Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Ham

I have meaning to introduce more protein to my girls since they turned 8 months.  We introduced chicken back around 7 months (I think) and this has gone over better recently now that the texture isn't such a problem to them.  Now that the chicken has been polished off I thought we should add another meat into the mix.

From my reading on making ham for baby food it states that it should be "natural" ham...I'm assuming this means ham that isn't cured (extra salt) and isn't lunch meat or some other processed type ham.  I purchased a small smoked ham and cooked it in the oven for lunch/dinner the other night.  It was the type that came with a honey/spice glaze.  I waited until the ham was cooked according to directions, sliced off what I planned on making into baby food and then added the glaze to the rest of the ham for our adult enjoyment.

With the ham that I cut off I removed most of the rind and fatty edges.  I broke it into smaller pieces and then tossed it into my small power blender with some water and blended away.  I blended it until it was mostly puree but this did leave some smaller texture also.  I then used GladWare 4-Ounce Containers to package the ham and freeze it.
Cook/Prep Time:  50 minutes cooking / 5-10 minute prep
Serving:  six 4 oz containers (24 oz)
Cost: approximately $15 for 5 lb ham (I used about 1 to 1 1/2 lb on the baby food ; $3 or $4)
Notes:  I would probably try to freeze these in ice cubes trays in the future as the frozen 4 oz block of ham is hard to break apart and I would like more control over how much ham I use.

Ratings:
Kendall - 3 stars
Seren - 4 stars

Hammy Yams


I mixed 3 cubes of yams with about 1 oz of ham.  Tossed it in the microwave and heated until it was piping hot and then allowed it to cool down before feeding.  The girls liked this combination.  I plan to use ham as a mix in for the most part at this time.

2 comments:

michelle said...

Your blog really is awesome. I can't wait til I can put it to use. I'll be looking through your archives when my twins progress to the appropriate ages for your posts! Also, I've been wondering how you come up with your kids' rating systems :) Is it based on how much they spit back out? Poop texture and color?

Michelle D said...

Thanks Michelle. I get a lot of my information from www.wholesomebabyfood.com (as far as what food is age appropriate) and also from a couple books and of course pediatrician handouts. My ratings are based on their "like" or "dislike" reactions so yah spitting out and faces pulled and eagerness to have more or not.