It's food, baby

These types of posts will be few and far between, I promise. Homemade baby food is fairly intuitive - steam something, puree it. Steam something, then mash it. Steam something, then break it into small pieces. Etc, etc, etc.

I'm posting this recipe because it's a little more involved and I think that it would be tasty for picky toddlers as well. Eli loved it, as you can clearly see. I also deliberately took this picture on top of the jarred food I use for him. While yes, making your own baby food can be cheaper and sometimes easier, often, I'm really pressed for time and it's faster to grab a jar of something I know he'll like. Supermom, I'm not.

He is getting better at feeding himself, and I'd say that about 75% of the food actually ends up in his mouth. This recipe is great for new eaters because it's fairly mild in flavor, and when it cools, it's clumpy enough for chubby fingers to grab.

The dog had a blast helping us clean up afterwards, too. She's a real giver like that.

Ingredients:
Pastina (or Stelline pasta. They are both little tiny stars)
Cheese
Milk (cow, soy, breast...your choice)

Instructions:
Cook pastina according to package directions for the “cereal.”

When the cooking pastina starts to thicken and absorb the majority of the water, add cubes of Colby and American Cheese, directly into the cooking water and pasta (cheddars and other stronger cheeses may be used according to baby’s age/taste preferences.)

Melt cheeses and stir thoroughly while cooking. Add 2 or 3 tablespoons of whole milk when cheeses are melted and stir thoroughly

As baby gets older and eats more table foods, you can also add meats and veggies as well – these additional chunkier foods will enable easier pick-up for tiny fingers
Serve warm