Kids in the Kitchen: Frittatas and Cookies

Suz and I were talking recently about having our kids help out in the kitchen! It is not only fun family time but it is also a great way to sneak in so much learning!! For Carter it is lots of observing, right now. He watches front row...usually on my hip. Luke and Hudson are a bit more involved, click here to check out Suzie's post from the kitchen!

Here are two yummy concoctions I made yesterday and little ways (almost 1 year old, tear) Carter helped out:

1. Mini Frittatas:

This is where I got the recipe. (I can't get the picture smaller, sorry.)

The idea behind this book is that it gives you some recipes that you can do for the whole family, including baby! It is separated by age group and tells you how to change the recipe for baby, if needed. But most are good for everyone, just as they are!

Carter helped out by:

• Putting all of the chopped potatoes in bowl. We all know how much he likes to put things in a container by now! (See previous posts.)
• Carefully watching, cheering and clapping as Mommy seperated the egg whites. It is disgusting...yet, he loved it! Can we say boy?
• Tasting the shredded cheese. Every kitchen needs a taster, right?
• We also waved our hands way above the cooking food to learn "hot!"

Here is how mine turned out:

They are Carter approved! This boy will not eat scrambled eggs. Low and behold, he scarfed these things down! Success!

2. Chickpea Chocolate Chip Cookies

You read that right! CHICKPEA chocolate chip. I can't get enough of them.

This is from Jessica Seinfeld's Double Delicious:

I got this from Suzie for Christmas! Thank you!

I've already made four recipes from this book! This book has great recipes that have been lightened up and made more nutritious by hiding vegetables in them! Crazy! I love it!

Carter helped with this by:

• Taste-testing the chickpeas and applesauce. Mmmm!
• Assisting me with hand-mixing the chickpeas. (Mommy really did this...but Carter's hand was under mine...shhhh.) This noise used to scare him, not any more!
• Helped dump the ingredients.
• He also observed my stirring technique...no telling what he was thinking! Ha ha!

Carter can't eat these yet...but John and I can! Not EXACTLY like regular chocolate chip but I could eat them everyday if that tells you something! They are different, but grrrreat!

Here they are:

I even eat them like this:

See those finger marks? Am I the only one who does this?

I can't wait for Carter to be more involved in the kitchen as he grows up! We had so much fun yesterday!

P.S. If you would like for me to send you the recipes, leave a little message and I will send it your way!

12 Days of Learning: Snow People

On the eight day of Christmas my Daddy read to me:

Snowballs by Louis Ehlert

We started the morning by reading Snowballs. I highly recommend checking it out at your local library at some point during this winter. It has great big pictures and short print. You even have to turn the book sideways to see the entire snow family.
We then ended our day by making our own snow family out of canned biscuit dough. My kids still put everything in their mouth, but if your kids are past that, consider using shaving cream on a wax paper and trace circles with their little fingers to make a snow family.

Supplies Needed:

Canned Biscuits

Pretzel sticks

Goldfish

Raisins

Blueberries

M&Ms

anything else they may like

Playing with the dough

Talking about the textures and tastes.

Eating a little too.

With a little help from Daddy too!

This was a great way to kill some time before dinner!

Ready for the oven!

It is funny to think they are learning by doing this, but really, anything that uses ALL the five senses is sure to be a hit.

Smell it... check
Taste it... check
Hear it... I hope not, but check
Touch it... CHECK
See it... check
Not to mention the quality reading time with Daddy, and the baking fun with mommy.

When we finished making our snow family, we baked them according to directions and enjoyed!

These snow people didn't melt!

(I was having lighting issues with the sun setting in our kitchen, so excuse the dark pictures.)