cooking with toddlers/preschoolers

Hi there,
I meet up every week at our church with a bunch of mums and our kids.
We have newborns through to 3-4 year olds.
We are trying to expand some of our activities and would love to do some cooking.
I know there isn't loads we could do but any recipes or ideas would be gratefully received, all mums are there with their own kids so supervision and helping out isn't a problem,
Thanks a million :D

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Comments

  • stressed.mum
    stressed.mum Posts: 736
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    Hi growingafamily

    Some easy things to make with children (in a group) are
    Chocolate Crispy cakes
    Pizza - on french bread, sliced bread, muffins, or use packet of pizza dough?
    biscuits - bit like playdough!

    sure other people will have some better ideas

    stressed xx
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  • Pink.
    Pink. Posts: 17,675
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    Hi growingafamily,

    With a large number of preschool children I would try to keep it as simple as possible. At that age they love decorating things like plain biscuits and fairy cakes with icing, hundreds and thousands etc or what about making top hats?

    For healthier options what about making sandwiches or a fruit salad. This website might be helpful: Netmums cooking with kids

    Pink
  • r.mac_2
    r.mac_2 Posts: 4,746 Forumite
    I used to nanny with a couple of families. The kids loved making chocolate crispy cakes - and if you use supermarket brand chocolate and crispies they are expensive :D

    basic cookie dough is easy for them to work with - pop over to the recipe threas for a few recipes. you could then have different toppings for them to decorate with.

    ALternatively, you could make plain fairy cakes and then the activity be decorating with plain icing and smarties/hundreds/thousands/fruit etc that way there is no raw egg kicking about etc.

    Good luck and have fun :D
    aless02 wrote: »
    r.mac, you are so wise and wonderful, that post was lovely and so insightful!
    I can't promise that all my replies will illicit this response :p
  • pretz_2
    pretz_2 Posts: 528 Forumite
    you could make a variety of things like pizzas, crispy cakes, fairy cakes and gingerbread men kids will love getting involved with these things but if your really stuck watch big cook little cook on cbeebies as the recipes are aimed at young kids and easy to do although some dont look so nice
  • pange
    pange Posts: 54 Forumite
    how about fruit kebabs? have a selection of fruit chunks and the children could push them onto sticks, i no thats not strictly cooking but is quite good fun! could even be dipped into melted chocolate..... yum
  • r.mac_2
    r.mac_2 Posts: 4,746 Forumite
    oooh pink- top hats. I'd forgotten all about them!!!

    They are marshmallow stuck in a small blob of chocolate aren't they. yum yum!
    aless02 wrote: »
    r.mac, you are so wise and wonderful, that post was lovely and so insightful!
    I can't promise that all my replies will illicit this response :p
  • pigpen
    pigpen Posts: 40,891
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    Be very careful to check about allergies etc first though.. we have a little boy at nursery who is severely allergic to egg.. he has to have a day off if they are using eggs in cooking, or be removed to another room.. just touching them sets him off.
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  • mumoftwo
    mumoftwo Posts: 1,903
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    For something easy to start with, buy plain rich tea biscuits or digestives and make up some icing, let kids decorate with dolly mixture or smarties etc, quick and easy for a start and if that goes well, progress to making cakes etc. dipping fruit in chocolate, like someone said, sounds good and you can put them in a fairy cake case to set, if it doesn't disappear into their mouths first! :grin:
  • lauhol1980
    lauhol1980 Posts: 170
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    I help out at a toddler group in my local village. The lady that runs it sometimes does cookery with the children. One popular one she does is first thing in the morning she prepares some bread dough. She leaves it to rise and then she gets the kids to give it its second kneading and make it into rolls, cooks it in the oven and then the kids get to eat the bread they've made there and then. We're lucky that the community centre we meet in has an oven. The kids are so proud of the bread 'they've' made.

    HTH
  • homeaway
    homeaway Posts: 263 Forumite
    How about chocolate truffles, my son when he was little made them at school and loved it.
    Chocolate crispies are easy.
    Little cakes that they can decorate( bake them at home and let them decorate them if oven is a problem)
    Biscuits that they can decorate if you have an oven. Or just buy some plain ones from the shop and let them lose on them !
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