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Homemade Hack: 2 Meals, 1 Ingredient-Sweet Potatoes
Key Takeaways
Quick Overview- This article shares a two-in-one recipe idea built around sweet potatoes, showing parents how to make a simple homemade puree for baby alongside a sweet potato pasta sauce for the rest of the family. Both recipes use the same base ingredient and basic kitchen tools, making it a practical option for busy caregivers who want a home-cooked meal without extra effort.
- The baby puree requires only boiled, blended sweet potatoes — extra portions can be frozen in cubes for later use.
- The family pasta sauce blends sweet potato puree with tomato, half & half, olive oil, salt, and pepper.
- Leftover pasta sauce can be frozen and keeps for 4–5 weeks.
We know that you go out of your way to feed your baby the best. We also know that as a busy parent, it’s easy to forget to do the same for yourself—you need a homemade hack.
Start with one core ingredient, sweet potatoes, and create two meals: homemade sweet potato puree for your LO, and a delicious pasta with sweet potato sauce for the rest of the family. If you know how to boil water and turn on your blender, you can take a break from takeout and make these recipes!
What you’ll need:
- 2-3 sweet potatoes (about 2 lbs)
- a tomato
- half & half or cream
- olive oil
- some pasta
Prep the potatoes
Peel the sweet potatoes and cut into 2-inch pieces.
Put the cut sweet potatoes in a pot with enough water to cover by a few inches, then bring the water to a boil and cook until the pieces are tender, about 20 minutes.
While the potatoes cook, put on a pot of salted water to cook your pasta (cook according to the directions on the package).
Make the puree
Strain the water and put the cooked sweet potato in a blender.
Blend until it’s very smooth, then transfer half of the sweet potato puree to a bowl. Dinner for baby is done! Let it sit on the counter to cool while you finish making the rest of the meal. Remember that you can freeze any extra homemade baby food into cubes.
Make your pasta sauce
Our trick for really simple preparation: you can make this sauce in the blender! All you have to do is blend the remaining sweet potato puree with a tomato (chopped), ½ a cup of water, ¼ cup of half & half, and 2 glugs of olive oil.
Season the sauce with salt & pepper, and toss with cooked pasta (we like it with Bucatini, a hollow spaghetti noodle).
Keep it simple and top with a little grated Parmigiano, or dress it up with fried sage leaves, crumbled sweet Italian sausage, or a few handfuls of baby spinach.
Note: Any leftover sauce freezes well and will keep for 4-5 weeks.
And that’s it, the easiest ever real food dinner for everyone, including Mom and Dad. Bon appetit!
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