The Homemade Baby Food Recipes Blog

The UK Trading Standards office has issued a safety notice to parents today regarding the ‘This Little Baby’ Board Book, which comes in Bookstart Baby packs.

If you have one of these books, please check the mirror on the back. It may have a plastic film on it – if it does, please remove it before you give the book to your baby.

If you have any questions, please contact Lee.foskett@booktrust.org.uk

Tags: recalls

SKYLAR Booster Seats (8kg to 26kg) are being recalled because there is the risk that the webbing may slip through the adjuster of the body harness when the seat is used for children 8-18 KG.

These seats were sold nationally throughout July at Big W.

If you have one, please stop using it immediately and return it to Big W for a full refund.

If you have any questions, please contact Infa-Securé 110-114 Old Bathurst Rd, Emu Plains, NSW 2750 P (02) 4728 8000 F (02) 4728 8040 service@infa.com.au, www.infa-secure.com.au

Tags: recalls

As our summer temperatures continue to soar, we’re always looking for new ways to help our little ones keep their cool. So yesterday we whipped up some very healthy – and absolutely delicious – frozen yogurt, an idea inspired by one of our readers.

Jean from Surrey, England wrote to us over the weekend and described how she had frozen some Greek yogurt for her baby (it’s hot in England too at the moment!) and that it had a nice, creamy texture.

If you’ve never tried Greek yogurt before, then you’re really missing out on a treat! It’s far creamier than regular yogurt, thanks to the straining process it undergoes during production, which removes the watery whey.

On the down-side, Greek yogurt is usually made from whole milk (sometimes with cream added), so its fat content is high. But whilst this may be a negative aspect for us adults, it’s no reason to withhold it from your baby who (enviably!) NEEDS whole milk and fats.

The fat content also makes for a good texture when Greek yogurt is frozen. It tends to remain relatively creamy, whereas most other types of yogurt – particularly low fat yogurt – can become quite hard and grainy. This is because they contain MORE water and LESS fat than Greek yogurt and, of course, the water freezes and becomes ice!

Sadly, Greek yogurt isn’t available on our little island, but we DID manage to get our hands on some after a visit to the ‘mainland’ this week. So here’s what we made with it – a cool treat that we all enjoyed…

Frozen Banana and Blueberry Yogurt for Baby

2 cups Greek yogurt
1 large, ripe banana
1 cup fresh blueberries
1/2 tsp vanilla extract (optional)

Place all the ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth.
If you have an ice cream maker, then freeze the yogurt according to the instructions. If – like us – you DON’T have one, then…

Pour the mixture into a freezer proof container and freeze for one hour.
Remove from the freezer and beat thoroughly with a wooden spoon, until all the semi-frozen yogurt is incorporated into the mixture.
(Note: Beating the mixture is an important step – it gives you a smoother result).
Return the mixture to the freezer and continue to beat it every 45 minutes or so until completely frozen (ours took 4 hours).

You may prefer to add some form of sweetener – however, we found the sweetness from the really ripe banana to be sufficient.

Enjoy with your little one!

More blueberry baby food recipes
How to make your own yogurt

Tags: banana, blueberries, frozen yogurt, Greek yogurt, whole milk, yogurt

Nap Nanny® portable baby recliners are being recalled by Baby Matters after reports that a 4-month-old girl died in a Nap Nanny® that was being used inside a crib. Apparently the baby was in her harness and was found hanging over the side of the product, caught between the Nap Nanny® and the crib bumper. The Nap Nanny® instructions, however, do state that the product should not be used inside a crib.

According to the CPSC website, an incident similar to this had already taken place, again when the Nap Nanny was used in a crib. On that occasion, the baby – who was harnessed in – fell over the side of the Nap Nanny® and became caught between the recliner and the side of the crib, suffering a cut to the forehead.

The problem is that babies can partially fall or hang over the side of the Nap Nanny® even when harnessed in. Things become even more dangerous if the Velcro™ straps, located inside the Nap Nanny® cover are not properly attached to the “D”-rings on the foam, or with the first generation model Nap Nanny® that was sold without “D”-rings.

The danger is compounded by the fact that – if the Nap Nanny® is placed in a crib, play yard or other confined area – a baby can fall or hang over of the side of the Nap Nanny® and become trapped between the crib side and the Nap Nanny® and suffocate.

The Nap Nanny® can also be hazardous if placed on a raised surface such as a table, as there is the risk that a baby can fall over the edge and suffer a head injury. It’s important to note that the Nap Nanny® should always be used on the floor, away from other items.

This product is a portable recliner designed for babies to sleep, rest and play. It has a foam base with an inclined indentation for the baby to sit, with a fitted fabric cover and a three point harness. The first generation model does NOT have “D”-rings in the foam base. In second generation models, the harness system has “D”-rings in the foam base and Velcro™ straps inside the fitted fabric cover.

The products involved in this recall were sold at toy and children’s retail stores nationwide and online from January 2009 through July 2010 for about $130.

If you have a first generation Nap Nanny® model (without “D”-rings), please stop using it and contact the firm to receive an $80 coupon towards the purchase of a new Nap Nanny® with free shipping.

If you have a second generation Nap Nanny® model (with “D”-rings), please stop using it and visit the firm’s website for new product instructions and warnings. You will also see an instructional video to help you ensure the harness is properly fastened. If you can’t view the video or new instructions online, then please contact the firm to receive free copies by mail.

You can contact Baby Matters toll-free at (888) 240-4282 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET Monday through Friday or visit their website at www.napnanny.com/recall

Tags: recalls

Here in the Bahamas, we eat a lot of salad! Our youngest family member, Joe (now 18 months) is only just starting to show an interest in sharing our salads with us – and he’s taken a particular shine to lettuce!

But whilst ‘salads’ in general have the reputation of being healthy, many see lettuce as having little nutritional value.

So IS lettuce a healthy food in itself? Does it REALLY offer anything useful to baby’s diet?

Well, the answer is that it depends on the lettuce!

Iceberg lettuce – which may be the most popular type of all – is actually the LEAST nutritious. Whilst it may be useful for dieting adults (it contains no fat, next to no calories or cholesterol and a little fibre), it also contains very few important nutrients and brings little to the dishes its served with except for a nice, crispy texture!

Romaine lettuce, on the other hand, is far more valuable to the diet! Perhaps the biggest clue to its benefits is its colour – those green leaves contain beta-carotene (no, not all fruits and veggies containing beta-carotene are orange!). You can read more about how your baby’s body uses beta-carotene here.

Romaine lettuce (or cos lettuce as we used to call it in England) also contains vitamin K, folic acid, vitamin C, plus lots of other vitamins and minerals.

Here are some figures we obtained from Nutrition Data showing the differences in nutrients between 1 cup of shredded iceberg lettuce and 1 cup of shredded romaine. Please note that these are % daily values based on an adult diet – we’ve used them merely to demonstrate the differences between the two varieties…

Clearly the healthiest choice, romaine lettuce is also considered to be low on the list of foods likely to cause any allergic reaction. Of course, it’s hardly a something you’d use to make a puree… we’ve always started offering our little ones lettuce as a finger food with meals when they have teeth and are chewing well!

It’s good to know that – served alongside foods that provide the calories your growing baby needs – romaine lettuce adds texture, colour AND some useful nutrients to your baby’s diet.

Tags: lettuce

DeBoles Nutritional Foods is recalling one lot code of DeBoles® Kids Only! Gluten Free Tubettini Corn Pasta because it may contain undeclared whole wheat alphabet pasta. This obviously poses the risk of allergic reaction to anyone sensitive to wheat.

The pasta comes in an 8.5 ounce cardboard box with a clear plastic window. You can find the expiration lot code of 30JUN11D1 on the top of the box and the UPC Code of 087336638305 on the bottom. No other lot codes are affected.

If you have bought an 8.5 ounce package of DeBoles® Kids Only Gluten Free Tubettini Corn Pasta with Lot Number 30JUN11D1, please return it to your place of purchase for a full refund. If you have any questions, please contact the company at 1-800-434-4246 during extended hours from Monday to Friday 9 am to 9 pm EDT, and on Saturday and Sunday from 10 am to 6 pm.

Source: www.fda.gov

Chicken and sage are really delicious when cooked together and this recipe combines them with the goodness of sweet potato to produce a rich and tasty puree your baby will love.

We’ve called this a puree, but it’s actually quite versatile.

Instead of blitzing everything in the food processor as described below, you can try removing the sweet potatoes with a slotted spoon, pureeing them alone, then stirring them back into the mixture.  This leaves you with a textured ‘soup’, which would be more appropriate than a puree for older babies or would be ideal if you’re making the dish for the whole family (in which case you might want to add a dash of salt after removing baby’s portion).

This recipe is suitable for babies from 6 months plus, who have already been safely introduced to all the ingredients.

To Make Baby’s Chicken, Sage and Sweet Potato Puree, You Will Need…

1 large or 2 small chicken breasts, chopped
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1 small onion, chopped
1 medium leek, sliced (use only the light green and white parts)
1 large sweet potato, peeled and diced
12 fl oz (1 1/2 cups) low sodium or homemade chicken stock
1 tbsp fresh sage, chopped (or use 1 tsp dried)
1 tsp fresh parsley, chopped (or a good pinch of dried)
4 fl oz (1/2 cup) whole milk

Melt the butter in a saucepan and add the chicken. Cook over a medium heat, stirring often, until the outside is sealed and golden (around 2 mins).
Remove with a slotted spoon, set aside, then add the onion and leek.
Saute until tender (around 4 mins) then add the sweet potato dice and cook for a further 4 mins.
Pour in the stock, then add half the sage and all of the parsley.
Return the chicken to the pot and bring to the boil.
Lower the heat and simmer gently until the sweet potato dice are tender and the chicken pieces are cooked through (around 10 mins).
Cool, then transfer to a blender and puree until smooth (or blend the sweet potato by itself – see our note above).
Return to the pot and warm through, stirring in the milk until the mixture reaches the consistency you desire.
Top with the rest of the sage, cool to a safe temperature and serve.

More sweet potato baby food recipes
More chicken baby food recipes

Tags: chicken, herbs, leek, milk, onion, parsley, puree, recalls, recipes, sage, soup, stock, sweet potato, vegetables

Debra from Seattle, Washington wrote to us yesterday because she had just finished preparing some homemade zwieback biscuits and realized it was going to take her baby quite some time to eat through the batch! She asked

Can you freeze homemade zwieback – and if so, for how long?

It IS possible to freeze homemade zwieback, but you have to be careful when you do it. By its very nature, zwieback is extremely dry and hard – if it takes on the slightest moisture, the texture is ruined.

If you want to try freezing it, we suggest sealing it completely in a good few layers of food safe wrap, then popping it into a zip-top bag for extra protection! It will keep in the freezer for 2 to 3 months.

However, we’ve never found that we needed to freeze our homemade zwieback, because it lasts for SUCH a long time anyway!

This is due to the fact that it’s completely dry, which prevents spoilage if it is properly stored in an airtight container. Whilst it seems as if it would last almost indefinitely, we can say with certainty that we’ve still used ours well into the second week before we’ve finished our supply, and it’s still as good as the day it was made!

If you’ve never made homemade zwieback and you’d like to give it a try, you can find our recipe here.

Tags: freeze, freezing, teething biscuits, zwieback

Kariño Baby Pacifiers – which were sold at independent grocery stores in California and Texas for about 25 cents – are being recalled because they are unsafe.

The nipple comes off the base too easily, there are no ventilation holes on the mouth guard, the handle is too long and the mouth guard is too small – all of which, of course, pose serious hazards to babies.

These pacifiers were available from from October 2009 through March 2010 and have a ring-shaped handle with a round-shaped mouth guard. “Kariño” is printed on the handle side of the mouth guard, and “Mygra” is printed on one side of the handle. The nipple is filled with corn syrup. You can see photos of the pacifiers here.

If you have one of these pacifiers, please take it away from your child and contact Antonio Flores collect at (619) 395-4543 Monday through Friday between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. PT. for a refund or exchange.

Tags: recalls

Safety 1st Natures Creatures 2-in-1 and 3-in-1 Activity Centres are being recalled because the toy tray may produce small parts, posing a potential choking hazard.

The Activity Centres involved in this recall – which have a hard plastic infant walker frame, coloured toy trays and activity creatures – are:

Safety 1st Natures Creatures 2-in-1 (Model # 528)
Safety 1st Natures Creatures 3-in-1 (Model # 588)

There were sold between July 2009 – July 2010 across Australia at Kmart and Speciality Stores.

If you have one, please contact IGC Dorel Customer Service on 1300 809 526 to obtain free replacement trays.

Source: www.recalls.gov.au

Tags: recalls