For some parents, the back-to-school season generates interest in cooking with kids. For many more, it creates panic and resignation that food fights (healthy vs. tasty) are just around the corner. I've found cooking with kids is great fun and it's a terrific way to get kids interested in what they eat. Everyone can enjoy getting involved in meal preparation, shopping for food and proudly serving something they've made themselves.
Ideas for Cooking with Kids
I once borrowed a bunch of kids from friends for a sleepover. We shopped for ingredients for dinner, then baked whole wheat rolls together. The kids ranged in age from about 5 to 8 years old. Everyone loved punching down dough and getting flour all over themselves, each other, and the kitchen. The best part of the adventure was being asked by the littlest one for the name this new bread (whole wheat) so she could ask her mom to get some.
No matter what the age of your child is cooking can provide a way to explore new things and to learn more about their interests. Baking muffins with a boy about kindergarten-age was an easy and fun way to spend some time together. We covered the basics of reading the recipe together, picking out the ingredients and learned about "mis en place" (putting everything called for in order, ready to assemble. We also reviewed numbers and concepts used in measuring. He was so proud to serve his parents muffins he made himself. No "toaster pastry" ever produced a magical moment like that one. Maybe a little shame...perhaps, but you'd have to ask someone who actually eats them. John? Caleb?
Other ideas to get you going:
- The James Beard award winning site, Spatulatta, is a cooking site by and for kids.
- If your kids are fascinated with dinosaurs why not research together what dinosaurs ate and make a dino dinner? If they've just heard about a new country from TV or a friend, find a recipe from that cuisine to try out together.
- Do they love cheese? Why not take them to visit a local cheese maker? See the excellent site Cheese by Hand to find an artisanal cheese maker near you.
- A good farm stand will often have guided tours and kids' activities. In the Boston area, Wilson Farms does a great job. With Halloween just around the corner, hayrides are a common event around which you could plan a farm stand visit. See Wilson Farms' kids section on the website for fun activities, too.
- What kid doesn't love pizza? Why not make your own? Let them choose their own toppings.
- Everyong loves pasta! Chef Jimmy Sneed demonstrates just how simple it is to make fresh pasta at home in this great little clip from Julia Child's show. Scroll down to find clips entitled softshell crabs and pasta.
From the Farm or the Home Garden
A trip to your local farmers market can provide wonderful opportunities to learn about new vegetables and fruits, even flowers, that kids might enjoy eating and cooking. Grab a gorgeous summer peach and don't fuss when the juice runs down your arms.
Alice Waters, famous chef/owner of Chez Panisse, has been a pioneer in introducing kids to the joys of gardening, harvesting and eating what they grew. The success of the Edible Schoolyard project proves that kids take great pride and interest in vegetables they've grown themselves. Gardening in their own or in community gardens introduces children, particularly from urban areas, to a whole new world. Be sure to click on her slide show "Values in Place" to see beautiful images of the Edible Schoolyard.
Even with no yard or garden, growing herbs on a window can be a fun project. Many herbs germinate quickly and can be grown easily. For ways to incorporate math lessons in gardening see KidsGardening.com.
Get cooking with your 9-14 year olds with this book for "Tweens"You're the Cook.
- Get the school year off to a good start with Devy Stone's article on the ABC's of better back-to-school food. See A -Z of better back to school food.
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