Baby food can be pricey, but you can save money by making your own.

Many people are finding that it's not as time consuming as they once thought.

But many modern new mommies are giving it a try and forfeiting those little jars in favor of a healthier and cheaper alternative.

New mom Megan Moore was skeptical.

"At first, I thought it was a little overwhelming, that when would I have time to take care of the baby and make the food," Moore said. "It seemed like shopping would be easier, but I found it didn't take too much time and I could do it pretty easily."

There are lots of books and tools on the market now showing parents step by step just how to make it.

All you really need are some basic tools that you probably already have:

A food processor or blender

A few ice cube trays

Some plastic freezer bags

The food

An average jar of sweet potatoes is 59 cents. With two sweet potatoes that cost just less than $2, NBC 10 was able to make more than a dozen servings.

Shannon Rickerts said she loves knowing exactly what's in the food she feeds her baby and she loves the savings.

"It would have cost $6 or $7, but I was able to buy it for under $2," Rickerts said.

"You're probably looking at saving 70 percent. I would think that the same amount of baby food that you home make is at least one-sixth the cost," author Ruth Yaron said.

Yaron said the health benefits are priceless. She said homemade food has just the basics, while jarred baby food may have preservatives and additives.

"Food is a big business and the manufacturer of the food and the processor of the food doesn't always care about your health. They care about the bottom line-profits," Yaron said.

So there are the health benefits and the big savings, but back to Moore's first concern: how much time it would take.

"You can make batches of baby food in a couple of hours, maybe a week's worth in a couple of hours," Yaron said.

"I guess it just takes the time to shop for the groceries, which I would do anyways and about half an hour once a week to make eveything I'd need for the week, putting it in the freezer and I'm good to go," Moore said.

Links:

Super Baby Food By Ruth Yaron

Happy Baby Products

Fresh Baby

Pregnancy Store