Applesauce is delicious

Seriously. I don't care how old you are. It is such a comfort food. And it is SO simple. And Sienna loves it.  I made this recipe in a single serving so that it can be made quick for baby, but its also great doubled, tripled, quadroupled and comes out equally lovely when frozen.

It all starts with a fresh apple & a dash of cinnamon.

Ingredients:

1 large organic apple - halved & cored (DO NOT PEEL)

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon (or more - to taste)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and place oven rack in center of oven. 
2. Place halved/cored apple on baking sheet. (for the apple I used Braeburn, I find they are very naturally sweet and bake really well, but use whichever apples you have at your disposal. Keep in mind that mixing types of apples makes the best juice so it also makes the best sauce :)
3. Once oven is at correct temperature place baking sheet in the oven.
4. Bake apple until tender when pierced with a fork - about 25 min.
5. Remove apple from sheet and place in a bowl, add cinnamon and blend with immersion blender until proper texture.
6. Alternatively: place ingredients in blender or food processor - I just LOVE using the immersion blender because it is so easy to get the chunks out. 
7. Enjoy. (refrigerate for up to 3 days & freeze up to 3 months)

You can also mix this recipe with butternut squash puree.

--Recipe to follow later this week :) 

Blueberries, etc.

I love this recipe. I found it in "Top 100 Baby Purees" by Annabel Karmel. 

Its a great recipe because you don't have to stick to it. 

You can change it up however you like.

Sienna holding her own spoon... at least she wasn't dropping it on the floor :)

AGE: 6+ months

Ingredients:
1/2 cup Blueberries
1 extra juicy Peach
1 ripe Pear
(after 14 months you can add rice cereal to thicken)

...:::Hold off on ALL grains until about 14 months, babies don't have the enzymes to digest them, despite what doctors suggest about rice cereal, though once baby is 14 months feed them the rice cereal first:::...

Directions:

Wash the fruit. Dry immediately (especially the berries, they will absorb water if left in too long). Peel, core and chop the pear and peach. Make sure there aren't any stems on the blueberries - this is common to find if bought from the farmer's market.

Put the fruit into a small sauce pan over low heat and cover. Stir occasionally. Cook for 3-4 minutes. Puree in a food processor.

Refrigerate up to 3 days or freeze up to 3 months.

........................................................


VARIATIONS:
Add an apricot, nectarine, or pitted/stemmed cherries.
You can use cherries instead of blueberries.
Use the apricot instead of the peach.
Use two nectarines instead of a pear.
be creative. :)

Triple this recipe and freeze.

Resources

Here are a few resources I've found helpful in buying organic food. They come from sources I trust for my family and they are also pretty to look at! (bonus!!) Do you and your family a favor and check them out! Even if you already buy organic food, its worth reading. :) Hope you enjoy!

1. EWG's Shopper Guide to Pesticides

Reasons why I love it:

• This website is great for telling you what's worth buying 
• provides a FAQ page with questions such as "Do pesticides pose special risks to growing children?" , "Shouldn't I try to buy everything organic?" , "Why should I be concerned about pesticides?"
• there is an app for the iPhone titled "dirty dozen" & its free

2. Real Simple Magazine's Online Organic Food Guide 

Reasons why I love it:

• There are multiple articles to read concerning organic food. 
• Tells you how to "decode" food labels. (What does "fat-free" mean? What does "organic" mean? What does "heart-healthy" mean?)
• Provides recipes at the bottom of the article titled "Ten Organic Foods that are Worth the Money"

California Girls Eat Avocado

Plus, its SO easy to make.


What you'll need:

Utensils:
Bowl
Fork
Spoon
Knife
Cutting Board (if you want one)

Ingredients:
1/2 an Avocado
teaspoon of Lime or Tangerine juice




Directions:
Slice the avocado in half length-wise. Remove the pit (do this with the knife by tapping the pit and then twisting while the knife is still lodged in the pit, should come out pretty easily if you do it right). Scoop the meat out of the skin with a spoon- or I just use to fork so I don't dirty more dishes, careful not to get any of the bitter dark meat, squeeze the lime juice in and mash it up with a fork. Now baby is ready for a snack!


NOTES:

• if you want to save the avocado then just keep the pit in the half and it will last longer. 
• baby probably won't eat much of this, especially if its her first time, so you get to eat the other half as a snack :)
• you can always puree this in a food processor, it will give it a completely different texture - VERY smooth and creamy 

Sorrry this is on Thursday & not Wednesday. Better late than never??

Carrots, Beets & Apples

Age: 7-9 Months

Ingredients:

1 tbs extra virgin olive oil 

3 cups water

2 red beets

1 golden beet

2 carrots

1 pink lady apple

1 braeburn apple

Directions:

Dice beets & apples into 1 inch chunks, chop carrots into small rounds (they will cook slower than the beets and apples). Heat olive oil in a large pan. Put carrots in pan over medium heat for about 8 minutes. Add the apples and beets to the carrots in the pan, cook for about 8 minutes longer. Add the 3 cups of water, cover and reduce to a simmer for about 30-40 minutes. Make sure the carrots are soft!

Puree in a food processor to a consistency your baby can handle & refrigerate up to 3 days; freeze for up to 3 months. 

You can also mash this mixture or mash some and puree the remainder. Its all what your baby likes! Mine likes it pureed better :)