Top 5 Spices
Moms are always asking me what spices they should invest in when starting off making baby food. For me, I learned what to pair with what from lots of trial and error, that on occasion my family had to painfully eat their way through.
There were more errors then wins at times.
But slowly, I realized that you didn’t have to dump the entire jar of a spice in a batch of something all at once. Start with just a pinch in purees and work in more as your taste buds instruct. I also looked to food that I eat for inspiration on what to put into baby food.
Learn to trust your taste buds.
Have fun. Try something new.
So here is a list of my top 5 spices to have on hand. They are all reasonably prices, can be purchased at any local store and can be added to a variety of dishes. Chances are that you already have these in your spice cabinet.
When in doubt these are the winners.
I like to support my local businesses [plus you get to taste each spice and then dump it on the floor when you are done, fun!] so I usually get all my spices at Savory Spice Shop .
Not sure why all of my top 5 spices start with the letter ‘C’, just one of those things.
Cinnamon
Can be added to apples, bananas, pears, apricots, sweet potatoes, baked goods, oatmeal, brown rice cereal, yogurt.
Cloves
Can be added to carrots, sweet potatoes, roasted root vegetables, apples, pears, figs, oatmeal, brown rice cereal.
Cardamom
Can be added to apples, pears, apricots, yogurt, plums, squash, rice, carrots.
Curry
Can be added to apples, lentils, carrots, sweet potatoes, tofu, beans, pumpkin, squash, kale.
Cumin
Can be added to beans, rice, carrots, lentils, sweet potatoes, roasted potatoes, broccoli, spinach.
8 Comments on “Top 5 Spices”
Hi,
I am obsessed with your blog. I will be starting my 4 month old baby on purees this week. I wanted to know, in your opinion, if it is ok to automatically add the spice to their food or should I give just the fruit or veggie alone first? Example: Apples and cinnamon or just apples? Thank you for helping the rest of us confused moms!!!! 🙂
Hello Valerie,
So glad you found my blog!!! I would totally recommend starting your little one on purees with some spice or herbs. It makes all food taste so much better and there are so many health benefits them! Win Win!! I would recommend that you start with just a pinch of which ever spice you want to add and build up the amount as they get older.
Hope that helps!
xoxo,
Michele
Informative article, just what I was looking for.
Thanks Anu!
xoxo,
Michele
Informative article, just what I was looking for. http://www.mangalorespice.com
so gad to hear:)
Michele
Is it ok to add the spices raw, or should I warm them up first?
Eg: dry roast or toss in a little olive oil then add it to purée?
I usually add them into the purees raw or while they produce is cooking (roasted sweet potatoes with curry can have the curry while roasting).