Weaning with Archer- Apple & Carrot baby food recipe

Archer hit 4 months at the start of October, and along with his age and the signs he's been giving us for weeks now, we've decided to start introducing him to purees! How exciting!

Isla was early to be weaned as well- we started her at 16 weeks. They're both just exceptionally hungry children and even with me breast feeding this time around, there was no denying Archer felt ready to join in with the good stuff.

So, I'm inviting you to follow along with our weaning journey. I'll be sharing recipes, tips and tricks, and how he gets along with it all.

This past week, Archer has had tastes of avocado pureed with breast milk, bananas, and parsnip puree. I've been homemaking all of his food so far and once he hits around 6 months I will start mixing in some elements of baby led weaning.

Apple and Carrot Puree Recipe

Ingredients;
- One medium Gala apple (Gala apples have a mild, sweet taste)
- One medium carrot
- 1.5 oz breast milk (optional, to make a creamier texture. You can mix in formula when serving if you prefer)

Start by peeling, and then chopping your apple and carrot. I choose to steam most of the fruit and veg I work with so chopping it as small as possible helps with cooking times- it also helps when blending later.

Steam the carrots for around 10 minutes before adding the apple- the carrot cooks faster and you'll lose a lot of the apples juices if you put them in too soon. Once the apple is added, steam for around another 10 minutes.

If you have a low capacity blender like mine, add in around half the steamed bits and blitz on low before adding in the rest. Keep stopping to mix in the larger lumps until none can be found, forming a puree.

I prefer purees to be a bit creamier and I find they blend smoother if I add in breast milk- plus, it makes the flavour a little more familiar for Archer. Add in around an oz to two oz, dependant on how thick or thin you need the mixture.

(Alternatively, add in some formula when serving if that's what baby drinks, it will also make it creamier and add the familiar taste!)

I put around 1.5oz of food in each storage pot for now as that's around what Archer eats. Once he's eating more, I'll start making enough to freeze and store.

What was the first thing your little one ate? If they try apples and carrots let me knw how they get along!

Steph xo