Cooking with Kids: Our Favorite Cookbooks

This summer we started a new tradition - each of our three children is responsible for meal planning and cooking one dinner each week. We started cooking once a month together two years ago when my aunt purchased a Raddish Kids subscription for the kids for Christmas. We would receive a themed set of recipes for an appetizer, main dish and dessert each month, and find a day to make it together. My mom gave me the freedom to explore her cookbooks and try out recipes as a kid (even purchasing a pretty pricey Pampered Chef wok that I still own and use for me to encourage me).

Our kids love helping out in the kitchen, but here are some helpful tips for if you're just getting started.

5 Helpful Tips to get Kids Excited About Cooking

1. Start off slow. Our youngest just turned 6, so we're at an age where he is able to help with a lot of the meal prep. When they were toddlers, we tried to engage them where we could - sure it typically means a bigger mess than I would make on my own. They may have to crack their eggs into a separate bowl for awhile while you teach them to crack without getting tons of eggshell in their bowl, but even from a young age, we could see how proud our kids were to be able to say that they did it on their own.

2. Let them be independent. As we've transitioned this summer to each child being in charge of a full dinner, they've been given the freedom to choose what food they want to prepare. They do know that there needs to be a balanced meal, and we talk about what food groups to include, but we also try to let them be in the driver's seat for their choices.

3. Take your child shopping. We let them plan the meal, add the ingredients to a list, and pick out the food at the store. You're never too young to learn how to pick out the best fruits and veggies, and price comparing can help them learn some math too!

4. Make it fun. I try to find a playlist that matches the feel of the dinner the kids are making (kudos to Raddish Kids for making a Spotify playlist to go along with each of their kits). We also give the kids the option to have the family dress up a certain way for their meal if there's a theme that makes sense. So here's an example:

   1. When the menu was Ravioli and peas for dinner, we played Italian music and dressed up as if we were going to a fancy Italian restaurant.

   2. When the menu was Spanish rice, cabbage slaw & Pupusas, we played Spanish music.

   3. When the menu is chili and corn bread, we played cowboy music and dressed up in our flannel shirts, blue jeans, bandanas and boots.

5. Grow a garden. Regardless of how old your children are, or where you live, it's possible to grow some vegetables on your own. I believe it's important for kids to know where their food comes from. If all you can do is plant a seed in a pot on your front stoop, I'd recommend checking out some patio versions of tomatoes, strawberries, and look into what else you know your kids would snack on that is growable in a container.

Favorite Kids Cookbooks

I feel like I have to say this is not a paid promo for Raddish Kids or America's Test Kitchen, but those three happen to cover my three favorite cookbooks that the kids use. So many friends use Pinterest to find favorite recipes, and we do that as well, but there's something about having a tangible cookbook that you can flip through, and find a recipe to follow. If we do an online recipe, I try to use Safari in reader mode so that the kids are constantly distracted by all the pop up ads and videos.

• The Complete Cookbook for Young Chefs: 100+ Recipes that You'll Love to Cook and Eat by America's Test Kitchen Kids This is one of our favorites - it includes recipes for breakfast, snacks, lunch/dinner, sides, and desserts. One of my favorite things about this cookbook is that they're actually really good quality recipes. So many cook books aimed at kids include things that are dumbed down, like fruit salad and ants on a log. While there's a place for those recipes for super young kids to start to enjoy creating things, this book teaches them real kitchen skills (like how to use a knife properly).
  

• My First Cookbook by America's Test Kitchen Kids If you're looking for a great cookbook for your younger kids as it includes step-by-step pictures for each recipe, so kids can do their thing, and glance at the photos to make sure that everything is looking right. The only complaint I have is that the ingredient list is on a separate page (to allow for all the pictures in the recipe) which often means flipping back & forth.
  

• Raddish Kids Subscription Box We did the Cooking Club for two years, so have 24 recipe packs (and tools) stashed in a kitchen cabinet. I'm thinking of figuring out how to store the recipes differently - if you've figured out a good way to do this, share in the comments please! We love that the recipe kids come with a full meal and dessert. We've enjoyed almost all of the recipes, some we love more than others - we've adapted some to be easier (i.e. our daughter chose the Picnic set to make this week, and instead of baking the biscuits from scratch, we just picked up rolls at Aldi this week. We're a busy family of 5, sometimes working mom's gotta cut corners - I'm glad that she knows how to bake the biscuits if she ever needs to, but also glad to show her that it's okay to save time).

Do you have a favorite cookbook that you use either personally or with your kids to cook? I'd love to try it out!