Before making baby food at home, you must take precautionary measures to prevent bacteria and viruses from forming in your baby's food.
It is extremely important to sterilize and disinfect the area and
products you will use to make your baby's food. Bacteria such as
deadly salmonella and staph can be living on your kitchen surfaces
so take the precautionary measures you need to protect your baby's
health.
Before you get started always remember to wash
hands thoroughly with soap and water, use an anti-bacterial
sanitizer like Purell, and never cross-contaminate. Use
food-handling gloves for extra safety.
Run all pots, pans,
utensils, food storage items and food processor parts in the dish
washer before cooking. Running items in the washer steams-clean
products to kill any bacteria living on the surface.
Disinfect all counter surfaces and cutting boards
you will be using to make your baby food. You can never be too
careful!
If you will be storing your baby food product,
the correct way is to cool in a bowl floating in a larger bowl of
ice water. Stir constantly until the food reaches 40 degrees F. and
pop in the freezer immediately. You do not want bacteria to start forming on your
baby’s food before storage. Frozen food can stay for up to 3
weeks in the freezer. Fresh food should be used within 3 days.
Christine Nguyen is a stay-at-home-mother of two young boys. She is the site owner of www.gourmetbabyfoodrecipes.com, which has a plethora of recipes mothers can cook for their babies. Christine wants to inspire mothers to think outside the box and create tasty baby food that will excite baby's appreciation for food.
