Need some nifty gift ideas for kids who love to cook? Look no further.

Honest Pretzels (Tricycle Press) by Mollie Katzen

Introduce a new generation of budding chefs to Mollie Katzen with the 10th anniversary reissue of her children's cookbook. The sweet illustrations in this paperback hearken back to a seemingly gentler time. And even after a decade, the recipes prove their timeless appeal to kids of all ages.

Perfect for burgeoning chefs.

(More gift ideas after the jump.)

Just pretend this is a picture of a gingerbread castle and not a haunted house.

So it's the holiday season, and most of us are going to follow a script for the next couple of days that goes something like this:

1. Fly/drive/take a train to a relative's house.

2. Catch up with everyone.

3. Half or more of the group retires to the den/living room/wherever to hang out with various low-energy activities (watching the game, drinking eggnog, playing with the kids, etc.). A select group goes into the kitchen.

And that's where the trouble starts.

How cool are these mini gingerbread houses perched on mugs of hot chocolate?! Think I'll have to make some of these. Thanks, NotMartha!

Got the Christmas baking bug? Check out our easy videos and recipes for a Yule Log cake and delicious edible gifts. We've even got kid-friendly versions to cut down on time and angst.

Oh, and of course you'll need the best hot festive drink recipes to fill those mugs and toast the season.

Eating Humble Pie: A cough-syrup-in-the-gravy scandal? Furor over a switch from soft Wigan pies to a crustier kind from another British town? Just another year in the annual world meat-pie-eating contest in England. (The winner ate an entire pie in 35.86 seconds. Probably much bigger than the ones in this picture.)

Will There Be a Domino's Classic? The pizza chain is changing its recipe for sauce and dough, and will change up its cheeses so that it can keep up with changing American tastes. The new pizzas will be in all stores by Dec. 27.

Face Time: Food Network's top "foodgasm" shots of the year. 'Nuff said.

Bark If You Love Beer: A dog collar that opens beer bottles. C'mere, boy!

Want Wi-Fi With That Big Mac? McDonald's plans to offer free Wi-Fi at 11,000 locations as part of its bid to turn into a place to hang out.

Feels Like a Brown-Bag Day, Kids: In its continuing probe of school cafeterias, USA Today reports that 26,500 of them haven't had their required health inspections. It's never a good sign when "norovirus" replaces tater tots as the side of the day.

Sounds Fishy: If you're someone who takes fish-oil supplements, consider where it comes from ... and how a single company has control over 90 percent of a vital, but little-known fish called the menhaden, according to this New York Times opinion piece.

Drinking and Dying in the Line of Duty: A Chinese police officer drinks himself to death at a government function. What does the Chinese government do? It declares him a martyr who died in the line of duty.

Fighting for Brown Moo Juice: The dairy industry has formed the Raise Your Hand for Chocolate Milk campaign as a bulwark against the growing movement to strike chocolate milk off school menus. Those who want chocolate milk banned from school say it's a sugary drink that encourages unhealthy food choices. The dairy industry says that when you take chocolate milk away, kids stop drinking milk altogether and simply choose even less healthy beverages instead.

Man Killed by Exploding Gum: A Ukrainian chemistry student blew his own jaw off when he chewed gum that had been dipped in explosive liquid. The 25-year-old, who died, had a bizarre habit of soaking his gum in citric acid before putting it in his mouth, and may have mixed up his solutions.

Healthy, nutritious foods are often taken for granted - we have farmers' markets or well-stocked local stores. But not everyone has access to fresh fruits and veggies. Market Makeovers is engaging teenagers with its upbeat, lively approach to social action. 

"Do you live in a food 'desert'?" the organization asks. The five signs that you do are:

* Fresh, quality produce and healthy food are hard to find
* Junk food and fast food ware too easy to find
* There are no supermarkets, grocery stores, or farmers' markets
* The neighborhood is overrun with convenience stores selling overprocessed food
* People suffer high rates of obesity and chronic disease, and die younger than non-'food desert' residents.

Market Makeovers has easy, practical ways for teens to improve the situation. Read on for ideas, and to watch the first episode of So You Think You can Cook? where two competitive teams of teenagers in South L.A. race to buy the healthiest food from the local store with $10 - the average meal budget for a family of four in the neighborhood.

1. The FDA has pushed through a ban on raw oysters during warm months, effective in 2011, sparking restaurateurs' and consumers' complaints about a "nanny state." How many deaths does the FDA say bacteria from raw oysters causes each year?
a. 15
b. 50
c. 100
d. 150

2. Which of the following wasn't on the menu when Rachael Ray made a visit to a Cincinnati soup kitchen last weekend?
a. cheesy potato casserole
b. roast beef
c. ham
d. chicken soup

Last month, Epicurious hosted its first Epicurious Entertains NYC event. The 5-day food extravaganza included dinners prepared by Mario Batali, Daniel Boulud, Paul Liebrandt, and Marco Canora, plus the Ultimate NYC Lunch Break, a day of football and barbecue (from Chef Zak Pelaccio's Fatty 'Cue), and cooking demonstrations from some of our favorite chefs and experts. At each and every demo, we kept hearing the same thing: "Where can we get the recipes?" Lucky for you, many of our great chefs and experts agreed to share their recipes with Epicurious. See below for recipes from Chef Michael Psilakis of Kefi, Anthos, and Gus & Gabriel, Cooking Teacher Lourdes Castro, Magnolia Bakery, BR Guest Mixologist Eben Klemm, Chef Marcus Samuelsson of Aquavit, Jean Georges Pastry Chef Johnny Iuzzini, and more.

Lourdes Castro's recipes from Simply Mexican:

Crab Tostadas

Chicken Tamales

Homemade Mexican Crema

Chipotle Chile Sauce

Creamy Salsa Verde

Michael Psilakis's recipes from How to Roast a Lamb:

Chickpea Spread

Tzatsiki

Tanya Steel's recipes from Real Food for Healthy Kids:

Peachy Keen Chicken

Edamame Succotash Salad

Chocolate Chip Flying Saucers

James Cury demonstrated Camper English's cocktail, The Cure

Marcus Samuelsson's recipe from New American Table:

Maple-Glazed Tuna with Pear-Potato Salad

Magnolia Bakery's Vanilla Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream Icing

Eve Felder's Roasted Fall Squash Ravioli with Brown Butter and Crispy Sage

Johnny Iuzzini's Chocolate Noodles with Peppermint Broth and White Chocolate Sorbet

Eben Klemm's cocktail recipes:

Pine Needle Daiquiri

3-Second Ramos Gin Fizz

Kellogg's Yanks Health Claims: The cereal company's getting rid of the immunity claims on its boxes of Rice Crispies and Cocoa Krispies because of the heightened concern people have about swine flu.

Meet the White House Food Guru: Sam Kass isn't just another University of Chicago history major-turned-food dude, he's also hugely influential on the Obamas' take on food and health.

Do You Know How to Eat Sushi? No? Then consider taking sushi lessons from this guy. (Or just save yourself $105 and remember to dip the fish, not the rice, and not put wasabi in your soy sauce.)

So the Yankees Won the World Series: No. 27 for the Bombers. What did you eat or drink to celebrate? Or what did you throw at the TV in your fury? Just curious.

Twilight: The Restaurant (No, Seriously): Last year, a female friend who was gaga over Robert Pattinson dragged me kicking and screaming to the first Twilight movie. But I am not flying to Forks, Wash., to eat at the new Twilight-themed restaurant Volterra. (Steak and seafood.) Do you hear me, Marina?

Know Your Bread: Ever wonder how wheat in the field became the bread in your sandwich? Find out with this demo from the Wheat Foods Council.

Was It "Empire State of Mind"? Teens at a McDonald's drive-thru in Utah get in trouble with the cops after rapping their order.

Wrapped Candy This Halloween, Please: Swine flu, and all. (At the very bottom.)

More Food News after the jump.