#Cooking with Toddlers Made Simple

After sharing some thoughts yesterday on how to invent a recipes with kids В (by opening your kitchen up as a lab for experimentation), I thought it might help if I backed up a bit and shared a few tricks that have helped me set the stage for kitchen experimentation.

Here are my top fourВ tips on bringing toddlers into the kitchen, making cooking with little ones fun, and keeping it simple

TIP #1

Spend time in the kitchen. I m a big advocate for bringing children into the kitchen at an early age.

Babies won t do much in the kitchen, obviously, but the kitchen is full of sensory experiences that can grab hold of the attention. As soon as my kids could stand, they ve been active observers; watching me chop, stir, mix, and pour.

TIP #2

Give them tools. And as soon as they show an interest, I give my kids small bowls to mix pretend batters and salads while I make the real thing right next to them.

My youngest is 18 months old, and she loves mixing just about anything. She s not as efficient as I am, and she s certainly not as neat, but I know that if I include her at this young age she ll feel comfortable in the kitchen as she grows older.

TIP #3

Find some kid-friendly knives. Did you see that my toddler is wielding a knife?

One of my most creative friends, Rebecca Jordan-Glum (she s just building her Facebook page visit her here:В https://www.facebook.com/JordanARTandDESIGN ) turned me on to these incredible kid-friendly knives from Curious Chef. We bought this pack of 3 knives В for under $10, and use them all the time. If they re out of stock, you can also find the knives through other Curious Chef cooking packages.

My 3.5 year old knows where to find them and can help herself, and my 18 month old will ask for knife. My youngest doesn t use the knife as its intended, but she wants to join the party and I m not going to stop her.

The knives are appropriate for children ages 5 and up, so supervision is recommended for little ones.

TIP #4

Involve them in simple cooking projects. When I m having a long day and I m not in the mood for a massive clean up, I ll try to find neater cooking projects for my kids to help with. Chopping salad is one of these projects. Scooping flour is not. Spreading butter on toast is one of these projects. Making pancakes is not.

Cooking with Kids: Resources

I m loving Foodie Parent . It s hilarious and there s a section of the site called Cooking with Kids.

Cooking with My Kid is a beautiful site, full of practical ideas. Macki describes herself as a Foodie by day, microwaver by night, I set out to teach my kid (and myself) the art of cooking. I m kicking myself because she was at Blissdom, and we didn t meet!

Do you like to cook with your kids? What are you favorite cooking-with-kids tips? What is the most challenging part of cooking with children? Do you have a favorite neat cooking project?

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