Customer Reviews

Emeril's There's a Chef in My World!: Recipes That Take You Places

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Too bad whoever wrote the School Library Journal knows so very little about cooking, nutrition & the "childhood obesity crisis." They have done Emeril's There's a Chef in My World!: Recipes That Take You Places a huge disservice. I've been cooking, collecting cookbooks and teaching kids to cook about as long as Emeril has been alive. This particular book is one of the best childrens' cookbooks I've seen - ever.

Emeril has produced a marvelous book. Many of the recipes he gives are for dishes that have been commonplace favorites in our kitchen for decades. This is real food that real children like to eat. None of it is hard to make, no recipe requires impossible to find ingredients and, most importantly, you won't find a single recipe that utilizes a "mix" of any kind. All real food. (The closest Emeril comes to a "mix" is the recommendation for the use of refrigerated biscuit dough as a time-saver when making empanadas and the use of cream-filled chocolate cookies as part of a pie crust.)

Emeril presents a very well balanced selection of recipes that are heavy on the use of fruits & vegetables and easy on the sugar. The recipes are nicely laid out with detailed instructions that are easy to follow. The larger format makes the book easy to read & use. He is careful to explain terms like "saute" within the text itself and often gives anecdotes or serving tips about the various recipes. The text is engaging and sounds just like Emeril himself. Those who like to watch Emeril on TV (more than a few kids do!) will find this book a very comfortable read.

Some reviewers have commented on the various graphics included in the book. Some don't like Emeril's picture, others don't like the line drawings. These might not be appropriate in a book intended for adults - but this one is for kids. Children like Emeril, they like bright colors, pictures & yes - even line drawings.

That said, this is not a book for a 7 year old cook. This is for the 9 and over crowd, those that have acquired at least a few cooking skills. For that matter, this is a book that is perfectly suitable even for an adult just beginning to explore the food world. This is not a book of "recipes" that no self-respecting adult would touch, nor is it a book that dumbs down material so it is "kid friendly." Real recipes that use real food that real kids (and grownups too) like to eat & cook!

This is a very colorful book splattered with Emeril's image throughout in various stages of posed animation. This book is intended for children to use with their parents or if you are so inclined to read yourself about food preperation . The fact that the information is global is very appealing. Emeril begins with some basic lessons concerning safety , nuts and bolts and other good things to know before you actually attempt cooking a meal.The first destination is Breakfast with recipes from Spain, Mexico, England, Switzerland and other countries. The choice of dishes are savory yet pretty simple for beginner cooks and usually limited to under ten steps. There is a small cultural lesson and flag representing the country of origin to go with the dish as well as a did you know section for each recipe. Next is Sightseeing Snacks, Salads and Starters with adventures into new countries like vietnam, Italy , Greece, Japan and others not used in breakfast.Onward to Globe-Trotting Soups and Sandwiches, continuing with Main Meal Masterpieces where the dishes are a little more challenging but doable with additional information on A Guide to Sides, the Bread Map and Sweet Snapshots. At over 200 pages with large print this book is good for the novice cook or student who wants to help prepare a meal with adult supervision. The oversized drawings and comical nature of Emeril's photographs make for what is intended to be a fun time in the kitchen. This is definitely a companion book where the adult and child must use the book together otherwise the child may have a problem in the kitchen. The meals are all pretty nutritious but have no caloric information. I think it is pretty cool for Emeril to take his personality and lend it to an educational endeavor where he combines his culinary talents with learning about other cultures. This would make a good school library book or one for a parent to share with their child. The reading level is fairly simple. This book will appeal to young readers with culinary ambitions ages 10-18.

I was looking for a cookbook for our 10 year old daughter who already knows her way around the kitchen -- rachael ray's cookbooks were too babyish, and many of the other standard kids' cookbooks seem to use too many mixes and pre-prepared foods. This cookbook is great (if you can get past the goofy pictures of emeril on every page) -- everything we've made has been delicious -- the recipes aren't super easy, but for a kid interested in cooking it's no problem. the international food selection is perfect for kids -- it's like a greatest hits of food from every country (kung pao chicken,morrocan couscous,jamaican jerk chicken, tortilla soup)

Anyone who has one of Emeril's "adult" cookbook or who is a fan of his cooking show, knows what a master he is at making things look easy. Emeril does a great job of doing just that with this cookbook. Parents and kids alike will love this book. Emeril explains the cooking techniques step by step to making easy and tasty world cuisine. My daughter has made just about all the recipes with very little assistance and they were great. Try this book, I guarantee you and your child will like it.

I got this book for my brother, he is a big emeril's fan & he love it + he is learning english and the book teaches a lot!!

Admittedly I have not tried the recipes yet, but just the introduction made me glad I purchased this book. It explained EVERYTHING about cooking that you could possibly ask, and it's written for children so even I can understand it. It's not for small children though. I'm guessing the age group would be right around puberty, the tweener stage. When my son gets older, I feel certain he will enjoy this book.

My kids love to pick out recipes and I like to try new things. This Emeril book is good, just not as great as the first- if you like Emeril, I am sure you will like it.

We both enjoy reading about the recipes from around the world. This is the first cookbook my teenager has really gotten excited about. We've only tried two recipes so far, both good, and we both cook together. Fun and yummy together time in the kitchen.

This book has some great recipes. It is a good collection of international foods with authentic flavors. The biggest drawback is that there aren't any pictures of the finished product. A photo of each dish could have inspired someone to try something new, especially a child. I personally think they went overboard on the cartoon images, when they should have hired a photographer.

My daughter had gotten this cookbook out of the library and loved it, so it was an easy idea for Christmas. The recipes are delicious, but they are somewhat tricky for kids. As a first cookbook, I would not recommend it, however, it does encourage children to try lots of different recipes from around the world. I find they are far more interested in them when they have cooked themselves. Some people have complained that the pictures are drawings instead of photos, but my daughter doesn't seem to mind that. The descriptions alone get her excited to try the recipes. His first cookbook for kids - There's a Chef in My Soup - has simpler recipes for a beginning chef.