Lisa Messinger's
Cookbook Corner

The Secret Life of Food
by Clare Crespo (Hyperion Books for Children)

Although you might never play with your kids' trucks, dolls or Nintendo, you might just find yourself intently flipping through The Secret Life of Food. In fact, I was well on my way to planning on making cherry roses, dinosaur dip and baked ice cream cones for my next party before I realized this was a kids cookbook/activity book—and even then it was only noticing that Hyperion Books for Children was the publisher that tipped me off.

That's because these kinds of simple—yet standout—treats are my favorite party favors of all. Enough with the cocktail weenies. Can the crab dip. Lose the cheese and crackers. I would much rather have my guests oohing and ahhing over delicate pastry roses oozing with cherry pie filling, dill dip protruding from the tummy of a zucchini dinosaur and brightly colored ice cream cones with sprinkles that are really frosted hand-held cakes.

So, enough about me and you. What about the kids—will this handsomely photographed gem play as well with them? Start with the "Anatomy" chapter (others are "Plants & Insects," "Animal Kingdom," "Home" and "Summer Vacation") and you will probably need to look no further for an overwhelming, "Yes!"

With recipes (most in the book are both simple and creative) like "Handwiches," "Spaghetti with Eyeballs," "Eyeball Snacks" and "Gingerbread Skeletons" do you really need to ask? Let's take "Hand Punch." In this recipe, first you fill unpowdered latex surgical gloves with cranberry juice and freeze overnight. Before the party, you remove the gloves and float the very real-looking hands in lemonade-pineapple juice punch.

Insects, animals and the like also intrigue kids, of course, and there is a menagerie in this book. One ingenious recipe is an "aquarium" made of blue gelatin as the "water," "gummy" candy fish suspended within and canned fruit salad as the "gravel' at the bottom. This makes a wonderful edible party centerpiece if prepared in a large glass goldfish bowl or outstanding party favors if prepared in individual smaller goldfish bowls. It's clever, eye-catching recipes like this over which both parents and kids will undoubtedly find their interests intersecting.

RECIPES: GELATIN AQUARIUM
CHERRY COLA SNACKS

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