I haven't used many of the recipes, beyond the basic tips: bake or steam and blend, but I've consulted two of the tables over and over. One of them gives recommendations on what age to start various foods (although some foods with recipes in the book, like lentils, are inexplicably left out). The other, and probably the most useful, is sample menus for a four-to-six-month-old baby, 8-to-10-month-old baby, etc. This one not only gives the approximate caloric value for different kinds of foods (because do you know how many calories there are in a tablespoon of sugar snap pea puree? I didn't) but also gives an idea of how much of each kind of food (carbohydrates, fruits, veggies, meats) to offer each day to give the baby the right mix of nutrients.
I don't know that this is the best baby food book on the market. I didn't shop around: my mom bought it for me (at a real live bookstore, so you can shop before you buy). There are a couple of other books on amazon that I find intriguing, especially because it looks like they have more recipes. I think if I had a book like that I might cook for all of us out of it, and add spices to my portion and Matt's. But I don't.
I've also used the internet. Surprise. In fact there is an amazing amount of information on baby food making on google, so I don't know that I'd say anyone needs to buy a book. I definitely don't think I'd start by buying one if you're not sure yet that you want to commit to making baby food.
Unfortunately, a lot of the information you read is repeated from website to website. There are, however, some sites with a lot of real information and guidance:
- wholesomebabyfood.com
- Homemade baby food recipes -- they have a particularly good finger foods page, and their preparation and storage tips are among the clearest and most complete (this is the information you find everywhere, but their presentation is very good)
Thomas is crying, so more later. Stay tuned for the uses of yogurt.
