Comments on: Get the kids in the kitchen: It’s Bake for Family Fun Month!

By: donnaandgreg

donnaandgreg — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 03:42:43 +0000

My boys are 9 and 11 now. First thing this morning, the first day of Feb. vacation, I started right in on baking bread for a potluck. At the same time, they come waltzing in the kitchen asking for pancakes. I said, “Sure, you can make it yourself.” And they did. Start to finish. I was busy with my own ingredients and before I knew it they were getting the pan ready! I only watched and prompted my older one to flip them. That’s it! All those years of baking/cooking with them has paid off. They enjoy the process. They enjoy the results.
Seeing your children succeed in the kitchen is a great reward. Well done! ~Amy

By: FURB

FURB — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 20:14:00 +0000

Having four kids, I find that in order to involve everybody to have fun, I let the older kids (that know how to read) direct the project. The eldest reads the recipe, the second eldest measures, and the younger two do the mixing.

I pretty much stay back and operate the oven and am on clean up duty. I can stay relaxed, and intervene if there is contention. Also, I am the one that gets the ingredients so that everything gets put away before it gets spilled, and so the sweets get into the cookies and aren’t sitting out the whole time.

Everyone TASTES, but not too much. Unless your youngster is immunocompromised, they shouldn’t have too much difficulty fending off small amounts of salmonella or similar pathogens in batter or dough.

By: Born2Bake

Born2Bake — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 21:59:06 +0000

I have greatly enjoyed all of these comments and this website! All three of my sons are great cooks, but my daughter got by without much of an interest in cooking unless you want to call chicken fingers and macaroni and cheese basic cooking 101. A number of weeks ago she called and wanted to come over, so she could make a loaf of Italian bread for a 3rd date special someone-what young man would not be impressed with a young lady who could make a loaf of bread. To make a long story shorter, to save her time- because she had to have time to make herself beautiful, throw the baked spaghetti dish together etc. I lugged all of the bread making items, including my Kitchenaid mixer, to her third floor apartment. It was a long way up those stairs, but I felt like I had accomplished a great feat before she started making the Italian loaf. I must admit, it was hard keeping my hands out of the whole process-being a perfectionist, but I was very proud of myself that I talked her through the baking process. Needless to say, the loaves came of the the oven a rich golden brown. I’m sure the aroma was lingering when the special someone got there. My reward was getting to take one of the loaves home and she carried the mixer down the stairs to the trunk of my car. To seal the deal, I got a big hug. The text I received the next day was priceless…Your bread is gone!! Mainly bc I attacked the leftovers today, but it was so good! Thank you again for being awesome and helping. Yes, this was well worth those 3 flights of stairs and packing up all the bread baking necessities.
I do have a two year old grandson, that I’m already devising excuses for him to come over to Grannie’s house to have some fun baking. For Christmas, I bought him the Martha Stewart kids collection mix & measure prep set – this stays at my house with the Star Wars light sabers. Anyway, it’s great to get ideas from other baking enthusiastes on this blog and I’m looking forward to baking up some great memories with my grandson. Keep those great experiences coming, I enjoy all of them!

I love the story about your daughter. That’s quite a leap, from chicken fingers to Italian bread! Reminds me of my little sister – a few years ago, all she could cook was frozen chicken fingers, and now, after a few years of holiday cookie baking together, she’s asking for baking tools for Christmas and her birthday! Have fun in the kitchen with your grandson! -Allison

By: thefiverogers

thefiverogers — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 21:52:55 +0000

Two recommendations for parents on cooking with kids: first if you have the opportunity, teach cooking at your elementary school and second, prep all dry ingredients for baking on a day before baking. My kids are now 14, 17 and 20 and still I am drawn in by blogging on cooking with kids. One of my most cherished memories was when my two year old added the cup of milk to my 5lb container of sugar sitting nearby! I believe that cooking with kids taught me to have more patience (maybe the kids a little too). I cooked with all my kids, though now they avoid it if it takes more than warming in the microwave! I hope they will come back to it. If parents have the opportunity, I highly recommend teaching cooking at the elementary school, after school programs are great for this. I “taught” after school cooking class at the elementary school and learned quite a bit about cooking with kids. The best part of teaching in the after school enrichment program was that initially my daughter participated in the class and then quickly became an assistant which I could not do without. She continued to be my assistant even when she was in middle school. She not only learned repeatedly how to measure ingredients and the gentleness required to make tender muffins and scrambled eggs but also how to work with others. My second recommendation helps with the fact that kids quickly loose interest in the process, they want the product. One way to make product happen sooner is to focus on measuring dry ingredients one day and then when convenient, measuring out liquid ingredients and baking. This allows your child (or student) to learn the importance of accurate measurement and not be hurried to get to the end product. Often we get something in the oven (dry ingredients measured at an earlier time) quickly and then to distract them while it is baking, we measure dry ingredients for a baking day in the future. I could write a book on cooking with kids!

Those are great suggestions! I love the idea of getting into the classroom to teach kids cooking and baking. I’ll have to keep it in mind when my daughter is old enough to start school! By then she ought to be an expert in the kitchen. Thanks for sharing! -Allison

By: Kerstin - Cake, Batter, and Bowl

Kerstin - Cake, Batter, and Bowl — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 17:08:36 +0000

Awww, Amelia is getting so big and is so cute! I totally understand her M&Ms logic, lol. It’s so fun you’re taking the time to bake with her

Thanks Kerstin! Hey – the girl knows what she likes! Can’t argue with that. Happy baking! -Allison

By: peaceland

peaceland — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 15:58:43 +0000

What a special month February will be! My grandchildren all like to bake with me. Pizza is our usual task. Last week my 4yr old grandaughter told her mom that they could make pizza at home like at MeMaw’s. They called for the dough recipe – then when they’d mixed it together Leah told her Mom – this is too sticky it’s not like MeMaw’s…she was right – her Mom had doubled the water! Pretty good for a 4yr old.

Wow – I love it! I never cease to be amazed at the things kids pick up and remember (even when they’re not quite two yet!). Amelia and I like to make (and eat) pizza, too. Definitely a kid-friendly project. Have fun with your grandchildren this month! -Allison

By: Jess

Jess — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 04:59:30 +0000

Great post! And thanks for being real about the fun AND challenges of baking with kids. I have a 3 and 7 year old, and I’ve also baked a lot with groups of kids at our co-op preschool. The other tips I’d add to your list are (1) don’t bake hungry (give a snack first); (2) give kids choices about what task they want to do (in our house, one of us scoops the sugar, the other one levels; etc.); (3) incorporate guessing games about ingredients (taste a little flour and ask what it is; smell vanilla; etc.).

Those are wonderful suggestions! “Don’t bake hungry” is especially important – make sure EVERYONE has had a snack (adult included!). Thanks for sharing! -Allison

By: dgcbooth

dgcbooth — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 00:36:29 +0000

absolutely wonderful post

Thank you! It was fun to work on. -Allison

By: LeeB

LeeB — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 16:31:01 +0000

I’ve been pondering the first commenter’s question about eating the raw cookie dough, a treat anticipated by all children with parents who bake. It really seems to me that the scary, dangerous part of the dough is the sugar not the raw egg. We get our eggs from local friends and farms, the hens live outdoors whenever possible, the eggs are super healthy and we eat them raw in homemade ice cream, smoothies and wherever else we can slip them in. Raw eggs from the grocery store do carry a slightly higher risk of salmonella but even that one is 1 in 7,000 or less than .001%. Sugar will zap you 100% of the time.

That’s a good point. I think it comes down to an individual decision about what we want to put in our – and our kids’ – bodies. Thanks for that perspective! -Allison

By: jfseidel

jfseidel — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 15:22:13 +0000

For those of you bemoaning the high school/college age kids who won’t “play along” any more, they’ll come around… I was raised with homemade bread (that I hated at the time), homemade cookies, etc. Now, I prefer homemade to most store-bought cookies and other treats, and I’ve started making my own bread (more artisinal, but still prefer Brownberry/Arnold type for sandwiches – some childhood things can’t be undone!).

When I was in high school, my mom read something like this that said “mothers, remember not to let your kids lick the spoons” because of the raw egg. She trotted that line out as i was mid-lick, and I said something like uh-huh, and kept going. Now, it’s a bit joke when we get to bake together. She did say that the chance of us eating enough that was tainted enough to get sick was pretty small (especially at my age – if I were a toddler, I’m sure it would have been different). There are pasteurized whole eggs available, I believe, so that could be an option for family baking. That way, everyone can join in after explaining that these are safe, special eggs., instead of a “do as I say, not as I do” disaster.

Yep, that “do as I say, not as I do” thing has never really worked, has it?! Thanks for the encouragement regarding older “kids.” I think you’re right that “some childhood things can’t be undone” – which means that if you’re raised on home baking, you’ll probably someday crave that childhood favorite thing and need to learn to bake it yourself! -Allison