For those of you getting your children ready for back-to-school, you'll love Cooking Up Fun For Kids With Diabetes, ©2003 by Patti Geil and Tami Ross. This wonderful cookbook for kids and parents alike impressed me so much, that I decided to create a recipe feature around it in the August issue of the Cinnamon Hearts website just to share some of these great kid-oriented recipes with you.
Every day millions of parents struggle to get their picky eaters to eat better, and with childhood obesity, leading to Type 2 diabetes in children on the rise, the importance of eating healthfully cannot be understated. Plus, if you're a kid with diabetes, food can seem like medicine--eating certain foods at certain times in certain amounts.
Cooking Up Fun For Kids With Diabetes authors Patti B. Geil, MS,RD,FADA,CDE, and Tami Ross, RD, LD, CDE, have planted their collective fingers directly on the food tastes that kids really love. The recipes are divided into three sections: Made For A Meal, which includes main dishes, sides, and appetizers; Anytime In Between, chock-full of treats; and Save The Best For Last, which features delicious desserts. Each recipe is divided into simple steps for preparation and degree of difficulty, with complete nutritional information and dietary exchanges per serving.
Cooking Up Fun For Kids With Diabetes is much more than just recipes though; it opens with a chapter aimed at children themselves. Full of fun food facts, this section offers elementary lessons about nutrition, including easy-to-understand information for those with diabetes. Material just for parents and caregivers, including discussions of meal plan options and frequently asked questions and answers, is also an important part of this chapter.
Finally, one of my favorite features in this delightful book are the creative projects incorporating food and/or food ingredients. How to make a Windowsill Herb Garden and Potato Stampers are the two I plan to share with Taylor, my seven-year-old granddaughter.
Even if your don't have a child with diabetes in your immediate circle, this book is terrific for anyone who wants to involve children in a healthy eating lifestyle. You can't go wrong with this one, folks -- it's a great little book for children and grownups alike.
Reviewed by: Marilyn Helton
