Blenders are a must-have for families with babies. From making baby foods to making to preparing the much-needed blends for the nursing mother, there is no shortage of uses for these home appliances. But what happens if this much-needed kitchen appliance is faulty or unavailable? How do you puree baby food without a blender? This article would be discussing all this and more.
Tools for Making Puree Baby Food Without a Blender
When making baby food without a blender, you would need the following tools.
- A knife and chopping board for chopping your food items.
- A mixing bowl and spoon/fork for mashing the food items.
- Breast milk, baby formula, or water for thinning the puree as desired.
- A container or storage bag for storing the puree baby food.
Making Baby Food Without a Blender
Just as it is possible to make a smoothie without a blender, it is also possible to puree baby food without one. In fact, there are various alternatives to using a blender for baby food available to you. Some of the alternatives include:
The Classic Mash-Up Technique
This is probably the oldest and easiest way of making baby food ever… well, except for breast milk, of course. All you have to do here is mash up soft foods that can be easily digested by the baby and you immediately have your homemade, pureed baby food. Fresh, uncooked soft foods like fruits are among the best available options.
Some of the best foods to mash up are:
- Bananas
- Avocados
- Pears
- Peaches
- Mangos
- Plum
- Melons
- Strawberries
- Kiwi
- Raspberries
- Blueberries
When mashing up fruits for baby food, make sure to take extra care when washing both the fruit and the items you’d be using to mash the food. Remove the peels and seeds from fruits that have them and cut them into small pieces before mashing them in a bowl.
The Cook and Squash
Fruits and other such soft foods aren’t the only food items you can mash up and make into your homemade pureed baby food. You could also mash up other food items which are not necessarily soft or are just plain inedible when raw. The difference here is that these food items need to be cooked first before they can be mashed. That’s where your stove/cooker comes in.
Food items you can use here include:
- Pasta
- Eggs
- Beans and peas
- Meats and fish
- Vegetables
- Sweet potatoes
- Rice
- Tofu
- Carrot
- Yam
When cooking these food items for babies, cook without salt or seasoning. Pay special attention when dealing with dairy products like eggs and make sure your baby has no allergic reactions to such foods. Your eggs should also be hard-boiled when cooking them for baby food.
After cooking the food items in question, cut them into smaller pieces and place them into a bowl. Mash the cut pieces with a fork or spoon and mix properly. Remember to let the food cool before feeding your baby with mashed-up cooked food. Some of these food items would remain considerably hard after cooking. Add some water, baby formula, or breast milk, to thin the puree baby food to the desired texture.
The Ready-to-Go Option
Not all homemade baby foods have to be made from pureed fruits, vegetables, or cooked food items. Already processed foods are another great option you can turn into baby food without using a blender. These processed foods can include everything from cereals to cheese and can be either mashed raw, mixed with water, or cooked before getting mashed.
Processed foods you could puree for baby food without a blender include:
- Baby food
- Cheese
- Peanut butter
- Cereal
- Custard
Turning these processed foods into baby foods for your baby takes a very different approach than what you would use for fruits or cooked foods. Preparing these foods would depend on the item itself. Things like cereal and custard should be prepared as directed by the manufacturers. When choosing cereals, make sure you only choose those with small grains which can be easily swallowed by babies.
The other items on the list like cheese and peanut butter can be used to puree baby food without a blender. These processed items would need to be mixed with water or milk to properly thin the puree.
How to Store Pureed Baby Food
After creating your homemade pureed baby food, you’d need to store it till the baby needs it. To do this, you would need a clean, air-tight container and a fridge or freezer. When storing the pureed baby food, make sure the lid of the container is properly sealed before storing it in the fridge or freezer. If you would be storing the pureed baby food in the fridge, it can be kept for 2-3 days. If it would be kept in the freezer though, your puree can be preserved for up to 30 days.
Conclusion
While blenders are essential to creating homemade baby foods, it is still possible to get some really impressive stuff done without one. With just a mixing bowl and a spoon or fork, you can puree baby food without a blender and come up with something beautiful for your baby.
That being said, blenders make pureeing baby food much easier and the resulting puree smoother and more attractive. Need a blender to use for pureeing baby food? First Years First Fresh Foods Blender offers a variety of different blenders to choose from.