Desmond Tara Mataraza - Full belly: good eats for a healthy pregnancy

To my children,

Abigail, Timothy, and Miles,

who inspire me to eat better and

be better every day

Copyright 2014 by Tara Mataraza Desmond

Published by Running Press,

A Member of the Perseus Books Group

All rights reserved under the Pan-American and International Copyright Conventions

This book may not be reproduced in whole or in part, in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system now known or hereafter invented, without written permission from the publisher.

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Library of Congress Control Number: 2013951597

E-book ISBN 978-0-7624-5530-0

9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Digit on the right indicates the number of this printing

Designed by Frances J. Soo Ping Chow

Edited by Kristen Green Wiewora

Food Stylist: Carrie Purcell

Assistant Food Stylist: Monica Pierini

Prop Stylist: Mariellen Melker

Typography: Avenir, Maxwell Slab, The Carpenter, and Univers

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Contents

It takes a village to raise a baby and to write a book. I am endlessly grateful for my village for helping me birth Full Belly.

Clare Pelino, my agent who ushered this book along. My editor, Kristen Green Wiewora, whose practical nature made it easy to talk through the details, from concept to design, and who brought my family homemade burritos in the dizzying days after our twins were born. The burritos were so good I included them in this book (, page 188). Photographer Steve Legato for his artistic talent and easy-going temperament that made me feel like less of a weirdo while he snapped pictures of me cooking and eating at six months pregnant with twins. Food stylists Carrie Purcell and Monica Pierini for making the food as photogenic as a sweet new baby. Frances Soo Ping Chow for designing a book to catch the attention of overwhelmed moms-to-be who could use something good to eat.

Shirley Fan for balancing her professional contributions as a registered dietitian with her personal experience as a mother and cookbook author herself. Her down-to-earth demeanor made complex nutrition issues understandable and translatable to an important population of expectant mothers. Thanks, too, to Chad Borkenhagen for guiding us through a few snafus with his technical aptitude, saving us from pain worse than pregnancy heartburn.

Clare Leschin-Hoar, Sam Beebe, and Rebecca and Fred Gerendasy for helpful guidance navigating the murky waters of safe fish consumption. Hannah Holena for suggestions and particulars from the world of midwifery.

Allyson Evans and Craig Line, who worked tirelessly and enthusiastically with me to perfect several recipes in this book, especially (page 93). Cheryl Sternman Rule for support that can only come from someone who knows firsthand the professional and also deeply personal ins and outs of this business. Liz Pollitt Paisner and Maureen Petrosky, whose empathetic correspondence lifted me up out of the misery of the sick start of my second pregnancy. Jennifer Lindner McGlinn, whose gift of homemade gingersnaps during my first pregnancy spurred the idea for the ginger cookies in this book.

Full Belly survey participants, who shared their stories, often deeply personal and frequently very funny. They helped make this book even more personable through the Belly-to-Belly sections.

The recipe testers who went to work in their kitchens to make Full Belly dependable and satisfying for moms, their growing babies, and their families. They include: Cathy Baglieri, Caoimhe Beil, Deacon and Erika Chapin, Denise Downing, Allyson Evans, Gina Fenton, Tara Hoey, Craig Line, Jennifer Mataraza, Paula Mataraza, Kris Nelson, and Julie Solomon. Special thanks to Liz Tarpy for donating her professional competency in recipe development, which always helps me deliver something better. Also to Matt Grande, who helped with the administrative details of book-writing and whose commitment to testing recipes for pregnant women never wavered, despite being a man who will never become pregnant himself.

Thanks to my parents, Paula and John Mataraza, for taking care of my family and me when I was struggling through pregnancy and treading frantically after.

Collective thanks to my three kiddos, Abby, Tim, and Miles, whose smiles and giggles make every rough part of pregnancy worth it, and whose hugs confirm what a blessing and privilege pregnancy is in the first place.

My husband, Topher, for scooping the ice cream in celebration of good marks at prenatal checkups when we were expecting Abby; for buoying me with support and positivity through the months of the twin pregnancy when I could barely eat or function; and for being an example of everything good that I want our kids to be.

A cookbook for pregnant women is a brilliant idea, and Full Belly: Good Eats for a Healthy Pregnancy is a nourishing survival guide for moms-to-be. During pregnancy, nutrition is crucial and affects mothers and babies more than you probably think. I am an obstetrician/gynecologist with a masters degree in clinical nutrition. As the founder of a large ob/gyn group and a national weight-loss franchise, I practice obstetrics and weight-loss medicine simultaneously. I have firsthand experience with problems stemming from poor nutrition during pregnancy as well as the medical problems that perpetuate afterward. And I know the good that comes to mothers and babies from a well-nourished pregnancy.

There is a lack of education and knowledge about the health benefits of good, fresh food to our bodies and our unborn children. In fact, this cookbook reminds me to spend more time in my practice on nutritional counseling with my pregnant patients so theyll understand and embrace a lifestyle of eating well, not just for these forty weeks but for the years to come.

Full Belly offers tips and tricks for making healthful cooking and eating an easy priority. I am genuinely excited about this cookbook because, through both of my professions, I see that many young people are not equipped with the tools and know-how to prepare food and eat properly for themselves or their families. These months of pregnancy are bursting with inspiration and motivation to start fresh or to continue a commitment to making good food choices for your growing baby, yourself, and your brand new family.

Opting for fresh foods instead of processed ones and cooking for yourself will promote healthy weight gain and maximize the nutritional worth of a days intake. Whats more, these simple acts can prevent many of the nutrition and weight-related problems that plague our country, our mothers and children included. Lots of us eat too many meals at restaurants or on the go from fast food drive-throughs. Cooking skills that used to be passed from generation to generation are getting lost. Today, the time-honored home-cooked family meal is no longer the rule but the exception. This cookbook provides approachable, realistic ideas for healthy eating during pregnancy and beyond. Full Belly encourages parents to make the time to take care and provides hope for the return of the homemade family meal.