The Philips Avent Steamer cum Blender - it's like Steve Jobs for mommies.

I think Avent is a Steve Jobs for all mommies anywhere in the world. They have such brilliant creations that looks oh so simple yet work like a charm in most situations. I think they keep coming up with inventions to meet the needs of the majority of mommies and if you think that you don't quite need it, wait until you tried and tested the gadgets before realising yourself exhaling those loud "oohsss" and "aahhhs". Once you have it, you will ask yourself why you didn't get it earlier.

So today, I'd like to talk about something God sent, which will make everything seem so convenient, easy-peasy and no sweat.

This is the Philips Avent Blender cum Steamer which I bought during a promotion in myBBstore just a week ago. And if I had thought twice before getting this item, I was glad that I eventually bought it because cooking homemade healthy puree for my weaning baby has never felt this easy as 1,2,3 and A,B,C :D

Why do I say this is God's gift to mommykind? Well, it is such an amazing little product - a steamer and a blender in one, that making your precious' first tastes when he reaches 4-6 month old a wonderful experience to both baby and mommy. Why? Because it is gratifying for the mommy to know that her precious' first tastes comes from the creation of mommy herself and for the baby, he's getting all the right nutrients without compromising on quality nor taste.

I am not saying that there's anything wrong with mommies buying instant baby food from the supermarket. I am only saying that, with this little gadget, you seriously wouldn't imagine getting instant baby food because it makes making simple baby food absolutely simple, hassle-free and very very easy. In fact, if you have followed me from my previous experience preparing baby puree for Jada, this experience now with Jebat is even simpler, that I couldn't understand why Philips did not invent this 3 years ago! Just read on and you will see what I mean...

As per my other babies, I always start their first taste with a vegetable... and none other than carrots because it tastes wonderful when mixed with a little bit of milk. Why milk? Because in order for a baby to learn to start eating solids, it would help if the food that he's eating has a little bit of his usual milk, to help him familiarise with the food he's tasting.

Cut them carrots in small slices and it is ready to be steamed.

Before steaming, make sure you fill up the cup that comes with the blender to a suitable level that's marked.

See what I mean... if you click on the picture above, you will see an enlarged version. The cup is magic. It has the right level marked with the duration of the steamer. For carrots, I filled it up to 150ml which will allow the steamer to steam them carrots for 15 minutes.

Just turn the knob to the left and let the magic continue :)

Once there's the BEEP sound and the light turns off, we are ready to turn it upside down and this is something that amazes me more....

See, you can very clearly see some level of water from the steam at the bottom of the blender. If you read the instructions of any cook book, they might tell you to scoop some water from the steamed or boiled carrots that are cooked the conservative way. Here, you do not need to worry about water from the bottom of the steamer that you're supposed to add before you blend because *walah*.... there it is! *screams in glee*

And I should then just turn the knob to the right for it to blend and *walah*... in less than 1 minute, the blended carrots for my tiny knight in diaper is ready *clap clap clap*

So mommies, you had just eliminated having to transfer steamed/boiled food into a blender, you do not need to wash additional items like the large steamer nor do you need to gasp when you realised that the carrots on your pan has dried up to a brown colour ;P yes, moi had that experience while waiting for the carrots to boil in 15 minutes and ended up smelling burnt carrots when moi was occupied with some work in the living room!

I had also eliminated the hassle of washing a large blender or the little parts of the hand blender. Instead, am so happy to let you know that I only need to wash this little piece of magic and the parts are really really easy to clean *beaming with joy*

The best part... was probably also that the gadget came with good recipes in three stages of the baby's age. This, is in addition to the Annabel Karmel recipe book I always refer to and since many have told me how difficult it is to obtain her book, the recipes that came with the blender cum steamer is already quite good.

this is carrot + sweet potato.

this is just apples. And there are more recipes...

My only complaint is that it's power cord is way too short that I needed to use that little base as a temporary measure since I was so excited to get going with it immediately... as soon as I unboxed and cleaned it :) But, it is not a big deal and nothing major.

You may also find it a little smallish but I love that it is that perfect in size because it eliminates from me overdoing it. I remembered how it was before when I was happily cooking them stuff but once they've all cooled down, I realised that I didn't have enough ice-cube trays to store all those different purees.

With this wonderful gadget, all the purees I made was enough to fit one ice-cube tray and I was able to make 4 different purees in less than 2 hours. Of course, I only made carrots, potatoes, sweet potatoes and apples, all suitable for Jebat's first tastes before moving on later to mixing them up together and adding other textures and tastes. Oh, and like before, when it comes to rice, I went to my trusted Nestle Nestum for the instant rice with milk because cooking rice would be too cumbersome at this stage and I shall only cook them rice later when he is ready for a mix of tastes. Now, with just his first tastes, I am only introducing him to one type of taste at one time.

Oh, and the green spatula on the photo above completes the magic on a perfect note as it scoops the right amount of food into the ice-cube trays and left no traces of food inside the blender.

And did I mention that everything was easy-peasy? It's easy peasy kacang putih... as if I am working on my MacBook Air with all the right short cuts and efficiency :D

Once it has cooled off (which is almost immediately with this small scoop!), I was ready to feed Jebat his carrots and what a magical experience it was, not having to sweat under the heat from the fire on the stove nor the steam coming out from a large steamer...

A happy baby eating his potatoes during dinner because mommy got so excited with them carrots that we didn't take any shots ;)

If you think you're a bad mom for buying instant food from the jar, don't feel bad. I wanted to do just the same as I am always tired from work and have no energy left to think about preparing purees. But if you still feel bad and want to do something about it, do get this item... I promise you, you will not regret it.

I got it at a discounted price of RM350 from it's RM459 original price tag. I am not sure if the promotion is still on so go check it out.

I am a heavy user of Avent where I have the duo pump, hoards of bottles, food/breastmilk storage, microwave steriliser, electric steriliser and the bottle/food warmer, apart from this item. Are you a big fan of Avent like moi?