Feeding the Whole Family: Recipes for Babies, Young Children, and Their Parents

by Cynthia Lair

For nearly 15 years, Cynthia Lair's iconic cookbook Feeding the Whole Family has been the source for parents who want to cook one healthy meal for the entire family, including babies. Feeding the Whole Family starts with the basics of creating a whole foods diet, from understanding grains and beans to determining what meats are acceptable to eat. Lair then applies these lessons to cooking for young children and babies aged six months and older. In each recipe, Lair offers special instruction on how to adapt it so that younger children can enjoy the dish while parents can eat a more complicated version. All recipes utilize easy-to-find ingredients, are simple to follow, and will be enjoyable for both child and parent. With a new foreword by Mothering magazine's editor and founder Peggy O'Mara, Feeding the Whole Family is a necessary staple for all families.

Genres: Cookbooks, Food, Cooking, Parenting, Nonfiction, Nutrition, Health

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1994

Reviews

[Inder · Rating 1 out of 5]

Obviously, I'm very pro-whole-grain and fruits and veggies, so this seems like the kind of book I would like.

But I was immediately turned off when, reading her section on infant nutrition, she recommended home-made formula with raw milk. What? That's just downright scary. She's putting babies' lives at risk with this sort of advice.

Frankly, raw milk is not safe enough for babies. Unless the cows are maintained in impeccably clean conditions, it's easy for a little fecal matter to get into the milk, and cow manure carries severe deadly diseases (e. coli for one). Are we really in doubt that pasteurization is a good thing? Remember why Pasteur developed the process? In the 19th century, contaminated milk used to kill people, especially babies.

Hey, if you're a grown-up and you have a good source of raw milk that you trust (preferably your own cow, washed in bleach daily), good for you. That's your decision.

But babies don't have the body mass or the antibodies to handle even the occasional bad bacteria. Even with modern antibiotics, babies can die from this stuff. Who wants to take the risk?

Okay, I know there is some controversy about this issue these days - the web is full of positive testimonials about raw-milk formula. I might have felt differently about the book if the author had discussed both sides of the issue, or pointed out that while some people don't believe there is a risk, the FDA (and medical science) has long opposed drinking raw milk in any form. But there was no qualification - rather, she makes a simple, straightforward recommendation.

Eeek!

[Beth Bender · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is an excellent example of why many people are overwhelmed and put off by the thought of whole foods. I consider myself pretty crunchy, and I use mostly whole foods cooking for my family, but I thought most of the recipes in this book were just plain weird.

I took issue with her liberal use of sea vegetables. Okay, maybe they are good for you and part of the reason the Japanese diet is so healthy. But I live in the Midwest. It would be completely ridiculous and environmentally irresponsible for me to purchase vegetables harvested from the sea and shipped a thousand miles or more.

I was also extremely annoyed by her suggestions for wacky things like practicing mindful meditation while stirring polenta. Really? Again, this is why people are put off by the whole foods hippies. Ugh.

[Hawley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has been great, albeit a bit heavier on the fall/winter meals than on spring/summer eats. I've used a lot of the recipes and many have become staples: particularly the Middle Eastern Falafel (we make it almost once a week now and I've shared it with TONS of friends who've loved it, too!), the "Cream" of Asparagus Soup (using oatmeal to make it creamy instead of actual dairy), and the Lemon Tahini Dressing. Some really spectacular recipes that are really well laid out: clear, fairly simple, and easy. However, the infant options seem sort of silly to me - but I still like that there are notes about how to make it palatable or edible (or to make a simple variation) for your baby, too. We've even given our 10 month old some of the asparagus soup (despite the recipe not saying to do so), and she loved it!

I really like this cook book, but after choosing a few favorite staple recipes, I probably won't be using the other recipes as much or maybe ever. Even so, I'm very pleased with this cookbook and will hope to pass some of these recipes on down through the generations. They're that friggin' good.

[Charity · Rating 5 out of 5]

I borrowed this book from a friend who borrowed it from another friend. The cover is well-worn and torn in places, so I knew it must have been well-used (always a good sign in a cookbook, I think).

We have tried several recipes from this book and have loved every one of them. The recommendations for meal planning are realistic, nutritious, and affordable. There are food sensitivities in my family (to gluten and dairy) and these recipes are mostly GF/CF (except for the baked goods) and those that aren't are easily modified. Each recipe also comes with recommendations about how to modify the meal to suit the needs of older babies and toddlers so you don't have to make a separate meal (or break open the canned baby food, which can be convenient but expensive for everyday eating). I also love the section about how to involve children in cooking. I'd sort of exhausted my imagination on this front with my 3-year-old, and the author's suggestions have helped me to involve my daughter in food prep a little more. This book is going on my Christmas wish list.

[Anna · Rating 2 out of 5]

The cover has a picture of an adult and a child preparing dandelion greens. If that is what you're looking for, I bet you'd love this book. I feel very fortunate that we do not have to eat dandelion greens, and I didn't find much to like in this book.

[Marianne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I trained with Cynthia Lair at Bastyr University in the Pacific Northwest while becoming a dietitian. She is a highly educated woman dedicated to researching and staying up to date on current nutrition trends. She is particularly well versed on the journey foods take as they're being processed. Cynthia's use of sea vegetables and lifestyle recommendations such as mindful eating as part of her recipes are certainly not conventional. And her recommendation of using raw milk should be prefaced with "absolutely trust your distributor." But is the Standard American Diet leading us towards health? I would hands down follow Feeding the Whole Family's nutrition recommendations rather than the SAD. I absolutely love this cookbook, and find Cynthia's recipes to be precise, easy to prepare and abundant with flavor. Her Cookus Inturruptus website is also silly and full of more recipes!

[Hannah Carlson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This encouraged me to feed my family even more whole foods and less prepared food. Pretty good recipes.

[Elke Ursin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book so much that after my checkout time with the library expired (which was pretty quick because it seems like everyone wants this book) I just had to buy it. I still need to make the recipes in the book, but they look so yummy and healthy! I go to an Asian market every week and will totally be taking a slow stroll down the sea vegetable isle. I love simple things that you can add to a meal to increase the nutritional value. I also really liked the illustration in the book about what proportion of your babies (and your own) diet should consist of. There are great recipes to increase the whole grains in your diet, which is always difficult for me. I feel like often my choices for whole grains are to give my baby some brown rice and some whole wheat bread, but there are so many more options that I don't take advantage of. I really recommend this book for just about anyone! You don't need kiddos to get some great use out of this book!

[Katie Cole · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book, really is a great resource for me. I am just starting as a member of a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) farm and am reading this book in preparation for my first veggie box. I love that this book explains a bit of the history of a particular food, how it developed as an edible, nutritious food through out history, and also explains a bit of the science behind it (without being overly technical) and lastly, how you can prepare it for everyone in the family (even young children and babies). I would absolutely recommend this book for anyone, but especially for people who will be preparing foods for a wide range of ages. This book is a great introduction to use Whole foods! Plus, the recipes I have tried thus far are delicious!

[Bethany · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely love this cookbook. I am single, and I just ignore the baby food instructions. The recipes are usually very easy to follow. You might have to make a trip to Whole Foods for a couple of unusual ingredients or spices but once you get it you will use it in a lot of the recipes. I rely on this book for helping me to detox and avoid processed foods. Everything is pretty good leftover too. My favorite recipe is the Red Bean Quinoa Chili. I also like Curried Lentils and Cauliflower and Red Lentil Soup (Dahl). I don't have it in front of me or I would make a list. Oh, the Apricot Thumbprint Cookies are great too.

[Principle Based Learning]

(recommended by Kathleen)
In this book you will have the pleasure of reading astute food philosophy along with rich tasty recipes that are responsive to your challenges as a parent. It’s unusual, yet so rewarding to find a cookbook that includes the breastfeeding years, early food for babies and tips for feeding children. And there are menus! The book is very comprehensive and that is comforting. What we need as parents is just one book, a guide. Feeding the Whole Family is that guide.

Click here for the full article on: Health and Nutrition

[Christine Cato · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was lighter on content and heavier on recipes than I expected, but I ended up liking it. A nice guide for how to include whole foods. What is cool about the recipes is that at the bottom it tells you what to do to make the recipe ingredients appropriate for babies/ kids. Also a good introduction to things I didn't know I wanted to know more about - like sea vegetables and sugar that isn't sugar.

[Amberjean · Rating 3 out of 5]

A basic whole-foods book, nothing terribly revolutionary. Could be good for families with young children, perhaps. It has some of the common flaws of the moosewood-ish genre of cookbooks: every other dish is based on a cooked-grain mush, and tamari, shoyu, and the ubiquitous "sea vegetables" are applied liberally in every section. That said, there were good basic directions for handling vegetables and fruits, including some simple, tasty, and oft-overlooked stuff like dried-fruit compote.

[Abby · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely love this cookbook. If I had to choose just one to own, it would definitely be this one. All of the recipes are amazingly easy to make, healthy, and delicious. Seriously, I find it hard to not gush about this book to everyone I know, and I've found myself on the author's blog more than once raving about different recipes. Lair includes recipes and tips for cooking for babies, but even if you don't have kids, get this cookbook! It's amazing.

[Aimee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a cookbook I go back to time and time again. It is my favorite, even though I have a few favorite recipes in it, and haven't done as much exploring as I should. I use the bean and rice cookery section the most, for cook times, ideas on what to do with the leftovers and how to use different beans that I am not used to cooking. My son loves the recipes in this book and so does my husband!

[Danna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book helped our family as we made better food choices, indispensable really! I have given copies as gifts many times and recently bought the new edition as mine had fallen apart from all the love!!
Caution: a couple of our favorite recipes are not in the new edition and a few recipes are changed a bit!!
When ever I want to entice my sister to come over I tell her we are having the red bean and quinoa chili. She always shows up!!

[Kristin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked the ideas from this book on how to feed your family, even your new babies whole foods--grains, vegetables, all kinds of options that don't come from a box, can or anything else that's processed. And, it looks like it's going to be very reasonable--money wise too. I'm excited to have more options in the "wheat-free" baby diet!

[Sandra Kimmet · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got the new edition and it is a great book. I heard about it from a mom in my playgroup who worked on editing it. She highly recommended it, and it is a great book. It has some great ideas for quinoa and lunches. I love her checklist to use when you shop. It is easy to follow and totally kid friendly.

[Marisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Michael Pollen's books. After reading his books I have often felt that I had all this great knowledge about the way I should be eating, but don't know how to implement it. This book has the information on what we should eat, along with recipes so we know how to implement it. I haven't tried the recipes yet, so I'm giving it 3 stars. If I like the recipes, I will raise my rating.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book for anyone interested in creating great meals from whole foods. Delicious recipes, great ideas for introducing whole foods to kids, and I find the recipes easy to fall and meals easy to create.

[Wilder · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this out from the library and now I will buy a copy so I can get it all messy! This is just what I was looking for in a cookbook. The first section on food information and food politics was also very good. Simple and to the point.

[Jessica AKA Riley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was recommended to me because my son has a number of food issues and it provides recipes for healty, substantial meals that are easy to make and uses ingredients that are relatively easy to get at a normal grocery store.

[Siona · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing book, amazing teacher! Lots of great whole foods recipes. Every recipe I've made is delicious. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in learning how to cook healthier well balanced meals. Great ideas for moms and babies too.

[Kelsy · Rating 3 out of 5]

The bread recipe (using "recycled" grains) is fabulous. We've also enjoyed the whole grain cereals. Some of the "weirder" recipes were not enjoyed so well by my family (beet green & beet salad), but overall I find this book useful, and would rather not do without it!

[Meryl · Rating 2 out of 5]

I checked this book out because the summary on Amazon said it was about feeding the whole family whole foods. It's really about feeding kids whole foods. Which is fine, but not really what I was after.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an excellent book, and I think if I used it to cook for my family, we would be just overflowing with health and happiness. But I am so not ready to add Tofu Kale Supper Pie, Hijiki Pate, and the entire recommended sea vegetable food group to our menus. Maybe one day?

[Bernadette Emerson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cannot say enough about how this book has helped me in my understanding of different ways to cook with whole grains. A great book to help with simple preparation of veggies and including younger children in your meal-planning.

[Jasmine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love her ideas: moderate but still healthy. Also, amazingly good, healthy recipes. Opened my eyes to some new ingredients. Great for moms but good for anyone who is attempting to both eat healthfully and yummily.

[Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is used practically every day in my house. The recipes are great, and my toddler loves everything I have offered from this book. Good advice in the beginning, and good solid, healthy meals complete the book. Highly recommended.

[Gail · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book for anyone curious about the benefits of eating whole foods. Her recipes are a bit bland for my taste (probably due to gearing them toward children), but with a little extra seasoning they are very good.