I have never done a food post on here before, (other than food like China-shaped cookies). I see lots of recipes and pictures of food on other blogs, but I am just not into that. At least not normally. Today, you will see pictures of food on my blog, and I will tell you how yummy the food was when we ate it :) Most of all, I will tell you all about how my kids made the food, not me! (Make sure you read all the way to the end to see the great giveaway we have for you too!)
My nine year old, Princess, loves working in the kitchen and already has a few recipes that have become "hers". I don't make pancakes anymore. That is her job now, and she makes them from scratch :) She is also our family cake decorator! I wrote a post about Kids in the Kitchen for Whole Family Strong last week. In that post I talked about the importance of allowing your children to work in the kitchen with you. Today I want to share with you a great resource for getting your kids in the kitchen.
"Hey Mom, I'll Start Dinner." Wouldn't it be nice to hear that at the end of a long day? That is actually the title of a cookbook written by Cherilyn Dahlsten. It is also the name of Cherilyn's blog. Here is what Cherilyn says about her blog:
"Hey Mom, I'll Start Dinner." Wouldn't it be nice to hear that at the end of a long day? That is actually the title of a cookbook written by Cherilyn Dahlsten. It is also the name of Cherilyn's blog. Here is what Cherilyn says about her blog:
My blog, rather than being mostly about cooking, is mostly about this working mom's attempts to buck the culture that tells our kids it's all about them, and instill in them an understanding that they are a gift here to be a blessing to the world and to make it a better place. If this is something that resonates with you, please join me on that journey to put wonderful theory into practical, on-the-ground parenting.
I love what Cherilyn says about how she wants to, "buck the culture that tells our kids it's all about them, and instill in them an understanding that they are a gift here to be a blessing to the world and to make it a better place." What better way to teach them to serve others than by getting them to help in the kitchen!
We have tried several of the recipes in this book and the results have been yummy! The first recipe we tried was the Chicken Salad. All my children worked together on this one (ages 4, 6 and 9) and all I had to do was keep an eye on the knife users and help coordinate my mini-chefs :) This recipe has now been added to the family favourites as everyone agreed that it was a keeper!
Another recipe we tried was the No Bake Cookies. For this one all I did was go over the recipe with Princess beforehand. I made sure she could read all the words and knew where the ingredients are. Then I handed her the cookbook and she took over from there! Little Man joined her and together they made cookies completely by themselves! I was never far away, but I did not have to do anything except enjoy the end results ;) They even washed all the dirty dishes when they finished!
If you have never let your children help you in the kitchen, Cherilyn has great tips for getting this new journey started! She suggests starting with a cooking weekend, gives you recipes to work with on your weekend and gives practical suggestions for making your cooking weekend as safe and effective as possible. She even has pictures of the kitchen utensils your children will use with this cookbook, just in case they forget what something is.
The cookbook is set up to make it as easy as possible for you to work with your children in the kitchen. For every recipe there is a Night Before section to help you make sure everything is prepared for your children when it is time for them to work on tomorrow's supper.
I love the Tips From Grant! Some of them really made me laugh! Grant is Cherilyn's twelve year old son who played a big part in helping her decide which recipes to include in the cookbook. Here are some of his tips:
- "I usually don't like fish but these actually aren't bad. And taking the bone out is kind of like doing a science experiment."
- "Get your dad some Beano and make sure he takes it!"
- "Don't measure the vinegar over the meat sauce because if too much comes out - trust me - it's not good."
Hey Mom, I'll Start Dinner by Cherylin Dahlsten is a great resource for any family! Children need to know that they are an important part of the family, but they also need to know that they are not the most important part of the family! What better way to let them know that they are needed, yet get them to serve the rest of the family too, then getting them to help with meals!
| To purchase this wonderful cookbook, you can get it from Cherylin's store or from my Amazon affilliate link. (If you choose to use my affiliate link, I thank you!)  | |
The Hey Mom, I'll Start Dinner launch team is also hosting a giveaway! Check out the great prizes below and enter the giveaway!
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| Get this great freebie from Home School Adventure Co! Memorize the entire book of Philippians in 28 weeks with these memory cards. Use promo code P28-FREEBIE at check-out. Expires April 30. |  |
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