The Baby-Led Weaning Family Cookbook: Your Baby Learns to Eat Solid Foods, You Enjoy the Convenience of One Meal for Everyone

by Tracey Murkett, Gill Rapley

Overview

A National Parenting Product Award (NAPPA) Winner

Yes, your baby can join in at family mealtimes—right from the start!

Gill Rapley and Tracey Murkett are the creators of baby-led weaning (BLW), a commonsense way to introduce your baby to solid foods. There’s no need to struggle with purées and spoon-feeding! Instead, Baby can explore the same foods you enjoy—how they feel, smell, and taste; how to grasp them and chew them—all at his or her own pace.

The Baby-Led Weaning Family Cookbook includes 99 all-new recipes, many suited for families of 4 or more. Plus, Rapley and Murkett review all the benefits of BLW:

• It’s convenient: The whole family eats the same meal—together. No one puts Baby in the corner!
• It helps Baby learn: BLW builds motor skills, coordination, and confidence.
• It promotes lifelong health: By teaching Baby to love a variety of foods and to gauge fullness, BLW helps prevent picky eating, and overeating, later on!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781615193998
Publisher:	The Experiment, LLC
Publication date:	08/22/2017
Series:	The Authoritative Baby-Led Weaning Series
Pages:	192
Product dimensions:	7.10(w) x 9.20(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Gill Rapley, PhD, is known worldwide as the pioneer of baby-led weaning and is coauthor of the category-leading book series. She lives in Kent, England.

Tracey Murkett is a writer, journalist, and breastfeeding peer supporter. After following baby-led weaning with her own daughter, she wanted to let other parents know how enjoyable and stress-free mealtimes with babies and young children can be. She lives in London with her partner and their daughter.

Table of Contents

Part 1 Introduction 1

Part 2 Recipes 29

Brilliant Breakfasts 31

Really Fast Mains 41

On the Table in Less than 40 63

Quick Prep, Eat Later 79

On the Side 103

Super-Simple Dishes 125

Tasty Baked Goods 145

Delicious Desserts 163

Recipes to Take Out or Freeze 174

Index 180

Acknowledgments 186

Editorial Reviews

"I’ve been telling mothers for years that when babies start grabbing food from the table, they are ready for solids. I had the pleasure of observing this with my own children. What I love about this book is the joy and zest the authors put into parenting, their commonsense approach, and their faith that babies will do the right things for themselves when the time is right. Baby-led weaning is easy, and it makes parenting fun!"

Nikki Lee

"No purees, no ice cube trays, no food processor, no potato masher . . . just you and your child, eating food that you enjoy . . . [My baby] adored feeding herself while her parents ate their own meals. I can’t even begin to tell you how pleasant it is to eat in a restaurant with your Baby-Led Weaning child chomping on a piece of bread and butter or a chunk of cucumber from your salad beside you."

founder of babyledweaning.com Aitch

"Watching [baby Mirah] respond to the pleasures of ripe tomatoes, curried rice noodles, and all kinds of meats and vegetables has made mealtime a much more enjoyable experience for all three of us. We can tell she is learning through all of her senses . . . and since we are generally sharing the same meal, I am more likely to make us all something healthy."

Aimee Pohl

"It sounds like common sense: After all, would you want to be strapped into a high chair and force-fed spoon after spoon of bland vegetables? It’s surely much more exciting to be able to exercise a bit of control over your diet."

Guardian

Select Praise for Baby-Led Weaning

2011 National Parenting Publications Awards (NAPPA) Honors Award
 
“[Rapley and Murkett] encourage parents to forgo the usual baby puree and move straight to whole foods while continuing to breastfeed primarily after a baby is six months old. Their arguments are scientifically sound, especially when it comes to muscle development in the mouth, and they address the anticipated counterarguments. . . . If mine were little again, I would definitely try this. As long as mom is nursing, who says baby can’t eat lamb chops?”—Library Journal
 
“It sounds like common sense: After all, would you want to be strapped into a high chair and force-fed spoon after spoon of bland vegetables? It’s surely much more exciting to be able to exercise a bit of control over your diet.”—Guardian

“These recipes can help with time management. . . . Babies learn to eat while joining in the family fun with these unfussy meal ideas.”—Library Journal
 
“I’ve been telling mothers for years that when babies start grabbing food from the table, they are ready for solids. I had the pleasure of observing this with my own children. What I love about this book is the joy and zest the authors put into parenting, their commonsense approach, and their faith that babies will do the right things for themselves when the time is right. Baby-led weaning is easy, and it makes parenting fun!” —Nikki Lee, RN, MS, IBCLC
 
“Watching [baby Mirah] respond to the pleasures of ripe tomatoes, curried rice noodles, and all kinds of meats and vegetables has made mealtime a much more enjoyable experience for all three of us. We can tell she is learning through all of her senses . . . and since we are generally sharing the same meal, I am more likely to make us all something healthy.”
—Aimee Pohl, babble.com
 
“No purees, no ice cube trays, no food processor, no potato masher . . . just you and your child, eating food that you enjoy . . . [My baby] adored feeding herself while her parents ate their own meals. I can’t even begin to tell you how pleasant it is to eat in a restaurant with your Baby-Led Weaning child chomping on a piece of bread and butter or a chunk of cucumber from your salad beside you.”
—Aitch, founder of babyledweaning.com

From the Publisher

07/01/2017
Advocating for a "natural commonsense approach" and "shared meal times," this latest title in the Baby-Led books features journalist Murkett and nurse Rapley (coauthors, Baby-Led Breastfeeding) making it easier for home cooks to get a meal on the table with the baby in mind. The baby, in this case, is at least six months and can sit up. Safety rules are addressed as supervision is key during experimentation. Featured recipes include Thai chicken balls with cucumber salad, crunchy fish fingers, and berry French toast. Other tasty dishes include pesto pasta with green beans and easy fruit loaf. Chapters highlight time-saving steps such as "on the table in less than 40" and "quick prep, eat later." Charts list foods that can be eaten on the go, along with dishes for freezing. These recipes can help with time management so that the baby does not need a different meal and the family can enjoy this social time. VERDICT Babies learn to eat while joining in the family fun with these unfussy meal ideas.—Barbara Kundanis, Longmont P.L., CO

Library Journal