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The Sneaky Chef: Simple Strategies for Hiding Healthy Foods in Kids Favorite Meals

by Missy Chase Lapine

REVIEW
Most moms will tell you that at some point, their child is a picky or finicky eater. There are only so many meals of mac and cheese, hot dogs, and chicken nuggets you can manage before you start looking for help. You want your child to eat more nutritional foods, but when they snub everything except what they've decided to eat, it makes it nearly impossible! The Sneaky Chef by Missy Chase Lapine has the perfect solution for any mom looking for a way to get their picky eaters to include more nutritional foods in their diet.

In addition to being a recipe book filled with kid-friendly foods that they love, The Sneaky Chef explains how issues of control are what empowers the picky eater. Children don't have to eat poorly. They can enjoy nutritional and tasty food, which will help them fend off the childhood obesity monster that is creeping its way into the American household. Lapine gives many examples and reasons for "sneaking" the good stuff into their favorites, while making it easy for mom.

The book is arranged in a fashion that is easy to read and easy to reference. It includes lists of foods that kids believe to be the good, the bad and the ugly. More lists include staples to buy, important foods to buy organic if possible, the most contaminated foods, and the tools you need to make your sneaking work best. Plus, in Chapter Five, you will read all about "The Sneaky Chef's Bag of Tricks," where you will learn to be the queen of sneaking nutritional foods into their favorites. Tricks include methods to combine foods (the sneaky way, of course), the health benefits of those tricks, and even how to make the food visually appealing for children so they dive right into their meal! There are thirteen total methods used to make your child's favorites into something healthier! It's a win-win situation!

The second half of the book covers actual recipes you can use for breakfast, lunch, snacks, dinner, treats and drinks. These are things that kids already love, but prepared in a way that makes you feel better about what they are putting into their mouths. Imagine your children eating things like peanut butter cookies, burgers, fries, pizza, pasta, chicken, meatloaf and even cheese dip without cringing from the lack of nutrition making it past their lips! The recipes are easy to follow, aren't full of ingredients you've never heard of (or rarely use), have nutritional highlights and many have variations you can use to tweak to your liking.

Not only is this clever book a good educational reference, but it's a must have for every mom on the block. Please your children (and their palate) while giving them vitamins, vegetables, protein, fiber... and the list goes on! The Sneaky Chef is a book that lives up to its name, and then some!
Rachael Towle 'JediMommy' Huntsville, Alabama (Amazon.com)


Author
Missy Chase Lapine is the former publisher of Eating Well magazine and the founder of the natural baby product line Baby Spa®. A mother of two daughters, she started experimenting in both her professional and family kitchen to create The Sneaky Chef recipes. She is on the Culinary Arts faculty of The New School, in New York City, and also offers Sneaky Chef workshops, cooking classes, and coaching to teach families how to eat healthier. Lapine lives with her family in Westchester, New York.