Creative Cooking in the Kitchen

Homemade Donuts are way better than the store bought ones!!

Being a single Mom was a challenge on many levels. These challenges changed as my son grew. When he entered the third grade, sleepovers became popular, as this was the age where boys began to test their independence. The morning after his first sleepover, all he talked about were the powdered donuts the child's mother had bought at the donut store. The first time the boys slept at our house was filled with some apprehension especially when the number of guests unexpectedly rose at the last moment. The next morning I couldn't drive to the "donut store" since there was not another adult to mind the kids in my absence. Nor could I put the kids in the car as there were more kids than seat belts. I decided to be creative and have the kids help me make donuts. Using canned biscuits I set up an assembly line of kids making the holes (using an apple corer) once I fried them three more boys had the job of shaking the fried donuts in brown paper bags filled with confectioners sugar cinnamon and sugar or plain sugar. They had a blast! The donut making became a tradition in our home for over 15 years. It doesn't take a lot of talent or money just a little creativity to make kids enjoy their experiences in the kitchen.

Cooking up fun!

As a child, I always wanted to have a play kitchen and diligently begged for one every Christmas. My father always replied, "We have a real kitchen if you want to cook." Well I did. And now I cook with my little boys. We start in the grocery store learning lessons that develop all of the senses. There is so much to be gained through the process. I've found that cooking together is a fun way to increase self-confidence improve their understanding of nutrition and help my children gain practical life skills. We adapt our cooking for every stage. My five month old already sits in the kitchen with us and it thrills his older brother that he can "help" the baby cook. Right now this means chewing on a measuring cup (cute!) but soon he will be washing fruits and veggies like his big brother and actually using that cup to measure. I value good nutrition and cooking with my boys allows me to demonstrate cooking and eating well. As much as I love to have them help in the BIG kitchen though the child in me still wants them to have a play kitchen of their own. It is fun to cook in the grown up version but there is nothing like being able to bake a shirt and fry peas with no dishes to do. That's why my boys are getting a play kitchen this Christmas...even though we have a real kitchen downstairs.

Please note: The above entries were not chosen as winners for the Creative Kids in the Kitchen Contest.