Read these books with your kids to help turn them into a more adventurous eater.
It’s important for parents to expose their kids to a wide variety of foods, even though most things end up being spat our or mashed up in a pile on their plate. They are picky little bastards, liking green grapes but not purple, enjoying ketchup, salsa, and spaghetti but can’t stand tomatoes, eating oranges at daycare but not at home.
Getting your kids to try a new food can be a battle, that’s why I read my kids lots of fun picture books about food — because they’re great books and also because just maybe, they’ll make them curious enough to try something new without putting up too much of a fight.
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
The best part of this book is when the caterpillar goes on a crazy binge and eats through a piece of chocolate cake, an ice-cream cone, a pickle, a slice of Swiss cheese, a slice of salami, a lollipop, a piece of cherry pie, a sausage, a cupcake, and a slice of watermelon. Then he gets a stomach-ache. It’s okay though, because—spoiler alert—at the end he turns into a butterfly.
Chicken Soup with Rice by Maurice Sendak
Most people know Maurice Sendak’s dreamy, surreal classic In the Night Kitchen, but this one is less-known and just as wonderful. Each month gets a weirdly sweet little poem about chicken soup with rice. “In March the wind blows down the door and spills my soup upon the floor. It laps it up and roars for more.”
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
Roald Dahl’s 1964 story about Charlie Bucket and legendary chocolatier Willy Wonka has inspired two film versions and won numerous awards.
Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey
Old school: Originally published in 1948, this book tells the story of a little girl who goes blueberry picking with her mom and hijinks ensue. Hijinks involving a bear. Everyone makes it out alive and gets to eat blueberries, so don’t worry.
Bee-Bim Bop! by Ho Baek Lee
A little girl helps her mom make the Korean rice dish bi bim bop and then the whole family sits down to eat. There’s even a bonus kid-friendly bi bim bop recipe at the end. Plus, it’s really fun to say bee! bim! bop! over and over again.
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Numeroff
This 1985 book by Laura Numeroff chronicles what happens when you give a mouse of cookie. Spoiler: He’s going to want some milk to go with it.
Dragons Love Tacos by Adam Rubin
You DON’T want to see what happens when a dragon gets heartburn.
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett
In the land of Chewandswallow, the weather is edible, which is great for a while, but then things get out of hand. (Ahem, climate change.) It’s fun to talk about what YOU would like to have fall from the sky.
The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry and the Big Hungry Bear By Don Wood
This 1984 book follows the story of a mouse who does all he can to save his strawberry from being eaten by a big, hungry bear.
Bread and Jam for Frances by Russell Hoban
Frances is a little badger who only wants to eat bread and jam—until her mom starts serving her nothing but bread and jam for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Green Eggs and Ham By Dr. Suess
They’re so good! So good, you see.
Gregory, The Terrible Eater by Mitchell Sharmat
Gregory is a goat. But instead of eating bottles and old shoes, like his parents, he only wants to eat junk food, like fish and carrots. Get it?
Strega Nona By Tonie dePaola
NEVER touch the magic pasta pot!