Book: Savvy Kids Menus

Book: Savvy Kids Menus

Authors: Sarah and Rupert McKerron

Publishers: Pantsula Press

Reviewer: Victor Mecoamere

Parents wishing to give their children the best possible start in life by providing wholesome and nutritious meals free from harmful chemicals should look no further than this book.

Savvy Kids Menus alerts parents to the importance of easy, attractive and healthy kids' meals.

Authors Sarah and Rupert McKerron, who live in Johannesburg, have combined their passion for food, cooking and nutrition.

Savvy Kids Menus is their second book on the same subject, after Savvy Kids Food, and the literature complements Savvy Kids, an organic range of food and bath-time products that seeks to give kids the best.

Parents are portrayed in Sarah McKerron's honestly penned introduction as normal human beings operating in a highly-pressured, modern world.

Such people, in sure control of their working lives, are sadly enjoying infirm, shaky or no control over their families and children.

They opt for the easy way out, succumbing to their kids' nagging and pestering for processed convenience foods and junk foods which are detrimental to their health and contribute less or nothing at all to their growth, both mentally and physically.

Interesting chapter headings or titles capture the imagination and leave the reader reeling from the simple realisation of the folly of neglecting our children's health, by opting for the easy way out instead of settling on the path of being firm and choosing only the best for one's kids.

The McKerrons write about modern malnutrition, which they say occurs when a person is not getting enough essential nutrients to maintain good health.

This tends to be the result of simply not getting ample food, or through the lack of one or more vitamins or minerals in one's diet.

They warn that micronutrient deficiencies might be more common than previously thought and negatively affect many children's school performance.

The menus are simple.

It is the combination of the ingredients which will make the relationship between the parents and their children interesting, exciting and appealing, almost close to endearing the parents to their perennially fussy kids.

These include the peanut butter porridge, chocolate banana toasties.

Creative packaging gives kids the impression that they are getting away with murder, so to speak, while the parents score a victory of sorts.

Other tasties include the pea and carrot frittata, chickpeas and tomatoes on toast, butternut and orange soup, and toasted tortillas.

Anyone who knows how much kids hate their veggies will know how much they will hate parents who force these down their throats.

Here the McKerrons hide, disguise or camouflage the hated peas, carrots and other veggies under the stuff kids love to wolf down, like pizza, tortillas and toasts.

More than being a treasure trove of the creative packaging of healthy foods, menus and fluids for growing bodies and minds, Savvy Kids Menus paints a picture about a normal, effective or proper family life as it should really be, just as in the old days when parents were not swayed by junk-loving urchins.

The book also highlights the over abundance of junk foods and their highly addictive pull, the reality of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder brought on by unhealthy eating, empowers and equips parents with the skills and courage to avoid junk foods.

It further alerts parents to the importance of fluids, especially water.

The book also touches on good television viewing habits for the whole family.

Savvy Kids Menus - with its colourful, beautiful pictorial illustrations, easy to follow menus - is a worthy kitchen companion for the busiest mom, dad or any other guardian wishing to reassert themselves in a more meaningful manner.