Homemade Baby Food: Applesauce

(To read my introduction to homemade baby food, click here. To read Wholesome Baby Food’s information on applesauce, click here.)

Start by peeling the apples. I chose to use 5 apples, but you might use more or less depending on the size of the variety of apples and how much applesauce you want to make.

One you have peeled the apples, core them and slice them. I like to use my handy apple corer, but it isn’t necessary. Keep in mind, though, that you want the slices of the apple to be approximately the same size so that they take about the same amount of time to cook.

There are a couple of different recommended ways to cook the apples: baking and boiling/steaming. I chose to steam my apples. Cover the apples with water, and boil them until they are very soft (a fork should easily break them apart when they are soft enough). I add a tiny bit of lemon juice to help prevent the apples from browning too much.

Place the cooked apple slices into a food processor or blender, and blend until you like the consistency (generally thinner for younger babies and thicker for older babies). You can add the cooking water (or breastmilk or formula) to thin out the applesauce. You can also add cereal to thicken the applesauce.

Distribute the applesauce into the ice cube trays, cover, and place in the freezer. Once they are frozen, remove from the ice cube trays and store them in the freezer.

By the way, another benefit to making homemade baby food . . . it smells really great! I loved the sweet scent of the apples cooking.