Do you or did you bake with your children?
 

This is not a recipe, but related to food, so I thought it should go under this thread.

I was talking about baking with my children at work today (at a commercial bakery) and none of the others (3 women around 50) baked with their kids. I was surprised, as in my family children 'helped' to bake cookies, bars, bread etc, from the time they were big enough to stand on a chair at the counter.

I 'helped' to bake my grandmother's birthday cake from abut age 5. That grandmother baked bread and taught me to bake bread by feel, instead of measuring or weighing.

By the time I was 12 I was doing all the baking for my family. Mostly cookies, bars, muffins and loaves, plus cinnamon buns on occasion.

My kids started baking around age 2, we baked at least weekly, to keep the cookie jar full.. We all ate raw dough, yes with raw eggs, and never got sick. They took over the baking 'chore' by the time they were 12, just as I did. My 20 year old son, makes incredible cookies, brownies and pizza dough.

So my question is, do you or did you bake with your children? What is the favourite recipe to bake together.

In my family our go to recipe is chocolate chip cookies, with peanut butter and oatmeal.

I bake with one of my grandsons. We just began doing this. He is 12. We've made a pie and whoopee pies. Next he wants to make a cake. My second grandson is more interested in learning to shoot his BB gun, so he spends time with my husband while Jo and I bake :)

I started baking with my neighbor's daughter when she was 4. We also sew (quilting) and she knits with her Nana.

I like baking with the kids because its a special bonding time and it also teaches Math. Children so often don't like math until they learn how it is used in cooking, baking, sewing and woodworking. :)

My girls are grown with their own families...we have always baked together. I loved baking cookies with our first grandson...( still have photos to prove it lol). Still bake with the younger boys - mostly frosting cookies.
A very specials time...PS I have worked as a professional cake decorator

Judy in Phx, AZ

I was working full time when my girls were little so we didn't do much baking. On weekends we wanted to spend time outdoors or going places. We did bake when the weather was bad. I taught my oldest grandbaby how to make bread when she was about 8. Now I have two grandboys age 2 and 3 and they help me bake all the time. They love to crack eggs and add all the ingredients to the mixer. I let them do it all. The 3 year old can scoop cookie mix out of the bowl and put on baking sheet. They know what a recipe and a cookbook are. My DD and works long hours so she appreciates me letting the boys help. On weekends they want to be doing outside activities with mom and dad.

Although I don't have children, I learned to bake with my mother and grandmother. Most memorable was making what I called "clam cookies" ( sugar cookies with M & Ms mixed in the cookie dough) every New Year's Day with my Mom when I was 4 and every year thereafter when I lived at home. I called them " clam cookies' because when the M & Ms baked they split open and looked like clams to me. Lol

My mom never baked with me or my sisters. My older sister and I learned from 4-H, I'm still grateful for them. I baked and cooked with my 3 sons, and so far with 5 of my 7 grand kids. I haven't baked with the youngest 2, because they're too young, 22 months and 7 months, but I plan on baking with them as they get older and show an interest. I have also sewn with the 5 oldest to varying degrees.

I baked with my own children, my daughter now bakes but son doesn't. I bake with my grandchildren. We had a "bake off" competition myself, daughter and granddaughter. There was no prize but we all had a lovely afternoon tea. Bake off is a TV programme over here.

My mother wasn't a good cook so neither am I.

Our daughter and 5 year old twins live with us. They love to help in the kitchen. They make their own pizza's on pizza night. They like to eat when they cook! I did not do much cooking with my children...they were always out playing with the neighborhood kids. I am learning patience with these little people!

Many times despite working full time. Best cure for grumpy kids is to help Mom bake something fun. (helped when Mom was grumpy too) Many of my kids' friends and their parents are lost in the kitchen while mine are totally comfortable following recipes and/or making meals and grocery shopping. My kids are health conscience and are choosing foods and meals that are better for them. I also taught them the economics (your time vs cost) of making from scratch, buying a package, ready-made or eating out. These are life skills.

I baked the "Toll House" cookies with my boys. My oldest decided he wanted bigger cookies and grabbed the ice cream scoop. They turned out great. Took some to my folks house and they couldn't get over how round they were. After that we had different size ice cream scoops (the springy ones). Once when my oldest was about 15 and I was working, he and his brother got a ride to the store and when Igot home they had made a batch of cookies on their own. That was one of the few times they enjoyed each other's company when they were younger. Now they do other more outdoor activities together.

Yup! That's how they all learned their fractions! All three started by standing on a chair. What total fun and good times.

Yes, I baked with my kids and now bake and cook with my grandkids. They get to take home 1/2 of everything they bake which they love! We do cookies, brownies, cakes, cupcakes, chili, spaghetti sauce, meatloaf, alfredo, Chinese fried rice -- what ever I have ingredients for -- they love it and so do I!

I baked with my kids all the time. Now my grandson who is 6 loves to cook. I try to have him over once a month or so to bake.Sometimes I also have his 3 year old brother come too. It depends on what we are making that day. We have also made a complete dinner and had his parents come to eat. It is a great bonding time and learning experience.

I did bake with my kids but much more with my grandkids, all boys. They are now all grown up and do I miss those baking days. BUT they (all 3 of them) often make grandmas day with a text asking for a recipe and how to make it. Now all working I love every minutes I get with them.

I always baked with my kids. Now that they are grown, they talk about how we always baked bread when it snowed. Now we are baking with the grandchildren. The together time builds great memories.

I always baked with my kids. We didn't have much, but we always had the makings of a pan of brownies or some chocolate chip cookies.
Here's one of my favourite pictures of my daughter when she was little. She's 23 now and still baking up a storm.
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Watson

Yes, it was the greatest. I kept sugar cookie dough frozen and anytime we wanted we could make cut out cookies with sprinkles. Friends of my son still remember making cookies on a "play date". I have a large collection of plastic cookie cutters so, we made Christmas, Easter and whatever cookies all at once.

Lots of fun times. My son enjoyed adding things to whatever was being made, and even helping to clean up. He spent a lot of time with my mom as well. He's 32 now, and enjoys going all out when cooking. Though he usually asks me to bake stuff.
I have a 4 year old grandson who wants to be a chef. Loves being in the kitchen. Happy times!

Yes. I learned from my mom how to cook, bake, and sew. I homeschooled my kids for 17 years, and when they were 12 or 13, each one (two sons and a daughter, close in age) were responsible to cook twice a week. I was on hand to help, but I made them master their 3 favorite meals and I didn't have to do all the cooking for six days a week. I'm smart like that:) Now they are in their 20s, sons are married and do probably 1/4-1/2 the cooking and enjoy it. Their wives appreciate it because they get home later than the boys. I say "boys" --they are young men, but always will be my boys! My daughter is extraordinary in the kitchen. She LOVES to plan meals, shop, cook, bake, everything. The best gift she gave us for Christmas was making 3 weeks' worth of freezer meals. She would be here till Jan 4th,then move back to FL. Then my hubby had open heart surgery on Jan 5th. Can I just tell you how good it felt to be relieved of thinking and prepping dinner while taking care of him during a difficult recovery? Mealoaf, lasagna, chicken 5 ways, taco fixings, etc.

When I was a single mother, I didn't have much money. Every Thanksgiving holiday, my daughter and I baked fancy breads, cookies, etc. and put them in the freezer for Christmas gifts.
I baked with my grandkids a lot. We have a small kitchen and the only place to make food is in a corner of the counter between the cooktop and sink. My 3 young grandkids would each be on a stool or chair preparing goodies. My youngest was a grandson and he loved to crack the eggs and got very good at separating the yolk from the whites. The girls didn't like that part. But, he loved the measuring, too. He was too small to mix cookie dough so the girls did that.
There are quite a few cookbooks for kids out there. I have at least 3 of them and the kids used to come over and pour over them to see which ones they wanted to make. Some recipes were pretty messy and some were terrible, so we knew which books had the best. I also have a huge (probably 100) collection of cookie cutters and they loved those. These are some of the best memories they and I have together. They have since moved about 6 hours from us and now the 2 girls are out of high school and the grandson is a Soph. in HS. I miss them and the good times.

I am happy to hear that other mums and grannys are baking and cooking with children.

Watson that photo of your grand daughter could be of my daughter, covered in batter with a huge smile on her face.

My original question was about baking, but I can add, I learned the following from my grandmothers:
Canning
Making jam
Spinning and weaving, plus dying with natural dyes.
Identifying flowers in the garden as well as wild flowers
Pruning fruit trees and ornamentals
Growing veggies
How to start a fire in a wood stove, fireplace and bonfire

I miss them both.

Both tried to teach me to knit and crochet and gave up, I eventually learned to crochet. Neither tried to teach me to sew, my first experience was horrible in 4H, but at 19 I decided to learn and took classes.

I tried getting my DD's to bake with me - but they were always too busy, except to taste the batter or lick the spoon. We did holiday baking and cookie baking from time to time. But I was a working mom too, so it was limited to holidays and when they need such things for school or church. Neither daughter has much interest in cooking even now. A very dear friend of mine used to make sugar cookies and take them to my daughter's 6th grade class to let them frost them. It was a shock how many students had never frosted a cookie. They loved it. When the rules changed in the district and you can no longer bring in homemade food. (Don't let me get started on that one.)

I have always baked with my kids and now I bake with my grandkids. I hope someday to bake with my greatgrandkids.
I think cooking together is a great way to bond and it also creates wonderful memories. I gave my 20 yr. old grandson his first rolling pin at age 12 after he made his first pie from scratch and entirely on his own. He was so proud of that rolling pin!
We live in the country and try to have grandkids stay with us in the summer. It always involves some kind of cooking and baking. I have given them all cookbooks for kids and then more complex ones as the grow older. I believe in teaching children to be self reliant and don't want them to only be able to cook ramen when they are on their own. LOL

I baked with my kids and have a lot of happy times to remember. My DD turned out to be a wonderful cook and baker. Now she is doing the same with my DGD.

In my family our go to recipe is chocolate chip cookies, with peanut butter and oatmeal.[/QUOTE]


I baked with my kids and then my grands. The CC cookies with peanut butter and oatmeal are still baked but now as a memory cookie to honor our son. Now I bake them for his 2 daughters and for special people and friends. Kids in the kitchen should be mandatory for fun and nourishment.

I baked and cooked with all of my four children. They always wanted to help. I must admit that sometimes when I was in a hurry I would mix by hand rather than turn on the mixer - the sound always made a "helper" come running. Now I bake with my grandchildren - they are always so proud of what they make and love to bring treats home to their parents. Happy times.

Our kids helped in the kitchen as they grew up. Not their favorite chore sometimes but they got the hang of it. Two of our granddaughters stayed with us one winter and we had a very ill neighbor so our Saturday routine was to make something for the neighbors to eat since she wasn't much of a cook and spent so many hours taking care of him. We made home made breads, nourishing soups, desserts, etc. and the girls took it to their house. Boy were they welcomed royally. Now all of them are not only good cooks but they love to share with people as well. We also have three grandsons who cook and bake. One is experimenting with sourdough breads right now. Lovely memories!

Of course we baked things. My oldest made bread a couple times a week. His fingers got a lot stronger and he mellowed out... Now he is on a paleo diet so no bread.... My daughter made cookies all the time. Her 6 kids mostly know how to bake and fix simple foods. I would add in... In addition to baking make them clean the dishes as they go. Then my youngest learned to cook. He can cook anything. He can improvise. He has been a professional baker and chef and scored extremely well on evaluations. But he loves waiting tables, entertaining and managing best.

I baked with my children and loved it! They're grown married adults now and it would be nice to be blessed with grandchildren one day. My children loved making chocolate chip cookies. :)

I baked with my kids a lot because my mom baked with us so I thought that was what every mom did! My 25 yo DS's girlfriend was amazed that he can bake and that he had memorized my chocolate chip cookie recipe (not the one on the chocolate chip bag). One day my 23yo DD had a friend over and said let's bake cookies. The friend thought they had to go buy refrigerated cookie dough first. She'd never baked cookies from scratch!

I've baked with little ones since I was a teen. Started with Haystacks cause that was no cook and proceeded from there.
Each of my kids learned to bake/cook starting with standing on a chair beside me. It's astonishing how well they can handle a knife at a rather young age. Now my son does most of the cooking at his house and his wife bakes - both with their little helpers. DSIL and DD both cook and bake with their kids. And when everyone is home the little ones help whomever is in charge of the kitchen.
I can hardly wait till my knees are better - knee replacements needed - to bake with the grands!

I don't remember cooking or baking with my Mother, but she was a great cook. I was a terrible cook when first married, but learned as I went along. I cooked and baked with my children, and also with my grandchildren.

I worked full time at a very demanding job and raised three boys. The youngest one was type 1 diabetic from age 3.5. We all baked and cooked together. By the time they were in high school they did dinner on various nights. You're so right; it was great bonding time. It was also practical. Now they are adults with families and they can all cook for their families. If they want cookies, they can make them. Sadly my grand children do not live close by so I can't bake and cook with them.

I baked with my children when they were small and now I am baking with my granddaughter - who is 2 - when she comes over to stay. She stands on a stool next to me and holds the hand beater in the bowl as well as pouring in flour, sugar, liquid etc.

A lifelong skill being taught in a fun atmosphere.

P.S. She also sits on my knee when I am sewing and is fascinated by the machine needle going up and down. Teach them young I say.

I always baked with my daughter. She baked with her son, my grandson. They both love baking...

We( my siblings and I)learned to bake, cook and can helping our parents.
I always baked with my kids-from the time they could stand on a stool next to me. They do the same with their kids.

I baked a lot of cookies for the Xmas holidays. My sugar cookie recipe makes 100. So to help me, I let my DD have a party with her friends. I thought I would get all my cookies decorated with their help. But NO. What they didn't eat they carried home. We did this several years and my DD and friends still talk about the cookies they baked. What fun

I worked with a lady who had a tradition of shopping with each of her grandchildren for a cookie jar. Every so often she had individual baking days with them. They would bring their cookie jar, bake, and take home a full jar to share with their family. No one felt left out and each had their turn. I think it is a great tradition.