It might not always seem appealing to have kids 'helping' in the kitchen. I've experienced what could only be named a full whiteout snowstorm of flour when a slightly unsupervised preschooler got too enthusiastic with the mixer!
With a little bit of sneaky prep work and some scaled-down recipes, you can help your kids feel like Junior Chefs without dressing them in HazMat suits.
Here are three ways to get kids involved in the kitchen—with minimal mess and maximum fun in mind.
1. Premeasure ingredients and have them 'waiting' in measuring cups or bowls.
Yes, I know, it's better to have kids scoop ingredients themselves, learn to level off flour, etc. but I'm not a huge fan of my kid arm-deep in the flour bag. Been there, cleaned that up... so to save time and when you've got a lot of dry ingredients to add, I set up the 'bakery' before my kids come in, so their job becomes all about dumping in and mixing the ingredients. They seem to enjoy that well enough!
This little guy is thrilled about those tiny 'ready to go' bowls set out for him.
2. Stick to assembly-style recipes.
Is it really cooking to turn apple slices and cheese into sailboats? Of course it is! Slice up apples (beforehand of course, see #1 above!), cut cheese into triangles, and have kids build little sailboats using toothpicks to attach them. The apple slice is the boat, and the cheese triangle is the sail. You can also get kids to make their own sails from paper, and stick them into hard-boiled eggs, cucumber slices, you name it. Small on mess but big on fun factor.
3. Scale it down.
Our kids are little after all—they don't need to make a lasagna for the whole family. They can make mini versions that will save on time, ingredients, and mess!
How about English muffins mini pizzas? No dough rolling required (can you tell I'm a bit flour-averse?)—just get little bowls of shredded cheese, sliced pepperoni and tomato sauce ready, and your little bakers can assemble their own pizzas. My kids love making their 'own' customized versions—nothing like a bit of ownership to incent these bakers.
There are times when it's worth it to get everyone down and dirty in the kitchen, but when you're short on time, patience, or just have a low threshold for mess—these tips will help your kids stay involved while keeping you sane.
P.S. Wanna know how to make a super cute chef's hat? Click here to see how momstown Winnipeg did it.
This post was written by Ally @momstownTeach.
Do you cook or bake with your kids? Do you like or loathe the mess?
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