Kids Cooking and Cookbook Blog

Image by marispacifica via Flickr

Colored Easter candy is flooding store shelves, ready to fill children’s baskets. Other colored foods are in most every aisle of the store – breakfast cereals with their rainbow of colored pops and grains, yogurts with their multicolor blends, even Fido the dog has colored treats available. And, are there really strawberries in strawberry milk, or is it Red 40 and Blue 1 food dye?

We are seeing an increase in the amount of artificial dyes in our foods. They are used mainly to trigger that part of our brain that says “this is good, buy me”.

Image via Wikipedia

The $4.9 million grant received by the University of Michigan will try to figure out how to eliminate behaviors leading to obesity before a set pattern begins. The funds will be used for research and obesity prevention programs in Head Start. This federally funded program focuses on school readiness for low-income children ages 3 to 6.

This is a huge amount of money to spend on this project. If it, indeed, helps children control their weight, it will be priceless. We know that an obese young person is much more likely to be an obese adult. And people who are overweight are more likely to have more medical problems.

Image by Thomas Hawk via Flickr

Here is a good read about England and their long apple history. This universal fruit has fans the world over – but some fans are more discriminating than others.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/mar/14/apple-britain-gala-traditional

I enjoyed reading how apples are viewed by others across the ocean. Hope you enjoy it, too!

Best to you,

Lee Jackson
Author: From the Apple Orchard – Recipes for Apple Lovers
Apples, Apples, Everywhere – Favorite Recipes From America’s Orchards

Image via Wikipedia

Whether you have a bushel or a peck or only a pound, you will find over a hundred ways to use apples in this apple cookbook, From the Apple Orchard – Recipes for Apple Lovers. Others have said: “Good to the Core“. The Mountain Airy News. “I purchased this book while in Georgia as a Thank You gift for a neighbor who took care of our plants while we were away. I should have purchased two, as it was hard for me to give it away after have read it, almost cover to cover. Where can I buy another?”  E.C., California.

Image via Wikipedia

One of the most universally loved fruits is the apple. Apples are packed with fiber, have a low sodium content, and are the truly fat-free product of nature. There are many health attributes of apples such as lowering cholesterol and protecting against heart disease.

Apples may help boost weight loss efforts, as each apple contains only 80 calories. And, they are usually in-stock in grocery stores throughout the country. You can buy them anytime of year, but it is the Fall when they are at their peak of wholesomeness and crunchiness.

Image via Wikipedia

During long sea voyages, it was usual for sailors to develop a disease called scurvy.

In 1747 a physican to the British Navy performed an experiment in which he chose twelve sailors who showed symptoms of the disease.

These men ate the same food as the others, but were given different remedies. Some were given cider to drink, others sulfuric acid, or vinegar, sea water, nutmeg and others were given two oranges and a lemon daily.

The pair of sailors who ate the oranges and lemon daily were the only ones who showed improvement and were able to report for duty in a few days.

Image via Wikipedia

Everyone would benefit from growing a vegetable garden. Vegetables, especially those grown above ground, should provide one of the main staples of our daily food pattern.

We are blessed and very fortunate to have such a wide variety of food available to us. Yet many people do not choose foods wisely. Too often the sweets and fats take center stage and too few plant based foods and healthy proteins are included in our diets.

Vegetables are excellent providers of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and flavonoids, as well as the good carbohydrates everyone needs. Flavonoids are a class of antioxidants.

Image via Wikipedia

Help kids connect food to what they value – what is important to them.

For example, if they are athletes concerned about doing well in sports, you can tell them about protein foods needed for  building and repairing tissues, enabling them to become better athletes.

If they are concerned about their hair, skin or general appearance, you can tell them about the fruits and vegetables that contain valuable antioxidants for help  in these area. Antioxidants are chemicals that reduce or prevent oxidation, thus preventing cell and tissue damage from free radicals in the body.