From fresh ravioli to apple turnovers, your child creates some yummy fun at KID'S CUISINE. Don't count on any leftovers!
P.E.P. CLUB KID'S CUISINE believes in a hands-on approach to cooking. Our cooking environment is user-friendly--from kid's sized aprons to mini-rolling pins and much more. Recipes are selected and menus are developed to maximize participation from every child in the class. Our young chefs develop skill and control in the kitchen through repetition; repetition of what they hear and what they see. Safety is a passive part of every class with age appropriate "Safety Rules," whether involving appliances, sharp tools, or raw ingredients. None of our students is ever in contact with the stove or the oven. Proper hygiene is always discussed whenever possible and appropriate.
KID'S CUISINE is more than cooking! Science, math, and sensory stimulation find their way in our activities. Does the average three year old know where lemon juice comes from? There are some wonderful discoveries to be made just in the passive ingredients for a recipe.
As a parent or care-giver you can have successful cooking experiences at home with your child when you apply the teaching techniques and terminology that you will see and hear in our classes. Control is the key, and that's what your child will learn through repetition of cooking techniques and proper kitchen behavior.
Some changes you might expect to see in your young chef after attending several KID'S CUISINE classes:
- Refusal to cook at home without first washing hands!
- An increased willingness to try and perhaps EAT the recipes that your child is involved in making. It's been our experience that kid's will at least try almost anything that they make themselves, no matter what it looks like!
- The ability to measure, pour and mix ingredients carefully and accurately with minimal spills and minimal help from you.
- A new or renewed interest in where ingredients come from, what they feel like, and what they smell like.
Every cooking class includes:
- A cooking muscle warm-up--a physical activity of pretend hand-washing, mixing, and pancake flipping.
- Total participation in creating the day's recipes, which may include measuring, pouring, egg cracking, mixing, sifting, kneading, rolling, frosting, and decorating, just to mention a few.
- A craft - examples: potato print gift wrap, candy necklace, apple pad of paper with pencil, paper bag puppet, place mat etc...
- A recipe page to take home and store in your child's own personalized "Cook Book" that she or he makes at the first class.
- Time to enjoy the culinary creations at the end of the class.