Cooking with kids made easy

Do you find yourself watching all these videos on Instagram of kids cooking pizza and baking cookies? You love the idea of cooking with kids and the videos are entertaining. But all you can think of is the mess in your kitchen that YOU then have to clean up.

So, you wonder what’s the point of all the effort if you end up with a messy kitchen? But, if you put that to one side, there are plenty of reasons why cooking with kids is great for both of you:

1. It improves kids’ relationship with food and it lessens the chances of them becoming picky eaters later in life.
2. It’s a great bonding experience and can create beautiful memories for kids and parents to share.
3. It boosts their confidence in the kitchen and life in general. They learn lots of skills like measuring, counting, and the science behind baking and it’s good for developing fine motor skills and coordination too.

I’m an Italian cooking tutor and for years I’ve spread my passion for good and healthy food across London. I moved here 8 years ago and since then I’ve been feeding hundreds of people using the techniques learned from my grandmother.

I teach cooking classes in London for kids and organise the most amazing cooking birthday parties for little ones. The recipes I teach encourage healthy eating. They include unicorn pasta, rainbow bagels, colourful bread and pizza. Only fruit and vegetables are used to colour my recipes and I’m an advocate for a natural, low-sugar and wholesome diet.

Head over to our Instagram feed to see our meal plans, recipe videos with my little man cooking, easy-to-follow recipe cards and tips and tricks on how to cook with little kids. At the moment, I’m also working on a new project – a children’s illustrated book to engage kids in eating more veggies  It features my son and his little friends as superheroes.

I know many parents feel overwhelmed by the idea of involving kids in the kitchen. So, I’ve created a guide containing some simple steps on making cooking with kids a more enjoyable experience for everyone. Here are my secrets:

Kitchen set up

Organise the kitchen in a way that everything you need is in one place. That means you don’t have to move around the kitchen to find things. This will help to contain the mess in one corner of the kitchen. For example, for my setup: I have a kitchen island and I usually put my son’s highchair on one side, next to the stoves, so we don’t have to move from there. I put the back of the highchair against the kitchen so it is safe and doesn’t move. This also saved money as it meant I didn’t need to buy one of the helper towers. I’m sure they’re great, but I didn’t want to have another piece of kids’ furniture in my kitchen.

Be realistic

Start small. You don’t have to bake a multilayer cake or cook complicated recipes to get your kids involved. Start making a colourful salad and chop some veggies: peppers and mushrooms are ideal to start with because they are soft enough for them to cut through but not too mushy.

Another great idea that involves little mess is to make pizza toppings with tomato sauce, veggies, cheese and anything else you like. You can also make a simple cookie dough (300 gr flour, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 170g unsalted butter, softened, 150g granulated sugar, 1 large egg, 1/2 teaspoon almond extract, mix all the dry and wet ingredients separately and then mix). Get the kids to cut the dough, form shapes and decorate with nuts, chocolate chips or dried fruit.

There are lots more recipe ideas over on our Instagram feed.

Preparation

If you’re cooking with kids under the age of four, measure out all the ingredients. For over fours, let the kids measure the ingredients but have everything ready for them to use. This will make everything easier.

If you want to involve kids in more preparation, you can ask them to find ingredients around the kitchen, wash veggies and fruits or go shopping with them. Whilst you do the preparation, it’s nice if you can help them describe ingredients by commenting on their smells, looks, and textures. This little trick will improve their relationship with veggies and fruit.

Instructions

Give your kids clear instructions on how to do things, where to put things they don’t use, and where to throw things away. Break every task into smaller steps. For example, if you need to cut a pepper, show how to remove the bottom and top part, remove the seeds, cut into strips, cut into little cubes, put the cubes in a bowl and discard the seeds and parts you don’t need.

Spills

Be ready for little disasters. Have kitchen clothes ready to wipe spills and teach your kids that every time they spill something, they can wipe it clean. Have rubbish bags to hand. Wearing an apron or old clothing means you don’t have to worry about damaging clothes.

Language

Use keywords that you use only when you cook. We use words such as mix-mix, bash-bash and my kids know exactly what is coming next. You can also create your own secret words. This creates a connection in their brain with something they already know they should do, so when you see they are losing interest in cooking, you can use the keywords to recall their attention on the task.

Hopefully, now you have an array of tricks to make cooking fun and relaxing for everyone.

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The chocolates are easy to make and you don’t need any fancy equipment. A chocolate mould is a must, but other than that, you can use what you already have in your kitchen. Moulds, wrappers, boxes and bags are easy enough to buy. I like to use independent shops, Iced Jems is one of my favourites but there are lots around.

Ingredients
200g of shop brand milk or dark chocolate, depending on preference.
100g Royal icing sugar
Cold water
Pink food colouring
Strawberry flavouring

I’ve melted a lot of chocolate over the last few years and have found that shop brand is best. Branded chocolate doesn’t seem to melt well at all and ends up lumpy. You can either melt it in the microwave or in a bowl over a pan with a small amount of simmering water. If you’re microwaving, following the manufacturers guidelines on the packet for timings. I prefer to melt in a bowl over a pan as I find it’s too easy to burn chocolate in the microwave.

Put your chocolate mould on a baking tray so that it’s easy to pick up and move. Once the chocolate is melted, spoon enough into each mould to fill it about a third. When you’ve done that, use either a teaspoon or a pastry brush if you have one, to spread the chocolate up the sides of the mould so that they’re covered with a thin layer of chocolate. Make sure there are no gaps so that the filling can’t escape. You need to do this quite quickly as the chocolate will start to set.

Once the moulds are covered, put them in the fridge to set. It doesn’t take long, about 10 minutes should do it. While the chocolate is setting you can prepare the filling. Mix the icing sugar with water, a bit at a time until it’s got a smooth shiney finish. The consistency depends on your taste. If you like runny chocolate fillings, add more water. If you put too much water in, just add a bit more icing sugar.

Once you’ve got the consistency you want, add a teaspoon of strawberry flavouring and a tiny bit of pink food colouring. Mix until you’ve got a nice pink colour. Food colour spreads a lot so put a tiny amount in to start off with. You can always add more if the colour isn’t pink enough.

When you’re happy with the colour and flavour, get the mould from the fridge. If you’ve got a icing bag and are happy using it, spoon the filling into that with a medium sized nozzle. If you don’t have a bag, you could use a freezer bag and cut the very end of 1 corner off. Failing that, a tea spoon is fine. Pour / spoon the filling into the chocolate covered mould, aiming for the centre. Fill about two thirds full. Make sure the top of the filling is below the top of the mould.

Once that’s done, put the tray back in the fridge to let the filling set a bit. By now your chocolate will have started to set so melt it again. Once that’s done, get the mould tray. This part can be quite messy but at least it’s fun cleaning up as you can eat anything that spills! Using a spoon, pour melted chocolate over each mould until it’s full. I find tapping the tray on the work top evens it out so the chocolate covers everything. You’re aiming for as flat a top as you can get, but it will taste just as nice bumpy.

Once that’s done, stick the tray back in the fridge for 20 minutes or so to let everything set. Just enough time to clean out the bowl and make sure none of the melted chocolate goes to waste. Once the chocolate is set, take them carefully out of the moulds. Obviously at this stage you should try one or two to make sure they taste ok.

You can go as fancy or as plain as you want when it comes to packaging them. I usually buy wrappers and clear bags or small boxes. If you don’t have either, use some tin foil or a freezer bag. They’ll taste great however they’re wrapped. Homemade chocolates make a lovely gift, not just for Valentines.

I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve joined Weight Watchers. If I’m in the right frame of mind, it’s a programme that works for me. I lose weight but the problem has always been keeping it off. About 18 months ago, I joined again and managed to lose quite a lot of weight. I even managed to maintain it over Christmas, and carried on into the new year. I really thought I’d cracked it, but then we started potty training! I’m definitely a comfort and stress eater and the two months or so we battled with potty training, I put all of the weight back on. Despite half hearted attempts since then, I’ve not managed to get back into the zone and my weight has been creeping up and up.

I’ve also struggled to find a form of exercise that I enjoy that I can slot easily into my every day life. A big part of why I could eat more freely when I was younger was the level of exercise I was doing. So I set out trying to find something I enjoyed as much as gymnastics. Several of my friends are avid runners so I thought I’d give it a go. Other than appropriate clothing and footwear, it doesn’t cost anything to do so I thought it was a good way to keep fit. I tried really, really hard to get the “buzz” people talked about experiencing from running. I even signed up for a “fun” 10k run and a half marathon.

Unfortunately, I hated every. Single. Step. It very quickly became a chore and something I dreaded doing. Even on lovely warm days with the sun shining, a run in my favourite park was torture. I persevered and did the half marathon but I don’t think I’ve been out running since.

Swimming is something else I love to do. Unfortunately, it takes up quite a lot of time. If you factor in travel time, getting changed before and after and then the actual swim, you’re talking about an hour and a half. With a 4 year old to keep occupied on my non-working days, I just don’t have that kind of time. And the rare occasions I do have the time, I can think of a million other things I should be doing rather than swimming.

Christmas 2017 unfortunately wasn’t quite the magic and sparkle I had planned. Early December was lovely and little miss experienced some lovely Christmassy things. However, our Christmas plans started to crumble around us on Christmas Eve when my mother-in-law was taken into hospital. She was discharged later that day but still very poorly and was rushed back in on Christmas Day. She ended up being in for over a week. I quickly reverted to comfort eating everything in sight so I’ve started the new year feeling very unfit and unhappy with myself.

Receiving the annual invitation from Weight Watchers to join again got me thinking. Do I really want to continue with the cycle of spending a few months on a diet, and then the rest of the year putting the weight back on? I don’t want to lose weight because of pressure to look a certain way or be a size 10. For me, it’s to do with how I feel about myself. When I’m eating healthily and doing regular exercise, I feel so much better. I have more energy and confidence, and generally feel better in my own skin. I feel in control.

Feeling unhealthy makes me down. I get into a cycle and usually feel that the only way out is to start a diet. As I’ve said, that works for me short term but isn’t sustainable and isn’t how I want to live my life. So, this new year I’m doing things differently. I’m not going to diet. My aim is healthy home cooked meals as much as possible, the odd bit of cake when I fancy it and, probably the most important bit, a lot more exercise.

I’m a mum to a young daughter so it’s not just about me. The example I want to set little Miss is about eating healthily and making exercise a part of her life. I don’t want her to growing up thinking dieting is the norm. She likes to help in the kitchen and she particularly loves to help me bake. I want to encourage that not just because it’s a lovely way for us to spend time together. It’s also a way of educating her about food and teaching her about having a healthy balance. There’s nothing better than a home made cake or cookies and I want her to enjoy that in a healthy way, balanced with nutritious meals.

I’m going to involve little Miss in my quest to find exercise that I enjoy too. I’ve always loved dancing and used to love going to aerobics and Zumba classes. These days though, I find I’m too tired to go out to a class on an evening. So, I’m going to try doing dance DVDs with little Miss at home. She absolutely loves to dance and I know she’ll love to get involved. It means I can do a decent work out a couple of times a week, while spending time with her too. Win win!

To try and keep my motivation levels up with my long term healthy regime, I’m going to write about it here on my blog. So there’ll posts in the coming months about our journey as a family to find a healthy balance. I’d love to hear any tips or ideas that work for you too.

My childhood memories about Christmas centre around time with my family. Other than the year I received a cot for my doll which I was desperate to get, I can’t remember any other present I received. What I do remember is the excitement, the anticipation, making memories and family traditions. We always had a stocking which had satsumas, chocolate and shiny new 1 and 2 pence pieces in it. I loved delving into the bottom of my crimson stocking and would have been quite happy with just that.

My parent’s weren’t particularly well off so we didn’t get big extravagant presents. I’m glad we didn’t as I loved opening lots of little things. I’d always make sure I took my time so I had presents left to open after my sister had opened hers. That drove her nuts but I managed it every year!

I wanted our adult Christmases to be more like that. Presents should show someone how much you care about them and that you’ve taken time to get something just for them. It doesn’t have to be big or expensive. I’ve always loved to bake and had been experimenting with making chocolates so I decided that rather than buying presents for our families, I’d make them a hamper. It’s been about 7 years now since I started making them and I know that the time and effort I put into them is appreciated much more than an expensive pile of presents ever was.

My sister and I made some things together in a pre-Christmas baking day. We’ve had some epic failures as well as some fabulous makes. We’ve damaged beyond repair several pans and tins trying in vain to make fudge. Our biggest fudge fail was when the mixture set like concrete in the pan. Needless to say, the pan and it’s contents went in the bin and we haven’t tried to make it since.

For quite a few years we made lemon curd which was completely divine. We’ve also tried our hand at jam and chutney as well as various cakes, cookies and chocolates. Unfortunately, we don’t have as much time as we used to so the repertoire has reduced somewhat, but I still love making them. This year has been the start of a new tradition because little Miss will be able to help. Baking with her is a lovely way for us to spend time together. She’ll happily chop her pear pieces with her spoon while I do things she can’t help with.

We’ve made a start this year with chocolate cornflake cakes as she’s going to give them and some peppermint creams to her nursery teachers for Christmas gifts. She loves the whole process from choosing and counting out the cupcake cases, to mixing the ingredients and cleaning the bowl out at the end. That is definitely her favourite part!

For a lot of years I made cinnamon and apple cupcakes, but a few years ago I discovered a delicious gingerbread recipe in a Sainsbury’s magazine and have been making those ever since. They are utterly delicious. It’s the only gingerbread recipe I’ve come across with apple sauce as an ingredient. It seems like an odd thing to add, but it keeps the sponge lovely and moist and light. With a creamy chocolate butter icing and mini gingerbread decorations, they have been a popular entrant in the hampers.

Little Miss and I are going to make peppermint creams and this Christmas rocky road from a Nigella recipe. She’ll love bashing the biscuits and then mixing everything together. I usually make cookies using one of Nigella’s chocolate or cranberry recipes, but this year we’re going to break with tradition and make gingerbread men so that little Miss can decorate them.

I’ve been making chocolates for quite a few years, not just for the hampers but as birthday gifts too. They take a bit of time but are well worth the effort. I’ve experimented and adapted lots recipes to make my own flavours. My favourites are lemon creams based on a limoncello truffle recipe by Hope and Greenwood. It took a lot of attempts to perfect them, but it was well worth it because they are delicious. My mum makes Christmas cake slices for the hampers which I ice and decorate so it truly is a family affair.

I’ve always loved the magic and sparkle of Christmas. Seeing how much people enjoy the hampers and appreciate the time and effort we’ve put into them is what Christmas is all about. You don’t need lots of money for expensive gifts. Simple and thoughtful is definitely best as is creating traditions that everyone will enjoy and cherish. Making memories with the ones you love is what it’s all about. Christmas really doesn’t have to be expensive and it is much more satisfying when isn’t.