Homemade Fruit to Go

Monkey man is in love with these. Seriously! At play dates if anyone else has one he will steal it from them if I don't get his out.

 

The best thing about these is that he can hold them himself and usually doesn't make a mess with them. They fit in any bag we are toting that day. They really are a lifesaver. However, I can't handle the price of them. He can go through up to 2 of them a day and at between $0.60 and $1 each the price can really add up. I had to figure out how to cut the cost of them.

I set out to experiment and find new ways to get him what he wants and not go broke in the process.

I thought why not use a large jar of applesauce and refill? After all that is all that is in those pouches. Flavored applesauce. Best part is you can control what goes in there. I am planning on using homemade applesauce later in the summer when I can get some made. Ok so refill product is established, but how to get it in that little tiny hole? A funnel will just make a huge mess. Then I thought why not a turkey baster? Perfect fit. Makes refill a snap.

Now for the instructions.

Start with a stack of cleaned empty pouches. I clean them by running scalding hot water through them. Since they are a smooth surface there is no place for things to hide. Hot water works great. If you want you could add some soap to it, however it may be difficult to get all the soap residue out.

Next get your filling. AKA applesauce. Make sure it is flavored however you want it once it is done. This is your last chance to change anything about it.

Fill your turkey baster. One tip would be don't squeeze too much air out because you want to be able to have extra air to push it out. Fill it almost all the way to the top

This it getting to the bottom of the bottle but still able to get more out.

Next line up the opening of the baster with the opening of the pouch. Make sure your pouch is squeezed flat. As little air as possible inside. If you start with it full your applesauce will be fighting against the air. If it is empty there is nothing to have to come back out. 

Finish filling them all up and let your little one enjoy their treat and you enjoy not spending the whole grocery budget on these little pouches.