Follow the directions to make your little honey some yummy homemade broccoli baby food! Click on the recipe card to make it bigger or to print. You can also follow the directions I describe here.
- Start with buying a fresh head of (ideally organic) broccoli.
- Cut it into pieces and cook it. The key with veggie baby food is to not overcook. You want to maintain color and vibrancy. However, you’ve also got to get it mushy enough to successfully smoosh. If I’m eating it, I prefer my broccoli steamed in the microwave. I feel like it always turns out perfectly if I put it in a bowl with a few drops of water, cover it, and cook for about three to four minutes (depending on volume). It comes out bright green and soft, but not soggy.
- *If you are worried about using a microwave with baby food, you could also boil it (though be careful to not overdue it) or steam it on the stovetop. You’ll know it’s done with it’s bright green and “stab-able” by a fork.
- Next, put it in a *small* food processor while it’s steaming hot and add a pat or two of real butter. Put the lid on and let the butter melt a little bit. The steam will help with the consistency of the broccoli too. Then blend until it’s smooth. I also add a pinch of salt to bring out the flavor, but that’s up to you.
I think it’s important to use a smaller food processor because I found the big ones couldn’t handle a smaller amount of food very well. I thought the veggies (especially coarse ones like broccoli) got smoother in a smaller appliance.
A word on butter: don’t skimp on healthy, real fats in your baby’s food. Your baby’s brain needs the fat. Even if you eat your veggies dry to watch your (adult) waistline, this is *not appropriate for a baby.* Fats help the body absorb many vitamins, including the ones in broccoli.
Also, if you haven’t tasted butter on veggies in a long time, this will remind you how delicious it is. And having your children prefer the taste of healthy foods is what we’re going for here. So don’t be a butter Grinch!