Late last year, America’s Test Kitchen launched a new brand, America’s Test Kitchen Kids, to encourage kids to get cooking. Their free kid-centric website is aimed at kids aged 8 to 13, providing videos, recipes, quizzes, experiments, and more, to pique kids’ interest in food and cooking. Part of this new brand initiative is the release of The Complete Cookbook for Young Chefs: 100+ Recipes You’ll Love to Cook and Eat!
* Complimentary book received for review. This post contains affiliate links.
Unlike many books for children, The Complete Cookbook for Young Chefs isn’t condescending and doesn’t talk down to them. In this book, America’s Test Kitchen does what they do best, and that’s convey good information while simultaneously making you want to try their techniques and recipes. The difference is that this book is for young people, starting with the very basics like cleanliness and safety, and it has a much more fun slant with features kids will enjoy, like quotes from other kids sharing their thoughts.
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The book is designed to be visually appealing to kids, with friendly fonts, colorful sidebars, catchy headings, and cute drawings of kitchen utensils. Each recipe includes key symbols to indicate its difficulty level and whether it requires the use of a knife, microwave, stovetop, and/or oven. And the people in the photos are kids! Even the hands in the pictures that demonstrate techniques are kids’ hands, so youngsters will relate to what they’re seeing.
Beyond the visual appeal, everything else about The Complete Cookbook for Young Chefs is geared for kids, too, including the construction of the recipes themselves. For example, each recipe is broken into three distinct sections, Prepare Ingredients, Gather Cooking Equipment, and Start Cooking. These steps are essential even for adult cooks—in fact, professional chefs practice “mise en place,” prepping their ingredients before they begin. I love that America’s Test Kitchen is helping kids learn good kitchen practices that will last them a lifetime, while instilling creativity and enjoyment.
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Although this cookbook is for kids, adults will like it, too. Even experienced cooks can use a primer in the basics, and many of the recipes will appeal to grown-ups; I may not need the recipe for Classic Grilled Cheese Sandwiches, but the Sweet and Tangy Glazed Salmon is on my list to try. The recipes in The Complete Cookbook for Young Chefs range from the very simple (Yogurt and Berry Parfaits) to full meals (One-Pot Pasta with Quick Tomato Sauce), and include beverages, snacks, desserts, entrees, side dishes, and more. If you know a kid, you know someone who will love this book.
* This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, we may or may not receive a small commission which helps to support this site. Thank you!
Giveaway: One lucky winner is going to win a copy of The Complete Cookbook for Young Chefs, thanks to America’s Test Kitchen.
Giveaway Details: This giveaway is open to residents of the US ONLY age 18 and over. Please read our Terms of Service & Disclaimer Policy before entering. This giveaway will close on February 11th, 2019 at 11:59 pm EST time. No purchase necessary to enter or win.
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Disclaimer: A. Bailey received a complimentary product for review purposes & feature on The Classy Chics blog. No monetary compensation was received. A. Bailey’s thoughts, opinions and words are 100% her own. Your thoughts may differ. Please read the blog’s terms of service policy before entering any giveaways. The Classy Chics are NOT responsible for prize fulfillment or shipping of any items won from this blog. This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase through an affiliate link, we may or may not make a small commission which helps to support this website. Thank you!!!