Customer Reviews

Real Food for Healthy Kids: 200+ Easy, Wholesome Recipes

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I ignored the few negative reviews for this recipe book, and bought it anyway...especially since it had so many glowing reviews. And the authors seemed exceptionally accomplished. But it isn't the recipe book for me.

Unfortunately, it's hard to describe exactly what's wrong with the book or exactly why I don't like it. No one thing is a killer, but, as a whole, I found the book disappointing. Here are some of my thoughts:

1. No pictures at all. None. Zip. And I just don't like recipe books that don't include photos.
2. The organization is kind of trying. The onion dip recipe is listed in the "snack attack" section. Sesame sauce is under "lunch," and Teriyaki Vinaigrette is under "dinner." It would have been easier for me if those had been listed as "sauces" or listed as part of a recipe for a full-blown dish.
3. You could find better versions of most of these recipes in adult cook books. I already have a recipe for Caesar salad, for example. And this book doesn't offer a new take on the salad at all, except to title it with a snazzy kid name: Hail Caesar, Jr.
4. The snazzy kid names are annoying to me, especially since they don't end up being very descriptive. "Squish Squash," for example, is just a simple mashed butternut squash. It's a fine name once you know what the dish is, but you have to read through the ingredients to figure out what the dish is going to be like. With more complicated recipes that is a bit of a task because, as I mentioned before...no photos.
5. They spend a lot of time on drink and dessert recipes.
6. They spend very little time on side dishes or vegetables, and most of the vegetable sides they offer are either potato heavy or extremely basic, such as roasted asparagus, which is...(wait for it)...roasted asparagus, in olive oil with salt and pepper. I don't need a recipe book for things like that. I can come up with salt and pepper on my own.
7. They don't offer much in the way of serving suggestions. They'll give you the recipe for pineapple pork, but they won't give you any ideas of what to serve it with, which makes the lack of veggie recipes more painful.

The recipes themselves seem OK. I like roasted asparagus, and mashed butternut squash...and Caesar salad. So it's fine. But overall I found this book to aimed at someone other than me. If you're already into food at all, this probably isn't the book for you. I didn't find anything very original or insightful in this book, and I found many things kind of confusing (why is canned pumpkin is a necessity for a well-stocked pantry? I only use pumpkin a few times a year, and I usually just use real pumpkin--or I buy a can for the specific recipe. I don't know).

"Real Food" is a rare example of a book related to child-rearing that manages to be warm and personal without being ingratiating or dishonest. You won't find any spinach hiding in the brownies here -- just delicious recipes that that will encourage your kids to enjoy authentic, healthy food. I highly recommend it.

My kids and I love this cookbook. the recipes are delicious and easy to make. Kids do NOT need to only eat pasta and PB & J's. if you expose them to healthy flavorful foods early on they'll have a sophisticated pallet for life. My mother always cooked us whatever she liked and we loved it too. the recipes in this book are good for everyone in the family. This way everyone can eat together - as they should!!!

My four year old is a super-taster, super-gagger (and no, it's not me: my son eats everything!). I was looking for a cookbook to broaden her horizons. This looked good on line, but contains recipes like deviled eggs with wasabi in! Wasabi??? Ok if your kid already eats everything, but for most kids these recipes will be a stretch.

I got this book for my wife to help with menus for two picky boys. She is using it every week now and the kids love it. And the best part is, the meals are really good.

wonderful recipes. great for kids and adults. lots of time saving ideas. I especially loved the cake recipes!

So I got several new books because I was tired of the same old, same old with my kids. I have 4 kids. They range from extremely picky to will eat anything. The only thing they have in common is the fact that our diet has been filled with processed and saturated foods. And I just didnt want that anymore.
So I got several books. This is the only one I liked. For several reasons.
1. The other books said that they are healthy or that they are by nutritionists. However, I found that most of the ones that said they were healthy, were filled with condensed soups, cheese, butter, milk and white flour items. Which to me, are not healthy in I diet.
2. This book also had what we are looking for in a variety of breakfast, lunch and snack foods. Those have been the areas that we have been having problems finding new ideas.
3. The recipes are simple. They dont take tons of ingredients that you cant find at a normal store. And they dont cost a ton.

There are several reviews about the simplicity of the recipes, or that there are no pictures. To me, I dont need pictures, I would rather have more recipes than pictures. And I love the simplicity of the recipes becuase I find that overly complicated recipes with too many ingredients take too long, and my kids dont normally like them.

All in all, I love this book. It is healthy, simple and great for kids. And I should also mention that when I went through the book with my kids, they were very excited to make the foods themselves and eat them. Even my picky eater! I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking for simpler, healthy, non-processed foods.

We saw this cookbook reviewed in our local newspaper. I checked it out from the library to see if my family would like it. I had such success with it that I bought it. I use it almost every day now. My kids and my husband like it. I have made stuff to serve to guests and always get compliments. I like that veggies aren't hidden in the recipes. Their theory is kids will eat veggies if they are cooked right, so they don't need to be disguised. We are on a strict budget so some of the recipes call for ingredients that are too expensive, but there are plenty of others that are cost effective. Thumbs up on this one. If I could, I would buy several copies to give away to other moms.

I like to bake, and I own lots of cookbooks I like to read yet from which I have never made a recipe. This one I checked out at the library and then put on my Christmas list because I knew it was a keeper. I've already made the "peanut butter blondies" a couple of times, and tonight I made the "ba ba banana bread." I like the practical and friendly voice of the authors--a couple of moms talking to other moms like me, sharing what they know and love about making healthy, easy-to-prepare food for their families (and themselves). I would actually recommend this book to anyone who's interested in eating healthy, tasty food that doesn't take hours to make. I also appreciate that the book includes nutritional information, an omission in too many cookbooks.

Real Food For Healthy Kids is phenomenal cooking book that any kid or parent will approve of. Full of healthy, delicious, and easy-to-make recipes, I have learned a lot about cooking and have changed my opinion on it; cooking is no longer a chore for me, instead, it is a fun learning experience. This book proves that healthy meals are not hard to make, in fact, they are quite simple. The 30 minute dinners of chapter 6 have become an essential part of my busy nights when I have to cook for myself. It's nice being able to eat something homemade that is both easy and nutritious, especially when I've been studying for exams beforehand. As a busy student, this book has been a big help to me and a great learning tool. I would honestly recommend this book to anyone, whether you love cooking or hate it, you'll find recipes in here that suit your time requirements/limitations, your level of cooking expertise, and your taste buds.