I love to read and cook with my kids. Often those are separate activities, but today’s booklist will encourage you to combine the two.
Children’s Picture Books about food are some of my favorites. Perhaps because I adore food. Or perhaps because I love trying new foods. Children’s books about food often combine the two – read and cook – which in my mind is even better.
Cooking with kids can be challenging, but also rewarding. Many experts believe that kids will be more adventurous eaters if they are encouraged to help cook meals. Cooking also offers real life practice with math skills and the chance to spend time together and bond.
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Below are some ideas to get you started on your own read and cook bonding adventure – picture books about different kinds of food paired with delicious recipes, often from the picture book itself.
Let’s read and cook together!
10+ Books to Read and Cook
1. Read: Ramen for Everyone
by Patricia Tanumihardja
illustrated by Shiho Pate
Ramen in all of it’s many varieties is celebrated in this book. It is about Hiro who makes ramen with his dad every week. He has decided that he can make the perfect bowl of ramen all on his own now that he is seven. It is a sweet and fun picture book. I love the bright, energetic illustrations and encouraging message to young aspiring cooks to do their best and be creative in the kitchen.
Cook: Ramen. A recipe for Easy Miso Ramen is included in the back.
2. Read: Bilal Cooks Daal
by Aisha Saeed
illustrated by Anoosha Syed
I am such a sucker for a good book about cooking food. In this one Bilal introduces his friends to the patient processes of cooking traditional daal. I love that the need to wait is repeated, that it’s a dad helping them cook and I love that this is the story of a child sharing a portion of his culture with friends.
Cook: Daal. A recipe is included in the back which is excellent because you will officially be hungry when you finish this book.
3. Read: The Little Red Hen (Makes a Pizza)
by Philemon Sturges
This is one of our favorite versions of The Little Red Hen. It follows the traditional format, but instead of bread the Little Red Hen is making delicious pizza. I love doing a story study with this story. Read a few different versions – some classic and some twists like this one and then talk about how they’re similar and different.
Cook: Pizza. No recipe is included here but pizza recipes are abundant. Here is a yummy Easy Pita Pizza recipe from A Mindful Mom that would allow everyone to personalize their own pizzas.
4. Read: 1 Big Salad : A Delicious Counting Book
by Juana Medina
I don’t know if this book will convince my kids to eat salad, but it is certainly worth a shot. This book has so much fun with fruit and vegetables. Simple text and playful illustrations.
Cook: Salad. I would encourage you to make a fruit salad and a veggie salad. Or at the very least head to the grocery store and choose some vegetables or fruits you haven’t had before and give them a try.
5. Read: The Doorbell Rang
by Pat Hutchins
Apparently I am on a classic kick. This is another great one. It is a fun story about a tray of cookies and a whole bunch of guests. It is also excellent for a quick math lesson.
Cook: Chocolate Chip cookies. You likely have a cookie recipe you already love, but this is the one we use from America’s Test Kitchen.
6. Read: Soup Day
by Melissa Iwai
This is a warm and cozy book about a little girl who makes soup with her mom on a cold day. The recipe is included in the back. When my kids were toddlers we made a little day out of this book. Reading it, shopping for the ingredients, making the soup together, and eating it. It’s also just a fun read about cooler weather and a sweet relationship between a mom and her little one.
Cook: Soup. A yummy soup recipe is included in the back of this book
7. Read: Dumpling Day
Words by Meera Sriram
Art by Ines de Antuanano
Recipes by Laurel P. Jackson
Books that make math fun are always favorites in my house. This book combines counting, addition, cooking and world food in a bright, engaging package. Around the world there are different versions of dumplings. Readers are introduced to this huge variety while being encouraged to add and count.
Cook: Dumplings of course! At the back there are recipes for all TEN dumplings for you to make and have your own dumpling day.
8. Read: The Cookie Maker of Mavin Road
by Sue Lawson and Liz Anelli
Random acts of kindness in the form of cookies. The secret cookie baker of Mavin Road makes cookies for every occasion in the neighborhood. A sweet story that inspires cookie making of all kind.
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Cook: Cookies. No one is really sad about another cookie baking excuse, are we? Any cookie baking follows well, but there is also a recipe included in the back of the book.
Read Also: 10+ Delectable Books about Food
9. Read: City Beet
by Tziporah Cohen and illustrated by Udayana Lugo
Storytime Read Aloud Pick! Set in a city, a little girl and her neighbor decide to grow a beet to make a beet salad for the neighborhood potluck. When the day arrives, that beet won’t come out of the ground. This book is a fun one to read for storytime. Onomatopoeia is layered with a building chorus and final repeated line that kids can chime in with every other page. Best of all, little Victoria saves the day at the end and they all enjoy a delicious potluck. In the backmatter, there is even a recipe so you can make beet salad together after you read.
Cook: Beet & Garlic Salad – see the recipe in the back of the book.
10. Empanadas for Everyone
by Jackie Azua Kramer & Lenny Wen
This book made my mouth water. It is a story about a little girl making empanadas, but it’s more than that. It draws comparisons between empanadas and food from other cultures that are similar – like samoasas and dumplings. I loved that! I loved how it emphasized how alike, but different we are. A warm story about family and food, about communities and about sharing that will leaving you itching to cook something yummy.
Cook: Beef or Chicken Puerto Rican Empanadas – see the recipe in the back of the book
11. Pasta Pasta Lotsa Pasta
by Aimee Lucido & Mavisu Demirag
Happy Book Birthday to this tasty picture book. PASTA PASTA has serious THE DOORBELL RANG vibes if you take out the math and add in lots of cooking and pasta. It has a pleasing structure with the doorbell ringing and new family members arriving with more pasta. In between there is lots of cooking and “lotsa pasta.” From cover to cover it brims with energy of big, bustling family and lots of delicious vocabulary words. A fun picture book to share aloud.
Cook: Pasta! Make your favorite pasta dish or if you want to go deeper. I recommend reading and picking one of the delicious recipes from the kids’ nonfiction/cookbook, THE STORY OF PASTA AND HOW TO COOK IT!
by Steven Guarnaccia.
12. Bring Back the Babka
By Marilyn Wolpin
Art by Madison Safer
A loaf of just baked babka is missing and the Rabbi is coming for dinner. Two kids race of on the hunt for the missing babka in this picture book. They check with their neighbors who are all cooking their own delicious dishes, but don’t have the babka. Their neighbors all share some of their delicious food and save Shabbat dinner. The words and illustrations are full of a rainbow of colors, scents, and traditions. I love how this book celebrates a range of countries and cultures that are home to Jewish people around the world. It speaks to the diversity of people and customs within this one religion. Don’t miss the additional information about each type of food mentioned and a receipt for Babka in the back of the book. Personally, I recommend baking a loaf of babka first to enjoy while you read the book together.
Cook: Babka There is a recipe in the back of the book.
Have more suggestions of books to read and cook with? I would love to expand this list (and my library!). Tell us about your favorite read and cook title in the comments.
