Little Kenny in the Kitchen: Ken Kostick Cooks for Kids

Steve Pitt is a Toronto-based freelance writer and an award-winning journalist. He has written many young adult and children's books, including Day of the Flying Fox: The True Story of World War II Pilot Charley Fox.

Anyone who has seen Ken Kostick’s campy What’s for Dinner?
television show should know what to expect from this cookbook aimed at
the kiddie crowd. Kostick re-creates himself as a kid and adds his mom
and three canine companions as sous-chefs.

The book offers more than 70 recipes, each rated by “dog bones” for
difficulty. One bone means the recipe is completely child-friendly.
Three bones means that an adult is needed to chop veggies or pour out a
pot of hot pasta. Each recipe is presented in easy-to-follow steps, with
the level of difficulty, number of servings, preparation time, cooking
time, and cookware needed to prepare the dish added in a sidebar. To
keep the kids entertained, every page is embellished with comical
drawings of “Little Kenny,” his mom, and their three dogs.

Recipes include Green Stir-fry with Basil, Spaghetti Squash Curry,
Portobello Mushroom Pizza with Red Pepper, Lazy Summer Salsa Scrambled
Eggs with Parsley, Summer Potato Salad, Spooky Halloween Pumpkin Soup
with Apple, Little Kenny’s Unbelievable Chocolate Chip Cookies,
Fabulous Carrot Pancakes, Chilled Pineapple Soup with Yogurt and Mint,
Focaccia Pizza with Olives and Feta, Fall Apple Crisp, Helen’s Easy
Strawberry Pie, Grilled Vegetable Salad with Balsamic Vinegar, Couscous
Salad with Raisins and Parsley Madness, Tofu Lo Mein, Carrot and Orange
Quesadillas, and Kenny’s Christmas Shortbread.

Though the dishes are imaginative and children are likely to enjoy
making them, parents should take note: Little Kenny still thinks like an
adult chef. Many of the ingredients and preparation styles the recipes
call for will be completely new to most children—and even to a few
adults. That said, this is a fine starter book for young chefs.
Recommended.