Peas and Carrots

I have a love-hate relationship with peas and carrots. I love that the girl loves them, and I love how easy it is to make a carrot puree... peas, on the other hand, are not my favorite.

Carrots are easy.

I just grab a bag of organic carrots (not terribly expensive), cut the stems off, peel them with my vegetable peeler, and stick them in my steamer pot. I like using a steamer rather than just boiling, but I think it'd be fine to boil them. Whenever they're very tender and a fork easily slips in and out, I stick them in my food processor and they puree very nicely.

One important note on carrots is that if you're going to thin the puree, it is best to use something other than the water you used to steam them. A lot of times (with apples, for instance) it is nice to use that water to thin because it has a bit of the flavor of what you're cooking - almost like a broth. Because carrots have a high nitrate content, it is best to use either breast milk, formula, or plain water.

I don't typically thin - especially before freezing. If you wait to thin, it allows you to customize the food for the particular time you're feeding it. I did thin with the carrots a little though, just to add weight for a better puree.

Peas. Total fail.

I've made two batches of peas and am unhappy with how both worked out. The first part is easy. I take a bag of frozen organic peas (thank you Cascadian Farms for making the cooking portion so easy), and stick them in a pot with about a cup of water and boil for 4-5 minutes. At this point, I always feel good about how things are going... and then they take a turn for the worse.

Peas (like green beans apparently, but I haven't tried yet) have skins that make it hard to get a smooth puree. My girl is old enough that some texture wouldn't hurt her and probably wouldn't bother her, but I'm stubborn and want to find a good way to do this. Both times I have stuck the peas in the food processor and then tried to strain them. At one point I tried using a sifter... don't. It's so not worth it. Anyway, I mashed the peas through a mesh colander. I got some out - I think about 8 oz (last time I managed 10... clearly I'm not improving).

I'm getting closer and closer to just saying forget it to the perfect puree, but I'd love any ideas or suggestions on this one... yikes.

Anyway, my girl has some more of her favorite veggies - she LOVES peas and carrots mixed together. Wish I could say the same for her parents...

Acorn Squash

I typically get all of my ideas for what to cook next from wholesomebabyfood.com. Really, this website is my hero. I know, it's crazy to think that a thing could be a hero, but it has been liberating. I'm a website person - I like quick reference, so it has helped tremendously. I've been wanting to try a "winter squash" with my girl, and I found Acorn Squash at Rosewood Market (my fave, by the way, as I try to be as organic as possible - AOAP - with my baby food).

So here's what I did.

To cook the squash...

I baked the squash. I cut it (with a huge, incredibly awesome knife) in half, put it in a baking pan (my pan of choice was a brownie pan), and put about 1/2 in. of water in the pan. I "scored" - aka cut little lines in - the "meat" of the squash with my awesome knife, and baked it at about 350 for probably close to an hour. The real goal is just tenderness of the squash, so when I could easily get a fork in and out of it, I was satisfied.

To puree...

I really try to stick to my mini-food processor when making baby food. I already have it, and I'm absolutely in the business of buying as little as possible. I used a basic spoon and just scooped the mean from the squash out, trying to avoid getting any skin. I do like to get my money's worth, so I certainly got little flecks of skin in my attempt to get every ounce of the meat. I noticed when I turned the food processor on that the squash was sticking to the sides, so I just started adding filtered water and stirring it. Adding the extra liquid won't hurt the food, and it made it MUCH easier to puree. I added the water slowly because I didn't want it to become too runny or thin - just a little heavier really so that it wouldn't stick to the sides and refuse to get near the blade.

I then transferred the squash into an Oxo ice tray that has a lid, but I could have used any ice tray and just put cling wrap over it to freeze. It filled all 14 cube slots, and I even had a little leftover. I stuck the leftover in the fridge, so I can use that for her first taste - maybe this afternoon. I'll transfer my squash cubes to just a basic Ziploc FREEZER (important to get freezer) bag later today.

I always find myself hoping (and trusting) that she will like whatever food I've prepared. It's not like I just bought a jar that I could easily throw out if she doesn't seem impressed, but then I figure if it takes up to 15 tries for a baby to develop a real like or dislike, my 14 cubes won't be wasted.

'Til the next adventure...