4.28.11
I love to cook. With 2 children, I don’t always have the time to really get in the kitchen and COOK but I try to whenever possible. I was reading Gina’s Skinny Taste one day and her recipe for that day was homemade chicken nuggets. Light bulb…why not spend some time in the kitchen sharing with my daughter one of the activities I love most?!
Being 3.5 years old (the .5 is very important since most of her friends are already 4), I actually didn’t get to do very much because H insisted that these were her chicken nuggets. I was just there for the “hot things” according to her.
I was a little surprised because I was just sure she was going to run away screaming at the first touch of raw chicken (husband definitely would have!) but I think drying it in the paper towel before giving it to her helped with that.
She rolled every nugget and placed them ever so carefully on the baking tray. Once they were ready for the oven, she seemed a little reluctant to give up all of that hard work (please excuse the earphones – no explanation for why she decided to put them. Maybe chicken is loud?).
We watched the oven intently waiting for the fruits of her labor to cook. Of course, there were lots of “are they ready yet” because she is 3 (3.5). Finally…
I’m thinking dinner at this point (cooking with kids is FUN but sloooowwww) and H says “Let’s cook something else, mamma”. Cue dessert preparations.
Awhile back, a friend made these delicious chocolate chip oatmeal bars and shared them with my family. Since that day, my husband asks for them almost weekly. It is a pretty simply combination of prepared cookie dough, oats, chocolate chips and caramel ice cream sauce (I prefer a salted caramel version).
H loves to stir things.
The caramel sauce goes over the layered cookie dough and chocolate chips. I put the layered part together because H stirred for a good 10 minutes.
Sadly, we didn’t get any pictures of the final products (the caramel sauce goes over the layered bars and then an additional layer of cookie dough goes on top before baking), because someone else decided that he needed attention.
Yep, that is food…all over him! E is just starting on finger foods so he ends up wearing a little more of it than he actually eats. See how he is holding his spoon? He was banging it asking for more! The picture taking was abandoned so he could end up where he obviously needed to be.
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What a wonderful and fun time, A memory those involved will never forget.
Thanks for sharing your experience with us, Shannah! It’s great motivation for parents to bring their kids to the kitchen! Keep sharing such useful stuff!