Mumi & Bubi Solids Starter Kit

As I mentioned in my last blog (HERE), we are doing a mixture of homemade purees and baby-led weaning with our little Peanut now that he is over 6 months old.  The Baby Brezza has been great for us, it's worked out really well for him.

When we first ordered the Brezza, I wanted to find a good system for freezing and storing the purees.  When I made food for our older daughter four years ago, I had just frozen items directly in these little containers (LINK):

12 containers cost about $15.  Since I wanted to freeze a few weeks' worth at a time, it wasn't really cost- or space-efficient to use these for large batches.  The seal also wasn't one I'd use for long-term freezing, which I had learned back when Pickle was little.  So, I wanted something to use to freeze them that was a little more convenient.

I did a lot of research, and came across the Mumi & Bubi Solids Starter Kit (LINK).  

These are two stackable trays that are air-tight containers that work a lot like ice cube trays, but more convenient.  Each slot holds 1 oz. of baby food, and there are 21 slots per tray.  Amazon has the two trays for around $28 (LINK), so you're getting 42 frozen items for that price.  Not a bad deal.

They are very good at freezing, and very easy to use.  The lids are secure and tight, I haven't had any freezerburn.  It's very easy to pop the foods out, since the cubes are frozen with a curved bottom (sort of like a half-moon).  You just push on one side of the cube, and it slides out.  Some foods seem to pop out better than others - if your cube doesn't want to slide out, simply run the bottom of the tray under hot water for about ten seconds, and then they should slide out easily for you.  Do not bend the tray like you would an ice cube tray, as that can damage it.  The trays are dishwasher-safe on the top rack, and wash well.

When the foods are frozen solid, I pop them out and put them in zippered bags, and then put the zippered bags in freezer-safe storage containers.  This is probably a little overkill, but it makes me feel safer to have the dual layers of protection.  

I originally got the little containers from the beginning of this entry to send to daycare.  The problem with those containers is that they're not tall enough to accommodate one of these frozen cubes.  So, even though it's a 2-oz container, you have to cut one of your 1-oz frozen cubes in half and jam it into the container - even then, it's sometimes hard to get the top sealed tight.  You would need two 2-oz containers in order to get a 2-oz serving.  Not very practical.

Next I tried the Sage Spoonfuls storage set (LINK), about $27 for 12 4-oz containers on Amazon.

These work well - since they're wider at the base, the rounded, long-ish cubes fit in here, and you can actually fit 4 oz of food into a 4-oz container.  I use these primarily, since they're a very secure fit of the lid.  I'd recommend them strongly if you don't mind the price.

However... they ARE a bit pricy.  If you skip the Sprout containers listed above, it's not a bad price (not what my husband says), but there are definitely other BPA-free options that work with the Mumi & Bubi Cubes:

- The First Years Ziploc Snacks-To-Go (LINK) - Run $5.75 on Amazon for three 8 oz bowls and three 4.5 oz bowls, all BPA-free.

  

These work great - we don't need 8 oz of baby food yet, so we're just using the 4.5 oz tubs.  They're big enough that the curved cubes fit in them.  I really like the lids, I feel like I can put them in a bag for daycare and they won't spill all over the inside of my bag.  However - we send two containers of baby food to daycare every day.  In order to get 10 of the 4.5 oz tubs, we need to get four of them.  4 x $5.75 = $23.  You're spending about the same price as you would for 12 of the Sage Spoonfuls (although you'll also have a bunch of the 8 oz tubs, in addition, which will come in handy later).  A little more cost-effective, but not as good as it could be for something that just doesn't have the same quality of product.

- Ziploc Extra-Small Square Containers (LINK) - I would get these at Wal-Mart, not Amazon.  They run $2.57 for eight of them at Wal-Mart, while you're going to spend $10.99 for the same number at Amazon.  Each BPA-free container is 4 oz.  

These are by far the most cost-effective method.  They fit the cubes pretty well, although I haven't tried to get all four oz in there.  The downside of them being the most inexpensive is that they're definitely not as durable as the other options.  These are meant to be disposable eventually, and they don't seal as well.  They are also not as durable, the tops can sometimes break after usage.  But, for $2.57 for 8, it's not like you're making a huge investment to just go buy more.

So, that was likely way more information than you ever need about transporting pureed banana somewhere.  I just know that it took a lot of trial-and-error for me, and it would have been nice to have definitive information on how to freeze and store these.  The Mumi & Bubi work just great, and are worth the investment, in my opinion.