How should I prepare baby food at home?

Homemade baby food is easy to make and inexpensive. To make homemade baby food, use a baby food grinder or blender and formula, breast milk or water to thin as needed for appropriate texture. Extra quantities of pureed foods can be frozen in small freezer containers or ice cube trays and kept in the freezer for two months. When preparing baby food at home, care must be taken to ensure that the food is:

• Prepared and safely stored
• Appropriate in texture
• Cooked using methods that conserve nutrients
• Prepared without adding unnecessary ingredients such as sugar and salt

Take extra care when handling a baby's food, bottles and utensils. To better assure that the baby food and safe and sanitary, it is critical to follow hand-washing guidelines and to wash and sanitize all of the equipment used to prepare and serve food before and after food preparation.