Renee Elliott - Top 100 Healthy Recipes for Babies and Toddlers: Delicious, Healthy Recipes for Purees, Finger Foods and Meals (Top 100 Recipes For...)

THE

TOP 100
HEALTHY RECIPES

FOR BABIES & TODDLERS

Rene Elliott

DELICIOUS, HEALTHY RECIPES FOR PURES, FINGER FOODS AND MEALS

THE

TOP 100
HEALTHY RECIPES

FOR BABIES & TODDLERS

KEY TO SYMBOLS

INTRODUCTION

Some people worry about giving their child a good education or getting him to excel at sports or a musical instrument, but for me the most important thing is health. You could have the brightest, most gifted, most well-educated child, but without good health, he wont go far. With good health he can achieve his dreams and fulfil his potential. And its easier to be happy when youre healthy.

WHY IS HEALTH SO IMPORTANT?

When I talk about health, Im not just talking about your child being well today or when hes a teenager. Im talking about creating health and healthy habits to last a lifetime. You can eat bad food for years and feel okaybut you could slowly be creating unease in your body that becomes disease as you age. Other factors like polluted air, chemically treated water, and of course, stress can all take their toll on the body. While you cant do much about those things, you can control what your family eats. What you put in their mouths are the ingredients that their bodies use to grow, nurture, and repair themselves. Before you start cooking, its important to think about the ingredients you give your body every day.

GOOD FOOD VS. BAD FOOD

The bad-food category includes highly processed, refined products such as store-bought cakes, breads, doughnuts, sausages, fast food, soft drinks, and sweets. Basic ingredients to avoid are hydrogenated fats, monosodium glutamate (MSG), and artificial flavorings, colorings, additives, and preservatives. Hydrogenated fats are laden with highly processed trans fats that the body cannot process. Theyre used because theyre cheap, easy to work with, and extend a foods shelf life. Artificial preservatives make bad, cheap food last longer than it should, and artificial flavors, colors, and additives make it look and taste better than it should. A chocolate chip cookie made with hydrogenated fat and artificial ingredients can sit on the supermarket shelf for months, losing what little nutritional value it has as it ages. The same cookie made with butter and natural ingredients will go out of date more quickly because its ingredients are perishable, but who wants to eat old food?

Good food comes directly from nature: fruit, vegetables, grains, nuts, seeds, dairy, fish, and meat. It does not contain chemicals or lots of additives. Good food is organic food. Organic products dont depend on chemical fertilizers, pesticides, additives or genetically modified ingredients, which are poisons that stay on our food, go into our water, and are pretty much everywhere on the planet now. If you want the best-quality food, buy organic. Its that simple. Research shows that organic food contains higher levels of some nutrients, including vitamin C; essential minerals, such as calcium, magnesium, and iron; cancer-fighting antioxidants; and omega-3 fats. If your budget doesnt allow organic meat, buy a little when you can and then provide protein through seeds, nuts, grains, beans, tempeh, yogurt, cheese, eggs, and fish instead. Remember that variety is always the best policy anyway, and eating less meat is better not only for human health but for the health of our environment.

GETTING STARTED

Now that you understand why good, natural, organic food is so important, its time to get started. The recipes in this book are easy, provide your baby with the best possible nutrition, and taste great. Whether its the food or the utensils youre using, make sure that everything you cook with is healthy for your child.

INGREDIENTS

Whole Grains: A grain is whole when it contains the bran, germ, and endosperm. The bran and germ of the grain are rich in fiber, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and healthy fats. The endosperm is high in simple carbohydrates and low in nutrients. When grain is refined, the bran and germ are removed, leaving just the endosperm. The body quickly breaks down the endosperms simple sugars and releases them into the bloodstream. This is one reason why eating refined grains and refined grain products, such as white flour, white bread, white rice, and white pasta, has such a harsh effect on blood sugar levels and energy. With whole grains, you know all the goodness is still inside. Whole grains add richness and variety to your diet. They can help lower the risk of type 2 diabetes and have been shown to protect against childhood asthma. Most people eat wheat regularly, and perhaps some rye, but its important to rotate these with other whole grains, such as amaranth, barley, buckwheat, brown rices (black, jasmine, red, and wild), corn, Kamut, millet, oats, quinoa, rye, and spelt.

Whole Spelt Flour: Use wholegrain spelt flour to make baked treats and snacks nutritious. You can easily change your existing recipes to use wholegrain, preferably spelt, flour. For breads and cookies, I use 100% whole spelt flour; for cupcakes, I use a 50/50 mixture of wholegrain and white spelt flours for a lighter texture. Spelt, a relative of wheat, is an ancient grain that, unlike wheat, has not been hybridized and manipulated over the years in order to make it easier to harvest and use.

Healthy Fats: Its important to realize that not all fat is bad. Good fats are monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, which include essential fatty acids that are vital to our diet, especially during childhood. They reduce the risk of cancer, heart disease, allergies, arthritis, eczema, depression, fatigue, infections, and more. Good fats include olive oil, flax oil, hemp oil, oily fish oils, nuts, and seeds. Yogurt, which isnt very high in fat, is another great choice, so buy full-fat plain yogurt for your baby. I like to cook with butter because its a good high-heat, natural fat. Avoid hydrogenated fats, including margarines that are made of hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated fats. If you want to use margarines, choose organic ones which are made with non-hydrogenated oils.