Melina Hammer - Kid chef : the foodie kids cookbook : healthy recipes and culinary skills for the new cook in the kitchen

Copyright 2016 by Melina Hammer

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Photography 2016 Melina Hammer

ISBN: Print 978-1-943451-20-3 | eBook 978-1-943451-21-0

Flipping throughKid Chef brings back lots of memories of the time when my wife and I were figuring out how to get our four-year-old daughter, Mimi, more involved in preparing food with us at home. As I am writing this, Mimi is sitting on her stool tearing rainbow chard leaves from their colorful stems into bite-size pieces. Because we started her off when she was two, this routine is very familiar. Initially, we gave her simple tasks like raking food scraps into the compost pail; washing vegetables; and picking through dried legumes, throwing away any shriveled ones. Maybe you started off doing similar things, helping out in the kitchen too.

It amazes us to see how confident and competent Mimi is becoming. As she gets older, her jobs will become more challenging: pounding spices in a mortar; zesting citrus with a microplane; separating the egg whites from the yolks; using a pan on the stove to saut veggies. All the things you will learn here, plus so much more.

Preparing and cooking food builds independence when youre completing tasks on your own; it allows you to learn and practice basic math and science; it expands your palate; it gives you ample opportunities to be creative; and most important, cooking is super fun!

I am happy that you will have this book as a personal resource. It is so important to learn about cooking and proper nutrition when youre young so you can establish lifelong habits that will decrease your risk of preventable diet-related illnesses. And guess what? With Kid Chef, youll join a larger movement that embraces mindful cooking as a way to address the massive public health crisis facing Americans due to our unhealthy Western diet, filled with too much meat and too many sweets. Before you know it you will be making dishes for family and friends and passing on the cooking skills youve learned, inspiring others to join the movement, too.

Bryant Terry

James Beard Foundation Leadership Awardwinning chef

Welcome to the world of cooking! You may already have some kitchen know-howmaybe youve helped bake cookies with friends or fixed yourself a homemade snack. Or maybe youve never picked up a pan in your life. Thats OK, too, because this book will teach you what you need to know to become a pro in the kitchen.

Cooking is not hard, but we all do start at the beginning. The more you practice, the better you get. Just keep that in mind, and dont get frustrated when a recipe isnt going the way you think it should, because everyone makes mistakes. Be patient, and ask for help when you need it.

In this book, youll learn fundamental skills to secure your success in the kitchen, and tips to develop good cooking habits. Get ready to

Orient yourself in the kitchen and learn what to stock in your pantry as well as the must-have gadgets and tools youll need to make great food.

Participate in several cooking lessons to help you master the essential skillslike prep work, baking, and roastingthat go along with preparing a mouthwatering meal.

Find a range of recipes to test out on your family and friends, from the impressive Potato-Gruyre Tart () that works as a breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

As you find your own path to healthy eating, youll discover that people will have different ideas about what that means. My idea of healthy eating is preparing foods that have little to no processed ingredients, healthy fats (those fats feed our brains!), and plenty of fresh fruits and veggies. Balanced meals like these, with the occasional indulgence of homemade sweets, make for healthy and happy living.

Are you ready to begin your journey into cooking? Put on your apron and lets get started!

You may want to jump right in and start cooking, but before you start, its important to familiarize yourself with your kitchen. Once you know what ingredients youll need to have on hand and which tool is best for what, the better your results will be. In no time, youll be using these tools and ingredients with ease to whip up all kinds of delicious food!