How did you like the soup?
Vinny wants to create a place on his blog where you can post comments about his book. This is that space! Find it whenever you want in the menu on the right, under Vinny’s picture. So go ahead. Click on “Comments” in the top left corner and join the conversation!
To get you started, here are a few questions Vinny has for you, about his recipes, the stories, and the information he’s given you on how our bodies use the food we feed it.
If you’ve tried any of the recipes from Cook Up A Story, Vinny would love to hear from you. How did they turn out? Were there parts of the recipe you didn’t understand? Did you need a lot of adult help? Did you clean up after? Are there any changes to the recipes you’d like to suggest? Vinny believes in making substitutions in recipes, if you want to. Maybe you’re allergic to a certain food. Or maybe you don’t have one of the ingredients in your cupboard. Perhaps you want to try out a different cooking method. So… did you try any food experiments while cooking up the recipes? What turned out well for you?
Do you have a favorite story or character from Vinny’s book? Why? Can you suggest a better ending for any of the stories? What role does the food play in your favorite story? What lessons did you learn from your favorite story?
What was the most interesting new food fact you learned? Do you have any questions about food choices you’d like to ask… or advice about food you’d like to share? Or anything else?
Let’s chat while we cook up our stories. Vinny loves to hear from you 🙂
Cook Up a Story 
Apr 27, 2012 @ 09:43:18
Blurb bookstore is no longer carrying readers’ comments. Here is a recap of comments from that site:
From Vinny’s website:
Lisa
Mar 27, 2012 @ 16:08:47 “I am making birdy’s on a stick, it looks very tasty. Our tescher is Mr. Highley he said it would be fun, it is! I can’t wait for the next meeting.”
posted at 07:50am Mar 30 PST
From Vinny’s website: Holly
Mar 29, 2012 @ 11:29:08″This is a very creative idea! This could be the only way to get my little sister to eat eggs. She loves pink and will wear or eat anything pink! This will be a great way to get her to eat some protine with a fun and creative way! I have joined the cooking club at school and are very looking forward to starting!”
posted at 07:47am Mar 30 PST
This in from Vinny’s website:
shay4strength
Mar 06, 2012 @ 08:19:44
“What a great idea!! Getting kids interested in cooking and inspiring them to make healthy things really would make them feel in control of their eating habits and proud to be able to cook with mom or dad!”
posted at 07:38am Mar 30 PST
E-mail comment
“Our school has your book in our library and it is being signed out and I know of 2 teachers using it in their programs in the primary level. Awesome!” John H, public school teacher, Hamilton. posted at 08:31pm Dec 14 PST
Book launch last night – great party! Here’s one comment Vinny received today:
“Enjoyed seeing the book published and looking amazing. Morton said so too. May you go from success to more of the same.” Sheila Baslaw, writer
posted at 07:05pm Dec 09 PST
Book Launch party tonight! Earlier comment from a previous reader:
“Hope all goes well at tonight’s launch! Its a great book I’m sure everyone will love it.”… Claire Fiddy, England
posted at 07:31am Dec 08 PST
Sharon has just started to talk to independent book stores. A recent comment:
“The book looks very professional and we would like a few copies for the store.” Curiosity House Books and Gallery, Creemore.
posted at 09:20am Nov 14 PST
Fun email comment received 24 October!
“I got them!!! Yay, I love the book! I received my copies a couple of Fridays ago, and have already sent one home to my niece for her birthday in November. What a great, unique book. And the photos are such an added bonus.” DM – Catholic school teacher, Calgary. posted at 07:30pm Oct 26 PST
Comment received 21 October 2011
“My daughter loved the book and shared it with the cook at school. Now even more people are benefiting from Vinny’s advice. Good Work!” Janice – nurse
posted at 01:09pm Oct 22 PST
October 7 – Vinny says.. The Ottawa Public Library has bought Cook Up A Story – Yay!
posted at 07:20pm Oct 07 PST
Comment received 27 Sep 2011
“Your book is a delight to read and chock full of great info.” DW
posted at 09:41am Sep 28 PST
Note received 22 Sep, 2011
“My grandchildren love this book and it has lots of accessible information about nutrition and good food choices for the whole family. I have recommended this book to many friends who have grandchildren. I have also recommended Cook Up A Story to the foster parents that I work with who have foster children in their homes on placement needing to experience healthy lifestyle choices. Rather than just being a cookbook for children, Cook Up A Story has nutritional information that can be generalised to children’s choices regarding healthy snacks and meals. The illustrations are really entertaining as well!” – NLH
posted at 01:47pm Sep 26 PST
Vinny has reprinted “Cook Up A Story.” Below is a recap of the comments he’s received from you to date. Vinny loves hearing from you! Please add more 🙂
Sunday, 11 September, 2011
The last two Sundays Vinny has been to the Ottawa Farmers Market. He’s met some wonderful kids and their families. Leona and her brother said she loved Vinny’s stories. Vinny and I loved meeting them and telling the stories. For Leona and all the other wonderful kids we met this weekend, keep cooking! Sharon
posted at 05:50pm Sep 11 PST
July 28 – Vinny heard from Alexa’s aunt. Alexa is 11 years old: “The chocolate recipe looked so good in the photo, Alexa made it and she said it tasted amazing! Her mom, who is into healthy nutritious food, thought the food facts were great. She appreciated a cookie recipe that calls for healthy ingredients. She wants to see the book in French.
Vinny says if someone wants to volunteer their services, a French version is just a translation away.
posted at 06:48pm Jul 28 PST
Vinny sold some books yesterday and today (July 17). Sharon received this note:
” [My daughter] is really excited about your book. She took a nutrition course at the Canadian School of Nutrition for a year. She wants to do a regular baking/cooking with her kindergarten class, and this book will be a great guide for weaving various aspects of the curriculum into the activity. The students may be a little young for some of the content, but she can easily adapt it.” Sandy S.
posted at 04:46pm Jul 16 PST
This came in today (July 13) from a public school teacher in Hamilton:
“I have had a few days now to appreciate the whole book from cover to cover… It is fantastic! Everyone I’ve showed it to has really loved the book. I’m going to make Birdies on a stick with my godchildren. My favourite story was Birthday Bumps… could really relate to that.Your dialogue is fantastic by the way…. quite captivating, and I see hundreds of teachers using this book as a resource in their classrooms for nutrition/ health units from grades 1 to 5, as well as the grade 5 chemistry unit. I really think it should be submitted to ETFO and the College of Teachers for review. I was also touched by the story “Melting Moments”. I can’t wait to try the orange campfire cupcakes up north… what a great idea!”—J.H.
posted at 08:37pm Jul 13 PST
Vinny got this comment last night, 10 July:
“hi im zac , cheryl ‘s grandson she gave me the book and it was really good.”
posted at 12:18pm Jul 11 PST
Comments in today from Thunder Bay, Ontario, and Paris, France, 29 June. One is a nice plug for Blurb Bookstore. Pierre, our artist, will enjoy the other. So nice to hear from you! – Sharon
“Wow! I am most impressed with the book. It shows the countless hours you must have spent getting it all together, and shows a great deal of motivation and dedication. You are a real role model! I ordered two books, one for each set of grandchildren and they came right away via Fed Ex. They were very well packaged.Good for you!” Cheryl
“I love the drawings! I have just ordered two copies, one for my sister and one for myself – the book looks a lot of fun.” Sandra
posted at 08:05pm Jul 07 PST
This just in today, 27 June – Sharon
“It looks delightful. The illustrations and layout are
beautiful. Your picture on the back cover is is glamorous. I also
liked that you included some real kids’ pics!
As a person who takes an hour to write a paragraph, I really
appreciate the effort and time and just plain hard work it took to
write this book. It must have seemed like slow cooking at times, but
the result was surely worth waiting for!
Congratulations again.” Joanne
Jan 17, 2012 @ 05:41:03
Hi Vinny! I’ve been working on finding recipes in which to use up my whole wheat flour. I found a banana muffin recipe – uses half whole wheat flour, half plain flour plus what I think are other goodies: mashed up bananas, milk, oil (instead of butter), sugar and baking powder. How do you think this adds up from a ‘healthy’ perspective? Any other ideas to ensure these banana muffins are yummy and nutritious? Thanks!
Jan 17, 2012 @ 11:04:09
This recipe sounds pretty nutritious as it is – oil and bananas instead of a lot of butter (with its high saturated fat content), whole wheat flour (with its added fibre), and milk instead of cream (I’d use low fat milk). The only other thing I might suggest is to weigh out the dry ingredients rather than measure them and then whiz them together in your food processor rather than sift. This adds lots of air and blends them thoroughly. Enjoy!
Jan 16, 2012 @ 16:13:58
Thanks Alexa! A cookie with a glass of milk and some fruit makes a great snack. These cookies are made from lots of wholesome foods to help keep you strong, including oats, nuts, prunes and dark unsweetened cocoa. How can you go wrong 🙂
Jan 16, 2012 @ 16:08:30
Vinny got this note by email: “The chocolate recipe looked so good in the photo, I wanted to make it and it tasted amazing!” Alexa