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I never thought I’d be the type to make their own baby food. It seemed ambitious, something only a dedicated mom blogger could accomplish. But when my daughter was a kid, I realized that I was exactly the type of guy who made her own baby food. It wasn’t as impossible as I thought (salute to the luxury of full-time childcare and a dedicated partner), but I’m also not going to pretend it’s a no-brainer. One thing that made it easier was this Silicone baby food freezer. It was a delivery from my sister, and I’ve used it almost every day for over a year – an essential tool in my arsenal of what I’m going to be feeding for the baby today.
My baby food wasn’t expensive; I would roast sweet potatoes and mash them and maybe add a spice or two to expose them to different flavors. Then I put a serving in one of the compartments on the tray and put it in the freezer. Food was ready to go whenever I needed it. If I was toasting broccoli (without salt when it was small) for dinner, I would cut a serving into small pieces and toss them into the tray. If I were making oatmeal for breakfast I would put some aside in a drawer or two. If I had tacos for dinner, I’d smash a couple of spoons of black beans with my fork and freeze them. I had two trays with six compartments each and I tried to keep them relatively full with a mix of things so I always had a few options to choose from.
My daughter was a pre-pandemic kid when getting out the door to go to work was (1) still a thing and (2) a challenge. The freezer trays meant I didn’t have to waste time or effort figuring out what she was going to eat every morning. I would just thaw a cube of cauliflower and a cube of chickpeas and she was set for the day. It must have cost more work on the front end (and that mental strain baby food prep is real) but at least on these rushed mornings it was really as easy as opening a bag or jar.
By making and freezing my own baby food, I was able to give my daughter exactly what I wanted from her, and it was much cheaper and less wasteful than individually packaged alternatives. And while I thought I wasn’t the kind of doer who would make my own cumin and cauliflower porridge, it turned out that I love cooking for my daughter, just as I enjoy making dinner for my friends or one Putting together lunches carefully for myself. If only feeding my guests was as easy as popping a cube of carrots out.
