ind veggie dishes that her then 7-year-old son Freddie would tolerate. He actually likes quite a few of them, and the blog resulted in a book deal for Hume, whose "Great Big Vegetable Challenge" book will be published in the U.K. next month.
If you try any of the recipes, you'll need to convert grams to teaspoons, tablespoons or cups. Check Gourmet Sleuth
for a free online converter to standard measurements.
If the foods themselves fail to excite, try giving your kids their own apron and cooking tools. The California company Playful Life offers the Little Playful Chef Deluxe Cooking Kit for cooks ages 3-5 or the Playful Chef Deluxe Cooking Kit for 6 and up. Each kit includes a kid-size apron with pockets for included tools such as whisks, wooden spoons, kitchen scissors and more. Measuring spoons and cups are color coded to help kids follow recipes on the included cards or in the Playful Chef cookbook ($18.99). Kits are $32.39 and $39.99 at amazon.com. Find New Jersey retailers at playfulinc.com or (415) 310-9742.
The Playful Chef Cookbook has lots of fun food facts and kid-friendly safety tips. Recipes cover breakfasts, snacks and main courses. There are even a few for pets. Here's a sample recipe from the book:
Yield: 8 popsicles
1 cup pineapple bits
1 cup mandarin oranges
2 cups white grape juice
Small paper cups
Note: Other fruits and juices may be substituted. Keeps up to 2 weeks.
1. Mix ingredients together in a large bowl.
2. Spoon 1/2 cups of mixture into paper cups
3. Cover tightly with foil.
4. Poke a popsicle stick through foil
5. Put cups in freezer overnight or until frozen solid.
Kimberly L. Jackson can be reached by e-mail or (973) 392-7846.