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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
a beautiful and fun book to inspire the advanced young chef, November 23, 2009
This review is from: Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey Treats for Kids (Spiral-bound)
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This is such an eye-pleasing book. I just love the scallop edged pages, and the sturdy, colorful cover. The lay flat spiral binding inside is also a good feature. I love food photography so I do wish this book had a picture of every recipe, but I understand the space constraints. There are a good amount of photographs though, and they are all beautiful!
We already own a lot of kid-related cookbooks, so I wasn't sure if we needed another one. I was delighted to find that this book is really appropriate for the more advanced young chef. My 13 year old daughter takes her cooking very seriously and she felt like this book was filled with fun recipes that were the kind a real chef would make.
Banana Split Pancakes, New York Crumb Cake, and Chock-a-block Chocolate Chip Gingerbread Muffins are on the top of my list of projects I can wait to taste from this book!
My only complaint is just related to the packaging done by amazon; some of my pages were bent by the inner cardboard piece inserted into the book.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
FOR Kids, Not WITH Kids--very, very yummy treats!, December 3, 2009
This review is from: Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey Treats for Kids (Spiral-bound)
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
Yesterday afternoon, I handed my girls and son a cup of the hot chocolate and a candy cane. They were thrilled! I did a little substituting since I didn't have white chocolate (her recipe would taste amazing, I'm certain!) and it was very good. It was the perfect Christmas treat for drinking while doing Christmas crafts. They also had in their hands a very yummy chocolate chip cookie made with the recipe from this cookbook. I've never been able to make anything like them before.
I love to bake and I make a lot of cookies. It's one of the things I remember from growing up--my mom always had some around. So, I already have 2 chocolate chip cookie recipes that I love. But, I'm always willing to try something new. So, when this cookbook arrived, that's what I decided to try--I figured it would tell me whether I wanted to try anything more. And wow! They are just like the Costco cookies--big chewy and full of chips. The recipe is made differently than I've made such cookies before, but that's what often makes a good cookie, I think. (My other favorite recipes has you add the vanilla and eggs at the very, very end) In this recipe, you melt the butter and have to chill the dough and you need to use parchment (you can reuse the parchment with the next batch and not have to use a ton--it will work fine).
On my shelves, sit a lot of cookbooks. I have found that often there are only a few recipes in each one that I love. But, this cookbook will have a place for a long time--based on those two recipes alone. My daughters have been bugging me all week to try the other recipes and now that my 6 year old can read all the recipe names, I'm really in trouble.
To address other reviewers concerns about this cookbook. I think the publisher mismarketed this cookbook. It is not one full of recipes to be made with kids (Mollie Katzen's kids books are the best around when it comes to that). This cookbook is full of fun treats to make for kids and share and enjoy together. There are not a lot of pictures--and I agree with others that I would like more. But, the cookies were good enough to rate a 5 star review, I think. And as for the amount of sugar--these recipes are really treats for special occasions--not meant to be eaten every day. At least in our house, my kids don't eat that much sugar every day.
I enjoyed the author's introduction and her comments with the recipes. She's a very human mom who talks about her enjoyment of cooking and also the struggles she has with cooking with her children--I have the same ones a lot of times, but I'm working on being more patient and choosing better recipes.
If you want a fun dessert cookbook for you--to make for your kids, get this one. You'll love it! I think a tween or older child could do the recipes with you. But, if you want one full of recipes to make with your kids pick one of the 3 that Mollie Katzen has out!
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Review from www.firrkids.com, October 14, 2009
This review is from: Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey Treats for Kids (Spiral-bound)
The introduction from the author makes me instantly love her. She seems totally neurotic about her kitchen and prefers her baked goods to turn out a certain way - just like me! And yet she wrote this cookbook for kids, understanding her kitchen would be under fire and making peace with the situation. If she can let her kitchen become subject to sticky, messy and gooey, any of us can.
Jill's introduction: I have a secret. Baking with children isn't always easy. I realized this a long time ago when I tried to make chocolate cupcakes with my daughter Sophia, an activity that ended badly with her running crying from the kitchen when I took the icing spatula away from her. My older daughter, Olivia, in all her teenage wisdom, like to call me "mean chef." My husband sometimes pretends an invisible time clock is ticking (sound effects included) while I am trying to teach one of them to cook, to see just how many seconds I can stand it before I snatch the whisk from their fingers. Is it just another case of the cobbler's children having no shoes, or am I really just a big kitchen ogre?
Just like the title promises, this book is chock full of wonderfully gooey treats that children will fall head over heels in love with. Armed with recipes such as Flufftastic Fudge, Curiously Sticky Caramel Monkey Bread and Butterscotch French Toast, it's a certainty that parents will be in hog heaven as well. It's surprising to me that these desserts lean a bit upscale, but I guess if you let kids loose in your kitchen with chocolate sprinkles, the knowledge that you will be nibbling on Peanut Butter-Pretzel Bonbons will probably take the edge off. Should the kids get suspicious, you can always wow them with the Ghostly Meringues.
It's important to note that the format of this book is as lovely as the recipes. The page edges are cut into a scalloped design with sweet gingham and flower patterns running the length of each page, almost like using the prettiest recipes cards imaginable. Drool-worthy photos accompanying several of the recipes, and notes are scattered about on white and pastel colored doilies. All of those details come together to make this a cookbook that has a lot of visual appeal and personality.
I really like that each page includes a short paragraph on why that particular recipe was chosen, giving us a little insight into the author's thoughts. It's not just a bunch of recipes stuck together, but rather good explanations on when and where these dishes might be appropriate, or suggestions on how to further adapt them.
Jill also writes "When I was growing up there was often a homemade treat waiting for my brothers and me when we came home from school." I really want my kids to have those kinds of warm memories. It helps to remember there will be plenty of years after your kids are grown to keep your counters fingerprint free and the floors swept clean. With the help of this book, you can allow those sticky little hands to invade your space and help turn out wonderful treats for the whole family.
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