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Baby Food Recipes: Carrots and Avocado

My toddler daughter is still a huge fan of homemade baby food. Although I have made most of her food starting at six months when she first tried solid food, my daughter never really liked the little bit of store bought baby food that I bought her. Making my own baby food is so easy and often more nutritious. Plus, my daughter loves the robust tastes of her homemade baby food over the blander versions of the jarred kind. One of the most recent baby foods that I made for her was carrots and avocado.

Carrots are very low in saturated fat and cholesterol. Although a large portion of the calories come from sugars, the sweet orange vegetable is also a good source of thiamin, niacin, vitamin B6, folate, and manganese and a very good source of dietary fiber, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin K, and potassium. Avocados are very low in cholesterol and sodium and provide healthy fats. The green fruit is also a good source of dietary fiber, vitamin C, vitamin K, and folate. My daughter loves avocados. Two of her first foods were avocado and guacamole. She is also a fan of carrots, cooked and raw.

Organic Baby Carrots Microwaving the Carrots
Organic Avocados Uncooked Avocado
To make carrot and avocado baby food, begin by buying some carrots and avocados. Shopping at my local Fresh Market, I picked up some organic baby carrots and organic avocados. Conventional versions work just as well too. I then started by cooking the carrots in the microwave with a little bit of extra distilled water (to avoid the fluoride in our tap water). While the carrots were cooking for about 20 minutes, I washed and peeled the avocados. Removing the pits, I cut up the avocados and placed the pieces in another microwave safe bowl.

Cooked Avocado and Carrots Pureeing the Avocados and Carrots
Once the carrots were finished cooking and were soft and tender, I stuck the avocado in the microwave for about 5 minutes. Although you can use raw avocado, I like to cook the fruit for a few minutes to prevent the baby food from turning brown. The browning is fine to eat but sometimes looks off-putting. After the avocado was done cooking, I let both foods cool a little bit before transferring the cooked fruit and vegetable to my baby processor. I then pureed the foods with a little extra water that I took from the cooking bowls. I finally spooned the puree into ice cube trays and froze the carrot and avocado baby food. As my daughter needs meals, I just thaw out the number of cubes that she usually eats.

Carrot and Avocado Baby Food Cubes

Does your child like carrots and avocado? What kind of baby food do you serve your child?

Image Credits

Organic Baby Carrots © 2013 Heather Johnson
Microwaving the Carrots © 2013 Heather Johnson
Organic Avocados © 2013 Heather Johnson
Uncooked Avocado © 2013 Heather Johnson
Cooked Avocado and Carrots © 2013 Heather Johnson
Pureeing the Avocados and Carrots © 2013 Heather Johnson
Carrot and Avocado Baby Food Cubes © 2013 Heather Johnson

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