The best Baby Food Cooking books: Reddit reviews

From 3.5 billion Reddit comments

yes! Baby-led weaning was awesome. Basically as soon as my daughter was old enough to sit upright on her own (around 6 months) we started feeding her the exact same food we eat ourselves (supplementing w/ a bottle of course). The only exceptions are some dangerous things like large pieces of meat that require chewing, round things like blueberries and grapes, or things that baby's bodies can't quite deal with yet like raw meat and fish.

I wrote a long guide to getting my toddler to eat, which I think is worth a read. The real keys are to make sure they're involved in meal planning and preparation. nobody likes being told what to do, even toddlers and babies, so you need to make sure they feel empowered and like they have control over their own bodies and what goes into them.

It might be worth looking up baby led weaning, i know he's not a baby but theres great info about different textures/approaches for different ages. By nearly 2 my kids was eating nearly the same meals as us (mostly just spice that was different)

This book is great https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1615195580/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_glt_fabc_7MFB3776XV6A6KTZWE85

But I also think that a chat with the gp or health visitor might be a good plan

Not sure if you're interested in baby led feeding but if so I got lots of recipes and help from this book: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/0544963407/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_glt_i_2YHY10RTWEYJ4551HGW8.

It went really well with my girls, and it was nice to not have to rely on spoon feeding both of them at the same time all the time.

We did Baby Led Weaning starting right around six months. Started with extra ripe bananas and avocados. Best decision we ever made as we had twins. We never puréed anything and never had to spoon feed them. Ever. Bought this Dust Buster to take care of the messy floors.

Pro-tip: shot glasses make perfect water glasses for tiny hands!

FYI Gill Rapley has two books, this one is the cookbook. It also has the philosophy but in not as much depth as the original book. 130 recipes, I read it with my first BLW baby and remember enjoying it.

Honestly though, if you love to cook I would focus on what you already love to make. Adapt as necessary. I.e. If you love spaghetti shape your meatballs into finger shapes instead of balls. Pick up some plain Greek yogurt to tone down spice for curry chicken. Sweeten your oatmeal with fresh fruit instead of honey etc

I have been cooking and freezing my way through this book. The Baby-Led Weaning Cookbook: Delicious Recipes That Will Help Your Baby Learn to Eat Solid Foods―and That the Whole Family Will Enjoy https://www.amazon.com/dp/161519049X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_iSs2FbMYEN8D3. Just made cod fish sticks and froze some last night. Basically make sure no bones, cut into fingers, dip in egg, roll in cornmeal/flour mixture and fry in butter or oil on at least two sides. SOO many of these recipes are freezable and the book is designed to make 2 adult, 1 baby portions. I just add salt to my individual food. Also, low sodium canned green beans. Frozen strawberries. Things like that for a quick side. I also roast sweet potato fries and freeze in big batches.

Super helpful for me was the Big Book of Organic Baby Food. You can find it on Amazon. We also have an instant pot which I used to steam food, and a small little Ninja food processor for pureeing. Finally, these silicone freezer molds are great for making a big batch and storing.

The Big Book of Organic Baby Food: Baby Purées, Finger Foods, and Toddler Meals For Every Stage https://www.amazon.com/dp/1943451524/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_fabt1_ynTQFb2VA43MJ?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

WeeSprout Silicone Baby Food Freezer Tray with Clip-on Lid by WeeSprout - Perfect Storage Container for Homemade Baby Food, Vegetable & Fruit Purees and Breast Milk - BPA Free https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LZI32UV/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_fabt1_doTQFbFCHAJPA

No worries at all, I love talking about my BLW experiences! Unless something was overly salty (I have high blood pressure and it's unlikely due to excess salt but I wanted to be on the safe side) or spicy I just gave it to my kid as-is. So if we had steak, I just made some extra and cut it up in big chunks and he nommed on it as much as he wanted to. I have a picture of him eating turkey and sweet potatoes at Thanksgiving and it was the same stuff we ate (well, we didn't give him the marshmallow topping. :P) and he was 7 months old at the time. My ex and I were big on sushi as well so we would give him cooked crab and rice and he loved that as well.

There's a ton of resources on BLW on the web but I actually found the book really comprehensive and it had information I didn't find on other websites, so I'd recommend picking up a copy if it's available at your library or whatever. Otherwise, it's pretty cheap on Amazon.

>Am I fucked for hoping she will get back into fitness and working out eventually??

I don't know, but I have some ideas. Set some good examples, and see if you can get her to follow you.

There are gyms that have kid care. Most YMCAs have at least some hours where you can park your kids in the kid care and go work out. If you're not a stroller dad, where you go run a 5k pushing your kids, be that dad.

If you never do any of the cooking, step up and cook some good shit. https://www.amazon.com/Baby-Led-Weaning-Cookbook-Delicious-Foods_and/dp/161519049X

Buy that book and make some recipes. One of the recipes in there is homemade chicken nuggets. Your kids will like them, and voila, you made a non-terrible meal.

I'm not at this point yet, but my friend who has a 9.5 month old loves this book: Baby-Led Feeding: A Natural Way to Raise Happy, Independent Eaters

My mom and brother are really good cooks and live for America's Test Kitchen, the show, cookbooks, magazines, website, etc. They have my their baby and toddlers cookbook and I really like it. Everything from purées to finger foods with tips and suggested products to help.

The Complete Baby and Toddler... https://www.amazon.ca/dp/1492677671?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

At 8 months you are fine trying different kinds of cups instead of a bottle for the milk. Try some sippy cups, straw cups, the 360 cup, etc. Baby does still need breastmilk or formula, but the method of delivery is up to you (or up to baby).

Is your baby on purees or BLW? I started with purees and used this book for inspo, but it also has some recipes later on that are not just purees. At 8 months we had started to introduce finger foods. Lots of cooked and small-cut veggies, mostly.

This one is pretty good!

Ground beef, salmon, small amounts of rice, fruit like banana and strawberry, plain cheerios, tater tots or cauliflower tater tots ... I have a LO exact same age as you and the kid is already eating me out of house and home lol there's a cook book I bought on amazon that has purees and finger foods and whole meals

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1492677671?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

We started with this book.

But you'll want to start with single-ingredient purees and then do blends later. My baby loved sweet potato and would eat almost anything that was blended with sweet potato. For fruits, banana is great to blend with for the creamier texture.

We also got this baby food maker that meant all we had to do was pretty much chop things and put them in.

Sounds like they are ready for solids. This book is amazing: Baby-Led Weaning: The Essential Guide to Introducing Solid Foods-and Helping Your Baby to Grow Up a Happy and Confident Eater https://www.amazon.com/dp/161519021X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_TGAZ9TVZA8R6CP7DRN9A

We started with purees and some attempts at BLW (that all ended up on the floor lol)

There's nothing wrong with doing a mix and seeing what's good for you. I recommend this book- https://www.amazon.com/Baby-Led-Feeding-Natural-Independent-Eaters/dp/0544963407/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?adgrpid=109498160827&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI64XFn8Ph9wIVhmpvBB1mLg8rEAAYASAAEgIhvvD_BwE&hvadid=455795486785&hvdev=m&hvlocphy=9007215&hvn... ( Sorry long link)

Also, definitely get a drop cloth or something to put under the high chair so cleanup is less of a pain. There are also a lot of bib options to keep baby from getting too messy. The best one is the grabease all over bib for coverage, with the down side that my baby hates it lol plus you won't be able to use suction plates with it. We've had success with the smock style bib and a lot of people swear by the silicone bib that has a little pocket so food falls into it instead of baby's lap.

The Pediatrician's Guide to Feeding Babies and Toddlers: Practical Answers To Your Questions on Nutrition, Starting Solids, Allergies, Picky Eating, and More (For Parents, By Parents) https://www.amazon.com/dp/1607749017/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_i_C0VYK878E9Q558CBX7MR

I found this book an extremely helpful starting point and it was a reliable reference for the first three years. It included concise explanations, convenient summary charts, and recipies. It is authored by Dr. Anthony Porto and Dr. Dina DiMaggio, both of whom have exceptional experience in this subject matter.

I think you just have to find what works best for you. We did a mix of BLW and purées. I started with sweet potatoes around 5/6 months, and would purée them with breastmilk, then avocados. Once he got the hang of those, I was super confused on where to go from there, so I got this book from Amazon, and it helped a bunch! I learned what kinds of foods I could give him and how to cut it for his age. So I didn’t necessarily follow it where I only gave him exactly what we were eating- I used it to know how to cut certain foods so they were safe and which foods we could try. If I didn’t feel comfortable giving him what we were having, I would give him an alternative. He’s been such a good eater, but the whole introduction to solids is hard! Book I got from Amazon

I second this! It’s amazing.

I also found this book really helpful: Baby-Led Feeding: A Natural Way to Raise Happy, Independent Eaters https://www.amazon.ca/dp/0544963407/ref=cm_sw_r_awdo_DCKRVR9QKCTS58KSN9XV

Between the two you’re all set.

Baby Led Weaning

I loved this book!

Thank you! And I think we’re going to actually go right into baby led weaning. I read this book to learn more about it and think that’s going to be our way to go. I still think I’ll do a few days to a week of some purées to begin with to get him used to the spoon and it’ll be a good gateway into the change of texture in my opinion. Wish us luck!

I like Baby Led Feeding a lot. My kids have liked everything that I’ve made so far (2 year old included!) Happy Healthy Eaters also has some really good recipes.

I agree with the above. I found that making the food at home was SIGNIGICANYLY cheaper as well. I have stuck to this for all 3 of my kids. Here's the recipe/how to book I like: The Big Book of Organic Baby Food: Baby Purées, Finger Foods, and Toddler Meals For Every Stage (Organic Foods for Baby and Toddler) https://smile.amazon.com/dp/1943451524/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apan_glt_i_YZPDYN8GKNKC8PGWY44W

baby led weaning helps your baby develop the motor skills necessary not to choke. read this book Baby-Led Weaning, Completely... https://www.amazon.com/dp/1615195580?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

and follow solidstarts on IG

WRONG WRONG WRONG. Formula is a completely made up food and not necessary. Breastmilk is the best nutrition for your child. does he know that breastfeeding helps protect mom from diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular disease ? Breastfeeding protects his child from SIDS? does he know there would be no human species without breastmilk? does he realize how amazing you are doing at breastfeeding? does he realize how lucky is to have someone who puts in the hard work to breastfeed? you are helping protect your baby from disease, setting up a great gut micrbiome which can help prevent obesity in the future? i really could go on..

and you don’t even need purées. looking into baby led weaning. follow solidstarts on IG (https://instagram.com/solidstarts?utm_medium=copy_link) book

Baby-Led Weaning, Completely... https://www.amazon.com/dp/1615195580?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

and if he doesn’t get then let me call him!

I wonder if it's a shipping thing? Glass is much heavier, takes up more space, and more prone to breaking during shipping, so I imagine it costs more to ship and the "premium" foods can't absorb the additional cost.

I went with a combination of store bought pouches and home made puree. I bought The Complete Baby and Toddler Cookbook from America's Test Kitchen, they have a ton of great puree recipes (and it goes way beyond purees, so it doesn't become useless once your baby 'graduates' from purees). I'd make like 4 different recipes at a time and just freeze it in ice cube trays, then transfer to a freezer bag. We also kinda did baby led weaning, but super relaxed (I didn't even read the book, lol). Whatever works to keep him fed with the least amount of thinking on my part is what I went (and still go) with 🤣

Link to book

Check out this book. It has lots of examples on how to safely feed your child just about anything an adult would eat. It also talks about allergens, choking hazards, etc. great place to start if you’re in over your head.

Baby-Led Weaning. Don't force it, just put the food in front of them and let them figure it out :)

Here's a book, but there are plenty others too: https://www.amazon.com/Baby-Led-Weaning-Essential-Introducing-Foods/dp/161519021X

Actually, there’s an amazing book for making baby food according to your baby’s age! We have it on our baby shower registry. You’d like it, I think. :)

The Complete Baby and Toddler Cookbook: The Very Best Baby and Toddler Food Recipe Book (America's Test Kitchen Kids) https://www.amazon.com/dp/1492677671/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_BRT4P66GRS7SGG09YKNG

It’s made by the creators of America’s Test Kitchen! So you know it’s good stuff. Heheh.