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Homemade Baby Food Ideas – No Cooking Required

We received an interesting question from Diana in Toronto, Canada who asked us

My husband and I are taking a trip to Mexico and bringing our daughter. She will be 8.5 months at the time. I will not have access to a kitchenette or refrigerator as we are staying at an all inclusive resort. I don’t want to offer any jarred foods. What can I do?? I know I can give her banana and avocado but that likely won’t be enough for 1 week!! Please help!

Diana, having no access to either cooking or refrigeration facilities can be quite a challenge when it comes to continuing to provide homemade baby food – however, we do have some suggestions for you that should help you get through the week and provide a little variety for your baby!

Homemade baby food ideas - no cooking required

  • As you mentioned, avocado and banana are foods that can be easily prepared without cooking. Papaya, melon, peach and plum can also be mashed up and served without cooking (this page provides more information about serving raw foods to your little one).
  • A ripe, juicy pear is another option and can be mashed up quite easily.
  • If you can buy individual pots of natural yogurt at your resort, these can be served either alone or with mashed fruit added. Including ripe, mashed banana can help sweeten the yogurt, as it may be too tart otherwise. Mashed melon and banana with yogurt is particularly tasty! You could also add grated apple to yogurt – again, no cooking is required.
  • Little pots of cottage cheese would be ideal if they are available at your destination. Cottage cheese is great served alone, or with fruit added.
  • For a boost of nutrients, We recommend taking some toasted wheat germ with you and adding it to the food you offer your baby.
  • If cooked chicken is provided during your meal at your resort, then this could be finely shredded with a fork and mixed with natural yogurt and mashed melon as a simple but tasty chicken salad.
  • Canned tuna can be mashed with canned lima beans for a tasty dinner – ensure that the lima beans are either salt-free or low sodium. If they DO contain salt, rinse them thoroughly before use (there is more information about using canned foods in your baby food recipes here).
  • Cous cous can be very easily prepared during your break, as long as you have access to fresh, boiled water, which your hotel may be able to provide. Once boiled water is poured over cous cous and the grains have absorbed the moisture, it is ready to eat. It can be combined with fruit purees or yogurt for a more substantial meal.
  • For an easy breakfast, you could soak a slice of whole wheat bread in milk, then mash it thoroughly with banana or another fruit puree.
  • Another breakfast option would be to bring some Cheerios with you and soak them in applesauce (which you would have to buy in its jarred form) or with another fruit you have pureed yourself (you might like to consider taking a manual food mill along with you to make pureeing easier – the Munchkin Baby Food Mill that appears on this page would be ideal).
  • You could also try bringing along some instant oatmeal – not the best choice nutritionally, but acceptable for just one week and only needing the addition of boiling water! You can make it more nutritious by stirring in pureed fruit.
  • However, uncooked rolled oats can be used too – if you mix them with apple juice and allow them to soften, then stir in another fruit or yogurt and mash well, they can make a filling and nutritious breakfast (this is something we offered to our little ones when in a similar situation with no cooking facilities).

Important note: To avoid the risk of food poisoning, please make sure that all the fruits and vegetables are washed and cleaned thoroughly in sterile water.

Can YOU come up with any more suggestions for foods that Diane might be able to offer her baby during her vacation?

Please leave your comments!

No Cook Baby Food: Tuna, Melon and Avocado Salad - The Homemade Baby Food Recipes Blog

Monday 23rd of July 2018

[…] More homemade baby food ideas – no cooking required Avocado baby food recipes Melon baby food recipes Homemade yogurt recipe […]

A S

Saturday 17th of June 2017

Hi, thanks for the many great ideas here. Was just wondering, you've mentioned instant oatmeal as something not so nutritious, why so? I was under the impression it had quite a few benefits.

I've been giving it to my 18 month year old now and then, especially as she get constipated frequently, and this did seem to help. Now I'm just not too sure if it's as nutritious as I once thought!   Thanks for all the great advice and recipes you guys give on here, have really helped a lot!

Homemade Baby Food Recipes

Sunday 18th of June 2017

The point we were making is that INSTANT oatmeal is not the most nutritious... oatmeal itself is VERY nutritious, so it's great that your daughter has been enjoying it! But as we explain on our https://www.homemade-baby-food-recipes.com/baby-oatmeal.html, instant oatmeal is the least nutritious of all the different kinds of oatmeal available. Hope that clears things up :)

Grace

Monday 27th of March 2017

1. Keep a pair of scissors handy for chopping up foods. (I have one that comes with a nice protective sleeve, just a plain pair of office scissors that I use only for food.) If you use a mill, chopping up the food with the scissors beforehand will help the milling process along. Later, when your baby can eat chunkier foods with a fork, and more variety, the scissors will be a great help, and you won't have to bring along separate meals! 2. For emergencies, I've carried instant baby cereals along, like Earth's Best baby cereals. I mix some up with water and yogurt first into a thick paste, and then top with fresh yogurt. I has the consistency of ice cream, and my baby LOVES it. You can also mix the baby cereals with any jarred baby foods and pureed fruits. 3. Also, take along some plastic containers or ziploc baggies to save small amounts of food from your own plate that won't spoil for a few hours and that would mix well with your other goodies. This way, if your baby needs a healthier and more substantive meal or snack when you're not eating, you can supplement baby's meal easily.

Diana

Thursday 26th of January 2017

Thank you - the suggestions are awesome!! I never realized I could offer so much! My daughter is starting solids in 1 week therefore I have yet to commence the solids journey :) I'm trying to think ahead (into stage 2) when I'm still in stage 1 so it's been a little difficult determining what I can and can't offer.

Regarding the sanitation conditions, I've thought of that. I'm staying at a 5 star hotel in Los Cabos therefore I'm hoping the cleanliness will show a bit more than some other spots in Mexico. I will definitely take your advice and ensure everything is sterile and clean before offering the food to my daughter!

Thanks so much! I'm saving all this information!

How Long Can I Keep Baby Food Warm When Traveling? | The Homemade Baby Food Recipes Blog

Thursday 25th of February 2010

[...] Alternatively – to make things really easy – you could check out our post from last January that lists lots of  ‘no cook’ baby food ideas for feeding your baby homemade baby food when you’re on ... [...]

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