Cooking with a Toddler

While the mess of cooking with a toddler can be stressful, there are so many benefits to cooking projects. I absolutely love cooking with my little man and while the thought of his messy fingers, drool, and whatever other things he throws in isn't necessarily yummy, it's beyond fun for him. On top of the sheer joy of food, there are so many other beneficial aspects of cooking.

​Let's lay them out...

Obviously while cooking children hear and understand simple math and science concepts. I won't dig into numbers, measuring, weight, and all of that. We know cooking involves science and math, but it's not unique to toddlers.

Toddlers are sensory little creatures. Cooking provides textures they aren't usually exposed to. I'm thinking items like seasalt, flour, brown sugar, oil, and more. They also get to eat something at the end of the project. Taste is such a unique experience and one we don't get to have in most projects for toddlers (although it's a definite right of passage for a toddler to eat playdough). All of these sensory moments build into an overall experience that your child will remember. Raise your hand if you remember baking around the holidays! 

The tools that we use for cooking are unique! Imagine using tongs to flip a pancake or a whisk to beat eggs when it's something you've never seen before. This is such a purposeful way to use a tool and get instant gratification of a job well done. Simple mixing with a wooden spoon brings such joy to a toddler's face!

Exposure to different foods can only help prevent being a picky eater. This is just my take on it but my son was making sticky toffee pudding with my mom and ate a date. HE LOVED IT! If he had not been apart of this activity, he would have never eaten or tried a date. From exploring it, knowing it goes into a yummy treat, and seeing it, he was adventurous enough to try it out...and liked it!

That all sounds great, there are definite pluses to cooking with a toddler, but how can we make it more fun for everyone? My biggest tip is to manage your expectations and give them tasks they can accomplish. For example: when measuring out 2 cups of sugar, have them hold the measuring cup while you spoon sugar into it and let them dump it in a larger bowl. It would be unrealistic to expect a young toddler to scoop into a small cup, level it, dump it, and do it again. 

Some tasks toddlers (or atleast mine) LOVE to do are...

• Any mixing with a large spoon or whisk
• Scooping and dumping
• Taste testing
• Using a rolling pin
• Greasing pans or bowls
• Pouring liquids