Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

My second child is 9 months old, and for my first, I made baby food by steaming it in a pot and blending with a stick blender. It was never very good, and my daughter didn't love the purees I made. Six years later, I thought I'd do it the same way, but a friend suggested a baby food maker when I was lamenting about how the stick blender doesn't work well unless you make a huge batch of something, which I don't like doing because what if he doesn't like it? I had never even thought about getting something like this, but she had a good point, so I bought this one and I LOVE IT. It's small, so it makes just enough for one to three meals (my baby eats a lot though). It steams PERFECTLY and blends PERFECTLY. The purees are so smooth! My baby is picky about texture, and this blender makes everything so creamy. Here are my favorite meals to make for him in this machine: Applesauce: Chop enough apples to fill the basket (this is usually 1 1/2-2 small apples - I use Fuji), sprinkle some cinnamon on top, close it up and steam away. When it's finished, throw out the water at the bottom and add a small amount (maybe 1-2 tablespoons) of fresh water. Blend and serve alone or mixed with baby oatmeal. Carrot, apple and kale: Chop 1 1/2 to 2 carrots, and half an apple. Add a handful of kale on top. Steam and blend with 1-2 tablespoons of fresh water. This can also be made with pear instead of apple, and spinach instead of kale. If you use pear, don't add the water to blend - pears are watery and they make the blending work without it. Sweet potato, red pepper and white bean: Chop half a sweet potato and half a red pepper. Add 1/4 cup of white beans (low-sodium cannellini work well). Make sure the beans are rinsed well first. Steam and blend with 1-2 tablespoons of fresh water. I also make this with black beans. Butternut squash and pear: Fill the basket 3/4 of the way with diced butternut squash. I buy frozen in a bag and put it straight in the steamer, frozen. Add half a pear. Steam and blend - note, pears are watery so you don't need water to blend. Potato and broccoli: Fill the basket half with chopped baby potato (no need to peel it), and half with broccoli. Steam and blend with 1-2 tablespoons of water. This recipe also works with spinach. Chicken and apple: Fill the basket halfway with raw chopped chicken breast or thigh. Add half an apple. Steam and blend with water - for this recipe, I don't throw out the water that remains after steaming - I use it because it has chicken fat in it. Add more water if the chicken doesn't get creamy enough. This puree can be mixed with any of the above veggie purees for a delicious combo. Also, you can add 1 tsp of olive oil to any veggie puree to get some good fat in there. Cherry avocado: Steam a cup of frozen pitted sweet cherries. When it's done steaming, add 1 tablespoon of water and half an avocado (don't steam the avocado!). Blend and serve alone or mix with baby oatmeal.