Veggies: Fun Facts and Tasty Treats

Delicious Vegetarian Main Dishes
Jennifer Larson
Lerner Press, 2013

We're part of a CSA, so during the growing season, we eat LOTS of vegetables. While we don't attach a "label" to our cooking, I'm always on the lookout for resources with vegetable-heavy recipes. I also have a 7-year-old daughter who LOVES to help me out in the kitchen.

Delicious Vegetarian Main Dishes is a handy addition to the world of kids' cookbooks: most recipes are appealing to kids (only a couple of tofu recipes in the 9 recipes) and can be readily made by middle school students. The most difficult cooking skills are handling a sharp knife for some cutting tasks as well as being around stove/oven. As soon as you think your children can navigate these areas, check out this cookbook!

Larson does a good job of explaining techniques that grown-up cookbooks assume: grating cheese, draining cooked veggies in a colander, and the like. Occasionally, she misses a crucial step (such as reminding a young chef to remove plastic wrap before baking), but overall she reaches her audience well. Safety tips, ingredient and technique glossaries, lots of pictures, and a clear ingredient list for each recipe make this a user-friendly cookbook.

But the real question with any cookbook is: do the recipes work and do they taste good? I grabbed my eager young chef and we tested out the lasagna roll-ups. The verdict? YUM! If you're in the market for something a little more practical, check out this cookbook. Hits store shelves soon and will hit library shelves soon after.