Cooking with children can be a fun experience – for the whole family! From baking cookies to helping put toppings on a pizza there are many ways you can get your children involved in trying something new. When it comes to cooking with your children it can take time and a lot of patience, but the good thing about having them help you prepare a pizza – for the backyard wood fired pizza oven is, it’s simple and you can make a game of it.
Having your children help you out encourages their interest in cooking and it helps them to develop healthy eating habits. It gives you a chance to catch up with and talk to your children, all while teaching them AND doing something that’s fun. You can talk about food and why it’s important for them to eat their vegetables, where the cheese for the pizza comes from and if you are feeling very adventurous they can even help kneading the pizza dough! Consider putting a nice fresh fruit salad together for dessert and get them involved, have them try pieces of fruit – and even some raw vegetables as you prepare the food and chat.
Have your children set the table, serve food, and if they are old enough prepare some of the toppings for the pizza – cut up vegetables, grate cheese etc., after dinner, they can help clear the table and with the washing up.
When having your child or children help you out in the kitchen focus on pizzas that are healthy and are packed with vegetables. Have your children prepare their own pizzas, encourage them to load the wholemeal pizza bases with lots of fresh vegetables and to at least TRY something new. Cooking and preparing pizzas give children a chance to try foods they normally wouldn’t eat and encouraging them to try healthier options is one advantage to having your own wood fired pizza oven, healthy eating habits today can help prevent an obesity issue down the track.
There are lots of good reasons to get your children involved in helping make a pizza –
It’s quality time spent with your children
You get to become more of a friend than a parent, they know they can talk to you
Children are more likely to try new food that they have helped prepare
It’s a chance for your children to develop an enjoyment in cooking
Eating and preparing a home cooked pizza helps reduce the number of meals your children – especially teenagers – eat outside the home, and getting your kids helping out in the kitchen has many benefits –
Children feel like they are contributing to the family *I made that*
Children who learn to cook healthy foods, usually grow into adults who always choose healthy options
As a parent, you get to spend more QUALITY time with your children
Your children aren’t sitting in front of the TV or games console while they are in the kitchen
Children love watching their *raw* pizza turn into a hot delicious cooked pizza in next to no time
Helping in the kitchen helps build self-confidence.
Cooking is a skill your children will have for life – from cracking eggs to helping bake a cake or putting together a homemade pizza. Pizza is a food that is so easy and a lot of fun to prepare. When it comes to older children it’s not so much about being IN the kitchen, it’s about being HOME for dinner, there are a few simple ways you can ensure all the family get together to enjoy home cooked pizza night.
Keep a calendar that is just for family activities – here you can schedule work, school, sporting and other appointments so you can design a routine that works for everyone. Where you can cut back on overtime at work, or prioritise other outside activities if it means you can sit down at least one night a week and have dinner as a family.
Prepare a healthy yet quick meal, a simple salad and some wood fired oven, home cooked pizzas and it’s a great way to get everyone home and sitting down for a healthy meal.
If you need to plan ahead, you can buy in everything you need a night or two before you need it and make sure you buy everyone’s favourite toppings.
Get everyone together to help with your meal, older children can cut up vegetables, while younger children put the toppings on the pizzas.
Let everyone have a turn, give your children a chance to design their own pizzas, let them be creative – they can even design their own dessert pizzas!
Turn off the television, phones and tablets – now is the time to sit down as a family, enjoy great food and catch up – focus on them and their conversations.
