The Green Teen Cookbook: Recipes for All Seasons—Written By Teens, for Teens

Gr 8 Up—Written for teens and by teens, this title is ideal for young adults interested in starting or maintaining a healthy lifestyle. The book opens with some informative narrative sections, such as "How to Eat Healthfully," "How to Eat Seasonally," and "Eating Organic, Vegetarianism." These sections, penned by cooking or gardening professionals, don't push the writers' views onto readers but give insight into why the book was written. The real "meat" of the book comes from the recipes written by teens. The chapters are broken down into courses, with a general chapter on DIY kitchen staples consisting of tomato sauce, salsa, vinaigrette, and so on. The recipes cover meals from brunch to dessert and are easily accessible, making use of fresh ingredients and showing bright colorful pictures of the finished product. Some dishes are so decadent that teens won't even realize they're eating healthy. Readers will enjoy quotes from the teen chefs that provide helpful hints or reasons why this is their favorite recipe. Also included with most of the recipes is a "helpful hint" box giving the user an easy way to scale down the recipe or use alternate ingredients to change the flavor. The book also contains a resources section listing local farmers markets across the country, as well as online resources to search for more recipes or find healthy living advice. It wraps up nicely with an equivalency measurement guide and glossary of cooking terms. A great addition to any nonfiction cookbook collection.—Joanne Albano, Commack Public Library, NY