homemade babyfood is much healthier for children. Homemad

A u t h o r, A c t r e s s a n d M o m
LIZA HUBER
Baby Food System Mom-trepreneur
STORY BY CHRISTINE GIORDANO
he baby was turning red, choking on an
apple. Although she was in a room with
five other moms, none of them knew
what to do. Former soap opera star Liza
Huber, however, had just taken CPR classes while
doing research for her book and new company. She immediately pulled the baby from his high chair.
“I did the motion you’re supposed to do;” she said.
She turned the baby over and did a repetitive, controlled back thump and chest thump. “And immediately the apple came out of his throat and he started to
breathe again.” It happened two more times that year,
to different babies. Each time, Huber was grateful she
knew what to do.
“The majority of moms don’t know CPR– they don’t
teach it to us in the hospital when we leave, she said.”
Now as the actor launches her babyfood system this
year, she’s including illustrations of how to perform
CPR on young children in her cookbook -- something
that she believes must be taught to all mothers.
®
16 NETWORKING September 2011
T
into food from plastics when heated or frozen. “It is a suspected endocrine disrupter that has the potential to cause
serious health problems, including hormone and brain
development problems in children and fetuses. Most of
the recent studies have been conducted on animals, but
the results have been so negative, that the general rule
now is to avoid BPA. This was backed up by the National
Toxicology Program of the U.S., who believe there is valid
reason to be concerned about the negative health risks associated with exposure to BPA,” said Huber.
By following her instructions and making and freezing
the food every other week, moms can save time and
money. With her storage containers, people can label and
stack dozens of meals in the freezer and the refrigerator,
and pack them in a tote bag or cooler for day trips.
“Working moms and stay at home moms – we’re all so
busy – if you could just find one hour every two weeks,
you can keep your freezer stocked with food,” said Huber
during an interview with Networking® magazine.
In the “family favorites” section her cookbook, Huber
also shows meals that can feed both the family and the
baby. “You just take a small little bit out for the baby, stick
it in the food processor, and you’ve got it. You don’t have
to cook three different times. As moms, we’re not short order cooks.”
Huber also consulted with pediatrician Dr. Laura Pagnotta, who emphasizes that
homemade babyfood is much healthier for children.
After searching far and
wide for bottled food that
would meet her standards,
she realized she had to
make it herself – the
same way her mother,
Susan Lucci, had
once made it
for her.
Her Product and its Benefits
When Huber was a new mom working night and
day as an actor on the daytime soap opera “Passions,” she desperately wanted to
feed her baby nutritious food. After searching far and wide for bottled food that
would meet her standards, she realized she had to make it herself – the same way
her mother, Susan Lucci, had once
made it for her. She followed her instincts and gave her child the healthiest, freshest food possible – testing
recipes, finding which vegetables
worked best, and then bottling whatever she wanted her young son to eat.
Four years later, now a mother of
three, the actor has returned to her
native Garden City, Long Island, and
is launching her own baby business,
and sharing her babyfood knowledge
with the world. She believes if people
can spare an hour every two weeks,
they can feed their babies the healthiest way possible.
Huber’s company, “Sage Spoonfuls,” is “a complete homemade baby
food system” with different size kits
and all the tools a person may need to
make healthy babyfood -- starting
with a recipe book that has simple
meals for infants of different months
as well as family meals, food storage
containers, an immersion blender and
food processor, stackable storage
trays, an insulated tote bag and
cooler, freezer pack, labels, and
pocket guide. (see
sagespoonfuls.com)
“The Sage Spoonfuls system
makes homemade baby food just as
convenient as store-bought. By
preparing your baby’s food in large
batches and storing it in the refrigerator or freezer, you will have a constant available stock of healthy and
delicious food,” she writes in her
book.
The containers for her kit are BPA
(Bisphenol A), lead and PVC
(Polyvinyl chloride) free. New studSage Spoonfuls Cookbook cover
ies are showing that BPA can leach
Photo by Basia Ambroziak
Homemade vs. Bottled
Anyone who has ever smelled a
can of Spam or opened a bottle of
jarred meat already knows some of
the benefits of making homemade
food. And, since babies are forming
connections with the way they will
think of food for the rest of their lives,
their first tastes are even more important. Huber’s own children are less
finicky and more adventurous eaters
than their peers, and tend to get sick
less and have shorter colds. They eagerly reach for nutritious snacks, and
are a healthy weight.
“If you can get them right at the
get-go, eating well is not a daily
struggle and your children reap the
benefits not just for the first year of
life, but for the rest of their lives,” she
said.
Store bought baby food, including
the organic brands, has a shelf life up
to two years, writes Huber in her
cookbook. In order to achieve this
shelf life, the food is sterilized by
heating it to very high temperatures,
which kills vitamins, nutrients, taste,
color, and aroma in the process.
Mothers who make their own food
can also control all of the ingredients
that their children are eating.
“Commercially prepared baby
food often contains additives and
fillers that have no nutritional value,”
writes Huber. “Studies have shown
that additives can cause allergic reactions in children with sensitive systems and can also contribute to
hyperactivity. Homemade baby food
is higher in nutrients, tastes far better
than store bought, and has the entic-
Liza Huber with her sons Royce (right) and Brendan (left)
Photo by Mary Hanlon
ing aroma that will make your baby excited about eating. Homemade
baby food can retain most of its nutritional value, taste, color, texture, and
aroma because it is only lightly steamed and not overcooked. In fact, most
ripe fruits can be pureed without cooking, leaving all of the precious nutrients in tact!”
The Market
Huber’s entrepreneurial decision is hitting consumers at just the right
time – when families are becoming increasingly aware of childhood obesity and are showing a true commitment to eating healthier food. Families
often know the benefits of eating more fruit and vegetables, but trends are
showing that consumers are going the extra mile, and increasing their organic purchases despite the higher prices at the cash register. Data shows
that “consumers continue to buy organics despite the lingering pressures
the recession has brought to the family budget,” and total U.S. household
penetration for organics grew in 34 categories, according to SPINS Consumer Report for Mid Year 2010, which suggests that organic consumers
are increasing the diversity of products within in their basket. Despite the
recession, the percent of U.S. households purchasing organic products
inched slightly higher from 67% to 68%. (SPINS provides natural and specialty products sales data to the industry.)
®
NETWORKING September 2011 17
The Actress-Entrepreneur, and the Mother-Daughter Connection
When you’re about to have your products and personality appearing
across television morning shows throughout the country, there are definite
benefits to being a beautiful blonde starlet and daughter of one of the most
famous actresses in daytime soap opera history. Her mother, Susan Lucci,
played the character Erica Kane on the daytime drama “All My Children”
since 1970, a role she describes as a “woman you love to hate.” Likewise,
Huber played the conniving character, Gwen Hotchkiss Winthrop, on the
NBC daytime drama “Passions” before the show was cancelled three years
ago.
One can see the similarities between mother and daughter – the familiar almond-shaped shaped eyes, the poise, the daytime drama career and
the fact that Lucci has also launched several products: for hair and skincare, microderm abrasion, Pilates, fragrances, shoes, and lingerie. Both
mother and daughter began writing books at almost the same time. (Lucci
released “All My Life” in March, written with Laura Morton.)
“I started writing my book about 2 ½ years ago. My mom started her
biography shortly thereafter. It wasn’t planned that way at all, but was fun
Continued on following page
Liza Huber with her mother Susan Lucci (Emmy Award Winning Actress) Photo by Mary Hanlon
Family portrait with children and husband, Alex Hesterberg III
Photo by Basia Ambroziak
Liza feeding baby Caleigh
Photo by Basia Ambroziak
®
18 NETWORKING September 2011
Anyone who has ever smelled a can of
Spam or opened a bottle of jarred meat
already knows some of the benefits of
making homemade food.
to share our experiences. Writing a book is a huge undertaking and was new territory for both me and my mom,” said Huber.
Both gained insight and advice from author Nelson DeMille [“Plum Island,”
“The General’s Daughter”], who is is a very good family friend and godfather to
Liza’s middle son Brendan.
“In addition to being one of the greatest authors of our time, he is also one of the
kindest and most generous people I know,” said Huber.
It isn’t uncommon for the mother daughter duo to be recognized by fans as
they’re out on the town, yet now, always “a mom first,” Lucci takes the opportunity
to promote her daughter’s business. “She tells them all about the website, sagespoonfuls.com,” says Huber.
When asked what it was like growing up with a star for a mother, Huber said
she has never known a life in which her mother wasn’t famous.
“My mom was famous before I was born, it is the only life I know. I didn’t grow
up thinking about my mom being famous, she was just my mom,”
Somehow, Lucci kept her life in the entertainment world separate from her life
with her family. It made an impression on Huber.
“She never worked during her time with us, she
would read her scripts at night after we went to bed,”
said Huber.
She remembers the long years of her childhood in which
her mother was nominated 18 times for an Emmy (Lucci has
even done skits on “Saturday Night Live” about her multiple
nominations), and the spectacular year in which she won. In 1999,
when presenter Shemar Moore announced Lucci’s name, stating “the
streak is over,” the audience erupted in a long, emotional standing ovation that lasted several minutes. Cameras panned the room to her co-star Kelly
Ripa and long-time supporter and television host Rosie O'Donnell, who were seen
wiping tears from their eyes. The wait was over for the woman known as “daytime’s leading lady.”
During her acceptance speech, after the applause quieted, Lucci said “…to my
children, I wasn’t meant to get this award before tonight, because if I had, I
wouldn’t have the collection of poems, letters, drawings balloons and chocolate
cakes you made me all this time to make me feel better… “
By that time, Huber was a grown woman, pursuing her own career in Los Angeles. It was the one year she wasn’t at her mother’s side.
“It was such a crazy coincidence because I always watched, and always supported her, and was always there. But it was the first year that “Passions” was going
on the air and I was actually in California. Of all the years, she won, and I wasn’t
there to give her a big hug. But she called me right away from back stage. It was really one of those magical nights that we will always remember,” said Huber.
Huber herself is leaving the door to her Hollywood career open while launching
her business that combines cooking, writing and videos. She had every intention of
auditioning again when “Passions” came to an end, then pregnant with her second
child. Yet Brendan was born two months prematurely and needed a high level of
care.
“That was a game-changer,” she said.
She began spending time with her children during the day and developing “Sage
Spoonfuls” at night, getting a few pointers from her father, Helmet Huber, an Austrian businessman and chef, and support from her husband (her girlhood classmate
from St. Joseph’s on Long Island.) Like her mother, Huber tries to keep her time
with her children separate from time spent developing her business. Her daughter is
only five months old, but Huber finds a way to juggle the schedule of a mom-entrepreneur.
“I usually work from 8 pm until 2 am. I try to schedule meetings and calls at
times when the kids are either napping or at school. It’s definitely a challenge, but I
wouldn’t have it any other way,” she says. “Thankfully, my children are all really
good sleepers.” ■