Sage Spoonfuls Cookbook Review

I was recently given the opportunity to review a cookbook by a company called Sage Spoonfuls.  Sage Spoonfuls is a company that provides all the tools you need to make your own, healthy, delicious baby food at home.  When I agreed to do the review, I had NO IDEA how awesome this book was going to be!



Let me start out by saying, I REALLY wish I'd had this book when my first child was born!  This is the PERFECT gift for a new mom!  So why am I so in love with this particular baby food cookbook?  Well, its just so complete!!! 



1.) The book starts out with an explanation of why homemade baby food is more nutritious, more economical, and leads to more adventurous eaters than store-bought food does. 
2.) Then there's a section explaining food intolerances and food allergies. 
3.) There's another section discussing the nutritional value of certain vitamins and minerals (and which fruits and veggies contain those vitamins and minerals. 
4.) There's a section about Herbs and Spices.
5.) A section on what foods to avoid and what ages to begin introducing certain foods.
6.) There's even a section on Choking and Infant CPR!!!
7.) There's a section on shopping for food.
8.) A section on cooking - the different types methods (steaming, roasting, poaching, etc.)
9.) A section on the different ways to puree food.
10.) There's also a section on storing the baby food.
11.) A section on combining foods!
12.) A section on "making mealtime fun.)
13.) And a section about taking baby food "on the go."





And this is ALL BEFORE the actual recipes!!!  That's right!  That's nearly 75 pages of great information - before the actual recipes! THEN, there are 150 pages of recipes!!!

They are separated by the age of your little one (4-6 months, 7-9 months, 10-12 months and a final section called "Family Favorites"). 



Each section starts with a "Frequently Asked Questions" section which contains information like, "My baby is teething, what are some healthy alternatives to plastic teething toys?" or "How much solid food should my baby eat per day at this stage?"

For the most part, the recipes are very basic - teaching you how to do purees (or chunky meals) of everything from apples or pears to zucchini or chicken!  Even though the recipes are basic purees, each recipe is TWO PAGES LONG!  Why? Because its chock-full of information!

Let me give a little example to help you understand.  There is a recipe for "Carrot Puree" on pages 92 & 93.  The recipe begins by telling you the number of carrots to use and how many ounces of puree it will make.  (I find this such a HUGE help when I'm making baby food!!!)  Next comes the instructions for cleaning, cutting, steaming, and pureeing the carrots.  Then the recipe tells you how long the puree will last in the refrigerator or the freezer.  Next, it tells you how it can be served (warm, cool, how to make it creamier, what spices or herbs can be added, etc.). 



Then there's a section called "On the Go."  This section explains how long the puree will remain fresh in a cooler and also how long it remain fresh "out of the refrigerator or cooler." (I have NEVER seen a section like this in a baby food cookbook and I LOVE it!!!  No more worrying about whether I can take a certain food with us when we leave the house and how long it will remain fresh!  Yippee!!!)  Then there's a section all about the particular food (in this case, carrots).  It tells you what health benefits come for carrots, what to look for when shopping for carrots, etc.

And lastly, on the second page of each recipe is a section called "Yummy Combinations."  This section gives you some suggestions on what fruits or veggies make great combinations with that recipe and how to combine them.

As I mentioned before, I have NEVER seen such a complete, informative, beautifully made baby food cookbook!  This is definitely going to be my go-to book when my second little one makes their appearance!  Its also the PERFECT gift for any new mom!!!

Oh, and one last thing!  One thing that always aggravates me about cookbooks is that, if they are big and full of great recipes like this book is, they don't stay open well.  You open to the page you want and halfway through cooking, the pages begin to flip.  Ugh!  But not with the Sage Spoonfuls Cookbook!  Nope!  This is a beautifully bound SPIRAL cookbook!  So it stays open!  Yay!!!!  I love that!!!   ;)  

You can check out all of Sage Spoonfuls items and wonderful info at sagespoonfuls.com.
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Disclosure - Per FTC Regulations, I am disclosing that I received product(s) from the company mentioned above, free of charge, for review. I was in no other way compensated for my review. The views expressed above are my own, honest opinions and any claims should be verified on the sponsor's site.