Get Your Kiddies In The Kitchen

I grew up next to my mom in the kitchen.

 I had a little mini apron I would wear. She would let me measure and sift flour, help mix, and scoop cookie dough. I LOVED every minute of it. In my teenage years my mom assigned each of us in the family a night of the week that was ours to cook. I think I made the standard chicken and broccoli casserole or waffles every week because it was the extent of my cooking knowledge. 

I didn't realize it until I moved out and lived with other girls who hadn't had the same hands on experience how much my mom had taught me. Not only did she teach me the ins and outs of the kitchen, she taught me how to cook in a healthy way. She introduced me to a wide variety of nutritious foods, and taught me to love them! I still absolutely LOVE to cook with my mom. She is always willing to try new recipes with me and humor my new ideas. 

My mom really is an incredible cook, baker, hostess, and mom in general. Thank you mom. You are amazing! :) 

As I was thinking about this today. I realized how important it is to start teaching children good healthy habits from a young age, and so much of that starts in the kitchen. I contemplated some tips on how you can get your kids into the kitchen! 

- Allow them to help plan the menu. When kids have a say in what they are eating they are a lot more excited about eating it! This will make meal times a lot more stress free. 

- Allow them to get hands on. Measuring, whisking, creaming, mixing, and rolling are all kid friendly. Kids can also help wash fruits and veggies, read recipes, and taste test! As your kids get older they can help crack eggs, chop veggies, and take stove duty.

- Make kid friendly food. Ka bobs, mini pizzas, and anything requiring layered assembly are great kid friendly foods that they can help make and are fun to eat!

- Talk while you cook. Teach your kids why some foods are healthier than others. If you can ingrain healthy eating habits into them while they are young, they will be SO much better off in the future.

Now I would be rude to talk about my culinary staples as a child without giving you the recipes...

Chicken and Broccoli Casserole

1 lb fresh broccoli washed and cut or 10 oz frozen, cooked

1 can healthy choice fat free cream of chicken soup

1/3 cup skim milk

½ cup grated reduced fat cheddar cheese

¼ cup whole wheat panko crumbs

1 ½ cup cooked chicken breasts cut up

Steam broccoli until slightly tender, arrange in bottom of baking dish. Top with chicken. Mix soup and milk, pour over chicken. Sprinkle with cheese. Sprinkle Panko crumbs over cheese. Bake at 375 for 25-30 mins uncovered, until hot and bubbly.

*You could also add precooked brown rice or quinoa to the bottom to make the meal a little more hearty. 

For the record...I made bisquick waffles, but these are just so much better. 

Banana Cinnamon Waffles

(This Recipe makes 8 servings of two waffles per serving.)

Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup buckwheat flour

1/4 cup ground flaxseed

2 tablespoons sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups fat-free milk

3 tablespoons butter, melted

1 large eggs, 2 egg whites (lightly beaten)

1 large ripe banana, mashed

Cooking spray

Preparation:

Lightly spoon flours into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flours, flaxseed, and next 4 ingredients (through salt) in a medium bowl, stirring with a whisk.

Combine milk, butter, and eggs, stirring with a whisk; add milk mixture to flour mixture, stirring until blended. Fold in mashed banana. Preheat a waffle iron. Coat iron with cooking spray. Spoon about 1/4 cup batter per 4-inch waffle onto hot waffle iron, spreading batter to edges. Cook 3 to 4 minutes or until steaming stops; repeat procedure with remaining batter.

Did you grow up cooking in the kitchen? If so, what did you make? If not do you wish you had? Do your kids cook with you now? Do you have any tips on how to get them involved in the healthy cooking process?  

p.s. we saw a mouse in my house tonight. I might die. 
p.p.s. Don't forget to enter the YOGURTLAND GIVEAWAY if you haven't!