23 Delectable Children’s Books About Food
One of the first things your child will learn to name is different kinds of food. As they grow older, food becomes central to many debates and battles at home – so in our house, we learned to make mealtime fun with silly children’s books about food.
Below, you’ll see board books for babies learning to identify fruits and vegetables and grow their vocabulary but when you get into picture books, the fun really begins.
My boys loved Peanut Butter & Cupcake so much, that I can recite it! Same with Jamberry and Dragon’s Love Tacos. These kid’s food books are perfect for storytime, bedtime, or taking to a restaurant to entertain your little ones. We promise you will be laughing too!
*Books about food for kids Post contains affiliate links. Purchases made through links result in a small commission to us at no cost to you. Some books have been gifted. All opinions are our own.
Best Children’s Books About Food
Baby Books About Food
Eating the Alphabet by Lois Ehlert
Getting kids to eat new foods can be challenging. These great pictures have fruit and vegetables from A-Z. And who knows, it might encourage your little one to try something new too.
Why We Love This Book: The illustrations of the food are delightful and the end of the book provides a glossary of all the gorgeous illustrations
Appropriate for Ages: 1-3
Find this book in Best Books for a 1-Year-Old / Alphabet Books / Kids Food Books
I Like Fruit and I Like Vegetables by Lorena Siminovich
Any book that introduces children to healthy foods from an early age is OK in my book. Add in the lessons about colors in I Like Fruit and also the lesson of opposites in I Like Vegetables and you have two winners. Oh! And did I mention these are textured and perfect for babies to explore with their fingers too?
Why We Love This Book: Textured pages are perfect for tactile learning about colors and opposites.
Appropriate for ages 0-2
Find this book in Color Books / Best Board Books / 1-year-old Books / 2-year-old Books / Food Books for Children
Indestructibles: Baby, Let’s Eat by Amy Pixton
There are so many books for 1-year-olds in the Indestructible series. These books are perfect to take anywhere, read anywhere, and not worry that they will get ruined.
We love this book because not only does it talk about food, but it is divided into colors as well. You can read the book and emphasize the foods, emphasize colors, or even talk about which foods are fruit and which are vegetables.
Why We Love This Book: This book lives up to its name by being indestructible. We love the great pictures as well as the colors and this book will really last.
Appropriate for Ages: 0-3
Find this book in Kids Food Books / Best Books for a 1-Year-Old
Toddler Books About Food
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
There are so many things about this classic book for kids that I love. Not only can you talk about days of the week, food, and counting, but you can follow the caterpillar on his journey to becoming a butterfly. When it comes to books for 3-year-olds, this one is tops.
Why We Love This Book: A gorgeous introduction to nature, food, counting, and days of the week.
Appropriate for ages 0-5
Find this book in 2-year-old Books / Classic Kids Books / Preschool Books About Food / Best Board Books / Educational Books for 3-year-olds
Jamberry by Bruce Degen
This was Kirsten’s favorite book to read to her kids and as soon as you look at the pictures and start reading it, you will understand why. The rhythm of the story and the non-sensical rhymes make the book completely captivating.
A boy and a bear head out on an adventure to pick berries in this delightful classic kids book. Marshmallow Cattails? Waffle and butter lily pads? Yes, please!
As a bonus, there is counting in this alliteration picture book as well. No list of first books for baby would be complete without this adorable read.
Why We Love This Book: It has rhythm and rhyme, counting, and alliteration, and it is adorable.
Appropriate for ages 0-5
Find this book in Alliteration Books / Counting Books / Rhyming Books / Best Board Books / Kids Food Books
Each Peach, Pear, Plum by Janet and Allan Ahlberg
This adorable eye spy book has wonderful pictures, featuring nursery rhymes and fairy tale characters. It’s a perfect classic children’s book for a 2-year-old.
Why We Love This Book: The rhyming makes it memorable and easy to recite.
Appropriate for ages 0-3
Find this book in Classic Kids Books / Best Board Books / Books for 2-year-olds / Food Books for Children
Preschool Books About Food
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Numeroff
If you give a mouse a cookie, he’s going to ask for a glass of milk. And so the story continues in a big circle until the mouse is thirsty again. The adorable pictures and silly consequences will help your little one understand sequencing.
Why We Love This Book: I use this book in speech therapy all the time to work on sequencing and cause and effect. This is a great book to give you question prompts for your little one.
Appropriate for Ages: 2-5
Find this book in Books for a 3-Year-Old to Create a Love of Reading / Best Books 2-Year-Old / Kids Books About Food
LMNO Peas by Keith Baker
This delightful book showcases each letter of the alphabet in a story about peas and all the jobs they can have. Told through rhyme, your little one will eagerly hunt for the peas matching the described jobs.
There are so many clever illustrations that this book is one you will want to explore over and over again.
Why We Love This Book: We love any book that has a great rhyming scheme but this one is hilarious with adorable illustrations to match.
Appropriate for Ages: 2-5
Find this book in Alphabet Books / Gender Neutral Baby Books / Food Books for Children
Pizza! An Interactive Recipe Book by Lotta Nieminen
This adorable book is the perfect way to keep your little one engaged while reading. They can stir and mix while learning how to follow directions.
When you are done, why not make a pizza to eat for dinner? You can have your child help put on all the toppings! Or you can engage in pretend play with this adorable Melissa and Doug set.
Why We Love This Book: Encourages imagination, promotes language development (following directions), interactive.
Appropriate for ages 2-4
Find this book in Books for 2-year-olds / Interactive Books For Kids / Food Books for Children
Peanut Butter and Cupcake by Terry Border
Poor peanut butter is looking for someone to play with. Does peanut butter go with cupcakes?
Not only is this beginning picture book silly, but it also allows your three-year-old to learn about making friends! It’s a great rhyming book too.
Why We Love This Book: We love the theme of this book as well as the fantastic pictures. The hamburger walking two hotdogs is hilarious.
Appropriate for Ages: 3-5
Find this book in Books for a 3-Year-Old / Books for a Baby Shower / Preschool Books About Food
Books About Food for Children
Dragons Love Tacos by Adam Rubin
Both the original story and the sequel feature taco-eating dragons who can’t stand spicy salsa! The whimsical illustrations are childlike and the stories are just plain silly! Your child will be giggling when they see the dragons burn down the house after eating spicy tacos.
Why We Love This Book: This book is adorable and hilarious. It is one we do not mind reading on repeat.
Appropriate for Ages: 2-5
Find this book in Books for a 5-year-old / Kids Books About Food
Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story by Kevin Noble Mallard
This book is the winner of the 2020 Robert F. Silbert International Book Metal and the 2020 American Indian Youth Literature Picture Book Honor Winner.
This pick from Preschool Thanksgiving books is a multisensory depiction of Fry bread and what it means to the Native American families who eat it and the way that it brings families together.
Why We Love This Book: We love the way this book depicts Thanksgiving from a Native American POV
Appropriate for Ages:3-5
Find this book in Children’s Books About Food / Thanksgiving Books for Kids
Lady Pancake & Sir French Toast by Josh Funk
My kids think it is hysterical to see Lady Pancake try to beat Sir French Toast to the last drop of syrup as they navigate the perils of the refrigerator. The message about sharing is particularly important especially if you are in the in the midst of the sibling rivalry phase.
Why We Love This Book: We love adorable books with important messages.
Appropriate for Ages: 2-6
Find this book in Books for a 5-Year-Old / Children’s Books About Food
The Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog by Mo Willems
Mo Willems is a must-know author if you have preschoolers. He writes the best books for 5-year-olds! His pigeon series is particularly funny. In this story, the pigeon finds a hot dog but a clever bird outwits him into sharing!
Why We Love This Book: The entire pigeon series is hilarious. We love to laugh with Pigeon
Appropriate for Ages: 2-6
Find this book in Books for 5-year-olds/ Kids Food Books
Books About Food for School-Aged Kids
Pizza and Taco: Best Party Ever! by Stephen Shaskan
This early reader series is hysterical! It gives full Mo Willems vibes with the way Pizza and Taco interact with each other.
These books are laid out in a graphic novel/comic book style that makes it easy for young kids to decipher. When looking for books for a 6-year-old who is new to reading, this is a great place to start.
Why We Love This Book: This is an adorable graphic novel with a funny story, but not a lot of words on the page.
Appropriate for Ages: 5-8
Find this book in Books for a 6-year-old/ Kids Books About Food
Creepy Carrots by Aaron Reynold
Both Creepy Carrots and its sibling book, Creepy Pair of Underwear, are favorites in my household. Jasper Rabbit loves carrots, but he soon thinks his favorite carrots are out to get him!
This funny tale is very Twilight Zone-inspired and it’s awesome. The underwear version is funny too and it glows in the dark!
Why We Love This Book: This is the perfect picture book for older kids. It is simultaneously funny and creepy
Appropriate for Ages: 5-8 * we think this book is appropriate for older children because it may scare smaller kids.
Find this book in Books for an 8-year-old / Book About Food for Kids
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
This story is quite the classic and it revolves around all things candy! With its creeptastic vibes, it’s also wonderful for Halloween.
Charlie is thrilled when he gets a golden ticket to see inside Willy Wonka’s amazing chocolate factory, but this is no ordinary candy factory. The machines and recipes behind the walls of the factory are what dreams are made of. This is a wonderful read-aloud book.
Find this book in Best Classic Books for Kids / Best Books for an 8-Year-Old / Read Aloud Children’s Books / Kids Food Books
Classic Books About Food for Kids
Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss
At 60 years old, this book is a classic that has withstood the test of time. The rhyme, rhythm, and repetition in this book make it so easy to remember and predict what will happen.
The silliness and the story make it enjoyable for parents to read.
Why We Love This Book: Not only is this book hilarious, but it teaches a lesson about trying new food as well.
Appropriate for Ages: 2-6
Find this book in Books About Food for Kids / Classic Books for Kids
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs
Before this adorable book was made into a movie, it was a favorite in our house. The town of Chewandswallow has weather changes three times a day- breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Everything is fine until the weather food turns super-sized.
Why We Love This Book: This is a book whose story is so unique and imaginative, there is nothing we do not love.
Appropriate for Ages: 3-7
Find this book in Food book for Children
Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey
Sal is picking blueberries with her mother when she wanders away and sees a bear. On the other side of the mountain, Sal’s mother is being followed by a baby bear who loves blueberries as much as Sal.
Why We Love This Book: This Caldecott Honor Book has such gorgeous illustrations with a sweet story
Appropriate for Ages: 3-6
Find this book in Preschool Books about Food
The Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak
This is a story that is pure imagination. It is a story of a dream world as Mickey falls into cake batter and then escapes the oven in a plane made of dough.
Why We Love This Book: The illustrations in this book are so wonderful in this Caldecott Honor Award Winner
Appropriate for Ages: 2-4
Find this book in Children’s Books About Food
Adorable Zoo Books for Kids
If you love this post of children’s books about food, you will love these zoo books for kids.
