Cooking Kids

This is my favorite month to use cooking as a teaching tool. We are saving most of our christmas cookie baking for the later part of the month, after the kids’ grandma gets into town. However, we will have the occasional Christmas treat to whip up for friends before then.

There are a few basics I cover when teaching with baking:

• Measuring
• Estimating
• Counting
• Size and shape

Although my daughter is only 3, I work with her on measuring flour, sugar, milk and oil correctly. With my son, who is 8, I hand him the cups and tell him what is needed. Actually this year he’ll probably read the recipes on his own. We also work on estimating because for some recipes I might add or take away certain ingredients, but I don’t use any form of measurement. So they learn to eyeball and ingredient and know whether it’s too much or too little. Of course counting cookies and sorting decorations is just plain fun. Hope this gives you some ideas for bringing education into your Christmas cookie baking this year.