Title: Mummy and me Cookbook
Author: Annabel Karmel
Publisher: DK, 2008 (47 pages)
ISBN: 978-1-40532-880-7
Genre: Children’s Cookbook

Summary (from DK website)

Get cooking with your child and make tasty, healthy food with child nutrition expert, Annabel Karmel.

Cooking and eating together are great for encouraging kids to eat healthily! Annabel Karmel shows how you can create all kinds of lip-smacking finger food with your child that’s good for them, too. Step-by-step photos show you (and them) exactly what to do and will help your child develop basic cookery skills: from weighing and counting to mixing and rolling, while you take care of the sharp knives and hot ovens.

From munchy oat bars and lettuce boats to perfect party treats, this is food that’s yummy and good for any size tummy. Whatever you cook up, it will be as much fun to make as it will be to eat.

Comments

With dishes that are both simple to prepare and visually appealing, Annabel Karmel’s cookbook for kids will delight any budding chefs. There are instructions for holding a cooking party including invitation ideas, party games and foods such as mini-pizzas and cookies that can be made at the party.

Recipes include a list of ingredients, preparation and cooking time, how many/much the recipe produces, and clear step by step instructions accompanied by photographs of each step. Karmel is based in the UK, however the ingredients and recipes are reasonably generic and should be appealing to most children in other countries.

Basic cooking techniques are explained and a list of basic kitchen utensils and equipment are also listed with photographs. There are some recipes requiring the use of a stove top (eg to melt chocolate) and an electric mixer.

There is a range of recipes for meals and treats, offering both sweet and savoury dishes suitable for meals and desserts.

Recipes include:
• easy cheesy bread rolls
• mini Caesar salad
• mini pizzas
• chicken dippers
• salmon fishcakes
• meringues
• banana muffins
• peanut butter bear cookies
• iced cookies

With a few exceptions, such as the meringues, recipes are healthy or healthier options for favourite treats. The emphasis is on enjoying time spent in the kitchen and involving children in food preparation. The illustrations feature young boys and girls, which may limit its appeal to younger children and girls, as school-aged boys might find the layout and appearance too babyish.

I purchased this book as a gift for my 5-year0-old niece, who loves it.

Related Links:

• Annabel Karmel website – recipes, general nutrition information for children, competitions and forums as well as a details on Karmel’s other cookbooks
• Review of Annabel Karmel’s Complete Family Meal Planner at Suite101.com.