Well, if you haven’t heard the buzz about Jessica Seinfeld‘s new cookbook Deceptively Delicious, then you have been seriously out of touch. Please tell me you at least heard about the 21 pairs of luxurious shoes Jessica gifted Oprah including many Loubies after appearing on her show two weeks ago. Anyhow, Deceptively Delicious consists of recipes from chocolate chip cookies to chicken tenders that all include vegetable purees. The controversy is whether or not Mrs. Seinfeld plagiarized part, some, or all of a cookbook with a similar concept called The Sneaky Chef. Here’s the Tot Snob review.
The Oprah Appearance: Mrs. Seinfeld was on to publicize her new cookbook. The taste testers on the show kids (on previously recorded video) and adults devoured the food with an audible “mmm”. I watched on my couch and wished I was sitting in the studio audience. Ok, I wish I was in Oprah’s audience every day, but favorite things and celeb chefs top the list. As a mom whose kids avoid vegetables like the plague, I was intrigued by the premise of Jessica’s Book. Jessica says she spends one hour a week making single veggie purees and portioning them in baggies. I am skeptical that the prep work only takes an hour, but I would be willing to spend a little longer than that for my kids to get in veggies.
The Shocking Revelation: Then, we heard about The Sneaky Chef by Missy Chase Lapine whose cookbook of the same concept came out six months before Seinfeld’s. Lapine’s purees combine a few veggies of the same color. Now, there is much speculation as to whether Deceptively Delicious copied The Sneaky Chef. Frankly, I don’t care who copied who. I do feel bad that Lapine didn’t have the namesake and multimillion dollar backing that Seinfeld did and she shopped her book at Seinfeld’s publisher and was refused, but unfortunately business is business. Bottom line is I want a cookbook with good, nutritious recipes that my kids will eat.
The Real Deal: My best friend, Bridget, and I compared both books and tested it on our veggie naysayers. Both have similar recipes for chicken tenders. We cooked Deceptively Delicious’ chicken tenders with hidden broccoli. If you can hide broccoli, then you can hide anything. Success! Her son and my daughter each ate a meal. However, the amount of vegetables actually consumed is debatable. Most recipes call for only 1/4c. – 1/2c. puree. Divide that per serving (4-6) and you’ve got almost nothing. We both admit that the recipes are healthier than fried chicken tenders and some veggies are better than none; so, we started cooking deceptively in our homes. With equally good recipes in both books, choose whichever one you can get a hold of. The only apparent difference is the hip retro Deceptively Delicious cover.
Buy Deceptively Delicious: Simple Secrets to Get Your Kids Eating Good Food
