Something that I have learned within this first year with Emery has been how to save money, but still provide Emery with healthy meals. Buying store bought baby foods is not that expensive and is great for traveling, but I wanted to see what else I could make from home besides fruits and veggies.
I knew that Emery would soon be introduced to meats and other proteins. When I started feeding Emery meats when she was younger, I just did the store bought meals or gave her whatever we were having for dinner.
Recently, while we were on Christmas break, Tyler had received a free ham as a gift from his work.Well, we could not eat a whopping 20 pounds of ham by ourselves so we brought it to Christmas to enjoy with his family. That is where I got the idea of freezing all of the leftovers and saving the bones!!
If you want to save money, but still give your family meals that will last longer, I would try this out if you don't do so already. I has helped save me a lot of money and trips to the store.
Try buying a whole, chicken, turkey, or ham. When you cook it for a meal (maybe a large Sunday meal with friends or family) save enough meat not only to make leftovers for the rest of the week, but divide it into baggies or containers for baby food. I have minced mine in the past with other veggies to give to Emery for complete lunches or dinners. Now that she is older, I just freeze chunks into enough portions to feed her for the week. If you freeze a variety of different meats, it is really easy to alternate those meals on different days without it spoiling in the fridge. Not only do we freeze small portions for Emery, but we freeze some for us. We pull it out for sandwich meat, or larger portions for dinners. If you are looking for a quick meal, buy the rotisserie chickens that are already cooked. They are easy to work with and super delicious!
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| portioned meats & Chicken Stock |
I have also saved the bones and skin to make stocks and soups. If you do not have lots of room in the freezer, Ice cube trays work great for broths that can be easily popped out in the amount you need. Otherwise, freezer safe containers store larger amounts.
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| chicken stock ready to freeze |
If you have absolutely NO room in your freezer, just make an extra chicken breast or two and keep it in the fridge for meals for the rest of the week.
3 comments:
Hey! So did you read anything to give you a good idea of when to start introducing foods? Looking for recommendations :)
Well in our birthing class, the midwife mentioned whenever parents were ready to start introducing foods was completely fine. Some moms like to solely nurse for the first 9-12 months, others start around 4 months. Emery puked all the time so we started rice cereal around 4-5 mo so she could keep her milk down! If Ari starts teething or reaching for table food, you will know he is ready to start soft foods or gumming on some puffs! It's also good to supplement early I think, that way they are getting extra nutrients :)
And.. I also started Emery early with breads and foods to chew because I think it helped her learn to eat on her own and develop those types of skills :)
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