Cooking with Kids: Kid-Friendly Websites

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by Kat Kinsman

It's a great big, wild Web out there, and it's not always easy for parents to find info fit for the littlest chefs. We've rounded up our favorite safe, tasty, kid-centric cuisine sites and resources for parents looking to get cooking with their whole family.



1. Spatulatta
Tweenage sisters Liv and Belle Gerasole have been cooking with their Dad since the age of 2, and share their favorite healthy cooking techniques, recipes, menus and tips in videos and blog entries on this James Beard Award-winning site. Additional young "remote reporters" chime in with their reports from farms, food shops and kitchens from Wisconsin to Wales, as well as interviews with older chefs in their families.
Visit spatulatta.com

2. Real Food for Healthy Kids
Epicurious Editor-in-Chief Tanya Wenman Steel and "Every Day with Rachael Ray" Test Kitchen Director Tracey Seaman, each a working mom of two, teamed up with 80 kids from across the nation to develop wholesome, nutritious recipes that kids would actually eat. The resulting book is called "Real Food for Healthy Kids," and its accompanying site is packed with extra recipes, parental resources, and smart discussion of current kid-food issues.
Visit realfoodforhealthykids.com

3. Gastrokid
Writers Hugh Garvey, Matthew Yeoman and their wives found themselves fighting an uphill battle, raising discerning eaters in a McNugget-mad world. With Gastrokid, they post kid-friendly cooking tips, personal stories, family meal menus, product reviews and a community for parents interested in avoiding the pitfalls of the easy fast food fix.
Visit customcom.typepad.com/gastrokid

4. Wee Kiwis
Sisters Aubrey and Sasha, aged 6 and 8, split their time between Alaska and New Zealand and use their site to share crafts, stories and kid-friendly cuisine from both home bases. The recipes are simple enough for little hands to master, and are paired with kitchen safety tips that are smart and sound enough to last a lifetime.
Visit weekiwis.com/recipes.html

5. Cooking for Kids with Lynn Fredericks
The author of "Cooking Time Is Family Time" highlights a treasure trove of family-friendly recipes from celebrity chefs like Mario Batali, Michel Nischan and Dante Boccuzzi, as well as a fun, informative glossary and activity suite for food terms from apples to legumes.
Visit starchefs.com/kids

6. Hey, Kids, Let's Cook!
Video clips, interactive cookbooks and recipes abound on this vibrant site geared toward getting kids and teens comfortable in the kitchen. The young chefs, stars of the site's companion television show, share tips on safety, techniques, healthy after-school snacking, and smart supermarket shopping.
Visit heykidsletscook.com

7. Kids and Cooking
This U.K. site is chock-a-block with expert advice on everything from food allergies and picky eaters to kitchen equipment suggestions and lunchbox ideas. Recipes and menus are designated as "with" kids or "for" kids, depending on their level of difficulty, and a solid selection of kitchen crafts and printable puzzles will no doubt capture the fancy of chefs of all ages.
Visit kidsandcooking.co.uk