- Getting your children involved in the cooking process has many positive impacts such as instilling them with confidence, teaching them valuable life-long lessons, and creating fond memories.
- Using a simple recipe to start with allows children of all ages to contribute and help and then enjoy a delightful treat.
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Benefits of Cooking with Kids
Letting your children be involved in the entire meal-making process has many positive impacts. The simple action of asking for their opinion on what to cook gives them confidence and lets them know that their voice is heard and that their opinion matters. Taking them grocery shopping not only helps them see the value of a dollar but, depending on your personal shopping habits, can show them how to shop sales and use coupons. Letting them help prep for and prepare a meal teaches them safety in the kitchen. All of these lessons will help them in different capacities in their after-high-school life.
On top of lessons learned, cooking together with your family will create wonderful memories for all involved. Who doesn’t fondly remember some type of cooking memories with a member of their family? And working together as a team in the kitchen will help reinforce bonds (or help create them). Not to mention the fabulous recipes that will be passed down. This can also start traditions that will continue through your children’s childhood and into their adult lives.
How to Get Everyone Involved
There are many ways to get everyone involved in the cooking process. Small children can help gather ingredients and cooking utensils as well as help “supervise” the others. Elementary aged children can measure ingredients and add ingredients to pots. They can also help stir, mix, and knead. Older children can help throughout the entire process. Using a sweet treat recipe, such as these cookies, will hopefully get all of your children excited to help. Though keep in mind, when getting your child involved in the actual cooking process, to consider their age, ability, and maturity level.
Ingredients
¾ cup (1 ½ sticks) plus 2 Tbsp butter, softened
1 ½ cup all-purpose flour (sifted)
1 tsp baking soda
¾ cup packed brown sugar
½ cup sugar or sugar substitute
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 cup dried cranberries (craisins)
3 cups oatmeal, uncooked (tip: rolled oats such as old fashioned or quick)
Steps – and How to Include the Children
Step 1: Gather Ingredients and Utensils. This is an easy step to include children of all ages. Young children tend to love helping to gather ingredients. And older children will know where all of the needed utensils are. For a smooth experience make sure that you give specific instructions like “can you get two eggs for me?” and “can you grab the flour and sugar?”.
Step 2: Measure out all of the ingredients. I like to measure out all of the ingredients first, before starting the mixing process. Yes, this does mean that you get a lot of dishes dirty. However, I particularly like to have all of the needed ingredients set out in the order that they need to be added just to make the process run smoother. While measuring out ingredients with your children, talk about the importance of measuring each item correctly, conversion methods, and/or how cooking is similar to chemistry. These talks will give them a different, deeper perspective of cooking and how it relates to school topics such as math and science.
Step 3: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. This will need to be a job for older kids, a teen, or yourself. Remind small children that the oven is hot and to keep their little hands off the door and stovetop.
Step 4: Mix the butter and sugars together. For this step I like to use my handy hand mixer. You could, of course, do this with a stand mixer or even by hand. My kids especially like to help with the hand mixer. Particularly if they suspect that it could result in making a mess. I cut my butter into small pieces and beat this on the lowest setting for just a few seconds then add my sugars in separately, beating each until smooth. Be sure not to over mix though as it will cause the fats in the butter to separate and the batter to have a strange consistency.
Step 5: Add the eggs and vanilla to the butter/sugar mix. This step is pretty self-explanatory. You can have your children add the eggs and vanilla as you mix or you can add the ingredients as they mix. I continue to use my hand mixer for this, but you can mix these with whichever utensils you would like.
Step 6: Mix the flour and baking soda. Sifting the flour is also something my children love to do, especially my youngest. Yes, this does create a mess, not only on my table or counter, but also on him and myself. However, would I do this step differently? No. This gets him excited about helping me out in the kitchen and I am hoping that teaches him that it is okay to get a little messy while making something delicious. Now, for the mixing, I simply put the baking soda in with the sifted flour and give it a stir. Or sometimes I add it into the flour while it is being sifted. Either way, it is mixed together in the same bowl.
Step 7: Add the flour mixture to the butter/sugar mixture and blend. Again, I like to use my hand mixer for this, but you can manually mix or use a stand mixer. I would suggest adding the flour slowly. I usually split it into thirds, or approximately thirds, as I just dump it 3 times into the butter/sugar mixture. After each addition of flour, blend well on a low or medium setting. Younger kids can do this step with your assistance while older kids or teens could do this step independently. Once again, be careful not to overmix.
Step 8: Add the dried cranberries and rolled oats. For this step I add the oats in in 3 parts again, mixing gently by hand using a baking spatula. Once all of the oats are mixed in add the dried cranberries. You can have one child adding while the other is mixing and then switch or you can add/mix while your child is doing the other. Make sure the mixture is blended thoroughly before proceeding.
Step 9: Place on cookie sheet. This step also seems to excite all ages, as they know that cookie eating is near. I like to lightly spray my pan with a non-stick spray, just to make things easier, but it is not necessary. You can use a cookie scoop, a Tablespoon measurer, or a regular spoon to drop the batter onto the cookie sheet leaving about an inch to an inch and a half of space between each one.
Step 10: Bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes or until they start to turn golden brown. I recommend only teens or you to take the pan in and out of the oven. However, you can teach any age child to set a timer. And trust me, young children love a timer. You can start checking the cookies after 8 minutes, taking them out when the tops are beginning to turn a golden brown.
Step 11: Transfer to a cooling rack or a flat plate to cool. Once out of the oven, transfer the cookies onto a cooling rack or a flat plate to cool. Again, I recommend either a teenager or yourself completing this step to keep little hands from getting burned. Remind small children that the cookies are still too hot to eat.
Step 12: Enjoy cookies! Everyone can definitely be included in this step!
If you are interested in recipe cards to use with your children, I have made a set of 54 3×5 inch cards available on my TPT store. The set is split into 6 different categories: Baked Goods, Appetizers, Soups, Main Dishes, Side Dishes, and an empty customizable category. Each category has 3 different design options and includes an optional back side with additional lines to write on to be printed on each.
<– Here is a link to my Recipe Cards page on my TPT store.
I hope this cooking with kids recipe helps to creates happy memories, yummy cookies, and helpful lessons for everyone involved. If you found this blog helpful please consider subscribing to and liking this post as it will help to grow the community as well as let me know which type of posts are more beneficial for you. Check out the Life Skills: Cooking blog to get more tips and tricks for getting children of all ages involved in the cooking process.
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Did your family enjoy these cookies? If so, please let us know in the comments below.
I love to bake/cook with my oldest 🙂 It is so fun! And they enjoy it very much too. Thank you for sharing!