Food- and Cooking-Related Gift Ideas for Kids

We’ve compiled a list of the best gifts for kids that relate to food, nutrition, and cooking. If you’ve got a budding Top Chef to buy for this year, we’ve got the information you need!

 

Nintendo DS Personal Trainer Cooking

 

 

Recipes for Fun

Your own private teacher talks you through more than 245 recipes from more than 30 countries with video demonstrations on the Nintendo DS’s “Personal Tainer: Cooking.” (All ages; $19.99; available at GameStop and at www.amazon.com)

 

 

 

Lidia's Christmas Kitchen: Nonna Tell Me a Story by Lidia Bastianich

 

 

 

 

“Tutti a tavola a magiare!” James Beard award-winning chef (and everyone’s favorite Nonna) Lidia Bastianich welcomes kids into her family home and shares the importance of holiday traditions in her first children’s picture book, Nonna Tell Me a Story. (Ages 4-8; $15.95; Running Press Kids)

 

 

 

Dora & Diego Let's Cook, cookbook from Nickelodeon

 

 

 

From Benny’s Breakfast Burritos to Dora’s Empanadas, the treats in Dora & Diego’s Let’s Cook from Nickelodeon will inspire young adventurers in your kitchen. The book includes safety and nutrition notes, tips for age-appropriate tasks, and lots of tidbits for teaching in addition to 50 healthy recipes. (Ages 4-8, $16.95; Wiley)

 

 

 

Puzzle Bites sandwich cutter

 

 

 

While your little girl is helping in the kitchen, why not let her spiff up her own lunch with this Mom Invented Puzzle Bites Sandwich Cutter? It cuts off the crust to satisfy the finicky, and adds a touch of whimsy to the usual lunchbox fare (plus, it’s BPA-free, dishwasher-safe, and child-safe). ($3.99; www.ginseystore.com)

 

 

 

Healthy Food for Thought: Good Enough to Eat, CD set

 

 

Your soundtrack for cooking: Healthy Food for Thought: Good Enough to Eat is a double CD compilation that presents the importance of healthy eating through stories, poems, and songs. The CD includes a whopping 60 tracks, with contributions from award-winning artists like Julian Lennon, Russell Simmons, Moby, Trout Fishing in America, and Tom Chapin. All proceeds benefit the New York Coalition for Healthy School Food. ($10)

 

 

 

 

Fisher Price Grow With Me Kitchen

 

 

 

Pretend Play

With its adjustable height, the Fisher-Price Grow-With-Me-Kitchen literally grows with your future Top Chef. Stimulating music and sounds, stackable cups, and shape-sorting will inspire your child’s imagination for years to come. (Ages 1 ½-5; $70)

 

 

 

Girl Gourmet Chill Treats Dessert Maker

 

 

Trendy girls can blend food and fashion with the Girl Gourmet Chill TreatsTM Dessert Maker. Inspired by the frozen yogurt trend, the kit lets kids make their own frozen treats at home in a fun and creative way. (Ages 8 and up; $24.99; available at Target stores or at www.jakks.com)

 

Playfel Chef Kids Cooking Kit

 

 

 

The Playful Chef Kids Cooking Kit is an interactive way to learn about the science of cooking, how to plan a healthy meal, and shop for ingredients. Included are a kid’s apron, illustrated original recipe cards with instructive lessons, and color-coded measuring cups and spoons. (Two sets available, for ages 3-5, and 6 and up; $40; available at Pottery Barn Kids, www.kitchenkapers.com, and www.amazon.com)

 

 

children's Breakfast in Bed set from Land of Nod

 

 

 

Inspire your toddler to surprise you one morning with Land of Nod‘s Breakfast in Bed Set with an adorable sunnyside-up egg, toast, and tray. (Ages 3 and up; $24.95 for set; toaster sold separately, $29)

 

Yummy Scrummy game

 

 

 

 

Guess what the hungry monsters have eaten as you race to find the healthy food with Young Learners’ Yummy Scrummy game. (Ages 3 and up; $14.99; www.creativetoyshop.com)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Also see: Kids in the Kitchen: The Benefits of Cooking with Children

Holiday Recipe: Marshmallow Snowmen

Holiday Recipe: Peppermint Creams