These homemade baby food pouches are portable, squeezable and a great way to serve healthy fruits, vegetables and grains to your baby, toddler or preschooler. Includes 5 easy recipes and tips on making the pouches.
So, I made ALL of the homemade baby food for both my kids. Never bought a single jar.
Now there's absolutely nothing wrong with some store-bought help -- and you know I don't judge for taking shortcuts; we parents have enough on our plates -- but that was kinda my thing and I’m nothing if not stubborn. And maybe a little controlling.
So when they made the transition to finger foods, I didn’t want to throw out all of that baby food I worked so hard on!
I got creative by adding some leftover purees to smoothies, sauces and more. (Check out ALL my ideas for ways to use leftover baby food.)
And since they still loved the same flavors and foods, I started making homemade baby food pouches.
Their favorite baby food combinations could go right into the pouch that their precious little chubby hands could hold so that they could feed themselves. Win win!
I shared my original how-to and 5 easy recipes for homemade baby food squeeze pouches and you guys have loved them!
I’ve had tons of requests to share more combination ideas, which I had always meant to do. And I’m finally getting around to it!
Now, you can of course buy squeeze pouches in the store.
They have lots of different kinds of applesauce mixes, yogurt squeezies, and fruit and veggie combinations.
But you can make your own so quickly, easily and for much less money. Plus, you can customize them to your little one’s liking and feel good that you’re controlling the ingredients.
(Yup, I think I must be a total control freak. ♀️)
Squeeze pouches are also a great way to get in some fruits, veggies and whole grains that your baby might not be as eager to pick up as whole finger foods.
For instance, my kids would chow down on some broccoli and pears puree when being spoon fed, but they weren’t exactly eager to pick up and eat broccoli florets by themselves.
So, I kept up with some of the purees and made them into these self-serve baby food pouches!
Today’s round of recipes includes 5 more ideas for delicious, healthful and kid-friendly mixes that will ensure your baby, toddler and/or preschooler keeps getting some well-rounded nutrition.
Here’s what we’re making:
- Apple and carrot
- Broccoli and apple
- Blueberry, banana and quinoa
- Black beans, blackberries and pears
- Pumpkin, apricot and chickpeas
You can choose to try any or all of these.
They are great to have on hand in the fridge or freezer to pull out for snack time, with lunches, sending to day care or just taking with you on the go. (They travel great!)
Hopefully you’ll find some new favorites for your little one! ❤️
Now, I’ve got some notes and tips coming up below on how to make homemade baby food pouches. Just tryin’ to be helpful.
Especially because it can be intimidating when you first start out. After you get the hang of it, you’ll be able to whip these up in no time and I bet you'll start making up your own combinations.
If you want to jump on down to the recipes, simply scroll right on through the rest of the text. The recipe card is near the bottom of the page, above the comments section.
How to make homemade baby food pouches:
- The Infantino Squeeze Station is a really great, easy way to make pouches at home. It’s the only specific baby food equipment I’ve bought and was definitely worth it. (Bonus: it's usually available for less than $20. You'll save that much in just a few batches of making these yourself!)
- You’ll also need to buy refill pouches (they come in batches of 50 and you will go through them!)
- You’ll also need an immersion/hand blender or regular blender to make the purees to put into the squeeze pouches.
- See my earlier post on how to set up and use the baby food squeezie station if you’re new to using it.
OK, now we are ready to get these knocked out!
Tips on making homemade baby food pouches:
- Adding about 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice to each of these puree mixes helps preserve them. If you plan to use yours within a couple of days, you can skip this.
- You can keep the peels on the pears and apples, just be sure to puree them very well so pieces don’t get stuck and prevent the mixture from going into the squeezie bags.
- The vegetables and grains need to be cooked and soft, so plan ahead. Or use leftovers. These can be a great way to use up scraps and reduce food waste.
- If any of your mixtures seem too thick (because the water content of fruits and veggies can vary), just add a bit of applesauce or a splash of water to the blender until its thin enough.
- Each pouch holds about 4 ounces. Most of these batches make about 3 squeezies worth. You can of course always double up if you want to knock out a bunch at a time. They freeze great, so you might as well!
Speaking of storage…
You can keep the baby food pouches in the refrigerator for 2-3 days or pop them straight into the freezer to have on hand for later.
Let them thaw in the refrigerator (they’ll thaw in less than a day) and then serve.
Oh, and these should all be served cold or at room temperature; they aren’t meant to be heated.
I hope that helps answer some of your questions and inspires you to make some homemade squeeze pouches yourself!
XO,
Kathryn
P.S. Does your baby or toddler love any specific food combination, whether one of these or something else? Leave a comment below so we can all get some new ideas!
5 homemade baby food pouches
These homemade baby food pouches are portable, squeezable and a great way to serve healthy fruits, vegetables and grains to your baby, toddler or preschooler. Includes 5 easy recipes and tips on making the pouches.
Ingredients
For the apple and carrot pouches:
- ¾ cup cooked carrots (I use frozen and follow the package instructions)
- 1 small apple, cored and roughly chopped (or about ¾ to 1 cup unsweetened applesauce)
- juice of ½ lemon
For the broccoli and apple pouches:
- ½ cup cooked broccoli florets
- 1 small apple, cored and roughly chopped (or about ¾ to 1 cup unsweetened applesauce)
- juice of ½ lemon
For the blueberry, banana and quinoa pouches:
- ½ cup fresh blueberries (or frozen, thawed)
- ½ cup cooked quinoa
- 1 small ripe banana
- juice of ½ lemon
For the black bean, blackberry and pears pouches:
- ½ cup cooked black beans (rinsed and drained if from a can)
- ½ cup fresh blackberries (or frozen, thawed)
- ½ cup fresh or canned pears
- juice of ½ lemon
For the pumpkin, apricot and chickpea pouches:
- ½ cup canned pure pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
- ½ cup apricot puree
- ½ cup pureed chickpeas
- juice of ½ lemon
Instructions
- Make sure all of your grains and veggies are cooked, if indicated.
- Combine all ingredients for each pouch combination in a blender or immersion blender and blend until it’s a smooth, pourable consistency. (See notes.)
- Label your bags, set up your station and add the mixture to the squeeze station containers, filled to the indicated line. Push down with the press tool and fill each bag. Remove the bags from the station and twist on the tops.
- Store pouches in the refrigerator for 2-3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. To defrost, simply move the pouch to the refrigerator - it thaws in less than a day.
Notes
Adding about 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice to these helps preserve them. If you plan to use yours within a couple of days, you can skip this.
You can keep the peels on the pears and apples, just be sure to puree them very well so pieces don’t get stuck and prevent the mixture from going into the squeezie bags.
The vegetables and grains need to be cooked and soft, so plan ahead. Or use leftovers. These can be a great way to use up scraps and reduce food waste.
If any of your mixtures seem too thick (because the water content of fruits and veggies can vary), just add a bit of applesauce or a splash of water to the blender until its thin enough.
Each pouch holds about 4 ounces. Most of these batches make about 3 squeezies worth. You can of course always double up if you want to knock out a bunch.
Storage tips: You can keep the baby food pouches in the refrigerator for 2-3 days or pop them straight into the freezer to have on hand later. Let them thaw in the refrigerator (they’ll thaw in less than a day) and then serve.
These should be served cold or at room temperature; they aren’t meant to be heated.
Equipment: The Infantino Squeeze Station is a really great, easy way to make pouches at home. It’s the only specific baby food equipment I’ve bought and was definitely worth it.
You’ll also need to buy refill pouches (they come in batches of 50 and you will go through them!)
You’ll also need an immersion/hand blender or regular blender to make the purees to put into the squeeze pouches.
See my post on how to set up and use the baby food squeezie station if you’re new to using it.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
3Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 50
The different combinations will yield different nutrition information.
Stephanie Toering
Thanks for all the great ideas - if I am freezing them how long will they stay in the fridge after thawing? I'm planning on making some to bring camping.
Kathryn Doherty
Great question Stephanie! Once these leave the freezer, they thaw pretty quickly. But you should be fine to store them in the refrigerator for up to 4-5 days before serving them. I hope that helps!
Stephanie Toering
Perfect! Thank you!
Nicole Haynie
So I'm making my own pouches with the food I get through WIC. Anybody else do this?
Allie
Do you steam or cook the apples and pears or just blend? Thanks
Kathryn Doherty
You can just blend them from raw, no steaming or cooking needed for the apples or pears. Hope that helps!
Alexandra
My daughters favorite pouch from the store is the comforts brand- banana blueberry oatmeal flavor. How can I make that one homemade? Do I cook the oatmeal first?
Kathryn Doherty
You can use the blueberry-banana-quinoa combination from above and just use oatmeal instead of the quinoa. I'd suggest 1/2 cup dry oats and yes, you do need to cook them first before combining with the fruits to make a puree. Also, just a heads up that oatmeal tends to thicken a lot as it sits so be sure it's really well thinned out before you make your pouches. Hope that helps!
Amanda
Great ideas, can’t wait to make them. If I am doubling the recipe, do I need to double the amount of lemon as well? Thanks!
Kathryn Doherty
Yes, I would, so there's enough citrus for the total quantity to help preserve the pouches for storing. Hope you find some favorites for your little one!