Eating From Our Roots by Maya Feller, MS, RD, CDN

Publisher: Goop Press

Publication Date: January 24, 2023

This cookbook is written by a registered dietitian and nutritionist. It offers 80 healthy recipes derived from cultures around the world. It includes porridge, toasts, baked goods, soups, curries, stews, plant based dishes, fish and meat. Additionally there is an introduction, a section about how this book approaches health, how to make your way through this book, stocking your kitchen, tips for including plant based alternatives, how to modify recipes for health conditions, about the chefs, and acknowledgements. Photographs are colorful and depict mouth watering meals. While this is not a children’s book, children could benefit from learning about healthy meal preparation and different cultures by helping adults or young adults make these dishes.

Black-Eyed Peas and Hoghead Cheese: A Story of Food, Family and Freedom by author Glenda Armand and illustrator Steffi Walthall

Reading Age: 4-8 years

Grade Level: Preschool – 3

Publisher: Crown Books for Young Readers

Publication Date: September 6, 2022

A girl named Frances learns about the history of many foods traditionally prepared by African Americans during her stay with her grandparents for a New Year’s celebration. An informative account from the Atlantic Slave Trade to the Emancipation Proclamation for young readers. Illustrations are detailed and a wonderful addition to the story. My Book Eyes liked seeing information in sidebars about foods. A recipe for pralines, authors note, sources and further reading are included.

My Hands Tell a Story by author Kelly Starling Lyons and illustrator Tonya Engel

Publisher: Reycraft Books

Publication Date: May 13, 2022

Zoe spends time with her grandmother learning to make the family’s traditional cinnamon bread. Zoe doesn’t have her grandmother’s experience so she needs grandmother’s hand over hand assistance to learn the rhythm, push and pull of the dough. Her grandmother’s hands tell of various family roles she plays i.e. sister, mother to name some. Also her grandmother explains covert roles that she filled as she travelled down life’s unexpected roads. Zoe thinks about the things she can do presently and wonders about roles the future holds for her. Illustrations are bold and bright. This book would be great to read prior to a cooking activity and/or an activity about who we are and what we can do. For a young child such roles could consist of block builder, line leader, door monitor, big sister, big brother to name a few. A cinnamon bread recipe is included.

Chaiwala! by author Priti Birla Maheshwari and illustrator Ashley Barron

Reading Age: 3 -7

Grade Level: 2 and up

Publisher: Owlkids

Publication Date: October 15, 2021

Have you ever had a cup of chai? This is a tea beverage from India. In this picture book, A girl travels with her mother via train. Between train connections there is just enough time to stop at the tea vendor called Chaiwala. The scents of ginger, cardamom, cinnamon and black pepper swirl deliciously through the air. Viewers watch Chaiwala make the milky sweet tea. Mother and daughter savor their drinks. Yum! This book is beautifully illustrated in collage capturing a slice of life in Indian culture.

Busy Little Hands: Food Play!: Activities for Preschoolers by Amy Palanjian

Grade Level: Preschool – Kindergarten

Publisher: Storey Publishing, LLC
Publication Date: November 10, 2020

This cookbook is great for the youngest chefs. There are recipes for breakfast, lunch, drinks and snacks. Each recipe shows photographs of diverse children participating with procedural pictures also shown as well as information given about Grown – Up Prep Steps. There are labeled photos of kids’ cooking tools. Also there are 5 tips to make food more fun and 5 tips for good table manners. Ingredients are nutritious. This book gives good cooking ideas for preschoolers and kindergarteners to make at home or at school.

Granny’s Kitchen by author Sade Smith and illustrator Ken Daley

Reading Age: 3 – 6 years

Grade Level: Preschool – 1

Publisher: Feiwel & Friends

Publication Date: July 12, 2022

On the Caribbean island of Jamaica, when a young girl named Shelly-Ann gets hungry, she asks her grandmother to make a Jamaican dish. Each time, Shelly-Ann’s grandmother shows her how to make a meal, Shelly-Ann’s cooking is faulty i.e. too soft, mushy, burnt, salty. One day the grandmother is too tired to cook so the girl demonstrates her independence in the kitchen and cooks her grandmother a breakfast that isn’t as good as her grandmother’s but considering that this is only Shelly-Ann’s second time cooking the foods, they both find the meal tasty. Children and adults will appreciate the child’s determination to be as good of a cook as granny but it will take practice as it took granny many years to perfect her culinary skills. There are 4 recipes included for fried or boiled dumplings, ackee, saltfish and fried plantains. Additionally fun facts about Jamaica are added at the back of this picture book. Illustrations are eye-catching and suit the story. Due to the added recipes, an older child could definitely benefit from this book.

The Leaping Laddoo by author Harshita Jerath and illustrator Kamala M. Nair

Grade Level: Preschool – 3

Publisher: Albert Whitman & Company

Publication Date: March 1, 2022

In India, Mrs. Kapoor plans to make a big laddoo for her husband. As soon as she rolls the mixture into a ball, the laddoo comes to life and dashes out the door and down the street. Laddoo encounters many people who want to capture it but laddoo is too fast similar to the Gingerbread Man. Through illustrations and words readers and onlookers are introduced to some of India’s culture such as but not limited to the marketplace, common animals, clothing, the sport called cricket, a wedding, and chaiwala. Illustrations are vibrant and transport viewers to India. There are a glossary and ladoo recipe in the back of the book. My Book Eyes was surprised and satisfied with the ending.

The Complete DIY Cookbook for Young Chefs by America’s Test Kitchen Kids

Grade Level: 3 – 7

Publication Date: October 13, 2020

Publisher: America’s Test Kitchen Kids

Diverse youngsters create homemade foods that are often store bought such as ketchup and strawberry sauce in this cookbook. Included are over 100 recipes for everyday staples, snacks, sweets, drinks and do it yourself mixes such as oatmeal, pancake, waffles, brownies. Imagine creating ice cream, fudge sauce and sprinkles from scratch, Yum! All recipes have been made by other 8 – 12 year olds to determine feasibility of cooking tasks. Science facts about ingredients are added. Photographs of foods and procedures are clearly viewed.

Dumpling Day by author Meera Sriram, illustrator Ines de Antunano and contributor Laurel P. Jackson

Reading Age: 4 – 8 years

Grade Level: Preschool – 3

Publisher: Barefoot Books

Publication Date: October 29, 2021

Enjoy a feast of dumplings from around the world in this rhyming picture book. Ten families prepare dumplings that originate from their homelands of USA, Nigeria, India, China, Syria, Mexico, Japan, Italy, Russia and Israel. They share their foods at a potluck. Counting dumplings from 1 -10 occurs. The end of the book includes 10 recipes for each type of dumpling as well as a map pinpointing recipe birthplaces. Illustration style reminds My Book Eyes of folk art and is a great match for this picture book.

Edible Crafts Kids’ Cookbook by Charity Matthews

Ages: 4 – 8 years

Grade Level: 1 – 2

Publisher: Rockridge Press

Publication Date: September 28, 2021

Children learn to make 25 eye pleasing recipes that are made from healthy foods. There is a note to the adults, a note to the children and a getting ready section which includes tools needed to cook and create. Each recipe includes a Did You Know? section which adds facts and additional science information to these artsy recipes. Great for year-long cooking. Perhaps some of these recipes will inspire a Mother’s Day concoction. Enjoy!