If you have a baby or young toddler at home, chances are you’re familiar with the mounting concerns around the safety of store-bought baby food. Worried about unwittingly feeding their children heavy metals and other toxins, many parents have begun to wonder about the process of making baby food at home. The good news: It’s surprisingly easy!

To help out parents new to the DIY baby food space, our team tested several of recipe developer Amy Palanjian’s homemade baby food recipes available on her blog Yummy Toddler Food. All of Amy’s purees in today’s post are easy to make and use nutrient-rich fruits you probably have in your fridge already. Plus, there’s no cooking or baking necessary!

Even better, each of these homemade baby food recipes can be safely stored in airtight food jars or food containers in the fridge for up to 3 days after preparation. You can also store them in the freezer for up to 3 months by freezing your purees in an ice tray and then transferring the cubes to a freezer safe container. That way, you can defrost individual servings for your baby as needed!

One note before we dive in: We aren’t doctors, so while we can share great recipes, we can’t provide medical advice. ZOKU recommends consulting your child’s physician before switching to any of the homemade baby food recipes included here.

STRAWBERRY PUREE

To make this strawberry puree for babies, add 1.5 cups of washed and dried strawberries to a blender and puree until smooth. If needed, sweeten with plain whole milk yogurt or applesauce and reblend. 

See original recipe by Amy Palanjian here.

MANGO PUREE

Bring this homemade baby food recipe to life by adding 1 cup of diced mangos to a blender and pureeing until smooth. If needed, thin with water, formula, or breastmilk and reblend.

See original recipe by Amy Palanjian here.

AVOCADO PUREE

To prepare this avocado puree, add the flesh of one ripe avocado to a blender and puree until smooth. If needed, thin with water, formula, or breastmilk and reblend.

If you plan to store this recipe in the fridge or freezer, you may want to add a little fresh lemon juice on top of the puree after you’ve placed it in your food jar/container (if you're refrigerating it) or your ice molds (if you're freezing it) to keep the avocado from browning.

See original recipe by Amy Palanjian here.

FOR MORE:

You can find more of Amy Palanjian's creative recipes and tips on her blog Yummy Toddler Food!