it if there's one near you. Seriously.
baby food , cooking stuff , deux bebes , saving $$ | By Tim and Jo | 8:30 PM
Comments
Yeay! I love posts like these. This validates my choice to make my own baby food (even thought it won't be for nearly a year from now).
Posted by: Lisa R. at September 4, 2008 8:18 AM
So Impressed. Wow.
Posted by: Heather at September 4, 2008 2:03 PM
Had not thought about doing the black eyed peas. Going to have to try that :) I am really looking forward to trying out pumpkin.
Posted by: Dianna at September 4, 2008 2:55 PM
This is a great way to save time and money to prepare baby food. But I how do I know if the chicken is really hormone/antibiotic free? I'll stick with the veggies for now.
Posted by: hair clips at March 24, 2009 4:22 AM
Hello,
I'm wondering if you remember where you got the storage containers pictured. I would love to use these for storing my own baby food. Thanks!
Posted by: stacey at January 29, 2011 3:02 PM
