Training Little Sous Chefs

Make Cooking Delicious, Educational and Fun!

How can we help our children become foodies with a broad palate? How can we teach them to make their own food by themselves when they are a bit older instead of complaining, “There is nothing to eat around here!”  According to professional cooks and nutritionists, hands-on family cooking lessons in the family kitchen make the difference. 

  You can teach some easy old favorite recipes or try other resources to make cooking delicious, educational, and practical for busy families. Cooking helps with math, especially fractions, measuring, doubling, and halving. Reading directions teaches careful reading, questioning, and problem solving. Cooking also teaches perseverance because a lot can go wrong and cooks need brain power and creativity to make it right. While cooking, read out loud and go over directions to check for understanding. Very young children can get equipment out of the cupboards, do stirring, and learn to use equipment under supervision. 

Looking for Help

  If you want to get a little help and share expense with friends, there are cooking kits for kids. Little Sous Kitchen Academy is a subscription service designed specifically to educate and empower children in their process of learning how to cook. 
  The subscription service sends children ages 5-12 a box each month, and aims to "change the way kids learn how to cook." The boxes come with easy-to-follow cooking lessons, collectible recipe cards, activities, posters, stickers, and high-quality kitchen tools that are safe for children to use. Their website mylittlesous.com has a few archived selections to get started.

 Other sites are Foodstirs Baker’s Club and Raddish. They all also include special utensils, nutrition information, general cooking instructions, and recipes for a monthly fee. Check out foodstsirs.com and raddish.com. Families can take a look at the sample kits on their sites, too. 

 Families can also use the sites as guides for their own 

Try  Making Slushes in the Summer

simple cooking classes based on family favorites. Then add a little family culture, ingredient geography with a map, and be ready for fun in the kitchen. Older children can be great teachers.

Watermelon and Strawberries

 Here is one recipe to try: Watermelon and Strawberry Slush. Ingredients: 9 cups seedless watermelon pieces without rind, 12 ounces of frozen or 1 ½ cups hulled fresh strawberries. Either strawberries or watermelon must be frozen for slush. Place whatever is not frozen in a blender. Add the other fruit. Blend again.  If desired add a little fresh lemon or lime juice and/or honey to taste and blend again.Serve immediately or refrigerate for up to 1 day. Slushes may be frozen as popsicles.  Serve with some family  adventure stories. With training, older children can use a blender themselves. Encourage yogurt smoothies, too.  For more see grandparentsteachtoo.blogspot.com and wnmufm.org/Learning Through the Seasons. 

Photos: Fran Darling, darling fotos

Picnics Are Fun for Teaching

Summer Is Picnic AND Learning Time

Summer is the perfect time for combining skills with a picnic. This easy activity filled with fun and learning is another way to have more TIME IN with children. 

You’ll need picnic materials, children’s favorite picnic foods, a frozen drink can of juice or water, carrots, fruits, cookies, plastic knife, peeler, camera, and drawing materials.

Plan Together

Step by step plan a picnic lunch together. Even with nonreaders write a list with careful printing and correct capitals and lower case letters. Where will you go? What things should you bring? Making lists improves thinking, planning, reading, and writing skills.  Children who help adults write lists learn it is a useful skill.

Make some of the food together at home. Read out loud, follow directions on the frozen drink can, and measure the water together to increase math and reading skills. Children learn by example. If adults show that reading and math are important, kids will mimic adults and think those skills are important, too.  Families are the most powerful teachers.

Learning is Fun

While making sandwiches, children can help spread the butter, or peanut butter and jelly. Talk about cutting the sandwiches in halves or fourths. Make triangles, trapezoid, and rhombus (diamond) shapes. 

What Are Your Favorite Foods?

Discuss how many pieces you will need.

With a little help, children can peel the carrots, wash the fruit, and place things in containers to develop fine motor skills. Then pack up.  Did you remember everything?  Check off the list you made together. If the weather is not picnic perfect, the back yard or a place in front of a fan or air conditioner can be a good spot.

Once you have the place, children can spread out a blanket, set up the food, and pass out supplies. Planning and setting up a sequence of activities is an important learning skill. 

If you are eating outside, look around and have a conversation. What kind of summertime plants and animals do you see?  How is the weather (wind, clouds, sunshine)? 

What Kind of Summertime Plants Do You See?

What foods are your favorites? If there is sand close by, make squares, rectangles, circles, semi circles, rhombus, trapezoids, triangles, letters, and numbers in the sand. Count the number of sides and corners (vertices).

You can take pictures of the whole process to make a little word memory book or to send to relatives.

Afterwards, children can draw pictures about making food or having the picnic.   Young children can tell you how to label each object or print a sentence about the pictures.  Then families can make a little book with the pages and read the words together.

Photo: Fran Darling - fdarling fotos 
Sketches: Mark Nowicki

For more science and math STEM adventures go to -  grandparentsteachtoo.blogspot.com and wnmufm.org/Learning Through the Seasons live Tuesdays at 4:30pm and Saturdays at 8:30 am and pod casts archived on the site.

Tempting Kids with Picky Palates

Add French Toast to a Picky-Eater's Menu

 Families can add French toast to eggs, egg sandwiches, pancakes, and fruit smoothies in their search for nutritious recipes for picky eaters.   Since a traditional breakfast is now served as any meal, French toast is a good choice to get protein, fruit, and even vegetables into young children.

  The basic recipe to keep in your bag of childcare tricks is three slices of bread (whole wheat, nine grain or other nutritious bread), one egg and ¼ cup milk, soymilk, or almond milk. Some people add a half-teaspoon vanilla or pumpkin spice. Whisk the eggs and milk until well combined. Children will enjoy helping.

   Dip each slice of bread on both sides until the bread is soaked with the egg/milk mixture. Spray a nonstick fry pan with a pan spray and preheat the pan on medium to medium /high heat. Cook in the pan 2-3 minutes on each side until golden and they separate easily from the pan.  The edges should be a little crispy.

  Serve plain or with a little butter or powdered sugar.  

Healthy Ingredients for Cooking Ease 

Children can make a little puddle of syrup for dipping pieces of French toast.

Getting Fancy

  Add fresh whole or mashed blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, black berries, bananas, peaches, jam, jelly, a few chocolate chips, any nut butter, cinnamon sugar, vanilla yogurt, or a little canned whipped cream for sleepovers or other special occasions. As with many foods French toast can metamorphose into a sugary dessert that leaves nutrition behind.

  Some children like their French toast as long sticks for easy dipping. You may also cut day old French bread into large cubes.  They are a bit fussy to cook, but can be stacked on a plate like building blocks or pyramids for toddlers who like finger food.  It is a great way to get eggs into very young children. Bread can also be cut into circles, hearts, and triangles before soaking.

Being Creative

  To make French toast Nutella sandwiches.

Add Spices and Toppings for More Appeal

 Use eight slices of ay old bread, three eggs, and ¼ cup milk. Spread 4 slices with Nutella and top with the remaining slices. Whisk and soak as above. Fry in butter or a spray coated pan and serve when slightly cooled.

  To make French toast rollups cut off crusts and flatten bread with a rolling pin or plate. Cover with peanut butter or Nutella, roll, and soak in the egg mixture. Add a raspberry or strawberry piece at each end of the roll. Fry and turn until golden brown on all sides. Sprinkle with more berries.  

  Grated cheese, potatoes, carrots and other vegetables may also be sprinkled on soaked French toast before frying for an interesting and delicious veggie version.  For more ideas for young children see grandparentsteachtoo.blogspot.com or wnmufm.org/ Learning Through the Seasons live and pod casts.
photos: Fran Darling, fdarling fotos

More Vocabulary Ideas and Activities....See the authors’ book “Learning Through the Seasons” at area bookstores and grandparentsteachtoo.org. For more help to prepare young children for success in school see the authors’

website: Also check our audio Podcasts WNMU Radio, 90; Youtube

Eating Healthy Is Not a Chore

fdarling fotos

Eating more meals at home is one step toward eating healthier and doesn’t have to be a chore according to Laura Gauthier, a Marquette County Health Department registered dietician. Eating out several times a week may be quick, easy, and socially enjoyable for most people, but restaurant meals may be a big source of unwanted salt, fat, and sugar.
  Start by going through the store ads with children to find valuable coupons.  Look for foods the family enjoys and think of meals that incorporate these foods. Make a meal plan for even a few days and post on the refrigerator.  Include side dishes of fruits and vegetables.  Watch for produce to be in season and on sale. They may be something your family has never tried  and become a new family favorite! Make a list, shop together, and teach children how to find fresh produce. Point out brown or wilted food.
Use Healthy Snacks
  There are many very nutritious foods that also taste good.  By having the knowledge on what foods to buy and how to prepare them, both taste and nutrition can be combined for optimum health. The Internet can be a great resource to learn how to prepare or eat a certain unfamiliar fruit or vegetable.
    Incorporating healthy snacks into the family’s daily routine can be a great weight and nutrition management technique.  Energy levels can be increased and hunger managed by eating the right snacks.  Combining lean protein and fiber makes a powerful nutrient combination that will help with optimum fullness and overall satisfaction.  Some examples of these combination snacks include homemade trail mixes, yogurt parfaits and smoothies.
Sneak in Veggies

Mark Nowicki

  A perfect way to combine taste and nutrition is by gradually adding “nutrition” to foods you enjoy.  Take for example a smoothie.  A fruit smoothie is naturally sweet, which tastes really good!   A little fresh or frozen spinach adds vitamins without compromising the flavor.
   Try leftover vegetables in an omelet at breakfast; add extra tomatoes or spinach to your sandwiches. Sliced peppers, snap peas, or cucumbers add extra crunch to lunchtime favorites. Children will enjoy using a table knife to cut veggies into math shapes. Soups and casseroles can have extra vegetables added. Substitute or add pureed fruits and veggies and extra whole grains for baked goods.
  It is very important to enjoy what you are eating.  It’s no surprise that taste wins over nutrition when it comes to food choices.  As in previous mottos, “All foods can fit,” all foods that you enjoy can become a part of your family’s new daily diet.
   This month focus on experimenting with foods. On the weekends, children can help wash and chop while you carry on a conversation. Refrigerate extras, and use all week.
Photos: Fran Darling, fdarling fotos; Shetches: Mark Nowicki 
More Ideas and Activities....See the authors’ book “Learning Through the Seasons” at area bookstores and grandparentsteachtoo.org. For more help to prepare young children for success in school see the authors’ web site: www.grandparentsteachtoo.org. Also check our audio Podcasts WNMU Radio 90; Youtube video activities; and join us on Pinterest

Plan a Picnic -- Indoors?

Picnics are definitely a summertime favorite for kids of all ages, but how about planning a wintertime picnic? What better way to enjoy a fun, indoor activity by staying warm and not worrying about the ants! What to bring is always a big decision. Involve your children in menu planning and skill building while you are planning your fun time together. 

Materials you will need: Food magazines or old cookbooks with pictures, scissors, glue, paper plates, markers, crayons, paper punch, yarn, and drawing paper

What to do:

  Plan the Meal: Before you invite your children to go on a picnic, label several paper plates with the incomplete sentence:  _____will eat_____on our picnic. Explain that a menu needs to be planned. Ask your children what are their favorite picnic foods. Be sure to share your favorites. Make a list of these foods. Talk with your child about healthy choices and a well-balanced meal. 

  The nutrition site www.choosemyplate.gov has a many easy food suggestions for young children.  Decide what to bring and put a check mark by each food you will pack. Find pictures of favorite picnic foods in magazines or old cookbooks. Your child might want to draw and color the foods instead.

  Help your child, if necessary, cut out the pictures. Glue one picture in the middle of each paper plate pre-labeled with the sentence. Remind your children that one dot does a lot when using glue. Help your children correctly print their name on the first blank and the name of the food on the second blank. 

  Writing tips:  Use pencil dots as a guide for children to trace. Use only a capital letter at the beginning of your children’s or your name. Help children listen for sounds in the words that will be written down. Children could substitute your name on some of the plates. 

   Make a Meal Book: Decide upon a title and write it on a clean paper plate. Stack the finished plates under the front cover and bind the book along the left edge using the punch and yarn. Take time to read the book together. Have your child read each food item as you pack it. Once you are all packed, off you go on a warm sunny adventure indoors or outdoors!

How does this help my children?

Your children are learning about making healthy choices when deciding on what to eat. They are learning name recognition and writing the names correctly. When writing, your children are learning letter recognition, letter sounds, practicing correct letter formation, and that peoples’ names begin with capital letters. Proper print letter formation is found on line and in children’s practice books.

What else can I do? Go to the library to find  "Teddy Bears' Picnic" by Jimmy Kennedy and "The Bears' Picnic by Stan Berenstain. Then cuddle and enjoy some great picnic tales.

Photos: Picnic Basket: Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons. Author: Jeremy Noble; Campsite Mural (Teddy Bears' Picnic), Campsie, Omagh - geograph.org.uk - 619801.jpg. From Wikimedia Commons; Salads: By U.S. Department of Agriculture (20111025-FNS-RBN-2046) [CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Find More Activities: 

For more help to prepare young children for success in school see the authors’ web site www.grandparentsteachtoo.org.

Also check our audio Podcasts WNMU Radio 90; Youtube video activities; and join us on Pinterest.