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Health and safety recommendations
Babies are particularly vulnerable to the bacteria
that can cause food poisoning so it’s essential to
follow simple health and safety guidelines when
preparing and storing their food.
Food preparation:
• Always make sure food is stored safely and stick to
use-by dates. Prepare food in a clean kitchen using
clean chopping boards and utensils. Wash your
hands thoroughly before preparing food and your
baby’s hands before feeding. Make sure all bowls
and spoons used for feeding are thoroughly cleaned
prior to use. Philips Avent has a suitable range of
sterilizers that are quick, easy and eective to use.
• Store cooked and raw meats separate from each
other and from other foods in the fridge and keep
them covered. Always wash your hands after
touching raw meat. Sterile vacuum packed raw
meat or sh shouldn’t need washing prior to use,
as this can spread harmful germs onto kitchen
work surfaces and could lead to food poisoning.
Use your own judgment if you’re not sure that it’s
been previously washed (i.e. not vacuum packed/
foods bought in fresh food markets). Always wash
fruit and vegetables and peel if necessary – all root
vegetables should be peeled and washed
before use.
• Never add salt to foods intended for babies. You
can add herbs and mild spices instead to make the
foods tastier. If you must use stock in a recipe, use
low or no salt stock. Avoid adding sugar to food
unless required for taste (for example to sweeten
tart fruit).
• Make sure food is cooked thoroughly and cool until
it’s lukewarm before serving.
Food storage:
• Once prepared, cool the food as quickly as
possible (within 1-2 hours) and place in fridge (at a
temperature of 5 °C (41 °F) or below) or freezer (at a
temperature of -18 °C (0 °F)). Most freshly prepared
foods can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 24
hours. Check your freezer guidelines to see how
long you can store baby food
safely – usually 1-3 months.
• Batches of food can be prepared and stored in the
freezer using the pot provided with your Philips
Avent 4-in-1 healthy baby food maker – you can
purchase additional containers from the Philips
range, they are also sterile, compact and suitable
for stacking. You can write the name of the food and
preparation date on a label and attach to the lid.
Alternatively, use ice-cube trays, small freezer proof
containers or freezer bags. If required, make sure
the food is wrapped securely in cling lm or
kitchen foil.
• Frozen food should be defrosted thoroughly before
heating. The Philips Avent 4-in-1 healthy baby food
maker has defrost and reheat functions to meet all
of your needs. Make sure reheated food is piping
hot all the way through (steam should be rising from
it) and allow it to cool suciently before serving. The
Philips Avent warmer can also be used to heat your
baby’s food evenly and safely. If you’re reheating
food using a microwave, always stir the food and
check its temperature before feeding your baby.
Don’t reheat food more than once.
• Never refreeze food after it’s been thawed and
never save and re-use foods that your child hasn’t
nished eating.
Foods to avoid and food allergy:
• Certain foods are unsuitable for children under the
age of 12 months, including liver, raw shellsh, shark,
swordsh and marlin, soft unpasteurized cheeses
and honey. Make sure eggs or dishes containing egg
are well cooked.
• If there’s a history of food allergy within the family,
exclusive breastfeeding up to the age of 6 months is
recommended. Where breastfeeding is not possible,
for whatever reason, consult a medical practitioner
for advice on the best type of formula to provide
instead. Because the introduction of rst foods can
cause allergies, breastfeeding should be continued
throughout weaning and care should be taken when
introducing potentially allergenic foods such as
milk, eggs, wheat, sh and shellsh – oering them
one at a time.
• If there’s a history of peanut allergy in the family
seek advice from a qualied medical practitioner.
Because of the risk of choking, whole nuts,
including peanuts, should not be given to children
under 5 years.
• Immediate signs of allergy (usually occurring within
seconds or up to two hours) can include lip swelling,
itchiness and hives, a red ushing of the face or
body, a rash, worsening symptoms of eczema
or diculty breathing. If you think your baby is
having an allergic reaction to food seek urgent
medical advice – in rare cases a severe reaction
(anaphylaxis) can be life-threatening.
• Delayed reactions to food (usually associated with
cow’s milk allergy) can include nausea vomiting or
reux, diarrhea, constipation, blood in stools, a red
bottom, and progressively worse eczema. In the
longer term there may also be problems gaining
weight. Because some of these symptoms (e.g.
rashes and diarrhea) are also indicative of other
illnesses, consult your healthcare practitioner for
further advice.
• Always seek the advice of a qualied healthcare
practitioner if you suspect your child may have a
potential food allergy – they should be your rst
port of call!
Further guidance and information
• The quantity indicated in the recipes* should
provide you with enough food to feed your baby,
as well as some leftovers to portion up and store
or freeze for later use. You can adapt the amount
required to suit your needs, making sure to adjust
the length of steaming required to the amount of
ingredients used. Check ‘Ingredients and steaming
time’ in the user manual for approximate steam
times for specic ingredients.
• Final consistency of each recipe will depend on
the type of ingredients used including the amount
used and stage of weaning (i.e. smooth vs. lumpier
consistency). Consistency may be altered via the
addition of baby’s usual milk or boiled water to the
nal recipe. For example, water may be used to
thin down or baby rice may be added to thicken.
Draining some of the water in the steamer before
blending will also result in a thicker consistency.
• Recipe quantities are indicative – these may vary
depending on the nature of the ingredients used
and cooking times.
• The number of portion sizes provided by each
recipe is only a guide. Because every baby has
dierent needs, the portion sizes may not reect
the amount required by your baby’s appetite or
needed to meet his or her growth requirements,
meaning that the nal portion size consumed may
be dierent from the one indicated.
• The meal planners provided are simple examples
of balanced meal plans for your baby according to
each stage of weaning. As with the portions sizes,
these may be used as a guide depending on you
and your baby’s personal preferences. Given the
global nature of this product, some of the suggested
meals within the meal plans are designed with
dierent world food regions in mind, so feel free
to choose meals more suited to your own cultural
needs or requirements.
• Meal plans 1 to 3 have been designed to provide
your baby with a taste of their rst foods in
increasing amounts and variety, alongside their
usual milk drink as they progress through weaning.
The meal plan for stage 4 (12 months+) is designed
to provide your baby with contributions from all of
the four main food groups. These include starchy
foods (rice, potatoes, pasta); fruit and vegetables;
dairy foods (full fat yogurt and cheese); and protein-
based foods (meat, sh) and alternatives such as
eggs and pulses (dhal, lentils etc.). Portions are
provided within the region of ve, four, three and
two portions per day respectively – again these
criteria may be used as a guide when feeding
children aged 1-3 years to make sure they consume
a balance of dierent foods in their diet.
• Use the photographic recipe guide as a quick visual
reference when cooking with the Philips Avent 4-in-
1 healthy baby food maker.
• When using the Philips Avent 4-in-1 healthy baby
food maker for the rst time please follow the full
recipe instructions.
* All recipes have been checked to make sure they contain appropriate amounts of calories, salt, sugar and fat
suitable for babies and toddlers.
