Baby Food/feeding baby on a budget!

notanewuser

culpepper wrote: »

My son used to like baked potato .You can microwave it or bake in the oven then mash it with a fork.
Banana was another favourite just mashed raw and apple cooked till it is soft and mashable .
It doesnt really matter if it is bland because babies arent used to all the flavourings anyway.
When the kids were a little bit bigger we just didn't season anything when cooking and they had the same as us blended or cut smaller.
If I was going to use gravy powder or spices,I would add them after taking out the baby portions.
I don't suppose your littley can eat cheese as he cant have milk.
(I'm milk allergic and I cant).

Raisins are nice to use as a sweet treat .

What you wean babies on sets their tastes for life.

We BLWed DD (now 2.75) and she had all sorts before she was 18 months old. Game, steak, curry, chilli, raw onion, sticky toffee pudding, Christmas cake and mince pies, bacon - everything we've had basically. She adores fruit and veg more than anything else - partly I think because she's never had them mashed together so has been able to see what everything is. I can't think of much she doesn't like.

Personally I think you're making life harder for yourself than it needs to be - for all of you.

Shoey1610

notanewuser wrote: »

What you wean babies on sets their tastes for life.

We BLWed DD (now 2.75) and she had all sorts before she was 18 months old. Game, steak, curry, chilli, raw onion, sticky toffee pudding, Christmas cake and mince pies, bacon - everything we've had basically. She adores fruit and veg more than anything else - partly I think because she's never had them mashed together so has been able to see what everything is. I can't think of much she doesn't like.

Personally I think you're making life harder for yourself than it needs to be - for all of you.

I agree, don't shy away from more 'adult' tasting things. I didn't know much about BLW when my DD was small, so I did mash things together, but I would BLW now if I had another.

bossymoo

My DD was milk and soya protein intolerant and I used to make everything, I found the jars usually had some form of powdered milk or casein or whatever, unless you used the very plain fruit or veg only ones. Fine for a younger baby but by 8-9 months she wanted more.

I subbed oat milk for cows milk in recipes (not as ick as the formula) and used dairy-free spreads.

Also, the "baby" rice cakes are over priced. I used to buy the normal sized ones (check for low salt) and serve these with hm dips or spreads.

Even now she still prefers a "Sunday dinner" type meal to something like lasagne.

Cottage pie is a good one. Mince and veg and mash. Lentils are good too. They will help with protein as well as complex carbs without the gluten. Scrambled eggs / tortilla is good too. Can put all sorts in a "Spanish" omelette!

Texture is a good thing at this age. They're going to have to eat lumps at some point!

ETA: milky puddings, I sometimes used to make custard using birds powder and her oat milk, and add in some fruit pur!e, or a sprinkle of cocoa. I'd give her these in place of yoghurt.

As he starts eating more and relying less on formula, talk to the dietician about his calcium intake. We were given a short term supplement. If a little gluten is ok, apparently h0vis best of both is well fortified and has lots of calcium.

culpepper

notanewuser wrote: »

What you wean babies on sets their tastes for life.

We BLWed DD (now 2.75) and she had all sorts before she was 18 months old. Game, steak, curry, chilli, raw onion, sticky toffee pudding, Christmas cake and mince pies, bacon - everything we've had basically. She adores fruit and veg more than anything else - partly I think because she's never had them mashed together so has been able to see what everything is. I can't think of much she doesn't like.

Personally I think you're making life harder for yourself than it needs to be - for all of you.

That's interesting, I have never heard of BLW
I don't think it really affected mine not having a lot of seasoning or anything,they both were more than happy to eat anything once past the weaning stage.
They are both in their 20's now.

belowtheline2013

What age is the baby? Does your budget include nappies etc. or is this budgeted seperately? Do you have an Aldi nearby?

My children were both born with severe reflux and milk protein intolerance. They have both outgrown the intolerance but my youngst (just turned 1) still struggles with reflux. We try to limit wheat to once a day as they have sensitive tummies. Wheat is empty calories anyway - nothing good in it at all.

I will try to do a meal plan for you later. We were managing on about £35 a week for 4 of us for a few months when OH lost his job. We eat lots of traditional stuff - bolognese, cottage pie, chilli con carne, homemade curry etc.

Sarah2490

Thanks for all your replies Some good stuff to think about and things I can do to sort not only the baby but all of our eating habits out!

First thing I am going to do is stop buying the baby cereal and as many expensive jars. I think I will still need the odd jar now and then but I am going to try to stick to 10 every 4 weeks not a week (normally buy them on 10 for £5 each week) I am going to keep buying the fruit pots but I will try to cut them to 4 not 8 a week (8 for £3 normally)

My weekly food budget doesn't include nappies as I bulk buy these when on offer by setting a little away each week but it dose include wipes/household/cleaning/toiletries. I love Aldi and when I had a car I would shop there but as I don't have a car I am limited to online shopping at Mr T's. I do live 2 min walk from a butchers/greengrocers/co-op/fultons and this is a big help but also a downfall as I am always buying stuff for the sake of it.

I think someone asked what I spend the vouchers on. I use them for milk (2 x 4pt a week = 1 voucher) and fruit (bananas & melon or grapes= 1 voucher)

I am guilty of not cooking as much as I should but I will just have to pull my socks up and get on with it!

Boodle

RAS wrote: »

The child in question would have problems with veggie sausage mix, the pastry in quiche, possible the quiche filling, spaghetti, lasagne, custardy/ice creamy puds made with milk or soya milk etc.

They would not have a problem with eggs; tortilla would be a better option.

Then I can only apologise for my unhelpful reply.

As I said...

Boodle wrote: »

My youngest is about the same age. This is what she has if it is any help:

Hope that helps!

Ideas were offered from my experience so that it could be taken forward using coconut milk, gluten free flour perhaps. I wasn't leading somebody by hand through the complexities of life with allergies. I did not realise anything less would be a waste of space, especially considering the below.

Sarah2490 wrote: »

He can have a small amount such as a little pasta/half slice of toast/a little wheat based cereal but never more than one small portion per day maximum.
Any tips/recipes/ideas would be much appreciated

Hey ho, you live and learn. ie. Boodle keep "helpful" input to oneself :cool: