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I have wanted to make soft pretzels for years. When I finally got around to it, my son and I had a great time twisting the dough into letter and number shapes. As a kitchen activity, this one ranks high on our list of fun times spend together!
Making Cooking with Kids Fun
Every parent knows the experience of planning an activity they think will be enjoyable only to have it dissolve through a combination of tantrums, whining, uncooperative behavior (and let's face it, I'm not just referring to the kids!) and frustration. It is an all too common scenario.
What is less common is having an activity in which you place little hope of success but are pleasantly surprised by an enjoyable experience. It just so happens that despite all my pessimism, all the stars were aligned last week when Kiddo and I made soft pretzels. Even my youngest was happily observing it all from his bumpo perch. I guess it is all about expectations.
Follow Their Interests!
I was expecting to do it all by myself as my son showed no signs of interest. Until, of course, I involved numbers and counting. (Regular readers of this blog know that my son loves numbers.)
I started talking to myself...
Me, talking out loud to no one in particular: " I am going to divide this dough in half, that makes 2. Then I cut the 2 pieces in half, that makes 4. Hmmm, when I cut 4 pieces in 2, I wonder how many I will have?....."
That got his interest and he came right over to see what I was talking about!
First he counted out the sections of dough.
Next, he brought over his ruler so that when we started rolling out the balls of dough into strips, he could make sure they were 16 inches long.
After every piece of dough was measured, he started acting a little bored. Making traditional pretzel shapes did not interest him. Truth be told, I was not doing a good job and the shapes were definitely a little weird.
Instead, I surprised him by shaping the pretzel dough into an 8.
"Mommy, make a 1!"
Success! His interest was renewed, and after helping me make several more numbers, he started to form the pretzel dough into caraway seeds.
Finally, when all the dough was shaped, he enjoyed brushing the pretzel shapes with an egg wash and sprinkling on some salt and herbs.
Culinary math begins with the basics of addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, ratios, yields, and percentages. Ingredients must be measured and scaled accurately, food production quantities are calculated, and recipes are increased or decreased to scale based on demand.
Whether it's weighing ingredients on a scale, measuring volumes with cups and spoons, or following ratios in recipes, mathematics forms the backbone of culinary precision. Understanding proportions, ratios, and conversions is essential for achieving the desired flavor, texture, and consistency in dishes.
Cooking can help young kids learn and practice some basic math concepts and build language skills. And reating meals with you can help build their self-confidence and lay the foundation for healthy eating habits. It may take a little flexibility and some simple prep work.
Estimate the number of an ingredient by its measure, such as “how many chunks of sweet potato do you think are in one cup?” Measure and then count. Learn order and sequence by following a recipe. Practice time math by calculating cooking time, such as, “It is 12:20 p.m. now and the recipe takes 45 minutes to bake.
For instance, to convert Fahrenheit into Celsius, the formula is C=((F-32)/ 1.8 Hence, if you have a recipe stating to preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, and your oven uses Celsius, algebra helps you convert this to roughly 177 degrees Celsius.
From accurately measuring ingredients to calculating cooking times, math is essential in ensuring recipes turn out perfectly. Chefs rely on math daily to convert units, scale recipes, and manage kitchen inventory and costs. Culinary math involves basic computation skills, fractions, decimals, and even some geometry.
In the kitchen, accurate measurements are crucial for cooking food. By introducing your child to various measurement units and encouraging them to estimate ingredient quantities, you can enhance their understanding of measurements and develop their estimation skills.
With an understanding of math, you can realize things like a half-cup of milk is the same as eight tablespoons. Or you can measure ¼ a cup using your ½ measuring cup. You can also double or triple a recipe to be sure you always have enough food to feed your friends and family.
Spending time in the kitchen gives children confidence. Children who cook at home feel a sense of accomplishment. There is nothing that evokes a warm response like the expression of a child proudly serving their food to friends and family! Kids thrive on feeling accomplished and cooking is a perfect conduit.
At 5 or 6 years old, many kids can start cooking things at the stove with careful supervision. Scrambled eggs are a classic dish to start with. Oatmeal is quick and easy and lends itself to fun toppings.
Measurement is one of the most powerful examples of how baking can be turned into a quick math or science lesson. Converting ingredients from one unit to another (say, tablespoons into teaspoons or pounds into ounces) can make learning memorable and fun for young minds.
Bunnicula's Kaotic Kitchen is a simple recipe making game where children help Bunnicula cook up unique dishes. Open the fridge to find new recipes to follow and see which recipes you have already cooked.
Introduction: My name is Domingo Moore, I am a attractive, gorgeous, funny, jolly, spotless, nice, fantastic person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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