Birthday Cakes for Kids by Annie Rigg
Ryland, Peters and Small, 2009
Cautions: None

Kiwi Magazine Review:
Anyone can buy a cool birthday cake, but then you completely miss out on all of the fun, mess and creativity. Not to mention, you get to eat your mistakes! We’ve switched from bakery cakes to home made from scratch because we simply like to know exactly what the ingredients are and it’s also a special way to involve the little ones in a creative project. Now, we didn’t say these are necessarily healthy, but they certainly are fun. This book has some amazing and very do-able ideas for cakes ranging from princesses to puppies. You don’t need special cake pans because the recipes also include a cake-cutting pattern which enables you to build your dream cake out of shapes cut from typical baking pans. We’re attempting the butterfly for our next bash. Enjoy!

Product Description:
At last, here’s a beautiful book full of fuss-free imaginative cakes to make for children of all ages. Annie Rigg shows you how to make various cake mixes in different quantities, as well as frosting and decorations for fabulous but effortless cakes. She then takes you through some Simple Cakes such as Princess Cupcakes, a Meringue Mountain, and a Just Fantastic, Chocolate Cake to end all chocolate cakes! Chapters on Animals, Wigs and Wheels, Fantasy, and Wildlife offer all sorts of cake ideas for novice and confident bakers alike. From a fluffy marshmallow Sheep to a pirate’s Treasure Chest, and a Ladybug to a Hot Air Balloon, there’s something here for every occasion, whether you’re short of time or you are prepared to spend the afternoon in the kitchen baking, icing, and decorating.

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Sam Stern’s Real Food Fast

Candlewick, 2007

Recommended readers- Ages 10+

Cautions:

Publisher’s Description:

British teen Sam Stern is a great cook, and he’s on a mission to get everyone else doing it. Now that his COOKING UP A STORM has stirred up a storm of attention, he’s offering REAL FOOD, REAL FAST to lure all those time-pressured teens away from their fast-food fixes. Once again, with his engaging conversational tone — and the help of his friends — Sam breezily runs through dozens of recipes, using real ingredients and simple techniques. But what makes these dishes a cinch for even cooking-resistant kids are the cool tabs that indicate preparation times of 5, 10, 15, 20, and 30 minutes. Brilliant!

KIWI Bookworm Description:

This British teen follows his first book (Cooking Up a Storm) with this fast and fun cookbook organized by preparation time, ranging from 5 to 30 minutes. Stern, 15, knows that teen schedules are tight, but he creates healthy meals in record time. Somehow, cooking is cooler with Stern.
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Chet Gecko’s Detective Handbook(and Cookbook) by Bruce Hale

Harcourt, 2005

Recommended readers- Ages 8-12

Cautions:

Publisher’s Description:

This nifty (and very handy) handbook features tips and techniques for detective work: how to shadow people, collect evidence, and conduct searches; photocopy-ready documents that every private eye needs–license, search warrants, forged sick-day notes from parents; a list of suspects and pointers on how to ID the crooks; a guide to detective lingo for all you shamuses; and tasty recipes for distinctively Chet Gecko-ish snacks, including Tick Tacos and Sweet Potato-Bug Pie (minus the bugs, of course).

KIWI Description:

This is more than your average cookbook; it has a handbook on how to become a private eye, plus recipes that all contain bugs (substitutions OK). Fourth-grade detective Chet Gecko teaches you how to grill a suspect and then bake Maggot Macaroni Cakes. “No case too small, no snack too big.”

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C is for Cooking: Recipes from the Street by Susan McQuillan

Wiley, 2007

Recommended Readers- 4-8

Cautions:

Publisher’s Description:

Introduce your kids to cooking…

with help from the Sesame Street gang!

Find more than 50 simple, tasty recipes for healthy breakfasts, lunches, dinners, sweets and treats,and more. Elmo, Cookie Monster, Grover, Ernie and Bert,Oscar the Grouch, Abby Cadabby, and more of your favorite friends from Sesame Street introduce the recipes and share food facts, letter and number activities, and other cooking fun.

All recipes include one or more “kids!” steps to get children involved in the kitchen.

KIWI Bookworm Review:

Nutritionist Susan McQuillan blends a Sesame Street flair with healthy family fare. Join the Cookie Monster as he creates simple meals and presents them in silly ways. Big Bird’s Spaghetti Pie, anyone?

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