The best thing you can do for kids is expose them to as many diverse foods and flavours as possible.

Wonderfoods is a beautifully produced cookbook that reveals the health-giving properties of over 70 different foods, from ginger to fish and pumpkin seeds to grapes.

Crammed with 140 recipes, it encourages parents to choose exceptional ingredients that will contribute to their children's growth, mental development, energy and ability to fight off illness.

Signature recipes:

Vampire patAcopyright, sweet apricot chicken, kiwi lollies.

Any drawbacks:

Get your hands on this book and you'll feel guilty every time you feed them junk!

One to try:

Baked pork with apples Six-eight dried shitake mushrooms One mugful boiling water Two medium crisp eating apples, such as Cox's 1/4 fennel bulb, sliced Four pork chops, about 175g each Freshly ground black pepper Two thyme sprigs, leaves stripped Two garlic cloves, peeled and crushed juice of 1/2 lemon Preheat the oven to 180A0C, gas 4. Put the mushrooms in a mug and fill it with boiling water. Peel, core and slice the apples.

Scatter the fennel and apples in the bottom of a roasting pan, ideally one with a lid. Lay the pork chops on top and season with pepper.

Drain the mushrooms and chop them into small pieces, reserving the water.

Pour this over the apples and fennel.

Sprinkle the thyme leaves, garlic and lemon juice over the chops and scatter the mushroom pieces around them.

Cover the dish with the lid or foil and bake for about 40 minutes. Serve with steamed broccoli and squash mash.

Published by Quadrille, Euro13.50