Goodbye Halloween...Hello Baby Food!

Through out the month of October we accumulated 4 pumpkins through field trips, Sunday school and Halloween parties. I told myself when we got them that this year we weren't going to let them rot on the front porch until Christmas like we usually do. Nope! This year I (Well, I had my little helper too) actually turned them into something useful- Pumpkin puree! I love to cook with pumpkin and since it is in the squash family I know Matthew will be able to eat it soon too.


Why eat Pumpkin? Here is what I found...


"The bright orange color of pumpkin is a dead giveaway that pumpkin is loaded with an important antioxidant, beta-carotene. Beta-carotene is one of the plant carotenoids converted to vitamin A in the body. In the conversion to vitamin A, beta carotene performs many important functions in overall health. Current research indicates that a diet rich in foods containing beta-carotene may reduce the risk of developing certain types of cancer and offers protect against heart disease. Beta-carotene offers protection against other diseases as well as some degenerative aspects of aging. " Gotta love the last part! :)


"First and foremost, the main healthful qualities of pumpkin nutrition are the large amounts of antioxidants and beta-carotene present within the pumpkin. Antioxidants, as most of us know by know due to increased awareness of the importance of healthy living, help strengthen our immune system. (With all this flu stuff going around this is a major reason why the entire family should enjoy pumpkin!) Beta-carotene converts to Vitamin A and helps reduce the risk of cancer and other dangerous diseases.Pumpkins by themselves are also very low in fat and calories, and high in potassium. They also possess a fair amount of Vitamin C and other nutrients, such as Niacin, Vitamin E, Calcium and Iron."

Why make baby food?

I really enjoyed making Macy's food- it was so simple, cheap, and I guess I figured it was healthier since it was fresh and no preservatives are used. It made me feel good anyway. Plus every time Macy would eat the store bought kind (if she would eat it) she would have major stomach issues (or lack of...IF you know what I mean) for days. So that is why we did it! I was even working full time then and found that it only took a few hours a month to make it. My daughter to this day will still choose to eat a banana,broccoli or apple over anything else. So very worth the time.

How to make baby food....

First check to find out when your baby can eat which foods. Their are some foods you should not try and make at home too. Plus each food is different and has different methods of cooking/pureeing and storage life. I will post more as I'm going through this journey again, but I thought I would start out today with pumpkin and how we made it.

Simple and easy steps to making pumpkin puree:

1. Cook the pumpkin (Wash before cooking) Remove stem, cut in half, use spoon to take out all seeds and other stuff, then put upside down on cookie sheet and cook in oven for 1 1/2 hours at 35o. I placed some water in the bottom of the sheet with foil on top to make a steam tent for the pumpkins.

2. Peel off skin of pumpkin and toss. Then puree the pumpkin with blender (No need to add water b/c pumpkins are full of it anyway)

3. Place in ice cube container and freeze for a 2-3 hours or until firm.

4. Pop out of container and place in ziplock bag (will keep for up to 6 months)

I had lots of extra puree so I measured it out and placed in ziplock bags in 1-2 cup servings for other recipes.

What to do with the puree...

One of the best things we have tried is peanut butter pumpkin spread (Thank you Erica for the idea!!!) It is great! Just mix the 1 Tbs Peanut Butter with 2 Tbs Pumpkin and you can add a dash of pumpkin pie spice if you want. It is awesome on toast or even as a snack with apples or graham crackers- Macy LOVES it!! You can't even taste the pumpkin and it is super creamy and smooth.

Here are a few links to some other great sites: http://allrecipes.com/HowTo/Pumpkin-Recipes/Detail.aspx

http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/pumpkin-babyfood-recipes.htm

http://www.eatingwell.com/ - By far my most FAVORITE website of all time. Just search by pumpkin and get tons of great recipes that are healthy too!

Hope you can enjoy your pumpkins more than just on your doorstep this year!