Cookaholics Bulletin Board

Nancy, it was my first cookbook when I got married (almost 17 years ago, eek) and seemed so....I guess unfriendly is the word I'm searching for. There was nothing in it that encouraged me to cook or made it seem possible. And the print was so darn small and no pictures. I remember looking in it to cook spinach and it gave a cook time of 10 minutes which rendered the spinach inedible, and that I tried to make a steak pepper sauce from it and it required that I first make a "brown sauce" which called for 5 pounds of bones. Things like that where offputting to me as a new cook (I knew almost nothing about cooking when I got married despite having lived away from home for 3 years in university) and I never went back to it. Actually just put in in a goodwill pile last week since it was taking up shelf space and I hadn't used it in years.
Having said that, I know Molly is loving her copy and her dad can't stop raving about the meals she's making. So my experience may be atypical.

Given your experience, it makes sense that you'd not like it! And new cooks don't understand that the times can vary nor can they tell by observation, touch or smell. So unless someone has a "translater," maybe a lot of these books won't be as useful. Thanks for explaining

Sorry. My kids are 7 and 9. My daughter (9) reads above her grade level (I think. She reads books means for teenagers pretty easily). I think the things that would most lend themselves to this application are reasonably simple preparations with good pictures, whether it is designed for kids or not.

What I am imagining is having them plan a menu from available suggestions with my guidance (i.e., we have to eat vegetables as well as starch and protein), then actually take them to shop for the ingredients. I think it will be good for them in terms of learning to select good produce as well as a little understanding of the cost of things. Then they'll prepare the meal on a specified day (not the day we shop) with my oversight.

Check out the Marion Cunningham book on Amazon.
fitzie

Marion Cunningham has one called Learning to Cook.

Sunset publishes Easy Basics. It's a little more contemporary than Betty Crocker.

While neither is specifically written for children, it sounds like you children could handle them. I've given both as gifts many times.

FWIW, my 10 year old (was typing 9 then realized he's aged) loves the books he got. And we did like the Marion Cunningham when we had borrowed it.
Having them shop is quite good, mine are much better about food when they participate in the buying process.

Sounds like fun

I'm going to toss in more information than you probably want. Sorry in advance that this isn't the usual tone of this board, but it's me. If it's too much, just ignore it.

I don't believe in dumbing down for kids. My mom got sick when I was 10. I was the oldest of 5 kids; my only sister was only 4, and my dad decided that cooking was 'women's work'. Since there was no one else, I was the closest thing to a 'woman' in the house. The only cookbook in the house when I was 10 was the red and white checkered BH&G. With nothing but the checkered cookbook and a telephone link to my mom's hospital room, I learned to grocery shop and cook for the family.

One time when mom was home, she took me to the bank and put my name on the checking account. Then she took me to the grocery store and introduced me to the manager. She explained that I could write a check for the groceries, and arranged with him to approve my checks in the future. The store was only about 5 blocks away, so I would push the grocery cart home, and then my brothers had to return it to the store.

She came and went from a hospital bed at home, back to the bed in the hospital several times. Sometimes I had her in the next room to answer my questions. She died 3 years later. By that time, the relatives all wanted to take us from dad because they thought he couldn't raise us alone. To show them all up, he invited the whole damn bunch of them for Christmas dinner - with me cooking, of course. With all recipes from the one cookbook, I made turkey and trimmings for 25-30 people. No potluck. At 13. Forty five years later, I still make the pumpkin chiffon pie recipe that I found in that book for that dinner.

I never got another cookbook until I was 22 and married. As much as I now love and collect cookbooks, any good, general book will teach the basics. It doesn't have to be new or contemporary. And if your kids are old enough to be interested in the process, they can follow a cookbook without having to get a children's book, especially if you're nearby to define a few terms. They can grocery shop. And I'll bet they can even run your debit/credit card!

Maybe just pick one of your favorites from your bookshelf.....one with lots of pictures.

Or get a red & white BH&G.

By the way, I still have it.

Wow.

Talk about putting a perspective on things.

And, I bet every stain on that cookbook tells a story. Thanks for sharing.

Amy

What a poignant story. Thank you for the perspective
Nancy