Cooking for Kids

Once kids learn to say “no, they often direct their negativity towards food. Anything that has a funny look, smell or feel may be rejected.

Then the parents spend hour between meal times figuring out what their picky kids can eat.

And it doesn’t necessarily go away when they grow up. My teens make sudden, random statements like “you know I don’t eat lentils,” (Really? Since when) and “Now I’m vegan” (sorry, kid, we’re vegetarians and I’m still using cheese and eggs).

But I still appreciate cookbooks designed for families, especially ones like Parents Magazine Quick & Easy Kid-Friendly Meals, which has some pretty healthy and tasty dishes.

Take the banana quinoa waffles. One of my kids loves pancakes and waffles, but has been on an anti-banana kick lately, probably from a microscopic brown spot that she spied on a seemingly ideal banana.

These, waffles, made with whole whet flour and quinoa, are even better if your banana is covered with brown spots. The banana is mashed in, so if you hide offending skin, you can easily sneak a little banana back into your kid’s diet.

Other recipes include an easy black bean soup (made with canned beans) that has undetectable sweet potato (and if you swap out the chicken broth for vegetable, the soup is vegetarian).

I’m looking forward to watermelon season and the cold watermelon soup. You serve it with raisins to look like watermelon seeds – inspired!

Corn & edamame salad and cauliflower “popcorn” roasted with olive oil and topped with Parmesan cheese will please fussy kids and adults.