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by Danielle Wood
Topics: Preteen and Teen Reading, Recommended Topic-Based Books, Top Children's Book Authors, Helping Your Child to Become a Lifelong Reader, Healthy Eating Strategies, Promoting Attachment, Family Ideas and Inspiration
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Running out of dinner ideas? Try this on for size: you watching as your kid cooks for you. It may seem like a fantasy unlikely to come true, but with the right kids cookbook, it just might happen. Here are two of our favorites:

Honest Pretzels by Mollie Katzen (Tricycle Press). A great primer for would-be cooks, with clear directions, interesting recipes, and a healthy, but kid-centric approach. Katzen is the author of the popular Moosewood Cookbook series. She gets it just right here with recipes like a Giant Baked Pancake Puff, Gingerbread French Toast, Not-From-a-Box Macaroni and Cheese, and Spaghetti Pie. Katzen manages to sneak in fruits and vegetables in fun ways-- Apple Yogurt Salad, Tomato Soup, Mysterious Dipping Sauce for tofu and vegetables, or Crunchy Zucchini Circles. But she balances things with kid staples like pizza and homemade tortillas. The book is aimed at kids 8 years and up. For their younger siblings, we love Pretend Soup and Other Real Recipes, her cookbook for preschoolers.

Roald Dahl’s Revolting Recipes, illustrated by Quentin Blake (Viking). Just before Dahl died, his wife Felicity approached him about the idea of creating a cookbook based on all the foods that appear in his stories. He agreed, but on one condition—she’d have to do all the work!   The result was this book—a delightful collection of crazy delicacies and outrageous ideas. Willy Wonka fans can concoct Lickable Wallpaper, Nutty Crunch Surprise, or Candy Coated Pencils for Sucking On In Class.   Kids can try their hand at Snozzcumbers from Dahl’s book, BFG (cucumbers with poppy seeds and tuna) or Mosquito’s Toes and Wampfish Roes Most Delicately Fried (fish sticks) from James and the Giant Peach. The book has lots of treats—no surprise from the author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, but it also has chicken, eggs, burgers, and other less sugared fare. Crack open some copies of Dahl’s books and have your kids help with dinner. Just make sure they don’t slip you some Stickjaw for Talkative Parents.