I took my daughter to a fantastic party at Pizza Dreams Cafe recently, and she absolutely loved it. She got to make her own pizza, watch it being cooked in the wood-fired oven, then eat it! It got me thinking I should spend more time cooking with her as it's
a great bonding activity. I asked three culinary experts who run local cookery classes about the skills our children can learn...

 

Cooking and food, even the kitchen itself, is always going to be an integral part of family life. As a busy mum, it can be tempting to keep your kids out of the kitchen when you're cooking, but by encouraging children to cook with you
and also teaching your child about food, it can provide a wealth of benefits.

   'Teaching and helping your child understand where and how fruits, vegetables and other products we eat are grown can help with their interest in eating healthily,' says Jenn Patient, who runs new company Mini Masterchefs. 'It doesn't have to be a long informative lesson, but just telling them such things like potatoes are grown underground, or carrots are good for your eyes can be interesting for them to learn. Giving kids a hands-on experience can help them develop a lasting healthy relationship with food.'

   Jenn is a married mum of two children, Lily and Olly, and lives in Winkfield, Berkshire. Ever since her son was a baby, he was always interested in what
she was cooking and wanted to sit on the kitchen counter and watch her. 'He is now four and when we go to the supermarket, we always play "recognise the fruit and vegetables". He is one of the inspirations behind my new business,' she says. 

   'Mini masterchefs offers engaging cooking classes for pre-school children. The classes encourage children to have fun whilst making delicious recipes that are brilliant for even the fussiest eaters. Children will learn about food through touching, tasting, experimenting and enjoying cooking in a happy, secure environment (my kitchen), promoting early years development along the way.'        Jenn tells me some benefits of cooking with your child are:

1. Cooking time can be bonding time and can bring families together as it involves communication and you are doing something together.

2. By involving children in the cooking process, they are more likely to be wiling to try new foods because they have made something themselves. They may also have a huge sense of achievement, which builds self-esteem.

3. Cooking can help develop maths and reading skills through understanding recipes, counting and measuring.

   Anna Oliver from Crafty Cooks agrees. She says: 'Cooking with kids can be a great bonding activity. You have to work as a team, and if you're organised, it can be a therapeutic thing to do! It's a great opportunity to put some of your child's learning into practice, from hand-eye coordination with weighing, mixing, rolling etc, to number work when weighing out new ingredients, and time-telling when something goes in the oven to when it comes out. They are also obviously learning a life skill. If you give your kids the basics, this will hopefully carry them through life with an interest in cooking that grows
with them.'

   Anna lives in Marlow with her husband and two sons. She started Crafty Cooks in 2007. The classes are aimed at pre-schoolers, aged two years and over, and take place in small groups in her home. Each week, they make a different recipe, trying to incorporate fruits and vegetables along the way, and whilst the food cooks the group spends a bit of time learning about and tasting different foods that relate to the recipe.

   'It is a great thing to do if you and your children want to make friends as classes are booked on a termly basis, with most people returning foraround a year,' says Anna.

   'The classes have proven to be great for parents with a slightly fussier child. Crafty Cooks helps to increase the range of foods their children eat, as
it's a great time to introduce new flavours and textures, and letting the kids taste the food along the way can really help, especially in a group setting. More often than not, a few children a week will go home liking a food they wouldn't have tried at home.

   'Many people find it quite stressful cooking at home. Some top tips to make 
it enjoyable are to be organised when you have very little children. At Crafty Cooks children always get to weigh out one ingredient and the rest are pre-weighed for them, so they don't end up getting bored before they've even started. And remember the journey is as important as the end result. Everything can be cleaned, the floor can be swept and if the gingerbreadman looks like a one-armed bandit, it really doesn't matter!'

   Katie McGrath from Silly Chefs says kids love cooking so much, they ask to do it at their birthday party, which is where they step in. Sill Chefs host Kids Cooking Parties and also offer a Party in a Box. Katie, mum to Phoebe, Jess and Eliza, says: 'When we do a party, the idea is that we make a parents life easier; we step in and cook with the kids to make their own party tea, we also play games, provide all the equipment needed and we even clean up at the end. Party in a Box is the Kids Cooking Party neatly packaged up with everything needed so a parent can have a cooking party for their own child without a

Silly Chefs host.' The Party in a Box contains suggested recipes, suggested games, all tableware, a party plan, party bags and even a shopping list for

the food needed.

   The idea behind the cooking parties is to let the kids do all the food preparation all themselves so they have the sense of achievement of cooking their own food. 'We find that the kids eat really well; they are so proud of themselves for cooking their own food that they appreciate it more,' says Katie. 'We try to keep the food balanced and healthy. I also think there is an element of positive peer pressure so all the children do join in. They also like showing each other how clever they are, so we get some very creative results. We are also quite flexible about messiness which helps.

   'As far as skills go; we measure out ingredients, roll out dough, cut up fruit/veg, mix up cake batter etc. We try to encourage understanding of
sharing and restraint (especially when we are icing and decorating cakes)
and portion sizes.'

   Katie shares her top tips for cooking with children, and some great recipes to try below. Silly Chefs Community also launches next week, where people can share ideas about cooking with kids and cooking for kids.

   So, cooking with your children really does have its benefits. I'm off out to the shops now to buy some ingredients so my daughter and I can make something together later. As Jenn says: 'It may take a little flexibility and some simple prep work, but with the right expectations, your time in the kitchen with your preschooler can be a culinary adventure you'll both enjoy'.

 

Crafty Cooks sessions are held in Marlow and Maidenhead. They also run birthday parties and sessions for private groups. For more details, visit                                                                  

Check out their recipes, right, that you can make with you child.

 

Mini Masterchefs are now taking bookings for February classes.
For more information, contact Jenn on 01344 526 451 or email info@minimasterchefs.co.uk. Visit 

 

For more information on Silly Chefs, visit 

 

Tips for cooking with young children

 

• Always wash hands, they all seem to love this and sometimes you can get the more detailed bits done while they’re playing with bubbles!

• Keep the recipe short and simple – perhaps just icing the cake instead of making the whole thing

• ​Measuring out the ingredients beforehand and letting the child plop all the items in the bowl

• Always have extra eggs and break it into a small bowl before it goes into the mix

• Let them get their fingers in and be prepared for some mess no matter how simple the process should be

• Use plastic cutlery for cutting soft food items: butter, fruit

• Use scissors to cut some food: spring onions, ham

• Children can get involved in any recipe: breaking the spaghetti into pieces, taking pasta out of a packet and putting it into a bowl, taking cereal out of a packet, laying sliced cheese onto a sandwich, counting out carrots/potatoes, breaking off broccoli florets

• Get them to wash up – it’s part of the process after all and it helps you out. Plus all kids seem to like to stand at a sink of bubbly water. It might be messy but some things might get clean and they are entertained for a while.       

 

Tips for cooking with young children

• Pizza is great and one of the Silly Chefs Party favourites. Pre-make the dough and kids can roll out their individual piece and top it with whatever they like. Cheat by using a naan, pitta or flat bread for the base.

• Quick and easy summer pudding: use cookie cutters to cut shapes out of sliced white bread.  Soak the shapes in fruit juice from a tin of summer fruits. Spoon summer fruits on the top with cream

• Puff-headed pigs – cut big rounds out of puff pastry, small rounds for noses, triangles for ears. Brush with beaten egg. Use peppercorns, herbs or small pieces of ham for eyes and nostrils. Bake. http://www.sillychefs.com/savouries/pig-headed-puffs/