Feeding Baby: Simple, Healthy Recipes for Babies and Their Families

Our children both adore the recipes in this cookbook. The recipes are really easy to make, and it introduces food items that aren't common on a children's menu (or should I say "a junk food menu" since that's all that ever appears on one). My daughter loves the creamed spinach recipe, as well as the celery root puree, and our son loves the braised pork with apricots more than any other recipe in the book. He's at a very picky age too, so keeping his palette on the advanced side, versus serving him trash like Gerber and macaroni and cheese, is one of the best ways to avoid him sliding into the land of toddler food. I am still laughing over a reviewer's complaint that the authors claim their book highlights and utilizes "honest, simple food", when his/her version of "honest, simple food" is Gerber (what a bunch of junk), mac and cheese, mushed up peas, etc. Not only are those foods not honest (ever stop to think about what goes into jarred Gerber food? Boxed mac and cheese? Jarred and boxed food is so inferior to homemade baby food), they're not simple. Mac and cheese from a box and jarred Gerber food are so loaded with preservatives and chemicals to give them shelf life...nothing simple about their ingredient list at all. Even more amusing, this is after he/she admitted to the family pediatrician that the pantry at home was bare bones and he/she wasn't into cooking...hence why the pediatrician suggested this book. Maybe the doc was trying you something, ya think?? I firmly believe that it's ridiculous to prepare separate meals for everyone...toddler food for the little ones, a "real meal" for mom and dad. How can anyone expect their children to like decent food if they don't expose them to it? If anyone is looking for a cookbook for your children that has recipes that are enjoyable for everyone, this is the book for you. The recipes are fantastic, and they really are easy.

Our goal was to raise our daughter to be a willing and adventurous eater, and to steer her clear of the usual all-American pitfalls of corn syrup, sugars, salts, etc that come with jarred baby food and formula (she never had any of that...perhaps a spoonful of rice cereal before we tossed it all out). This cookbook is very much about raising children in a foodie family, where the adults aren't eating processed foods, and are more likely to be getting fresh and rare items for the kitchen. The recipes themselves are almost immaterial - I think the real asset in this book is how beautifully it promotes a very European ethic in feeding your children properly, not bringing up picky eaters and spending too much money on "for kids" branded foods loaded with yech. The proof of its value to me (we got it as a gift) is that my daughter loved the dishes we prepared for her, without fail, and now, at 3 and a half, we get shocked looks from friends when we bring her to restaurants and others' houses for meals and she is happy to eat what the grown-ups are eating. LOVE IT!

why didn't i think to make such good food for my daughter BEFORE i read this book?! she is 9 mos. and every recipe i've tried from this book has been a hit with her and me and my husband. we can all sit down together for an enjoyable meal. what a treat! to those who may find the ingredients elusive or expensive, simply substitute what you do have in season or available. modify the recipes as you need to, just remember, your baby wants to eat what you eat, and you will find these recipes DELICIOUS and easy.

The recipes in "Feeding Baby" are hit and miss, because the ingredients are either too difficult to find, or too expensive for most people. The remaining recipes are incredibly tasty, however. I would recommend this book to compliment other baby food books and not as a stand-alone source.

Joachim and Christine Splichal invite us into their home as they raise their twin boys, giving us a taste of good food in a family setting. I like their emphasis on easy preparation, and simple ingredients, presented in an age-appropriate progression. Each chapter helps focus on different stages in a baby's eating development, from the first solid foods on. Although tips are scattered throughout the book, I wish there was a chart in an appendix that outlines suggestions for which foods to start at which age.I agree with Joachim and Christine that children should enjoy meals with their parents, eating age-appropriate versions of what is prepared for the whole family. I have fixed the Splichals' meals for my husband and myself, eagerly anticipating sharing them with our daughter (now 6-months old).The bibliography of recommended readings is especially helpful to learn more about healthy nutrition for babies -- and their families, too!