Here is a cookbook for young moms, one that will also entertain their children. The small-format, beautifully produced cookbook is profusely illustrated with some hundred vintage illustrations (drawings?) for children. Many are small, some full page and some double page, but they are all gorgeous and children will flip through pages simply to enjoy them (their parents will likely do the same).
The thirty-page introduction covers health and nutrition for children, pantry staples, spices and herbs, feeding the baby and preparing baby foods. The recipes are divided into breakfasts, soups/sandwiches, snacks, dinners, veggies/sides and desserts. Recipe layout is excellent and the fairly simple recipes are well written using readily available ingredients. Scratch cooking is not emphasized. You will find such basics as Chicken Potpie, Super Nachos, Rice Noodle Salad and Apple Crisp. Many recipes are followed by suggestions for variations, Good to Know sidebars and Tips. Head notes are good and are worth reading. Several useful tables and lists are included, such as Lunch Bag Stuffers, Nuts and Seeds, Popcorn Toppers, Sauces, Know Your Fish, A Month of Dinners. In Veggie recipes vegetables are listed in alphabetic order. The well cross referenced index is excellent. (As reviewed for Portland Book Review.)
