Boosting Your Basics is making the most of every family mealtime – from baby to school age.
Cooking for our young ones can often be an anxious and frustrating experience,
especially when preparing food for fussy eaters.
I’m always on the lookout for
basic recipes that are nutritious, easy to prepare, and have as few ingredients
as possible so my pantry doesn’t overflow with items of infrequent use. The
recipes have to be family-friendly as these most certainly are – all 100+ of
them!
The recipes began with baby food. Breakfast
alternatives followed with snacks, how to get your young ones to taste
something new, family meals, vegetarian, lunchbox food and sweets, purees, dips
and smoothies. I tried quite a few recipes and found that what I needed to
create them were produce that I purchased weekly. How exciting! The savoury
pumpkin, carrot and cheddar star-shaped scones were a hit, as was the zucchini,
carrot and apple loaf which was passed around as a tester, therefore became
more interesting to the little ones.
This is not just another cookbook for babies and
kids. It’s an inspiring excursion into food, tastes and textures that children
often avoid. There is a wealth of information and advice set in pre-chapter
sections which explain the importance of certain foods to growth and brain
function, good health, habits and behaviour, and essential daily nutrients the
body needs. It caters for all types of food preferences.
I love that the coloured segments also include
behavioural advice such as the importance of having meals together with your
child, the upright position children must maintain while eating, and the
instruction necessary from parents and carers to give kids that extra
sensibility about food and eating behaviours. Persistence and repetition with types
of food is also stressed. Try and try again, is how children learn to eat most
things.
The best thing about this book is that most of
these recipes can be eaten by the whole family. I found the content informative
and educational on many levels. Even the psychology used in reference to eating
and food habits was highly instructive. The recipes are simple and easy to
prepare, most of which can be pre-cooked and frozen. Each one comes with its
preparation, cooking time and amount of serves it makes, as do most recipe
books.
If you believe that your child will never eat red
lentils, chick peas or chia seeds in their biscuits or cakes, or eat legumes,
whole grains or coloured vegies, this book will prove you wrong.
Title:
One Handed Cooks: Boosting You Basics
Author:
Allie Gaunt, Jessica Beaton and Sarah Buckle
Publisher:
Penguin, $39.99
Publication
Date: March 2019
Format:
Paperback
ISBN:
9780143790181
For
ages: All Ages
Type:
Non-Fiction Cookbook