Kid-friendly vegetarian cookbook?

[luvmytwo]

Hi, gals.
We get most of our fruits and veggies through a CSA at a local farm.
The problem is, lately I feel like I'm cooking separate meals for my dh and me and the kids.
Now, I think my kids eat more vegetables than most kids do, but they just won't go near some of the stuff we get-like the greens, and my dh says he can't eat it all by himself!

I don't really want to puree the stuff and sneak it in-don't get me wrong, I'm not opposed to that, but most of those recipes only use a little bit of the given vegetable.

What I'd really like is a cookbook that offers vegetarian versions of the kind of things my kids like to eat already. We aren't vegetarians, btw-we just don't eat a lot of meat. We do eat lots of dairy. Any suggestions?

TIA!

[ckmm04]

I have a cookbook that I love called "Feeding the Healthy Vegetarian Family". I don't think it is exactly what you are looking for but worth checking out of the library. We get lots of greens from our CSA too. The only way I can get my kids to eat them is to mix them mashed potatoes--like the Irish recipe colcannon. We are a vegetarian family, but one of my kids eats very little veggies--it is frustrating but as she gets older she tries more things.

[krisC]

Its not a book, but i like the vegetarian menus at Savingdinner.com. My kids always love it. But , I dont really give them an option on that, so ymmv. Plus they are good at using seasonal ingredients so perfect for the CSA.

k

[Magwart]

You might look at Robin Robertson's "The Vegetarian Meat & Potatoes Cookbook." It's full of classic "comfort food," adapted to be vegetarian.

I can't say whether it's kid-friendly (I don't cook for kiddos), but it is full of recipes that are pleasing to non-vegetarians generally.

[csthedays]

I have one called "The Vegetarian Lunchbasket", which has all sorts of recipes that can be used for more than just lunch. I thought I had one for kids, but can't find it.

Greens can be used as 'wrappers' for all sorts of sandwiches and other things. What are the things they like to eat so we can get a better idea of what you are looking for? You can always do a search on amazon, ebay, or half.com too for 'vegan/vegetarian cookbook' there are tons out there and I know there are ones geared toward kids. I usually search on amazon, make a list of what I would like, then go to ebay, half.com, or alibris to find them cheaper.

[NanaRocks]

I absolutely love Mollie Katzen's vegetarian cookbooks. She has, I think, 3 different cookbooks for children. You can check her out at molliekatzen.com, and click on the link for the Kid's Corner. She is also an artist/painter and illustrates her own cookbooks. Love, love, love her books.

HTH,
Sheila

[luvmytwo]

Thank you for the Great suggestions! I really had no idea there was so much out there. It sounds like I need to do a lot more exploring...thanks for giving me some starting points!

I should confess that I'm not a great cook in general, so if I sound "clueless," that's probably part of it!

As to what my guys eat now, my 5 yr. old will eat anything except spicy things, tomatoes, and greens (although he will eat raw spinach and salad with dressing). The 3 yr. old seems to change from day to day. Their favorites are probably the typical kid things....fries, cheeseburgers, hot dogs (none of which we eat very much of).
They also both love cheese and carbs.
I think they get that from their mother-LOL!

If anyone else has suggestions, feel free to chime in.

Thanks again for your time and your wisdom.
I'm so appreciative of all who contribute to this great board.

[tikvah777]

Honestly, most kids that age don't like much. I just prepare dinner and they either eat it or don't. If they don't they can have a piece of fruit later when they get hungery. My son probably only eats dinner once a month, and he is very healthy. One thing they all do like is tofu, really! I cut it in strips, spray a pan with oil, and pan fry it till crispy. Then I let them dip it in ketchup. They love the stuff.

[mom1198]

I have a great cookbook that has such a variety of recipes, many of which go over pretty well with my boys (one who is quite picky)

Nikki & David Goldbeck's American Wholefoods Cuisine
" Over 1300 meatless, wholesome recipes from short order to gourmet. Low fat, high fiber, no refined ingredients, naturally sweetened and seasoned"

[BCMomma3]

I think that I have the book that you will LOVE! We are vegan. When we first became vegan, we went on the hunt for cookbooks and found a treasure trove of books.

I bought one that is just awesome and it is indeed geared toward children but not just for children, called "The Imus Ranch: Cooking For Kids And Cowboys".

The book is wonderful, lots of great photos too. The Ranch was designed to help seriously ill children have a chance to thrive and grow at this amazing ranch - through good food, exercise, and environment. I bought my copy at amazon.com. I just checked and you can purchase paperback copies for .52 cents! What a deal yes? I bought the hardbound because I am a collector and knew that I would treasure the book. But, still I only paid a couple of dollars for the hardback copy.

Kids this age are actually very GOOD eaters if we adults model the correct behavior for them. My kids always ate well as children but now we all decided as a family unit that we want to be healthier so we dumped the meat and dairy and we are learning to be vegan together.

My oldest daughter, works in a daycare/pre-school. Daily she has lunch with 14 two year olds. The toddlers have actually watched my daughter transition from being a meat eater to being a vegan and they begin to ask her for her lunch rather than wanting to eat their own. What they see her eat, they tend to want and it has actually changed the eating habits of over half of the children in her care. Parents themselves are seeing my daughter change and they are wanting their children to learn to eat differently too. The greatest challenge has not been so much in the eating habits of the children but instead it is modification of the eating habits of the parents. Once the parent changes what they provide for their child, and models the correct behavior (everyone eats together at the family table) the rest comes naturally.

[Jeniphir]

Another vote for Mollie Katzen. Her "Salad People" book is recipes kids can help with (they do most of it, actually!), and my guys (7 and 3) love it! We had "Tiny Tacos" a few nights ago, and "Counting Soup" last night.

--jeniphir