The Bestselling 2 Books Collection by America's Test Kitchen Kids. The Complete Cookbook for Young Chefs. The Complete Baking Book for Young Chefs

Why it's worth it

This pairs The Complete Cookbook for Young Chefs with The Complete Baking Book for Young Chefs, covering both sides of the kitchen. Together they hold well over 200 recipes with the same kid-tested methodology, which is more range than any single book here offers.

The Complete Cookbook for Young Chefs debuted as a New York Times bestseller and remains the title most often named first when people recommend a kids' cookbook. It carries 100-plus recipes developed and iteratively tested with child testers ages 8 to 12, revised until the results held up across skill levels. The baking volume applies the same process to breads, cookies, cakes and pastries.

Buy this if you don't yet know which way your kid will lean. Some kids want to make dinner. Some want to make cupcakes and nothing else. Getting both volumes means you're not guessing, and the baking book is genuinely a full book rather than a token appendix — it goes deep enough on yeast doughs and pastry that a serious kid won't outgrow it in a season.

From our review of 7 children's cookbooks for ages 9 to 12

What we like

• +The Complete Cookbook for Young Chefs debuted as a New York Times bestseller and remains the title most often named first when…
• +Buy this if you don't yet know which way your kid will lean
• +Both books lean hard on step-by-step photography, which is the feature parents and kids ranked above recipe variety, dietary…
• +There's also a food-science thread running through both volumes — why gluten develops, why creaming butter and sugar works

What to know

• –The two volumes overlap with our top pick on fundamentals — knife grip, measuring, kitchen safety — so buying all three would be…
• –It's a set, which means more shelf space and more weight than one book