CHOP CHOP-A Cooking Magazine JUST FOR KIDS!

Recently, I stumbled upon a diamond in the rough....I saw the "Chop Chop Magazine" Fan page on Facebook and immediately clicked on it. I am so glad I did!

What is Chop Chop?

ChopChop is a quarterly food magazine and website for kids aged 5-12 and their families. ChopChop’s mission is to educate kids to cook and be nutritionally literate, empower them to actively participate as health partners with their families and help establish and support better eating habits for a lifetime of good nutrition. ChopChop’s vision is to reverse and prevent childhood obesity.

The magazine is filled with nutritious, great-tasting, ethnically diverse and inexpensive recipes, as well as interesting and little-known food facts, Q&A’s and games. (reprinted from www.chopchopmag.com)

I knew immediately this was something I wanted to be a part of, so I emailed the publisher and we started a nice email conversation. Long story short, she shipped me 400 copies of the first edition for the kids of Days of Taste (see previous blog post). I was so excited to see a publication of this nature-the first of this kind-that I was jumping out of my skin. Each child that receives it through our program has been beyond excited to take it home and share it with their families.

First order of business for me was to make one of the recipes. Last Friday night, I made the Not Your Grandmother's Fried Chicken out of the first edition. This chicken was a healthier version of fried chicken that used Panko bread crumbs, whole wheat flower, Dijon mustard and a few other ingredients that I'm sure you have in the house. It turned out perfectly and my family loved it. It was simple (less than 15 minutes to prepare), easy (I used the toaster oven), healthy (baked as opposed to fried and no additional fat if you didn't want any) and made tasty leftovers (I prepared double the recipe for lunches over the weekend). Definitely a staple recipe in my house now!

As we all search for way to encourage our children healthier, please consider a subscription or a donation to Chop Chop Magazine. What better way to empower your child than to give them a gift that will keep on giving. Teaching them to cook is just that gift. And Chop Chop is the perfect tool to start!