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Sunday, October 04, 2015

Beating the Lunch and Dinner Food Rut Blues



by Jennifer Nicholson Rowan Public Library
The kids have now been in school for about five weeks now; and yes, moms and dads, I counted!  This is about the time in the school year when many kids start screaming, “No more pb and j!”  The food rut usually hits everyone, from parents packing school and work lunches, to those cooking dinner every night.  Yet, have no fear, the Rowan Public Library offers many great cookbooks to help with your foodie blues!
For lunch box ideas and helpful hints try J.M. Hirsch’s Beating the Lunch Box Blues.  Hirsch’s book offers helpful and colorful tips and recipes, in an easy to browse style.  Have leftover steak from dinner last night?  Thinly cut the steak and make fajitas to pack in the lunch box!  This is a great book to use when you are really running out of ideas for lunch and need fresh, healthy ideas for lunch menus.  Even simply flipping through the pages, will spark your lunch creativity or make your stomach growl! 
For children with food allergies, the Allergy-free Cooking for Kids by Sterling Epicure Press, features recipes for all meals of the day, for egg-free, dairy-free, or gluten-free diets.  Enticing colorful photos will tempt any cook to try a new recipe.  The pineapple and white chocolate jelly cake, sounds amazing by the way!
Have a picky eater?  Have them help you in the kitchen!  Cookbooks are not only for adults, the Rowan Public Library offers many great cookbooks for kids and teens!  The Cookbook for Teens by Mendocino Press, Teens Cook by Megan and Jill Carle with Judi Carle, and many more, teaches teens how to cook, from tips and techniques on cooking that perfect burger to Paprika Bliss Soup.  For younger children, try Mommy’s Little Helper Cookbook for children ages 3-7 by Karen Brown or The Toddler Cookbook by Annabel Karmel.  Both cookbooks offer recipes or helpful hints for parents on getting children to help in the kitchen that are age appropriate and fun!   Still worry about a picky eater, don’t worry, the Rowan Public Library also has The Unofficial Hunger Games Cookbook by Emily Ansara Baines, have a Hunger Games party!
Still worried about a fussy eater, you can always try the “sneaky” approach.  The Sneaky Chef cookbook, by Missy Chase Lapine, provides a “simple strategies for hiding healthy foods in kids’ favorite meals.”  Try sneaking in some carrots to spaghetti sauce or cauliflower to homemade mac ‘n’ cheese, this cookbook offers a covert strategy to getting kids to eat more vegetables and healthier meals.
Cooking can be creative and fun, but it can also be educational as well.  Take a moment to provide a little math lesson, the Math 24/7 Culinary Math by Helen Thompson, allows students to learn fractions for dividing recipes, and how to read nutrition labels.  Cooking is also a great way to learn about other countries and cultures, try a new recipe from Japan or India.  You might be surprise and find a new family night favorite!
Food ruts happen to us all; but the Rowan Public Library has many great cookbooks to help rediscover the love of cooking.  To browse or find additional titles, please visit us or our website at rowanpubliclibrary.org.

Books Listed:

Baines, Emily Ansara. The Unofficial Hunger Games Cookbook. Avon, MA: Adams Media, 2011.
Brown, Karen. Mommy's Little Helper Cookbook. New York, NY: Meadowbrook Press, 2000.
Carle, Megan, Jill Carle and Judi Carle. Teens Cook. Berkeley, CA: Ten Speed Press, 2004.
Hirsch, J.M. Beating the Lunch Box Blues. New York, NY: Atria, 2013.
Karmel, Annabel. The Toddler Cookbook. New York, NY: DK Publishing, 2008.
Lapine, Missy Chase. The Sneaky Chef. Philadelphia, PA: Running Press Book Publishers, 2007.
Mendocino Press. The Cookbook for Teens. Berkeley, CA: Mendocino Press, 2014.
Sterling Epicure. Allergy-free Cooking for Kids. New York, NY: Sterling Publishing, 2014.
Thompson, Helen. Math 24/7 Culinary Math. Broomall, PA: Mason Crest, 2014.

Jennifer Nicholson
YA Coordinator/Librarian

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