Setting Up the Cooking Zone
June 17, 2009 by admin
Filed under Cooking With Kids
Do you have a picky eater? Are you looking for a new way to spend quality time with the children? It is proven that kids eat better when they are involved in food preparation. Even the youngest children can be a part of the experience. Have smaller children choose between several ingredients. If you are having guests over, or if you are planning ahead for a special occasion, get the kids involved in planning out the meal courses. It is almost a guarantee that you will get many creative ideas and plenty of giggles. Let the children take care of easy side dishes and dessert details.
Childhood passes by quickly, and as a parent you will soon find yourself hoisting the kids off to college or other life adventures. For more details www.tailgating-recipe.com. Take advantage of the time you have now to teach the young ones a love for the kitchen and healthy home cooking. Being proficient cooks can be a great way to boost self confidence. Your encouragement and words of support are incredibly important for your child’s development.
Math Skills
Take those fractions off the page and into the real world. Measuring ingredients can work wonders to hone those math skills. Measure ingredients together with the kids and teach fractions and conversion as you go. Sometimes visualizing what is so abstract on paper can make all the difference. Your children will hardly notice they are doing math!
Setting up the cooking zone. Once the kids are in the kitchen and up to their elbows in dough, you will hardly have time to do anything other than instruct and watch closely. Instead of scrambling for things once you get started, plan ahead of time by setting up all of the needed ingredients, measuring tools, pots, pans and cleaning supplies. This will allow you to concentrate on the kids instead of looking for that tiny bottle of vanilla extract. Make sure the recipes you select are suitable for your child’s age and ability.
The rules are golden. Before undertaking any food recipe. children should be well aware of their boundaries. The kitchen is full of hazards, and no cooking project should be undertaken until the rules are clear and understood. For more details www.apples-recipes.com .Hidden dangers such as droplets of searing oil from a hot skillet should be taken into account. Knives and other sharp objects should not be handled by small or inexperienced children. Start them off with cutting eggs or tofu with a plastic knife.
Mom’s Bakery. Kids love sweets, and they will love learning how it is all put together. There are many simple cake and pie recipes that are suitable for young ages. Your kids will have plenty of opportunity to get creative with decorating their own treats. From frosting designs on cupcakes to making their own ginger bread house, baking desserts can bring out the artist in any child.
Including children in the cooking process is a wonderful way to bond and spend quality time together. You can instill your little ones with a love for the culinary arts that will last a lifetime!
By: cmsfebSonu
About the Author:
Why You Should Teach Your Child To Cook
May 30, 2009 by admin
Filed under Cooking With Kids
Cooking with your child or children is a fun, no cost activity that will also teach your son or daughter very valuable life skills. Most, if not all kids love helping in the kitchen so you’ll want to encourage and take advantage of it. You’ll also be able to teach them about healthy eating habits.
Depending on the age of your child start with something simple, if they a very young let them make cinnamon toast. They can butter the toast and sprinkle on cinnamon and sugar. Another good first choice is making Saturday morning pancakes. Young children can help measure and mix and older children can bake them too.
There is a multitude of ways your children can help out in the kitchen. For example, even at a young age they can get ingredients out of the fridge or easy to reach cupboards, wash fruits and vegetables, tear salad greens, peel carrots with a safe vegetable peeler. As they get older they can try their hand at more difficult tasks.
Teach your budding gourmet some good basics recipes, cooking techniques and terms as well as kitchen safety. Additional life skills children can learn when cooking are fine motor skills like pouring, measuring and stirring, math skills like counting, adding and subtracting, reading, being organized, cleaning up, shopping, managing money, plus health and nutrition.
Once your child is old enough to read a recipe, manage a sharp knife and hot pots and pans he or she can make an entire meal all by themselves. This is a real bonus for working parents as meal times won’t be a such chore for you. Eventually your children can pitch in or even completely take over the daily task of making dinner!
We all learn best by example, by seeing how it’s done and by practicing doing things. Encourage your child to prepare their favorite meals and encourage them to make healthy choices. Just knowing how to cook means your child will be able to feed him or her self when they move out on their own. They won’t need to rely on fast food, take out, or unhealthy ready prepared food and they save money as well.
You might think it’s quicker or easier to do all the cooking and clean up yourself but you’ll be missing out on spending this special time with your child and the camaraderie that may develop between you. Not to mention the opportunity to teach them so many valuable life skills.
By: Melody Thacker
About the Author:
Melody Thacker is a Mother of four children who all learned to cook. She also creates informative web sites such as Just The Right Spice where you’ll find easy to follow how to cook articles and recipes. Love Homemaking has recipes and homemaking tips for busy Moms.