When we want to teach a child something, the main thing is not to miss the right moment. You will know that the moment has come for learning the basics of cooking when the child asks: “Can I help you cook?” The only answer should be: “Of course you can!”
When we involve a child in the kitchen, we prepare him for adulthood and implement a lot of other useful aspects. Let’s name three main ones.
First. The fact that the child has been entrusted with “adult” work becomes a very important moment for him in realizing his importance and need.
Second. The kitchen is an ideal training ground for learning mathematics and logic. After all, you need to count how many eggs, tablespoons of sugar or salt to put. Working in the kitchen, the child learns independence, responsibility, new and necessary skills.
Third. Cooking is a creative process. This means that we not only teach the kid to cook, but also increase his creative potential.
But in order to get only joy and pleasure from kitchen witchcraft, you need to remember a few simple rules. The most important thing is to explain to the child how to behave correctly in the kitchen, and strictly follow this. After all, there are so many dangerous objects around, which means that there should be no running or pampering here. In order to wash less, sew or buy a personal apron for your young chef (you can use oilcloth). Choose a stable stool or other support for the baby so that he can easily reach the sink, stove or table. And be sure to explain that after cooking, you need to put things in order in the kitchen.
So, 5 recipes to cook with your kids, + 5 food cartoons to watch with them.
This “dish” can be done even by a baby 4-5 years old. Of course, provided that mom chops all the ingredients in advance. The cooking process can be turned into an exciting competition for the “most fabulous sandwich”.
You will need: sliced bread, sausage, cheese, tomatoes, cucumbers, herbs, lettuce, olives and other products. Mayonnaise with ketchup (for decoration) does not hurt.
Create funny fairy tales, animal faces, etc. on sandwiches. Let the child show imagination and arrange the ingredients the way he wants. And mom will tell you how you can make mustaches and Christmas trees from dill, eyes from olives or mouths from ketchup.
You can make small sandwiches. The scheme is the same – to cut the food and allow the child to independently build a culinary masterpiece for a tired dad after work or just for a small family holiday. As for the skewers, you can buy them especially for the child – funny and colorful.
Fruit canapes. We use in the bulk of soft and delicate fruits – grapes, strawberries, kiwi, watermelon and melon, bananas, peaches. Wash fruits, cut and chop on skewers. Garnish with fruit syrup or chocolate chips. By the way, bananas, strawberries, peaches and ice cream make an amazing salad, which can also be made with a crumb.
Meat canapes. We use everything we find in the refrigerator: cheese, ham, sausage, olives, herbs and lettuce, bell peppers, etc.
Vegetable canapes. A kind of salad on skewers of cucumbers, tomatoes, olives, carrots, herbs, etc.
Baking: easy, interesting, delicious!
Your child is 3-4 years old. The perfect age for your first culinary experience. Where to begin? With baking, of course.
You will need:
150 g butter
150 g sugar
3 eggs
2 tsp razrыhlitelya
350-400 g flour
cookie cutters
Baking cookies with your child is easy and fun. To get started, we strongly recommend that you prepare everything. Pour sugar into a glass, break eggs into another glass or bowl, you should also measure flour with baking powder in advance. So it will be easier for the child to take the desired glass and pour the necessary ingredients into the common bowl on their own.
First, mix the butter and sugar, then pour the eggs into there and add flour and baking powder (you will have to stir somehow together or in turn, if you do not want cookies with lumps). A little flour should be left to sprinkle on the table. Make a dough, roll it out in a thin layer on the table and give your child the molds.
Transfer the cut figures to baking paper and into the oven (if the child is good at sculpting from plasticine, then you can not limit yourself to ready-made forms, but mold something yourself). The dough turns into cookies in just 10-15 minutes. Rolling out the dough and cutting out with molds is a long and interesting process, so it will not be so hard for the child to wait for the first cookies. By the way, be prepared for absolutely everything in the flour!
Children are happy to mix foods
Fact – even a child can make dough for pancakes or pancakes if you help him beat eggs.
You will need:
2 eggs
250 g flour
500 ml of milk
Pinch of salt
Butter for frying
Additional ingredients can be bacon, cheese, apples, and any other additives you like. Sweet pancakes are especially good with powdered sugar, jam, raisins, or ice cream.
We start cooking with the child. Crack the eggs into a bowl and shake them. Season with salt and start adding flour and milk little by little to the bowl, stirring everything until smooth so that there are no lumps in the dough. Children can help you measure and mix foods. If you decide to make spring rolls, the additional ingredients should be cut into small and thin pieces.
Depending on the age of the children, determine what role you can entrust them with in making pancakes. Preheat a skillet and add oil. When it melts, pour some dough into the pan and distribute it evenly over the bottom. Pour the dough a little to make the pancakes thin: it’s much tastier.
If you decide to add additional ingredients, then it is better to put them in the pan first, and add the dough on top. When the top of the crepe is almost dry, turn it over with a spatula and fry on the other side until golden brown.
Sprinkle ready-made pancakes with powdered sugar or pour over jam, condensed milk and enjoy!
You can draw funny faces on pancakes using powdered sugar, jam, apple or banana slices, raisins and jam – in general, all the ingredients that can harmoniously complement the taste of pancakes and decorate them.
One of the easiest dishes to start a kids cooking class is pizza, which everyone loves.
You will need:
we prepare the dough ourselves or buy ready-made,
tomato sauce,
grated cheese,
a mixture of Italian herbs,
filling: cheese, ham, pineapple, mushrooms, tomatoes, peppers, onions and other products of your choice.
Prepare food by cutting it into small pieces or as you see fit. Divide the food into different bowls to make it easy for the kids to decorate the pizza. Preheat the oven.
Start by brushing the tomato sauce over the dough completely. Let the child choose the filling for the pizza on his own, arrange it fantastically on the dough and decorate it to his liking. Finally, sprinkle with grated cheese and Italian herbs. Place the pizza in the oven. The cooking time depends on the type of dough you are using. On average, about 15 minutes, but in the process it is better to check the degree of doneness. Typically, melted cheese is an indicator that the pizza is ready and ready to be served.
Instead of one large pizza, you can create several small ones. From the ingredients on the pizza, you can lay out a funny face. Mushrooms will make a great nose, tomato slices will make eyes, and bell pepper slices will make a mouth. Let the kids fantasize!
Salads – space for creativity
It is in this dish that children’s individuality is fully manifested.
Invite your children to cook a variety of salads: children’s curiosity will surely win, some ingredient will be interested, and a familiar product will attract. And you can proudly declare that your child not only eats salads, he also prepares them!
And start learning by making vitamin salad. Even a 4-year-old child can cook it without using a knife.
You will need:
cherry tomatoes – 10 pcs.
cheese (sliced or grated) – 100 g
kernels of pine nuts or sunflower seeds – 1-2 handfuls
Sunflower oil – 1 tbsp l.
lemon – ½ pc.
lettuce greens – 1 bunch
dill, parsley, rucola – to taste.
Vegetable salads are especially healthy
Buy sliced cheese for this salad or grated cheese if you get one. The child will gladly tear the sliced slices into small pieces. Put tomatoes, pieces of cheese, kernels in a salad bowl, chop the greens and lettuce into pieces, pour in sunflower oil (you can pour oil into a shallow dish for the child in advance) and squeeze the juice out of half a lemon. Mix everything thoroughly. Vitamin salad is ready!
Zinaida Gontarenko, Nadezhda Belenkaya