Kids Cuisine

I’ve already gotten the question about what my children want for Christmas. Knowing that one loves to cook, and hoping the other two will love it when they get older, I’ve been putting together a wish list for my cooking (and aspiring mini chef) kids. Here are some must-haves for your little sous chefs:

• Cookbooks for kids - There are lots of great ones out there written and designed just for little cooks. One of my daughter’s favorites is Mom and Me Cookbook, which has some fun and easy recipes featuring photo instructions. I also just flipped through Cooking Rocks! Rachael Ray 30-Minute Meals for Kids at a store today, and I plan to tuck this one under the tree. I like the idea of the 30-minute time limit, since kids don’t tend to have much of an attention span.
• Kids’ cooking gear - They are little, and they love cooking gear built just for them. I found some too-cute choices at a great online shop just for cooking kids, GrowingCooks.com. They sell a kids’ bakeware set, which includes a springform pan and a bundt pan. My daughter already received their basic chef set last Christmas, featuring a rolling pin, whisk, cookie cutters and utensils tucked into an oven mitt shaped zipper bag. She loves it!
• Chef’s attire for kids - No cooking kid can truly cook without the proper attire! I also found some great choices in aprons, chef’s coats and hats. For the classic look, I love the chef’s coat with the cloth chef’s hat. You can get the child’s name embroidered on the coat. They also sell cheaper paper chef’s hats as cheap as 25 cents. Those could be a lot of fun for a food-themed birthday party.
• Kids’ cooking kits - I tend to find the process of following a recipe and finding ingredients part of the adventure, but it is fun and easy to use a cooking kit. You usually get all the gear, recipes and ingredients packed together. There are some pretty interesting ones out there beyond the typical cupcake and cookie versions. This Monkey Bread Making Kit includes an apron and a rhyming recipe. I can hardly think of a kid who wouldn’t drool over this rather elaborate Candy Factory Kit. It’s recommended for ages 10 and up, but they can use it to make hard candy, lollipops, chocolates, caramels, fudge, gummy shapes, chocolate eggs, gum drops, marshmallows, licorice, marzipan, pralines, peppermint patties, and more.
• Kitchen inspiration for toddlers - Before they’re old enough to help in the kitchen, you can still spark the love of cooking. My twins love playing with this Laugh and Learn 2 in 1 Kitchen, and they also enjoy playing with toy pots, pans, utensils and food.

Your little aspiring chef would probably love more cooking goodies! We already know Santa is a foodie. After all, he insists on milk and cookies at each stop!

Photo of chef’s coat © GrowingCooks.com, and photo of Candy Factory © MailJust4Me.com.