Humewood House Baby Food!
Nov 10th, 2009 by Jenna Charlton
Pureed pears; perfect for baby food. And, as the girls at Humewood House can tell you, it’s an easy DIY.
Last Wednesday Laura and I dropped in on Marc’s baby food making class at Humewood House. We got there just in time. The prep was complete and the pears were ready for steaming.
All we had to do was sit down and enjoy baby naming conversations, Halloween talk, some light banter, and of course – fruit discourse.
Marc prepared a full pear puree workshop for a dynamic group of young moms. The girls were embarking on new ground; baby food: fully sourced, produced and processed in Toronto. Nutritious and delicious food you can’t buy at the store, yet…..but these girls maybe on to something.
By Marc’s estimate the girls peeled and chopped 10 pounds of fruit – roughly 30 pears. After the pears had been prepped, they were steamed until soft. With the help of a masher and a little elbow grease, they ended up with A LOT of baby food.
By the time I left they had at least 6 jars, and were still going.
Marc’s workshop included a canning demonstration that taught the participants how to preserve food. The girls learned about sterilizing jars and hot water baths. The hot water baths help draw moisture and air out of the jars allowing fruit to preserve for prolonged periods of time. This was something someone like me, who had never canned, did not know; a very valuable trick indeed.
The workshop demonstrated the far reaching potential for Toronto fruit. Volunteering as a gleaner I had taken home my share of the bounty, and enjoyed it with family and friends. Of course we all know the majority goes to a food agency, but actually seeing these young women enjoy this fruit was quite rewarding.
The workshop brought together a group of young moms. They learned about Toronto’s fruit and how to use it to make healthy, economical (read: free) baby food. What could be better! The girls all went home with their very own jar of pureed pears; probably a month’s supply.
During the workshop one of the women remarked, “ We should sell this”! The jars definitely deserve a Made in Toronto stamp!
