Kids and Easy Cookie Recipes
He is a rare child who at some point does not enter the kitchen and begins to remove pots and pans from the cabinets. While these are generally used more for percussion practice than out of interest in cooking, children no older than young children can begin to learn the basics of cooking. Easy cookie recipes, salads, sandwiches, and easy casserole recipes can be starting points for early culinary explorations.
The best way for kids to get started in the kitchen is by letting them help prepare something they like to eat. What kid doesn’t like cookies? Once they have learned that they can be an integral part in the production of their favorite treats, you will likely have trouble getting them out of the kitchen.
One of the first things every child learns to do is decorate cookies. You don’t have to wait for the holidays for this! On a rainy day, mix up a batch of sugar cookies and take out your basket of cookie cutters. For little hands, there are plastic and silicone cutters that don’t have the semi-sharp edges found on metal cutters. Let the children choose the shapes and help them cut them out and place them on the baking sheet.
If you have a window in the oven door, keep children a safe distance from the hot surface and turn on the oven light. Let the kids watch the dough drops turn golden and delicious cookies. Keep them out of reach, of course, while you take the hot pans out of the oven, but be sure to follow all the safety rules as they will be keeping an eye on you. Instead of your regular kitchen towel, use an oven mitt or hot pad to remove the baking sheets from the oven.
So, it’s time to decorate! Depending on the sophistication level of your children, you can let them do it or supervise the activity. Either way, you’ll have a great time, create great memories, and possibly find that those easy cookie recipes get a future chef off the ground.
