Book review: Bake through the Bible

Bake through the Bible: 20 Fun Cooking Activities to Explore the Bible Story with Young Children. By Susie Bentley-Taylor & Bekah Moore. The Good Book Company. pp. 64. 2013. (List Price $14.99 Paperback)

This eye-catching, easy-to-follow cookbook helps parents teach Bible stories in a refreshingly fun way. Each recipe includes the Bible story illustrated in a summarized version with review questions. Pictures illustrate each step. Children as young as 2 might enjoy making the recipes, but the book is really targeted at an audience ages 3 to 6.

As a preschool teacher, I loved the visual, hands-on approach to learning. I'm familiar with most types of Christian teaching materials on the market, but this book is unique because it pairs important Bible truths with entertaining cooking projects.

My favorite recipe was "Dirty and Clean Heart Cookies" to go along with the change in Saul from Acts 22. The cookies are chocolate-filled on one side (dirty heart) and jelly-filled on the other side (clean heart). Illustrating the gospel in ways that children will remember and understand is always a difficult but essential challenge. This recipe tackles the subject in a concrete manner. I haven't found any curriculum that present the story so creatively, even in a craft project.

The recipes produce small amounts of food (5 wraps, 10 cookies), which is perfect for a parent at home. Classroom teachers will have to double or triple all the recipes. The use of British English Pose problems for American readers, but the words are always followed by the American English equivalent, and all the recipes have both metric and standard measurements. Overall, I highly recommend this creative cookbook to anyone who wants to teach Bible stories and cook with a young child.

Disclosure of material connection: I received this book from the publisher for the purpose of review. The opinions expressed are my own.