Baby food uses

Leftover Baby Food Muffins - Eat Yourself Skinny

04.01.20

Gluten-Free
Vegetarian
Dairy Free
Clean Eating
Kid Friendly

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These bite-sized muffins are healthy, nutritious and the perfect way to use up leftover jars of baby food! No added sugar and your little ones will love them!

So when my daughter started eating solid foods, I decided to go the puréed route because baby led weaning just made me so nervous! I know, I know, most mamas go the BLW route and I REALLY wanted to, but I found myself just much more comfortable easing her into solids through softer foods and purées. Totally a personal preference! Well now my daughter is 10 months old (ah where has the time gone?!) and she wants absolutely nothing to do with those purées anymore. So now I have tons of baby food jars leftover in my pantry and wanted to get creative with ways that I could use them. Enter these tasty little muffins!

These bite-sized muffins are so simple to throw together and are packed with nutritious ingredients like oats, banana, carrots, and puréed fruits and veggies so you can feel good about sharing these with your little ones! I bet they’ll have a blast making them with you too!

INGREDIENTS YOU’LL NEED

Oat flour – You can use store-bought oat flour or easily make your own! You can also substitute with all-purpose flour, if needed.
Puréed baby food – Here’s where you can have fun with this recipe! Feel free to use any combination of flavors whether fruit or veggie-based. If you don’t have jars of baby food, the puréed pouches will also work or even your own homemade purées, you’ll just need about 1/3 cup.
Banana – Makes these muffins moist and delicious. Also acts as a natural sweetener so no added sugar needed!
Carrot – I like to add grated carrot to add in some veggies as well as for the color, but you could also use grated zucchini or really any veggie you’d like!
Egg – All you need is one egg and this will help bind everything together.
Cinnamon – Not a necessity, but definitely makes these muffins even tastier!

DID YOU KNOW YOU CAN EASILY MAKE YOUR OWN OAT FLOUR?

To make your own oat flour you simply take rolled oats (or instant oats) and blend them in your food processor or blender for about 60 seconds until they resemble a fine, powdery flour – that’s it! You can of course just buy your own oat flour at the store, but this method saves you money and the flour will last up to three months in your pantry. The ratio for oat flour is one cup of oats = one cup of oat flour so it’s pretty easy to measure out.

These baby food muffins freeze really well too! This recipe makes about 24 mini muffins (or 12 regular size muffins) and there is no way my 10 month old could go through all those in a week so freezing them makes it really convenient to have meals prepped for her. Simply place them in a sealed container or ziplock bag and they can be stored in your freezer for up to 3 months!

These muffins aren’t just for babies either, they’re perfect for toddlers and school age kids as well! Not only do these muffins fit perfectly inside a lunch box, but they also make great after school snacks!

OTHER USES FOR LEFTOVER BABY FOOD

If you have several jars or pouches of baby food leftover, you can easily get creative and use them in all sorts of ways. Here are a few ideas:

Use them in pancakes, muffins or bread when baking
Mix them in with oatmeal, yogurt or smoothies
Freeze them into popsicles which is great for teething!
Toss purées in with pasta as a sauce (my daughter loves the butternut squash with noodles!)
Add them to soups or stews

Hope your little ones enjoy these leftover baby food muffins as much as mine did and please let me know if you’d like to see more kid-friendly recipes shared on the blog! If you do decide to make these or any other Eat Yourself Skinny recipe, please make sure to tag me on Instagram so I can see all the yummy things you’re eating!

RECIPE

Leftover Baby Food Muffins

These bite-sized muffins are healthy, nutritious and the perfect way to use up leftover jars of baby food! No added sugar and your little ones will love them!

Yield: 24 Servings 1x

★★★★★

4. 9 from 8 reviews

Scale

Prep Time: 5 mins
Cook Time: 15 mins
Total Time: 20 mins

Ingredients

1 1/4 cups oat flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1 jar (or 1/3 cup) puréed baby food
1 ripe banana, mashed
1 egg
1/2 cup grated carrot

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Spray a mini muffin pan with nonstick spray (or use muffin liners) and set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together oat flour, baking powder and cinnamon, making a well in the center.
In a separate bowl, whisk together baby food, mashed banana and egg. Add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, mixing until just combined, then fold in the grated carrot.
Divide oat mixture evenly among the 24 mini muffin cups (or 12 standard size muffins) and bake for 13 to 15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. If making 12 standard size muffins, bake for about 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool and enjoy!

Nutrition Facts:

Serving Size: 1 muffin
Calories: 37
Sugar: 1.5 g
Sodium: 4.9 mg
Fat: 0.7 g
Saturated Fat: 0.2 g
Carbohydrates: 6.7 g
Fiber: 0.9 g
Protein: 1.5 g

* Please note that all nutrition information are just estimates. Values will vary among brands, so we encourage you to calculate these on your own for most accurate results.

If you make this recipe, share a photo on Instagram and tag it #EatYourselfSkinny . I love seeing what you made!

Clever Ways How To Use Up Leftover Baby Food

Baby food can be so convenient when your baby will gobble it down. But what can you do with that leftover baby food they don't like or have outgrown? Well, don't throw it away! We've got some clever ideas to share.

Most people have a love/hate relationship with baby food. It's so dang easy when your baby loves the food and can't get enough of it! But by some miracle, it also seems to multiply in the pantry. What on earth do you do with that leftover baby food?

*Note: When you click the links in this post, we may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

Well, if you've been asking yourself this question, then consider it your lucky day! We're going to share some out-of-the-box ideas for storing and using up all that goodness. Have we piqued your interest? Keep on reading to find out more!

HOW TO STORE LEFTOVER BABY FOOD

What should you do if you have dozens of baby food jars cluttering up your pantry but you're not quite ready to use them? Well, you've got options! You could keep them in the jar for a while and call it a day (that stuff basically lasts forever), but we've got a few other ideas we think you'll love. These are perfect for those half-eaten jars, too!

Ice Trays – Did you know you can freeze baby food? Oh, yes, you can! Our favorite way is to scoop those purees into ice trays, then pop the cubes in a plastic bag. This way, you can use the cubes for cooking or drop them in a smoothie.
Cookie Sheet Blobs – Looking for another way to freeze that food? If you have a cookie sheet, you're golden. Just scoop blobs onto that baking sheet (think cookie dough), then freeze and place in plastic bags.
Cupcake Liners- One more freezer trick! Spoon that food into cupcake liners for freezing. Muffin trays work, too!
Plastic Pouches – If you're packing for a trip or just looking to save space, you can transfer baby food to plastic food pouches for safe-keeping. Serving the food to your toddlers or babies that way prevents messes, too! If you ever ended up with a spoonful of peas all over the wall, then you know what we're talking about.

If you open and refrigerate leftover baby food, be sure to use it within 48 hours. Ready to use the food you froze? Thaw it overnight in the refrigerator and use it within two days. Now that you're up to speed on baby food storage let's chat through some ways to use it!

THE BEST WAYS TO USE UP LEFTOVER BABY FOOD

These ideas are going to rock your world! We bet you'll be excited you have some leftover baby food hanging around by the time we're done. And mama, you can just sit back and smile as you watch your family gobble up that food with hidden fruit and veggies in it! 😉 Your secret's safe with us!

HIDE THOSE FRUITS AND VEGGIES IN THEIR BREAKFAST

We call these breakfast, but you may call them lunch, dinner, or snack. We won't judge! Just throw some leftover baby food in them and call it a day.

Pancakes – Have leftover baby oatmeal? Make pancakes with it! Bonus points if you add some fruit baby food to it, too!
Waffles – Add any fruit baby food you have to your homemade waffles to make them extra tasty! Whip that batter up, let the waffle maker do all of the work, and call breakfast good.
Muffins – Did you know you can add leftover fruit or veggie baby food to muffins? They turn out so moist and delicious! Perfect for toddlers or any member of the family, really. You can also sub out part of your flour with baby oatmeal!
Topping for Toast – Fruit baby food makes for the best toast topping! It's delicious for the whole family, including baby.
Oatmeal – You can mix fruit or sweet veggies, such as sweet potatoes or carrots, to plain oatmeal to give it some extra flavor.
Yogurt – If you have plain yogurt, add some leftover fruit baby food to give it some extra flavor. You can also do the same to plain, unsweetened applesauce!
Cottage Cheese – Love cottage cheese, but out of your favorite fruit to mix with it? Try adding fruit baby food to it! It's still just as delicious and you don't have to worry about running to the store to get any fruit.

Are you a baby food believer yet? If you liked those ideas, then you're going to love what we have in store for you next!

USE LEFTOVER BABY FOOD IN DINNER

Ramp up your dinner game by sneaking veggie and meat purees into your meals! Your family will be none-the-wiser. Try one of these:

Mac and Cheese – You can add sweet potato or carrot baby food to the next batch of macaroni and cheese you make! Yummm.
Casseroles – Throw any leftover veggie purees in your next casserole you make! It'll help to hide those not-so-appetizing veggies (we're talking to you, peas!) while also getting the great nutrients from them.
Soup – You can make your soup extra creamy and protein-packed by adding those unfortunate meat purees to your next batch of soup! You can also add veggie purees to your soup if you need to eat them.
Fruit Salad – You can also add any leftover fruit baby food to our favorite cool whip fruit salad! It'll just make it that much sweeter and delicious. We'll just call this a healthy side since it has dairy and fruit in it, mkay?

So simple and so tasty, right? Pat yourself on the back for getting your family to eat those meat purees.

Is your mind blown? Now you have some of the best ideas for using up leftover baby food without it going to waste!

What's your favorite way to sneak veggies into your kids' food? Let us know in the comments!

Wanting more great ideas for leftovers?

Learn our best tips to take you from hating your leftovers to loving them!
Do you always think that leftovers just heat up weird? Maybe that's because you've been doing it wrong! We've got the best ways to reheat those leftovers like a pro.
Tired of eating the same thing two nights in a row? Repurpose your leftovers into something new!

Now, go eat some baby food!

What to cook from infant formula. Recipes from baby formula

Milk formulas for artificial feeding contain a maximum of substances useful for the development of the child's body. Manufacturers of baby food are trying to bring the composition of infant formula as close as possible to breast milk - the safest product for babies.

Dry milk drink "Baby milk" Valio Baby 3 NutriValio for feeding children over 12 months Read more

If there is excess mixture left in your house, do not rush to say goodbye to them.

Dishes prepared from baby milk food will appeal to all family members - both small and adults. They are especially recommended for children. After all, the composition of the mixture contains only natural ingredients that have an excellent effect not only on the taste of the dish, but also on its benefits. So, for example, milk proteins provide an optimal growth rate for babies. Taurine amino acid is vital for the normal development of the organs of vision and the central nervous system. Lactose helps to better absorb iron, calcium and stimulates the digestive system as a whole. Linoleic acid helps the development of the child's brain, and prebiotics have a positive effect on the development of beneficial microflora in the intestines. In addition, Valio infant formula contains iodine, copper, selenium, zinc, manganese, as well as other beneficial trace elements and vitamins.

#PROMO_BLOCK#

What to cook with infant formula?

Powdered milk mixtures are suitable for making cereals, desserts, as well as for simple and delicious homemade baking. Baby food contains a lot of vitamins, minerals, a complete protein necessary for gourmets of all ages, but at the same time the product is low in fat. So many recipes are perfect for the menu of babies who are just starting to receive complementary foods.

Prune Truffles
Ingredients :
Valio Baby® 3 NutriValio™ - 300g
Butter Viola sweet cream 82% - 180 g
Prunes - 600 g
Cocoa powder - 90 g
Powdered sugar - 20 g
Mint - 20 g
Berries, fruits - 200 g

Cooking :
1. In prunes, add 80 g of cocoa powder, butter at room temperature, 260 g of baby food. Mix all ingredients with a mixer until smooth.
2. Remove the resulting mass in the refrigerator for 10 minutes to thicken.
3. Divide the truffle mass into small portions, roll koloboks out of them and roll part in cocoa, part in baby food.
4. Put the finished truffles on a serving dish, decorate with berries, mint and sprinkle with powdered sugar if desired.

Baby food biscuits with chocolate
Ingredients :
Valio Baby® 3 NutriValio™ - 300g
Butter Viola sweet cream 82% - 100 g
Chocolate - 100 g
Mint - 10 g
Powdered sugar - 20 g
Wheat flour - 150 g
Baking powder for dough - 10 g
Egg - 4 pcs.
Berries, fruits - 90 g

Preparation :
1. Beat room temperature butter with a mixer, add eggs and continue beating until smooth.
2. Add chopped chocolate, flour, baby food, baking powder to the resulting mixture and knead the dough.
3. Transfer the dough to a pastry bag and make cookie blanks on a baking sheet.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper first. If you do not have a pastry bag, you can spread the dough with a spoon, wetting it with cold water.
4. Bake cookies at 180 degrees for 14 - 16 minutes.
5. Put the finished cookies on a serving dish, decorate with mint and berries. Sprinkle with powdered sugar if desired.

Baby food pancakes with cheese filling
Ingredients :
Valio Baby® 3 NutriValio™ - 200g
Cheese Valio Oltermanni 45% - 200 g
Water - 300 ml
Greens - 20 g
Salt - 3 g
Egg - 3 pcs.
Wheat flour - 90 g

Preparation :
1. Prepare the dough: break eggs into a mixing bowl, add salt, a little water, baby food and knead a stiff dough.
2. Pour the rest of the water into the dough and knead it until smooth. The dough is ready.
3. Bake pancakes in a well-heated pan.
4. Put a piece of cheese on each pancake and wrap it in a roll.
5. Cut the roll into portions, put on a serving dish and garnish with herbs.

Learn more about vitamin and mineral fortified infant formulas on our blog.

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Muscle Mass Baby Food

Mar 22 2015

View archives for March 22, 2015

Can baby food be used to gain weight? Indeed, logically, the quality of nutrition for children promises (well, at least it should be) to be good. And, if children with a lack of weight are progressing quite tolerably, then maybe the beginner will gain the cherished kilograms? Are there any pitfalls? In general, there are a lot of questions - and they went from the athletes of the old Soviet school, who managed to use baby food for the masses. Let's look at it from the realities of our reality.

To summarize what I am about to say, there are three conclusions:

You can use baby food for muscle mass.
baby food for the masses is terribly expensive and impractical.
baby food after training - will not work.

baby food for
muscle building
video

In Soviet times (the times of general shortages), athletes “caught up” with everything they could find. If something was poorly nailed and it could be eaten, it was eaten. :)) (some still do this, but this is a harmful practice). Of course, the pricing policy meant the availability of infant formula, cereals and everything else. And when they come up to me in the hall with the question: “I don’t want to eat chemistry, maybe baby food for the masses is better?” - I want to give a calendar to a person. XXI century in the yard.

Moreover, if we compare the composition of baby food and the contents of sports nutrition cans, we will not see much difference. The basis of both of them are balanced BJU mixtures, where, as a rule, our favorite whey protein is used as a protein. Baby food will be closest in composition to the gainer, but will differ dramatically from it in price. It is this similarity that makes it possible to use baby food for mass gain. It’s understandable - a kid with a developmental lag just doesn’t need to achieve quality - he will sit “on the mass” for more than a dozen years (That’s lucky). Therefore, in the composition of the mixtures, as a rule, there is lactose or milk sugar - a source of carbohydrates. And this is not entirely good in terms of the insulin response of our carcass. And besides, there are vegetable fats. It is somewhat impractical to close the “carbohydrate window” with such a cocktail. Therefore, baby food after a workout - I would not recommend it.

Is it profitable?

Wherever there are marketers, expect trouble and deceit 🙂 Baby food for gaining muscle mass is also not an exclusive topic. In general - wherever you buy a product - do not look at the volume and price - consider the price per gram. That is, take the amount of protein in a serving. Multiply by the number of servings in the package. Then divide the price per pack by this number and you get the price per gram. And it can often turn out that a large inexpensive jar, in which there are only 18 grams of protein per serving and a serving - two scoops - is less profitable in terms of money than a smaller and more expensive one. Baby food is no exception. So - if you calculate how much a gram of protein in sports nutrition costs (see photo) and a gram of protein in baby food - you will be surprised how unprofitable baby food will be for gaining muscle mass. Actually here - how, where and what to buy profitable.

In addition, for beginners, there is another terribly terrible side effect of trying to use baby food for muscle mass or sports nutrition for mass - the effect of orientation substitution.