What do your children love doing in the kitchen?

[Janet]

My two have recently discovered gardening so that's been their thang recently :) I love to cook however and I'm interested to hear what recipes you use that are particularly popular with your children? Are they into cutting things up? Stirring? Inspire me! :ty

[Aurora]

DS adores cooking! He has a step that he drags into the kitchen, and stands on it to join me whenever he sees me preparing or cooking something.

As I have mentioned in the recipes for kids thread, he loves ''decorating'' pizzas... we use Lebanese bread, pita, whatever, and chop up a myriad of yummy colourful toppings and he goes at it. Sometimes we make faces, using capsicum slices for the mouth, and olives for the eye, mushrooms for the nose, grated cheese or baby spinach leaves for the hair etc.

We also have some great silicone muffin tins in different shapes that I scored from an opshop. His favourite muffins are berry ones, using frozen berries so they don't bleed..he mostly chooses the love heart shape. We just use basic recipes from an old family fave recipe book of ours.

Pancakes are another favourite! He loves to pour the mixture into the pan, and delights in making tiny wee baby pancakes. The smaller the better! Our pancakes have a twist though, we add different flours/grains and nuts, and DS loves tropical toppings like cut up melon and strawberries with natural yoghurt. We put out a few bowls of yummy toppings on the table and he picks and chooses the combos, using big spoons to dollop them on.

Although not an edible recipe, you can't go wrong with good old playdough either. He loves choosing the colours, squeezing the dye in, loves kneading/mixing the dough when it's warm and getting all floury. There are edible playdough recipes out there but we haven't tried any yet, we just use the recipe on the back of the cream of tartar box.

Oh- he also loves to cut shapes out of his sandwiches with cookie cutters. Stars, hearts, bears. He then stuffs the excess crust etc in his mouth all in one go lol :)

[Sarasvati]

Oh. Geez I am a shocker. I have a hard time including Kira because she doesn't do it *right* :o. She likes to stir the mix of whatever I am baking, and pours stuff in, but I never thought about letting her decorate the pizza! Thanks! Mostly, she likes eating in the kitchen LOL.

[pomegranate_tree]

dd 4 does heaps in the kitchen... even cuts up stuff for me... if it is soft stuff like a banana or avocado only though ;)

her most favourite thing to do though is lick stuff and make a mess of stuff though... she especially loves doughs and biscuit batters :lol so we do quite a lot of baking ;)

[Beatrice]

K has her official jobs - she always has to wash potatoes, and cut up mushrooms. If I don't give her the opportunity to do these things I get in BIG strife :lol But she likes doing just about anything - her latest thing is cracking eggs for me. She's getting pretty good at it, too. She loves stirring, weighing, pouring, sifting, using the mixer.

B searches for her own recipes (online and in my recipe book library), bakes, and cooks entire meals. It's luffly, especially when I'm having an attack of the couldn't-be-arseds. I have her well trained ;)

[Quickening]

At the moment its more OUTSIDE the kitchen than in where my children are concerned! They'll go into the kitchen to grab lentils, dried peas, dried chickpeas, flour, sultanas, oatmeal and then go outside with all of it and start stirring and pouring in their pots and bowls. Most of the end result isn't edible but there was this one time DD came up with a museli of sorts and they both ate it!

If I'm cooking DS might come in to climb up on the bench and stir things in pots for me when I go to get other stuff ready.

[~*heket*~]

Stylish LOVES making scrambled eggs ... this week. And she's been making some pasta sauces with a litle help from Adam. LIghting the stove seems to be a big thrill :lol


She also does salad in summer and chops everything up and makes dressing.

She doesn't have much interest in cooking sadly, but I'm hoping that will change.

[Ayla]

So much I have to look forward to :)

[Kauri]

I haven't gone there yet, DS is almost two and he hasn't really been interested in what I get up to in the kitchen. He has sometimes wanted to hold the handbeaters if I am mixing something up. Lately he has wanted to stir whatever is cooking on the cooktop - but I'm worried he might get burnt as he really has no idea of the concept of hot. What do you all do about that?

I should try to get a step thingy and maybe he might get a bit more interested.

[Sarasvati]

Kauri it's not a problem here as Kira is 4 and well understands the meaning of hot. We have a step from ikea (handy things, need about two more I reckon!) and she uses that to help out.

After reading this thread we had a breakthrough yesterday. We were discussing lunch, and every suggestionw as met with "no". Finally I asked if she'd like to help daddy put the cheese and tomato on her sandwich and she perked up and was so excited! So she did that, then chose how it was cut, and ate it all! I feel so daft... but she's never been one to insist on having it done her way so we've kind of just fallen into TCC style where we just choose for her, it's never really bothered her before. (Of course if she had a moment where she did want to choose we let her, but it's pretty rare). I think I might actively involve her in food prep more, since it was such a raging success!

[bella]

My lot are always in the kitchen. Heath is 4 and he just eats, really. He's the youngest of six so he usually just bosses others to get what he wants...

Lily is 6 and she washes up, tries to peel vegies, makes fruit salad and feeds Heath.

Bryce is 9 and he peels, stirs, washes up and makes food for the younger two.

The three older girls (nearly 11, 12, 14) can all cook full meals, bake almost anything, wash up and clean the kitchen. They started with packet mixes and doing the same tasks the younger ones tackle now. I only cook a couple of times a week, because the girls have it covered. Love it!

[esp]

Mine like juicing and making ice blocks with the juice.
Cakes and cookies are always a hit too - pressing down the cookies is the fave job because they can then recognize and eat "their" ones.
The love making smoothies and sorbet.
Mostly what they do in the kitchen though is to order me about ;)

[~*heket*~]

Tonight Stylish made chicken wings that rocked!

she used:

chicken wings (no really!)
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup sweet chili sauce
2tsp fish sauce
1tsp veggeta stock

then she mixed it all around and let it sit for half an hour. Then she oiled up a baking dish and threw it all in the oven. I cooked the rice (but she could have done it ;) ) and she could also have cut in half and stirfried the bok-choy but I did it to save on fuss :lol

it was really yummy! I was impressed :D

[breeze]

Pancakes, muffins, peeling vegies, washing up, lighting matches and taking things out of the hot oven, everything really :)

[Dani]

DS loves to make his own sandwiches, he became really interested in making them when he was about 3 so my mum and I showed him how to and since then hes made his own supervised up until 2 years ago lol doesnt make a mess anymore. He also likes to help out when im cooking spagetti, but thats really only so he can eat some of the sauce while its cooking

[deesalie]

anything involving water & goopy messes! dp and ds have been enjoying ritualistic sunday afternoon pasta making sessions. you just can't compare.... you just can't!!

[Beatrice]

Today K graduated to using a paring knife to cut up roasted pumpkin, although it was a little hairy at times as she hadn't quite figured out not to stick her fingers under the blade :eek She also helped me cut up a bunch of spinach for the risotto, using scissors this time. I'd asked her initially to keep it over the bowl when she was cutting as "floor spinach" wasn't much use to me, so whenever she accidentally dropped a bit she'd intone "Floor spinach!" at me :o And she measured out the rice as well.

[Laiste]

R (3 and a half) lives in the kitchen practically. She helps with pretty much everything. Her favs at the moment are cookies (flattening/decorating), pikelets, assembling salads and muffins.

[Beltane]

DS almost 6 loves, loves, loves making Pumpkin soup! He would eat it everyday.. My Mother's day card had a drawing of Pumpkin soup on it with a message saying he loved me for making pumpkin soup with him. He waits on a chair pulled up to the bench until it is cooked so he can puree it with the hand blender and we all have to sit at the table so he can serve it up to us. Oh the mess... but it's priceless!
http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m143/Conscience3/Herbs034.jpg

[Hera]

that is cute about the pumpkin soup beltane :)

I have taken a while to get used to 'help' in the kitchen because I get too flustered with both kids pouring and stirring and spilling and cracking and throwing everything :lol I found gettting all ingredients together and even setting out the right amounts into seperate bowls (like on the cooking shows) that way i could just guide them on what needed to go in when.

Canneloni is one dd loves to help with. Ricotta and spinach mixed together with some grated cheese and then just have to stuff it into the canneloni shells with a spoon or fingers and lay them out and pour on some sauce.

[~*heket*~]

Spikee made the creamy corn for dinner tonight! He picked the herbs, put them in the bowl, put the corn in, tipped in some cream and some butter and schooped out garlic and onion out of our home made garlic onion puree. Then he read the numbers on the newk and pressed them - and THEN he ATE THE CORN :lol

[Sarasvati]

Woohoo! I don't trust Imogen to help :lol. She is a smiling assassin.

[Beatrice]

K cracked the eggs and used the hand mixer when I made muffins today. Oh, and democratically shared the beaters and the bowl with her little brother :lol

[Hera]

We made mini pizzas and biscuits yesteray and dd did lots of mixing (and licking :lol) she also helped me roll little balls out of the biscuit dough, which she has improved greatly on since last time!

Ds cut the mushrooms into pieces and then threw it all on the floor :lol

[dylan]

Doug likes to have his own bit of bread dough to 'knead' and bake, and loves making pizza - chopping mushrooms, spreading the toppings, kneading the dough...
he is great st squishing biscuits with a fork too.
must start doing more cooking with him again.

[~*heket*~]

Stylish made bread last night ... then Adam brought home to enormous loaves from work :blueroll

[Eir]

m usually helps in the kitchen and for the most part i'm able to let go and let her. i'm not so keen on the latest thing which is to want to cut with the sharp knives -- she's done it with her dad with both of them holding the handle and now thinks she should be able to use them all the time. at least she asks (about the sharp knives) without just helping herself... she knows i'm ok with her using the other knives and i'll often find her cutting up bananas or something to make herself a snack.

i do find myself being really authoritarian at times when we're cooking which i don't like hearing, but it's usually more about potential danger (and um preventing obscene amounts of mess).

[Yogini]

So much I have to look forward to :)

Ditto. Too young here yet but I have always sat her up on the bench so she can watch and I hand her tit bits of stuff as i cut. I'm hoping she will grow to love cooking as much as me.

[Ceres]

Bump!

[Janet]

My kids like unstacking the dishwasher most of all. :lol Hey I'm jiggy with that! I'd prefer to cook without *ahem* "help" but it's fun and fast when we all do the dishwasher. :)

[asimplelife]

6yr old DS is very proficient at cooking a few things now. Banana pancakes are his specialty - mashed banana with an egg and fried up. He sets it all on his own including the flipping etc and just calls me into the kitchen if he wants a hand if they start to burn before he flips. He's also learning to boil eggs and make scrambled eggs.

4yr old DD is right into peeling and slicing up her own carrot with a sharp vege knife for a snack. I've just started to be ok with not being in the kitchen with her as she does that.

Both are good with unloading the dishwasher (bit tricky reloading since the bench is a bit inaccessible while the dishwasher is open).

[Ceres]

That is pretty impressive for a 6yr old! My 5yr old has lots of desire to make food but loses interest in the boring bits.

[asimplelife]

It's really only been in the last 6mths that he's really wanted to do this all on his own. I just follow his lead and follow his cues (or rather, his "I don't need your help, I can do it on my own" lol).