The Healthy Kids Cookbook: Prize-Winning Recipes for Sliders, Chili, Tots, Salads, and More for Every Family

By Team Nutrition USDA

Thirty fun, fast, healthy, kid-tested and approved recipes for the whole family!

If you’re looking for a collection of delicious, nutritious recipes that kids will love, look no further than The Healthy KidsCookbook! In these bright pages with full-color photographs, you’ll find thirty health-conscious recipes for a wide variety of delectable foods, and with fun names such as Porcupine Sliders, Smokin’ Powerhouse Chili, and Squish Squash Lasagna, even picky eaters are sure to love this cookbook’s meals.

The recipes within serve six, include no more than fifteen commonly available ingredients, and are easy for families and home cooks to prepare. Even better, all of these healthy meals are low in total fat, saturated fat, sugar, and sodium, and each one features foods that children and adults alike should eat more of, including nutrient-rich vegetables, beans and peas, and whole grains. They’re perfect for growing kids, health-conscious families, and anyone who enjoys tasty food that’s good for you!

The Healthy Kids Cookbook features fun and kid-friendly recipes such as:

• Oodles of Noodles
• Tasty Tots
• Eagle Pizza
• Rainbow Rice
• Harvest Delight
• Stir-Fried Green Rice, Eggs, and Ham
• Confetti Soup
• And many more!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Skyhorse
• Release date: Sep 10, 2019
• ISBN: 9781510750791

Book preview

Recipes for Healthy Kids Competition Acknowledgement Page

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) would like to thank the following people and organizations for their support of the Recipes for Healthy Kids Competition. The Recipes for Healthy Kids Competition provided the perfect opportunity for school nutrition professionals, students, parents, chefs, and community members to cook up some new ideas and get children excited about making healthy choices. We want to thank all of the Recipes for Healthy Kids teams that participated in the competition. The teams submitted over 340 recipes for this contest.

United States Department of Agriculture

Food and Nutrition Service, USDA

Project Lead

Ann Hall, MRE, RD, LDN

Project Team

Eileen Ferruggiaro, PhD, RD

Tim Vazquez, RD

Heidi Bishop

Sonya Barnes, MS, RD

Sheldon Gordon, MS, RD

Mydina Thabet, MS, RD, LDN

Ebony S. James, MS, RD

Michelle Prettyman, RD, LD

Barbara Jirka, PhD, SNS

Gwen Holcomb

Cheryl Jackson Lewis, MPA, RD, LDN

Erika Pijai, MS, RD

Julie Fort, MPH, RD

Desiré Stapley, MEd, RD

Natalie Partridge, MS, RD

Bruce Alexander

Cheryl Wilson

Jack Currie

Mary Jean Kirchner

Sherl White

Tama Eliff

Angela Leone, MS, RD

Challenge Post

Administered the contest and designed and monitored

Web site

Brandon Kessler

Samantha Tse

Colin Nederkoorn

School Nutrition Association (SNA)

Each school day, SNA members take on the challenge of serving healthy, nutritious meals to more than 31 million school children.

Judges

Katie Wilson, PhD, SNS

Helen E. Phillips, SNS

Karen M. Green

American Culinary Federation (ACF)

One of their many roles includes serving as the official representative for the Chef & Child Foundation, founded in 1989, to educate children and families in understanding proper nutrition and serving as the voice of the culinary industry in its fight against childhood hunger, malnutrition, and obesity.

ACF National President

Michael Ty, CEC, AAC

ACF Government Relations Committee Chair

Damian Martineau, AAC

Judges

Shawn L. Hanlin, CEC

Rene J. Marquis, CEC, CCE, PCEC, CCA, AAC

Roland E. Schaeffer, CEC, AAC, HOF

Randy J. Torres, CEC

David J. Turcotte, CEC, AAC

ACF Staff

Heidi Cramb

Kevin Brune

Patricia A. Carroll

Tracy Smith

Michelle Whitfield, MHA

Roniece Weaver & Associates, Inc. (RWA)

RWA is an Orlando-based consulting nutrition practice, headed by Roniece Weaver, MS, RD, LD. The focus is on integrating food, wellness, and innovative cooking strategies. RWA was responsible for testing, evaluation, and recipe standardization.

Hebni Nutrition Consultants

Glen R. Providence

Larry Walker

Don Carlock

Bridget Monroe

Yolanda Daniels

Keon Johnson

Anthony McCastler

Fabiola Gaines

Candace Weaver

Gloria Jolly

Ellareetha Carson

Rojean Williams

Charles Daniels

Dr. Maurice Woodard

Holly Graphics

Design and layout by Byron Holly

Mark Taulbee Photography

Photographs

Food Safety Advice

Clean: Wash Hands and Surfaces Often

Bacteria can be spread throughout the kitchen and get onto hands, cutting boards, utensils, counter tops, and food.

■ Wash your hands with warm water and soap for at least 20 seconds before and after handling food and after using the bathroom or changing diapers.

■ Wash your cutting boards, dishes, utensils, and counter tops with hot soapy water, or prepare your sanitizer according to the manufacturer’s instructions, before you go on to the next food.

■ Consider using paper towels to clean up kitchen surfaces. If you use cloth towels wash them often in the hot cycle of your washing machine.

■ Rinse fresh fruits and vegetables under running tap water, including those with skins and rinds that are not eaten.

■ Rub firm-skinned fruits and vegetables under running tap water or scrub with a clean vegetable brush while rinsing with running tap water.

■ Keep books, backpacks, or shopping bags off the kitchen table or counters where food is prepared or served.

Separate: Don’t Cross Contaminate

Cross-contamination is how bacteria can be spread. When handling raw meat, poultry, seafood, and eggs, keep these foods and their juices away from ready-to-eat foods.

■ Separate raw meat, poultry, seafood, and eggs from other foods in your grocery shopping cart, grocery bags, and in your refrigerator.

■ Use one cutting board for fresh produce and a separate one for raw meat, poultry, and seafood.

■ Never place cooked food on a plate that previously held raw meat, poultry, seafood, or eggs.

Cook: Cook to Proper Temperatures

Food is safely cooked when it reaches a high enough internal temperature to kill the harmful bacteria that cause foodborne illness. Use a food thermometer to measure the internal temperature of cooked foods.

■ Use a food thermometer, which measures the internal temperature of cooked meat, poultry, and egg dishes, to make sure that the food is cooked to a safe internal temperature.

■ Make sure there are no cold spots in food (where bacteria can survive) when cooking in a microwave oven. For best results, cover food, stir, and rotate for even cooking. If there is no turntable, rotate the dish by hand once or twice during cooking.

■ Use microwave-safe cookware and plastic wrap when cooking foods in a microwave oven.

Chill: Refrigerate Promptly!

Refrigerate foods quickly because cold temperatures slow the growth of harmful bacteria. Do not over-stuff the refrigerator. Cold air must circulate to help keep food safe.

Keeping a constant refrigerator temperature of 40 °F or below is one of the most effective ways to reduce the risk of foodborne illness. Use an appliance thermometer to be sure the temperature is consistently 40 °F or below. The freezer temperature should be 0 °F or below.

■ Refrigerate or freeze meat, poultry, eggs, and other perishables as soon as you get them home from the store.

■ Never let raw meat, poultry, eggs, cooked food, or cut fresh fruits or vegetables sit at room temperature more than two hours before putting them in the refrigerator or freezer (one hour when the temperature is above 90 °F).

■ There are three safe ways to defrost food: in the refrigerator, in cold water, and in the microwave using the defrost setting. Food thawed in cold water or in the microwave should be cooked immediately.

■ Always marinate food in the refrigerator.

■ Use or discard refrigerated food on a regular basis.

Keeping Cold Lunches Cold

Prepare cooked food, such as turkey, ham, chicken, and vegetable or pasta salads, ahead of time to allow for