How To Prepare Vegetable Purées
Tools You’ll Need
- Large stock pot with steamer/basket (you could also use a rice cooker)
- Immersion Blender, Food processor, or Blender (immersion blender works the best)
- Containers to freeze purées (plastic baby food containers with lid, ice cube trays, muffin tins, snack size zipper-style baggies)
Veggies To Try
- Beets
- Broccoli
- Butternut Squash
- Carrots
- Cauliflower
- Parsnip
- Peas
- Red Pepper
- Spinach
- Sweet Potato
Instead of steaming you can also roasting these veggies to create a richer flavor.
Cook & Purée
- Using one type of veggie at a time, wash, trim ends, peel (if applicable), cut off any imperfections, then cut into large chunks. Use enough of the veggie to fill your pot, then cover and cook until soft.
- You can let the veggies cool, or you can purée them while they are still warm. If using a food processor or blender, and the veggies aren’t blending well, just add a bit of water until the mixture starts puréeing smoothly (this is why the immersion blender is best, as you don’t need to add any water).
- Once cool, scoop into containers (1/4-1/2 cup portion sizes), label, then freeze.
Adding Purées To Your Recipes
Defrost in the microwave the amount you think you can add to your recipe without altering the flavor. When making a batch of spaghetti sauce, I would use about ½ carrots, ½ cup cauliflower, and ¼ cup red pepper purées. You could even add a ¼ cup of spinach – but just be careful as too much spinach can really alter the flavor.
Also, try to make sure you don’t alter the color of your recipe. For example, if you’re making a white cream sauce, don’t add spinach or red pepper – instead you could add cauliflower.
Recipe Ideas
Here are a few ideas of purées to include in your favorite recipes (add one or more different types of veggies – its all up to you!) Macaroni & Cheese: Butternut Squash, Cauliflower
- Spaghetti Sauce: Carrot, Red Pepper, Cauliflower, Broccoli
- Tuna Salad: Cauliflower
- Burgers: Carrot, Red Pepper
- Stew: Anything!
- Quesadillas: Butternut Squash, Cauliflower, Carrot (mix in with the cheese)
