Review by Booklist Review
This photo-documentary picture book follows four groups of young kids as they prepare simple meals in school classroom kitchens. Their international menus include sweet-and-sour cucumbers from China, minestrone and bread sticks from Italy, roasted veggies in fruit sauce from Morocco, and tamales from Mexico. The photos showcase a diverse group of participants, including students, parent helpers, and teachers. Each activity washing hands, measuring ingredients, food preparation techniques, and final presentation (with ample attention paid to safety precautions at every opportunity) is thoughtfully and carefully laid out. Child-produced illustrations pop up occasionally, and some pictures show kids just being silly and having fun. Each section ends with the participants coming together to enjoy their efforts, sitting down to eat as they exchange regionally appropriate greetings ("Buon Appetito!" "As-salamu alaykum!"). Whether used in conjunction with school cooking units or as an introduction to dining traditions around the world, readers will come away thinking of cooking as a pleasurable and satisfying experience.--Kathleen McBroom Copyright 2018 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Horn Book Review
In his trademark photo-essay format, Ancona describes and shows diverse groups of students participating in the Cooking with Kids program in schools around Santa Fe, New Mexico. The vivid, close-up color photos depict the kids' active engagement in preparing (with adult assistance) and eating complicated dishes from Morocco, China, Italy, and Mexico; occasional child-drawn spot art is also included. Recipes available online. (c) Copyright 2019. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Kids all over are eating foods from different countries, as people from various cultures settle everywhere.In Santa Fe schools, children experience global cooking with healthy ingredients thanks to the organization Cooking with Kids. Visiting chefs teach kids dicing, cutting, chopping (with butter knives), measuring, stirring, using a mortar and pestle, and mixing. The students learn about grains, vegetables, and spices used in international cuisines. The adults handle the stove and oven tasks. In his latest photo essay, Ancona features diverse kids and adults as they prepare Moroccan root vegetables with a cilantro-based sauce called chermoula and minted orange pieces, Chinese-American fried rice with sweet and sour cucumbers, Italian minestrone soup with homemade breadsticks, and Mexican salsa, tortillas, and tamales. (Readers tantalized by these descriptions will find recipes on the publisher's website.) Each page has a slightly different layout, and children's crayon drawings are also incorporated. Everyone gets a chance to taste the finished products, learning expressions such as "Chi fn luo" ("Good eating" in Chinese) and "Buen provecho" ("Have a good meal" in Spanish). Teachers or librarians can gather program ideas such as using a globe to indicate a recipe's origins (although there is no map) or reading a story to introduce a recipe. Kids will sense the excitement that accompanies these classes and clamor for cooking lessons.Spice up school, library, or home cooking projects with this beginning guide to the fun of cooking. (Informational picture book. 6-9) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
