With the arrival of autumn there is a wonderful opportunity to enjoy different varieties of apples. Many mothers prepare this healthy fruit for the winter to provide their babies with vitamins and to start the first feeding with homemade puree. Every family has its own proven recipe, but it wouldn’t hurt to add to your collection of culinary tips.
When can you introduce applesauce into complementary foods?
With natural feeding, applesauce is introduced to the baby from 6 months, and if the baby received artificial nutrition, then from 4 months, a couple of weeks after the introduction of vegetable puree and cereals. Otherwise, the sweetish fruit may discourage you from eating tasteless cereals and vegetables. But sometimes mommy can’t wait to diversify her taste and please the little person with something special. She treats the baby to an apple.
It is better to do this when he is at least 5 months old. The first fruits should be given boiled.
Fruit puree, including apple puree, can be given before main feedings once or twice a day. It depends on how the baby reacts and assimilates it. If your stomach is upset, you should limit yourself to one dose. You should start with half a teaspoon, gradually increasing the serving volume to 50 grams. at once. If the baby eats and nothing bothers him, you can safely continue complementary feeding.
When the mother notices changes in the stool (it has become liquid), the child’s cheeks are red, rashes appear, and he is suffering from bloating - you should immediately stop introducing complementary foods and consult a doctor.
Steam cooking technology
Pre-washed and peeled fruits must be cut in half. The slices obtained in this way should be placed in a water bath prepared in advance and left there for ten or twelve minutes. This time should be enough for them to become soft.
The readiness of the fruit is checked using a knife. To get tasty and homogeneous applesauce for babies, the steamed pieces must be blended with a blender. This recipe is ideal for feeding babies, since it contains nothing but the fruits themselves.
Benefits of apple puree for babies
Applesauce is great for introducing fruit. When asked what color apples should be, pediatricians will give a clear answer – green.
Why apples are recommended to be introduced first:
- they do not cause allergic reactions;
- filled with vitamins and microelements (iron is especially valued);
- improve digestive functions;
- fiber and pectin, which are part of the fruit, help cleanse the intestines;
- increase appetite and strengthen the body's protective functions, thanks to antioxidants and vitamin C;
- help normalize blood sugar levels;
- cleanse the blood;
- have a positive effect on the functioning of the kidneys and liver;
- apples darkened in air are useful for anemia;
- sweet varieties will relieve headaches and restore fragile blood vessels.
It will be useful : Introducing zucchini puree into the baby menu; cooking recipes
How to prepare applesauce for the winter at home for babies - recipe with photos step by step
Prepare the necessary ingredients. Of course, it is better to take sweet apples.
Peel and cut the apples. If they darken quickly, you can sprinkle them with lemon juice to make the puree lighter in color.
Place the chopped fruits in a thick-walled saucepan, add water and place on low heat. Cook until completely soft, about 30 minutes.
While the apples are boiling, sterilize the jars in any convenient way (in a pan of boiling water, in the oven or microwave).
Blend the apples with a blender until smooth. Stirring, cook the puree for another three to four minutes over low heat.
Fill sterilized jars up to the shoulders with hot puree, cover with sterile lids (do not roll up yet).
Place the jars in a saucepan, on the bottom of which you can put a small towel to prevent the jars from knocking in the future. Pour water into a saucepan up to the shoulders of the cans and put it on the fire. Sterilize jars of puree for 15-20 minutes.
After sterilization, carefully, without opening the lids, remove the jars from the pan and roll them up. Turn over, wrap and leave until cool.
Here is an excellent recipe for applesauce for the winter at home for children, which you will certainly repeat more than once. You can store the product prepared using it at room temperature, in a dry, dark place, away from heat sources (battery, kitchen).
Making applesauce for your baby
Making apple puree at home for your baby is not at all difficult. You can, of course, buy puree in the store, but a dish prepared by mother’s loving hands will be much tastier and healthier.
Which apples to choose? Of course, if your grandmother brings seasonal fruits from her dacha or village, this will be the best option. But when this is not possible, it is winter outside, then for complementary feeding you should choose apples of the domestic varieties “Simirenko”, “Antonovka” or “Snezhka”. They are sweetish and not sour. Huge shiny foreign fruits, ideally shaped, are not worth purchasing. The fruits have been chemically treated and may be genetically modified. Sour varieties are not suitable for complementary feeding - the juice can cause irritation of the mucous membranes and damage the enamel of the teeth. And the baby is unlikely to like sour things after feeding on sweet mother’s milk.
You don't need a lot of fruits to make the puree. Half an apple is enough for one meal. You can prepare fresh food for the next feeding.
Fresh Apple Recipe
To get started you need:
- wash the fruit;
- remove skin, seeds and hard membranes;
- rub on a grater and through a sieve. You can use a blender.
Sugaring the treat is not recommended. The child must get used to the natural taste. It is advisable to accustom him to natural sugars and treat the baby with May honey at the age of three. not the healthiest or most necessary product for babies
Recipe for cooked apples
The washed apple is placed in boiling water and cooked for several minutes.
- You can cook it in a slow cooker. One apple is peeled, cut into pieces and placed on a multicooker grid. Turn on the “steam” mode for 15 minutes. The finished fruits are softened with a spoon and cooled.
- Or bake in the oven. Wash two small apples, cut out the core, leaving the fruit whole. The fruits are placed in a frying pan or baking dish so that the juice does not leak out and burn. In 20 minutes. the apples are ready. They are cleaned, cooled, ground in a blender or rubbed through a strainer. Baked apple puree has a laxative effect. If your baby has problems with constipation, it is enough to give him this puree twice a day and his stool will normalize.
Preparing puree for an infant for the winter
To feed your baby, you can prepare puree for the winter. This is very convenient, because after spending a little time in the summer, in winter it will be easier to open the jar and feed the baby. Moreover, such fruits will retain all their beneficial qualities and will not cause harm to the body, as an apple purchased in the middle of winter that has been treated with chemicals can do.
Don’t be lazy and prepare apple puree for your beloved baby
Winter recipe
Ingredients:
- apples 1 kg;
- sugar 1 tbsp;
- water - half a liter.
Wash and clean the fruits of excess - peel, partitions, seeds. Grind in a blender. Place the resulting mass on low heat in an enamel bowl and, adding water and sugar, cook until tender for no more than 30 minutes. Do not leave the stove, but stir all the time so that the mass does not burn. Pour the finished puree into clean, sterilized jars with screw-on lids. The smaller the jar, the more convenient it will be to use in winter or spring. The baby will not be able to eat much, and open puree will quickly spoil.
Important! White sugar can be replaced in the recipe with cane sugar, it is of higher quality and healthier for infants.
Useful : recipes for oatmeal for babies and at what age you can start giving it.
Can it be combined with other products?
Apples go well with vegetables and fruits. They can be combined based on the preferences of the baby. An apple combined with a sweet pear will be especially tasty. An apple is also combined with a banana, boiled zucchini, boiled pumpkin and carrots. Assorted fruits and vegetables should be given little by little and the reaction monitored, because Excessive consumption can easily upset the stomach and cause allergies.
- Recipe for apple and pear. The fruits are boiled or steamed. Then grind in a blender or puree. You can add a little cinnamon. This will expand the baby's sense of taste.
- Apple and banana recipe. The washed fruits are peeled and ground. No heat treatment is required for cooking.
- Apple and pumpkin recipe. 1 piece of pumpkin and half an apple are boiled or cooked in a slow cooker. The finished fruits are kneaded or ground. You can add butter.
- Carrot-apple puree recipe. Boil the apple and peeled carrots, mash, grind, and cool. Salt is not recommended.
Why can’t you give your baby fruit puree before 4 months?
Let's look at the main reasons why complementary foods are introduced after four months of age:
- The child was fed through the umbilical cord for 9 months of intrauterine life. All this time, the baby’s gastrointestinal tract was not working at full capacity. After birth, the baby will have a difficult adaptation not only to the outside world, but also to the new nutrition system. When breastfeeding, a newborn is often tormented by painful colic, indicating the accumulation of gases, and it is difficult to even imagine what will happen if you give your baby fruit puree.
- By the age of 4 months, the baby’s digestive system gets used to digesting milk. Accordingly, the child’s body is not able to digest solid food. Fruit puree has a viscous consistency, so serious problems with absorption may occur.
- Fruits contain acid, which can become an irritant to the gastrointestinal tract and cause severe dysbiosis in the baby or diarrhea, leading to dehydration.
- Feeding fruit at an early age can cause allergic reactions, which can worsen later and lead to serious health problems.
Safety rules when feeding children homemade puree
And now we will answer the most important question of parents - how to cook applesauce for a child for the winter, and also how to store it so that it does not harm health.
Let’s say right away that this is possible if the following conditions are met:
- Do not neglect careful and lengthy sterilization of jars (the lids should not be boiled for a long time, the rubber band may deteriorate), as well as additional sterilization of the finished product
- Fruits should be thoroughly washed using a stiff brush
- The workpieces should be stored in a dry and dark place, at room, or preferably cool, temperature. Only jars with screw-on lids can be stored in the refrigerator; the rubber band of rolled-up lids may deteriorate when stored in the cold. You should not store the workpieces in the kitchen, where there is heat from the stove, or near radiators.
- Be sure to try the product before giving it to your baby!
- Brief boiling of the finished product kills some pathogens and even destroys botulism toxin. That is, in winter, after opening the jar, you should heat the puree in a thick-walled saucepan until it boils, and then cool it again. This will not affect the taste in any way, but it will be an excellent reinsurance. Let's be clear - this method is only applicable if the consistency, taste and smell of the puree is completely normal, and you just want to play it safe. If there is the slightest doubt - a swollen lid, a sour taste or smell, such a product should without a doubt be thrown away and not take risks with boiling.
Apple is the most popular fruit in our country. An apple tree grows in almost every plot, in every garden. It is unpretentious, easily tolerates Russian winters with strong frost and almost every year pleases us with delicious ripe fruits. Plus, apples are incredibly healthy! They contain a lot of important microelements and vitamins. This is why apple puree for babies is so loved by both parents and children.
How to make fresh apple puree
Some mothers are too worried about giving their baby fresh fruit. You can avoid possible colic or complications by pre-heating the fetus.
Cooking time: 15 minutes.
Calories: 70 calories.
- Pour water into a tall container and boil;
- Wash the apples;
- Place both fruits in boiling water and let them cook for 5 minutes;
- Peel the soft boiled fruit from the peel and seeds with partitions;
- Grind into puree in a blender;
- This recipe is characterized by the softness of the fruit, so if you don’t have a blender, you can soften it into a paste using a masher for puree;
- Add sugar and feed the baby.
Other recipes
In addition to the above, there are other recipes for apple puree.
Without sterilization
Ingredients
- Apples - 2 kg.
- Sugar - 250 g.
- Water - 250 ml.
Cooking time: 1 hour
Yield: 2-3 jars of 0.5 l each.
If you are preparing a product for a small child, it is better to be safe. Therefore, if you do not want to use additional sterilization, then add sugar to the puree. Moreover, you don’t need so much of it for sweet apples.
Wash, peel and cut the apples. Place apples in a thick-walled saucepan, add water and cook over low heat for 30-40 minutes until soft. Then beat with a blender until smooth, add sugar, boil for 10 minutes and place in sterilized jars. Cover with sterile lids, roll up, turn over, wrap and leave until cool.
Through a meat grinder with peel
Ingredients
- Apples - 1 kg.
- Sugar - 200 g.
- Water - 200 ml.
Cooking time: 1 hour
Yield: 1 jar 0.5 l.
For those who want to spend even less effort to prepare applesauce for the winter, this is the simplest recipe, which does not include any sterilization or peeling of apples.
Wash the apples thoroughly and remove the cores. Place in a thick-walled saucepan, add water and sugar and simmer over low heat for about 50 minutes. Beat with a blender. Boil the resulting puree for 5 minutes, place in sterile jars, roll up, wrap and leave until cool.
How to make applesauce and bananas
Banana is perfect for first feeding, especially in combination with a slightly more sour apple.
- apple – 100 gr;
- milk – 1 tbsp. l;
- banana – 1 pc.
Time spent: 15 minutes.
- Peel the banana;
- The apple can be cooked raw or cooked in this recipe;
- In the first case, peel and seeds the fruit and puree it along with the banana;
- In the second case, put the apple in boiling water for 5 minutes and then puree its pulp;
- Pour milk (simple or breast milk) into the resulting mixture and stir well until smooth.
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