Fresh Squeezed Infantino Feeding System

This is it, Mom’s.  One of the coolest, most useful little gadgets (is it really a gadget?) I have come across in my almost 3 years as a parent.  The Fresh Squeezed feeding system from Infantino.

Our second daughter, Grace, born premature with congenital CMV, has developmental delays and extreme problems gaining weight and holding calories.  The ONLY way she will consume solids is through the now popular squeeze pack pouches.  This is awesome because these pouches are super convenient, easy for her to suck nutrients out of, and packed full of interesting and unique produce flavors.  They are not awesome, however, because they are pretty expensive (up to $1.68 per pouch!) and just aren’t homemade.  I really got into making homemade baby food this time around and was bummed when Gracie started to reject anything from a spoon.  There were bags and bags of frozen baby food in our fridge that I thought might go to waste.

Enter the Fresh Squeezed line!

Image courtesy of Infantino.

That’s a lot of stuff in that photo, huh?  I only felt it necessary to buy the actual squeeze station thing, the little squeeze pack baggies (obviously) and the squeeze pack tray for the fridge or freezer.   I used regular kitchen equipment for everything else and my handy dandy immersion blender to do all of the heavy mixing.  If you don’t cook often, or don’t think you have all the equipment necessary, I’d definitely splurge and get the whole system.  I was really pleased with the quality of all of the parts.  Everything seems like it will hold up nicely.

The magic is in these little funnel attachments that screw onto the squeeze pack baggies.  A rubber tipped plunger pushes the pureed food through the opening and down into the pouch.

I thought I was about to make a huge mess, starting this little squeeze pack experiment, but the kitchen stayed almost completely clean and there was barely any clean up- just a quick run through soapy water and everything rinsed clean. No scrubbing or scraping or brushing of any parts, no dishwasher necessary.

These are the 4 flavors I made this evening:

1. Sweet Potato, Apple, Cinnamon

• prick and then roast 4-5 sweet potatoes in a 400 degree oven until very soft
• remove skin and set aside in a bowl
• core and dice two apples (skin on) and add to the sweet potatoes
• sprinkle with a teaspoon of cinnamon
• use immersion blender to puree mixture to a smooth consistency

2. Basil, Apple, Sweet Pea

• microwave 3 cups of frozen peas until they are thawed and tender but still bright green (about 4 minutes)
• core and dice two apples (skin on) and add to the bowl of thawed peas
• add a handful of washed, fresh basil leaves to the apple and peas
• use immersion blender to puree mixture to a smooth consistency

3. Carrot, Squash, Banana, Avocado

• Cut butternut squash in half and remove stringy pulp and seeds
• peel and dice 4 large carrots
• add squash and carrot to large baking sheet and roast in a 450 degree oven until tender (about 45 min)
• peel two bananas into a large mixing bowl
• remove veggies from oven and allow to cool completely
• remove flesh from skin of squash and add it, with carrots, to the bowl of bananas
• use immersion blender to puree mixture to a smooth consistency
• add flesh from two haas avocados
• add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice (to prevent serious browning)
• use immersion blender again to combine

4. Blueberry, banana, apple

• core and dice two apples (skin on) and add to a bowl
• add two cups of blueberries
• add two bananas
• use immersion blender to puree mixture to a smooth consistency

*It IS important to keep foods to the consistency of a smoothie- i.e. no chunks allowed to this party.

*It ISN’T important to follow “rules” about recipes.  Anything goes here- greens with fruit, spices, herbs, whatever you think sounds good, your babe will probably enjoy trying.

*There are no preservatives in this food so it has to either be consumed in 48 hours or frozen.  This is no big deal to our family since they are eaten so quickly and we are used to having a freezer stocked with breast milk or homemade baby food at any given point in time.

*This method of baby food making lends itself well to buying in bulk and taking advantage of sales.  For example, bananas were $0.25 per POUND today at the store, hence so many appearances from Mr. Banana himself.  I got like 20 bananas for a dollar.

*I will be able to add whatever the Feeding Team decides is necessary to help boost Gracie’s calories. Powders, butter, oil, avocado, cream etc. are all easy additions to this type of baby food making process.

*I plan on making actual fruit and yogurt smoothies for my toddler who loves these squeeze packs too.  She’ll probably get a kick out of helping make up her own concoctions which should be pretty fun.

The squeeze station is only $25.00.  With the amount you could spend on a baby food cooking system these days- I think that is an incredible steal.  Add that to the amount you will save on buying the actual pouches and you are certainly looking at a big cost savings if you are a family of squeeze pack lovers.

A box of 50 clear plastic pouches cost $13.59 and the fridge container tray costs $9.99 (this wasn’t truly necessary, but I need all the help I can get with organizing and keeping things tidy- and the fridge is no exception!).

So at just over $50, you have everything you need to make delicious, healthy, on-the-go friendly meals that your little ones will love.

You can get the whole line at Babies R Us.  Pretty sure this system, the immersion blender, and my favorite baby food cookbook will be my go to baby shower gift from now on.  I can’t get over how great this all is.  Here is the link to buy:

Infantino Fresh Squeezed System

Thanks Infantino, I have a new hobby now