Getting kids involved in the cooking process is a wonderful way to get your little ones to try foods they might not be willing to try otherwise. Sometimes it can be a little stressful for mommy though, at least for this mommy! The mess, the hot stove and the sharp knives are enough to make cooking with kids a little overwhelming for me. I decided to make myself try harder to get C exploring in the kitchen with me. Messes can be cleaned, she is old enough to be careful around a hot stove and as for the sharp knives? That is no longer a problem with Curious Chef!
Curious Chef has an amazing line of real cooking products for kids. One of the first products to catch my eye was the plastic knife. I thought it would be the perfect tool teach knife safety without risking her little fingers. We were both excited to open up the package when it arrived and get cooking!
For the first day, I let her help chop up the veggies for our dinner. It was a little difficult for her at first but she got the hang of it. A few days later I decided to let her make her own snack, all by herself. She was thrilled! I originally go the idea for this snack from Reboot With Joe. We simplified it a little though. Here are the ingredients we used:
- Gala Apple
- Peanut Butter
- Unsweetened Shredded Coconut
First she sliced the apple into circles. This was a bit hard for her because she is still working on her chopping motion. I sliced the apple with this knife without much trouble. Of course, it wasn't exactly like slicing with my personal knives but I didn't expect that.
Then we used a cute veggie cutter(we have these) to get the core out.
Next, she spread the peanut butter onto the apple. A butter knife would be better for spreading than a fork, but all of ours seem to have disappeared.
Finally, we topped them with the unsweetened coconut. I almost cleaned up the cutting board before taking the picture but I wanted to keep it real for you. This post is about cooking with kids after all!
Yum! She was so happy to dig into her snack. She said, "I made it myself!"
I love the curious chef knife for introducing knife safety without having to worry about her cutting herself. I think it it is the perfect beginner knife. Like I mentioned before, it isn't sharp so it won't cut like a standard knife but I think it does a pretty good job.
Do your kids enjoy cooking? I'd love to hear your tips for getting kids involved in the cooking process, leave me a comment!
Thanks so much for visiting Joy Focused Learning!
~Angela
