Using Canned Pumpkin for Homemade Baby Food
Sep 1, 2008 Friendly Baby Food Advice
We know it’s almost pumpkin season! The temperature is beginning to change, the fresh squash is coming into our local farm stands and yes, we’ve even seen a few pumpkins around! The Fall is one of our favorite seasons simply because of pumpkins and squash! If it wasn’t for the constant need to rake the leaves from the yards, I think Fall would be THE favorite season.
This post comes due to 3 emails received within the past week about pumpkin, specifically canned pumpkin. A few of our visitors wondered about using canned pumpkin for homemade baby food. On our pumpkin page, we did an addition 2 years ago when we copied information directly from a can of pumpkin. We’ll be moving this note into a more prominent spot on the pumpkin homemade baby food page so no one else misses the information. Below you will find information about freezing canned pumpkin, straight from one of the best selling (and tasting) brand around – Libby. Here’s our note:
We recently peeled back the label on a can of 100% pure pumpkin (Libby’s brand) and found this very interesting information, posted verbatim:
Can I Eat the Pumpkin Without Cooking It?
Libby’s 100% pure pumpkin is thoroughly cooked during the canning process so it is perfectly safe and acceptable to enjoy straight from the can.
Once opened, can I freeze? How to Store? How Long Does Pumpkin Last?
Pumpkin may be stored in a sealed plastic container for 1 week in the refrigerator and up to 3 months in the freezer. When freezing, allow for headspace at the top of the container as the pumpkin may expand when frozen. Pumpkin may have a separated appearance when thawed due to air bubbles. This will not affect the pumpkin quality or performance.
You may freeze canned pumpkin in ice trays as you would your cooked baby foods. We do note that even fresh cooked and frozen pumpkin will separate when thawed. Canned pumpkin tends to thaw into a more solid texture while fresh cooked, frozen and thawed pumpkin does become a bit watery!
I know, you’re wondering why we think it’s ok to use canned pumpkin but not other types of canned veggies or fruits right? Well canned pumpkin is just plain ole’ cooked pumpkin! It’s not packed in liquid and there’s no salt or sugar added! Do be sure to purchase pure 100% pumpkin. Pumpkin Pie canned pumpkin comes with sugar and spices and other additives too – check the label before purchasing. I have come home with pumpkin pie mix due to being in a hurry and not reading the label as I plucked the can fromthe shelf!
Be sure to check out our pumpkin homemade baby food page and find some yummy pumpkin baby food recipes that even the adults may want to try out!
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September 2nd, 2008 at 6:37 pm
I am stunned to see this topic when less than a week ago I discovered I was a genius for thinking of using pureed pumpkin to make baby food. It happened quite by accident.
I had promised to make some baby food for my 6 month old granddaughter while my daughter was at her second shift job. I cooked and pureed the beets perfectly, freezing them in trays.
Then I diced organic carrots, purchased at the farmers’ market, and put them in a covered pan to cook on the stove. My kitchen stove is against the south wall of the kitchen, and around the corner, on the north wall of the dining room is my computer table. Only 4 feet from the stove, I felt safe checking my email while the carrots cooked.
Soon the smell of burnned carrots drove me back into the kitchen where my shiny pan had turned a nasty black with bits of cubed charcoal permanently affixed to the bottom.
I had no other fresh vegetables to cook. Peas, green beans and spinach were frozen earlier, so I needed something orange for balance. I had to improvise.
While hunting through my canned food cabinet, it struck me that pumpkin was perfect. It was already peeled, cooked and pureed. I could prepare it before my daughter got home, and she would never have to know about my failed attempt with the carrots.
I figured the flavor of the pumpkin alone might be a bit intense for the little one, so I mixed in a little water, powdered baby formula and oatmeal baby cereal.
My daughter is fond of saying, “Adapt and overcome,” like the Marines. My adaptation saved the day!
Miss Lily has enjoyed pumpkin every day since. She loves it for breakfast, lunch or dinner alongside her other homemade vegetables. Best of all, she greets every spoonful with an enthusiastic, “mmmmmmmmmm”.
September 8th, 2008 at 12:14 pm
I too have been using pumpkin, since I saw somewhere on your site that canned was ok to use. It is too intense to use alone, but I mix it into her cereal in the morning, with a touch of yogurt, cinnamon, ground ginger and nutmeg. My daughter Verity just loves it!