I would like to grind my own brown rice to make cereal for my 7 month old. Not sure of the exact method. I also read somewhere that you should wait on grains until 9 mos because they cannot digest starches yet. Anyone know if this is true? Thanks!
Super Baby Food!!!! I used this book to make all of my sons food. He's 17 months now and loves his ground millet with kale in the mornings! He's not picky at all. We started with the ground rice at 6 months (I think). Have fun and welcome to this new stage.
L. D
It may be easier for you to cook it first and then use a food grinder or processor. I made my own babyfood for all my boys. It was easy as all I did was just cook a little extra with the family meal. I used a mini prep food processor and froze the food in ice cube trays.
We started rice at 5 months of age, our daughter did just fine! Don't know about making rice cereal though...
Check out Super Baby Food by Ruth Yaron. I made Super Baby Porridge using 1 c. oatmeal (used mini-food processor that is dishwasher safe) and 2 c. water. Boil water and let cook for about 5 minutes. Add "healthy extra" such as teff (highest food source of iron--I use Bob's Red Mill brand) or ground up flax seed. Great way to add a little extra iron to baby's food. I introduced grains at 4-5 months.
All the advice is right on! Good for you for doing this! It is so much better for your baby and A LOT cheaper! Really, I only wanted to add that you should check the library for Super Baby Food - my library had it and I checked it out.
I made my babies baby food also and it was so easy!! I used www.wholesomebabyfood.com for all my questions. The website was very informative and easy to navigate through. HTH!
you grind the rice in a blender first and then cook like regular rice. My son started on rice at 4 mo; he had no problems. Good luck
Hi there! I ground my own organic brown rice for both my babies and it made beautiful cereal, and since it's freshly ground it still has all the nutrients and vitamins in it. I have a Braun hand mixer that has a little blender bowl and blade and I ground the kernels to flour in that. Then you cook it in water, stirring so it doesn't burn, can't remember exactly how long, I think about 10 minutes of simmering. I don't remember the proportions, you add a fair amount of water to get the consistency how you want it. Enjoy!
Get the book, Super Baby Food. It's great and will tell you everything you need to know. I picked it up at Half Price Books for about $5. She will get you started on all kinds of healthy grains and cereal recipes. It applies to older children too. Lots of recipes. My oldest is 5 and I still use the book sometimes.
I agree with the mom that recommended "Super Baby Food" by Ruth Yaron. I made all the baby food my daughter ate. She is almost 7 now and I still use the book for reference, it has recipes, also. It has timelines of when to introduce foods, to avoid possible food allergies and guidelines for what your babies consumption should be. Making her food from fresh fruits and vegetables was really easy and I know it had to taste better that the jarred stuff. Have you ever tasted baby food? Poor things. I used a coffee grinder for all the grains. BTW, my daughter was a very healthy baby and remains pretty healthy. She is also not a picky eater.
We make our own and it's so easy! I checked with the pediatrician and she said it's great that we make our own food. Buy organic brown rice (I got mine at HEB). Take 1/4 cup and put it in the blender for 3 minutes until it's a powder. Simmer 1 cup water, as soon as it starts to simmer, turn down to low and add the rice powder. Cook about 6-8 minutes, whisking constantly, until all water is absorbed. You can then remove what you need for the meal and freeze the rest. We freeze in ice cube trays so we have the perfect portion size for future meals. You can add breast milk or water to the rice cereal before serving if you need to thin it out. Good luck!
You should probably just buy infant rice cereal at the store. I understand your interest in using brown rice (that's what we eat, also), but for now, the instant cereal is probably fine. See what options are available at the store, or look on the internet for wider specialty food choices.
My favorite infant cereal is "Earth's Best Organic" brand- they have mixed grain, oatmeal, rice, etc. It is more expensive than Gerber, but they don't eat that much.
Check with your Pediatrician if you are concerned about digestion, but 6-9 months is usually the recommended time to start cereals.
