Lee John - Start fresh : your childs jump start to lifelong healthy eating

The Basics

GETTING
STARTED

Making baby food is easy, so were not talking about accumulating a lot of unnecessary kitchen equipment. As a matter of fact, you probably already have everything youll need on hand. Most of the recipes in this book use one of two cooking methods: steaming or roasting. Both are very straightforward techniques that can be accomplished with just a few essential pieces of equipment.

Youll need a large pot with a tight-fitting lid. If you find a pot that comes with its own steamer basket that fits inside, fantastic; if not, you can manage just fine without ita pasta colander that can sit over the pot or a collapsible steamer insert that fits inside works just as well. A Chinese bamboo steamer with a tight-fitting lid is also amazing for steaming tender vegetables. They are really cheap and they last a really long time. Ive had mine for years. So take your pick. And thats it. Pretty simple, right?

Roasting is even easier than steaming. All youll need are a few baking sheets and your oven. Dont cook on flimsy cookie sheets; go for sturdy rimmed baking sheets. You can pick them up at most kitchen stores or, if you want to go on a field trip, check out a local restaurant supply store. (Look it up online; every town has one.) They will have rimmed baking sheets, which are called sheet pans. Ask for a half-sheet pan, which measures 18 x 13 inches; most home ovens cannot accommodate a full-sheet pan, which is 18 x 26 inches. They will also have everything that makes a restaurant tick. I can spend hours in a restaurant supply shop.

To make supersmooth purees for very young babies starting on solid food for the first time, I prefer a blender to a food processor because it produces a much smoother puree. (If you want to splurge, a high-speed blender does the job best and most quickly of all.) While a food processor can chop foods finely, it doesnt truly puree the way a blender does. Once your baby is ready for purees with a little texture, around when they start getting teeth, you can switch to a food processor and pulse or grind the food to the texture you and your baby prefer, from coarse to fine.

Most of the recipes in this book make 6 to 8 child-size servings, which allows you to put several portions in the bank for future meals each time you cook for your baby. Fortunately most purees reheat very well as long as they are stored properly. So how do you keep and reheat food safely? The best way to store baby food in the fridge or freezer is in BPA-free plastic storage containers. Place pureed or fork-mashed foods in a storage container just large enough to hold it and cover tightly; the food can then be refrigerated for one or two days. If you havent used all the leftovers within about 48 hours, you can freeze anything that remains. Spoon the puree into ice cube trays and freeze until solid, then transfer to freezer-weight plastic bags to store and defrost as needed. (Each cube is equal to about 2 tablespoons.) Be sure to press as much air out of the bag as possible and label the bag with the date and contents. Frozen foods should be used within one month.

To reheat, allow frozen food to defrost overnight in the refrigerator or transfer directly from the freezer to the microwave; never defrost at room temperature, as this can allow harmful bacteria to develop. No plastic containers of any kind should be used when reheating baby food in the microwave; transfer the food to a container made of lead-free porcelain, a glass bowl, or lead-free table china.

Reheat at 50 percent power in 60-second increments, stirring each time to eliminate any hot spots. You can also reheat it in a saucepan over low heat, stirring often to prevent scorching or sticking. In either case, reheat just until warm, not hot, and always test for temperature before offering to your baby.

In the last year or two, a lot of very valuable information about storing food and water in plastics and, most importantly, reheating in plastics has come to light.

Bisphenol A (also called BPA) and phthalates are chemical softeners that make hard plastic soft and moldable. These softening agents are found in everything from plastic wrap and plastic food storage bags to plastic food containers, baby bottles, childrens toys, and sippy cups.

Bisphenol A has been used in industrial plastic production since the 1930s and is known as an environmental estrogen, which, once ingested, acts as a hormone disrupter. It has been linked to breast cancer, fetal brain developmental issues, obesity, disruption of thyroid function, early puberty (in girls), and increased risk of cancer. In short, nothing you want anywhere near your childs food.

In 2008, a team of scientists from the University of Cincinnati found that when both new and used polycarbonate sport bottles were exposed to boiling water, BPA was released into the water inside the bottle at a level 55 times higher than when the same plastic bottles were exposed to room-temperature water. These findings sent justifiable waves of concern throughout the world, with Canada and the European Union quickly banning the use of BPA in baby bottle production. In 2010, Canada banned all BPA plastic production and classified the chemical as toxic.

Although the United States has not yet taken sweeping steps to ban the chemical, in March of 2009, bills were introduced in both houses of Congress to ban the use of BPA in all food and beverage containers.

Introduced in the House by Rep. Edward Markey of Massachusetts and in the Senate by Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, the proposed legislation would ban the sale of any reusable consumer beverage products and containers like baby bottles and sippy cups that contain BPA and prohibit other food and beverage containers, including those for canned foods and formula, that contain the chemical from entering the market.

On BPA plastics, Senator Feinstein writes:

I have been working hard to get BPA out of our food products, but have been blocked by chemical company lobbyists. We have made some progress with some major manufacturers and retailers who have begun to phase out their BPA products.

Im not going to give up and am currently working to pass legislation that will get this chemical out of our childrens products. Moms, dads, grandparents, and other consumers and voters all over the country have written to me asking for BPA to b e removed from their products. We should not use our kids as guinea pigs with a chemical that can seriously harm their immediate and long-term health. I encourage everyone to write to their members of Congress about this issue and continue to look for those companies that are already using BPA alternatives.

At the time of writing Start Fresh in January of 2011, the BPA-Free Kids Act has been reintroduced into Congress by Representative Markey and Senator Feinstein. Lets hope this time it sticks. In the meantime, legislation has been introduced in 30 states across the country to ban BPA plastics locally. Lawmakers are getting pressure from constituents coast to coast to get this chemical out of the marketplace.