Chatagnier - First bites: homemade, nourishing recipes from baby spoonfuls to toddler treats

Copyright 2017 by Leigh Ann Chatagnier All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without the express written consent of the publisher, except in the case of brief excerpts in critical reviews or articles. All inquiries should be addressed to Skyhorse Publishing, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018. Skyhorse Publishing books may be purchased in bulk at special discounts for sales promotion, corporate gifts, fund-raising, or educational purposes. Special editions can also be created to specifications. For details, contact the Special Sales Department, Skyhorse Publishing, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018 or .

Skyhorse and Skyhorse Publishing are registered trademarks of Skyhorse Publishing, Inc., a Delaware corporation. Visit our website at www.skyhorsepublishing.com. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available on file. Cover design by Jenny Zemanek Cover photograph by Leigh Ann Chatagnier Print ISBN: 978-1-5107-2401-3 Ebook ISBN: 978-1-5107-2403-7 Printed in China To the most delicious thing Ive ever had a hand in creating, my son Parks. Thank you for making me a mommy and opening up my heart to a whole new kind of love. My hope for you is that your appetite for life will stay as big as your appetite for all the delicious things you will taste.

Love well, eat well, and go after all the things your heart desiresbecause life is short and these are the things that matter. I love you as big as the beach always and forever! XX Contents Introduction When I became pregnant with my son Parks, I knew I would be making all his food, no question. The thought of tantalizing his tiny taste buds with new flavors and textures made me so excited! I couldnt wait to share my love of real food with him. Instilling healthy eating habits from an early age has always been a top priority to me and with that, I also wanted his food to be packed full of flavor. After all, why should baby food be lacking in the taste department? They want to eat yummy things too! I couldnt wait until Parks was finally old enough to start introducing him to solids, and I do mean that I counted down the days I have always had so much fun creating flavor combinations with foods that I know are good for his rapidly growing body and that he loves alsohis little mmm s are music to my ears! I am a food enthusiast through and through. I have always loved being in the kitchen, and cooking for my family is something that brings me so much joy.

When my guys clean their plates, I get the utmost satisfaction of not only knowing that their food tasted great, but also that it was really good for them too. My husband and I have always eaten real food, and by that I mean non-processed ingredients that are preferably sourced locally when possible. I think its important that babies get the chance to eat this way too, and to me, making their food from scratch is the only way to truly do that. From a cost perspective, all the way to simply knowing the ingredients your child is eating, there are a multitude of reasons why homemade is the way to go. Getting your baby involved in the process of cooking from the start, even if that only means he or she is beating on pots and pans on the floor, gives your child a better opportunity to appreciate what they are eating later in life! When kids help prepare the food they eat, they are more likely to make good choices for themselves. I grew up in the kitchen with my mom making healthy food, and nothing would give me greater joy than if my son enjoys being in the kitchen making delicious food as much as I do.

As a mom, I am a realist, and there is always a battle with time to get things accomplished. Planning and preparation is a huge part of making homemade baby food, but it can be done! There are going to be days when you just arent going to have the time to make a meal from scratch. Thats why in this book you will find recipes that you can make ahead and will freeze beautifully. Meal prepping in advance ensures that your little one has something nutritious and homemade to eat more times than not. When life gets busy, mamas tend to put themselves on the back burnerwhich is why I have also included a chapter of my favorite recipes just for moms. I eat these on a regular basis to keep my energy high, and they also keep me from snacking unhealthily when I dont have time for a sit-down meal! After all, mommies and daddies need to take care of themselves too in order for us to be our best selves for our kids.

In this book, I will show you how to take your baby on a journey of learning to love food (healthy food) right from the start! From the first bite they taste, up until they are at the dinner table eating homemade meals that were prepared for the whole family, my hope is that you will end up with a toddler who has a seasoned palate for good, healthy food. It is going to be so fun for you to watch your babys eyes light up with delight when they taste something delicious that you made for them with love! There is such satisfaction in knowing that your hard work is 100 percent worth it. My goal for you is that you will feel confident about the food you are making for your babies. I can only hope that you will find the joy I have in knowing you are nurturing the growth of a beautiful little human who truly needs nutritious, real food to keep up with their growing bodies. Its going to be so exciting when you end up with a little foodie who appreciates cooking and eating just as much as you do! Getting Started Organic vs. Non-Organic Which to Buy for What With so much hype about why to buy organic food, it can be overwhelming to decide when to buy organic and when not to.

With use of pesticides and chemicals being at an all-time high, organic tends to be the best option. I will be the first to admit that it can get a little costly at times, which can be a drawback for a lot of parents, including me. After all, one of the perks to making your own baby food is to save money, right? But even with organic food costing a little bit more, I have found that in most cases, it is still less expensive in the long run than buying already-prepared baby food. For instance, you can get 46 servings of baby food out of one single sweet potato! Thats incredibly cost effective if you break it down that way. Even if you decide that you cant swing buying organic all the time or at all, you are still doing amazing things for your baby! By giving them such a great start at being healthy and making them homemade food from fresh ingredients, you are exposing them to real food at an early age. This alone will in turn make them healthier children, teenagers, and adults.

You are shaping them into healthy individuals who will be aware of what they are putting into their bodies, and that is something to be extremely proud of! Certain foods contain higher levels of contaminants than others, and there is a list released every year naming the top produce items that are recommended to buy organic to avoid those chemicals. There is also a list of produce that is safe in its non-organic version because they havent been altered with as many contaminants. Heres a list of the dirty dozen vegetables and fruits that are recommended to buy organic, and the top twelve vegetables and fruits that are least contaminated, per the most recent information. Dirty Dozen (produce you should buy organic) Peaches Apples Bell Peppers Celery Nectarines Strawberries Cherries Pears Grapes (Imported) Spinach Lettuce Potatoes Twelve Least Contaminated (produce that doesnt always need to be organic) Onions Avocado Sweet Corn (Frozen) Pineapples Mango Asparagus Sweet Peas (Frozen) Kiwi Fruit Bananas Cabbage Broccoli Papaya As far as meat, dairy, and eggs go, I usually always buy organic when I can (if I can get it from a local farm, even better!). I am by no means an expert, just a mom who cares about the ingredients I am feeding my family, just like you. One of my favorite ways to save money is by visiting my local farmers market.