The Toddler Cookbook

My son is an original. I mean, how many two year olds lose their minds when they have to leave Bed, Bath and Beyond, specifically the blender and mixer section? He could not care less about Toys R Us or any other toy store but loves Target for the mixing bowls. Truly, heaven for my little man is Crate and Barrel. So when it comes to reading, we are out of the box thinkers. B loves reading kid cook books. One of his favorites is The Toddler Cookbook by Annabel Karmel. He loves the page with a full spread of all the small appliances and kitchen utensils, all labeled. To be honest though, no need for labels for B because he will correct you if you call a whisk a beater or a colander a strainer. This is serious business for him. Each recipe has a picture to go along with the numbered step. They are fairly easy to make with children helping out and quite appealing. We have made the baked chicken fingers (with crushed low fat potato chips instead of bread crumbs,) meringues, tropical ice pops, and homemade lemonade (with added strawberries thanks to my kids’ suggestion.) Only problem that we have found is a lack of breakfast food recipes.

*Write steps for any daily activity like ‘how to get ready for bed.’ Include numbers and pictures and turn it into a book. Use simple sight words with repetition when learning to read. (I brush my teeth. I wash my face. I change my clothes.)