Country Kitchen:
Fun Foods For Youngsters to Prepare
By Mary Emma Allen
The pre-schooler browsed through the children's items at our yard sale.
Our grandchildren had decided they could part with some of their
treasures, always an attraction for youngsters accompanying their
parents.
This little girl looked at tiny toys and larger stuffed animals. There
was a collection of dolls, some little cars, crayons, jewelry, and
miniature tea set. However, the item that caught her eye she found among
the cookbooks...a cookbook with colorful cover with recipes for kids.
"I want this," she announced.
"Are you going to cook?" I asked and informed her that it was a cookbook
with recipes for youngsters.
"We cook, Nana," she said, looking at her grandmother.
When they left, she was chattering about cooking and holding the book up
for Nana to view.
This reminded me of my cooking done as a child and later with my
daughter. Now it's often cooking with my grandchildren and grand nieces.
Encouraging Children to Cook
Cooking with children takes patience; however, this activity can be
enjoyable and teach youngsters to be helpful in years to come. My
daughter became very good at meal preparation when she reached her teen
years. She'd call me at work and ask what she should make for supper. Now
she enjoys cooking and teaching her children to cook, too.
I grew up in a household where my mom let us cook, too. In fact, she
encouraged my sister and me to take over whatever meal preparation we
desired because she was busy with outside chores on our farm.
Later, Sister and I enjoyed 4-H cooking classes where we learned to
follow recipes more precisely. My mom came from a family of old-fashioned
cooks who used
printed or hand written recipes mainly for desserts and other baked
goods. Even those recipes listed ingredients such as a "pinch", "tea
cupful", "coffee cupful" , "enough to make a stiff dough."
In 4-H and later Home Economics, I learned about more precise
measurements as well as a variety of cooking equipment. We cooked and
baked on a wood burning cook stove at home so our heat wasn't precise
either. My 4-H leader had an electric stove, as did the Home Economics
class at school.
Recipes for Youngsters
Among the simplest meals for young cooks to prepare are those which don't
require any or much cooking. Teaching them to plan breakfast or lunch can
be a way to encourage them to eat better meals.
ENGLISH MUFFINS make a good base for a variety of recipes that are easy
for youngsters to prepare.
*Toast and spread with pizza sauce, then sprinkle shredded cheese over
them. Place under broiler, oven, or microwave until heated through and
cheese is melted. You also can add slices of pepperoni.
*Toast and spread muffins with cinnamon and sugar. You also can place a
few chocolate bits on the muffin, place in microwave briefly until they
are melted.
*Toast and use for making sandwiches, either open faced or two-sliced.
For open faced sandwiches, place tuna salad or ham on the muffin, then a
slice of cheese of desired flavor. Place under the broiler or in the
microwave briefly until melted.
(When using toaster, oven, broiler, or microwave you may need to
supervise younger children.)
Article (C) 2004 Mary Emma Allen
About the Author
Mary Emma Allen has been writing cooking columns for 40 years. She and
her family compiled a cookbook to preserve their food heritage. She
teaches workshops to show others how to do this, along with scrapbooking
their family recipes.
Visit her web site for more cooking
articles. Contact her at me.allen@juno.com
