Baking for Kids!

When my girls were younger, I started looking for a good kids' cookbook.  I love to cook and I wanted my kids to have a cookbook that they could learn to cook from with simple recipes.  I started comparing the books at the library and the bookstores.  I was shocked by how much I disliked most of them!  Several of them had tiny print.  Some of them didn't have any basic directions for the kitchen or explanations of cooking tools.  Many of them had recipes that I knew my kids would never want to cook!  A lot of the directions were overly complicated. 

So, I was really excited a few years ago when I came across Cooking Class by Deanna Cook.  This cookbook had just what I was looking for--great photos, directions, kitchen rules, and recipes that kids would want to cook!  It even had fun stickers and recipe cards at the back of the cookbook. 

This year Storey Books published another great cookbook for kids by Deanna Cook, Baking Class.  I absolutely love this cookbook!  From beginning to end, I know it is going to make kids want to cook
and parents smile. 

The first section of the cookbook covers vocabulary, cooking equipment and ingredients, cooking safety, and measuring (which is very important in baking!).  This section is done so well.  I was impressed.  I know that many cookbooks try to save money with the printing by using drawn pictures for these sections, but photos are so much more effective in conveying what the ingredients look like and what the vocabulary of baking means. 

From there, the cookbook is divided into recipe sections that cover breakfast, quick snacks, and desserts.  The recipes range from super easy, to medium, to a little more difficult.  I loved the breakfast recipes and compared them to recipes I currently use.  The scone recipe is very similar, although I omit the salt because I use salted butter.  I would caution one direction on the scone recipe in particular--kids are directed to use a pizza wheel or a knife to cut the scones and I would pass on the pizza wheel.  Kids tend to press hard on things and they could easily mar the cookie sheet.  A butter knife would be a better choice.  Other than that, I loved the other recipes for breakfast and I know many of them will likely become new additions to my children's breakfast repertoire. 

Moving on to the other sections a couple of things stood out to me.  First, the recipes generally did not use a stand mixer.  They either used a pastry blender and spoon or a hand mixer.  Both are easier for kids to control.  Second, there were fun pictures that grabbed my attention like the Monkey bread on the Monkey Munch Banana Bread page.  I know that this is probably the very first thing that my children are going to make from this cookbook since monkeys are the favorite animal of my family. 
Also, I am also looking forward to my children making bread.  The pictures explaining to kids how to kneed are great illustrations and make sense.  I can't wait for them to try!

Frankly, I've looked at a lot of cookbooks and I think adults are going to love this as much as their kids.  The pictures on the buttercream frosting page are going to be super duper helpful!  Frosting can be tricky and the directions and pictures will help children be much more successful in their attempts at frosting. 

The pictures will make kids smile and want to spend time in the kitchen.  But, the recipes and directions will make mom, dad, and grandparents smile!  I think it would be best for kids ages 6 and up, but younger kids could easily participate in making the recipes--they just wouldn't be able to read the directions and do some what is required on their own. 

Is there anything I don't like about this cookbook for kids?  I have just a few minor tweaks.  Nothing major.  I prefer Snickerdoodles that have cream of tartar--the recipe here is a plain cinnamon sugar cookie.  And I wouldn't refrigerate pie dough quite so long before working with it--it can get very tough to work with.  But, other than those few minor things, it's great! 

If you're looking for a fun Christmas gift for a kid you know who loves to cook or is interested in cooking, I highly recommend checking out this cookbook!  It's one of the best around! 

Please note that I received a complimentary copy of this cookbook for review from Storey books, but these opinions are entirely my own and I love this book!