I have been so shocked and even more thankful that Madelyn has not seemed to have increased troubles in the way of her reflux with the additions of new foods. She has done so well and enjoys a wide variety of foods. One thing that she doesn't get much variety with is liquids. I know that most babies don't get much variety in this area, but since she doesn't really want to take more than about 12-16 ounces of formula max a day (and the doctor is telling me it should be 20 ounces at minimium for this age), I want to make sure she stays well hydrated.
She likes a little water, but not a whole lot.
She loves diluted apple juice, but who wouldn't considering how sweet it is??
On a whim I decided to see if I could make carrot juice for her to drink. I knew that it would be less acidic (and healthier than apple juice), so it would be less likely to cause her reflux to flair up.
The only problem was that I don't have a juicer.
Luke and I registered for an immersion blender when we were getting married (I thought it was dumb and let Luke know that when he scanned it...but he loves Food TV and all the chefs use them so we had to have it) and I love that thing (obviously I ate my words).
I used about a pound of baby carrots and blended them up until they were as fine as I could get them. Then I added two cups of warm water and let it sit for a few minutes.
Then I realized that I didn't really have a fine strainer of any kind so I used my flour sifter to make sure that I didn't get any chunks in the juice. Other than being a little messy, it worked really well.
She likes a little water, but not a whole lot.
She loves diluted apple juice, but who wouldn't considering how sweet it is??
On a whim I decided to see if I could make carrot juice for her to drink. I knew that it would be less acidic (and healthier than apple juice), so it would be less likely to cause her reflux to flair up.
The only problem was that I don't have a juicer.
Luke and I registered for an immersion blender when we were getting married (I thought it was dumb and let Luke know that when he scanned it...but he loves Food TV and all the chefs use them so we had to have it) and I love that thing (obviously I ate my words).
I used about a pound of baby carrots and blended them up until they were as fine as I could get them. Then I added two cups of warm water and let it sit for a few minutes.
Then I realized that I didn't really have a fine strainer of any kind so I used my flour sifter to make sure that I didn't get any chunks in the juice. Other than being a little messy, it worked really well.
The best part about it...Madelyn slurped it right down!
She drank four ounces in less than 5 minutes! I put it in a bottle because she was really sleepy and I wanted to know if she liked it. Since yesterday, I have put it in her sippy and she loves it just the same.
One pound of carrots (mixed with two cups of water) made nearly 16 ounces and six servings of pureed carrots for the little one to enjoy for lunch or dinner (all for $1-that in itself is amazing).
Carrot juice anyone??
Can't wait to see the orange nose that will for sure accompany that! I think I'm gonna pass on the juice, but look at the very positive effects it should have on her eyesight ;-)
ReplyDeleteImmersion blenders are the coolest baby food-making gadgets in the world!! I'm glad you found a good use for yours!
ReplyDeleteV8 Fusion juices are great for the carrot content as well, but of course they're pricier & have sugar added probably. Sounds like you did a GREAT job on this!
ReplyDeleteGreat job! Glad she loves it, maybe she will turn orange like I did when I was a baby-I loved carrots!! :)
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