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Class Cooking and Catering- In the News
Columbian Article Tuesday, April 24, 2007 edition of Your Week
Kids really relish a taste of cooking
Cooking with your children is a good way to teach them about nutrition and convince them to try new foods. "If they help, they're more likely to eat it," said Marie Walters, who teaches nutrition classes for Clark County Public Health's Women, Infants and Children program.
With your patience and encouraging words, even the youngest kids can contribute to a meal, she said. They can pick out a vegetable at the store, measure ingredients, or add items to a bowl. Walters and other instructors offer tips for teaching kids to cook:
• Get the wiggles out: If any part of the meal requires physical exertion, give that job to your kids. When Kim Mahan of Class Cooking & Catering teaches youngsters in her Vancouver home-based culinary school, she has them shake jars of cream into butter. She also asks the kids in her class to shell peanuts for peanut-butter cookies. At home, snapping green beans would be a good assignment. • Let kids be hands-on: Sure, you might have to chop vegetables or take on other tasks that involve sharp tools. But there's still plenty that kids can do on their own, said Karen Lasher, who teaches classes for kids at her restaurant and catering business, Around the Table, in Camas. "Let them do the things they can do," she said. • Highlight math and science: "With any cooking, there's always math involved," Mahan said. Measuring helps kids learn about fractions. In her class, Mahan usually has kids make pizza dough, which requires softening yeast and letting dough rise, a good opportunity to talk about science. • Use the right tools: Plastic serrated knives are safe for children to cut lettuce and other flimsy foods that might need chopping, and silicone bakeware makes clean-up easier, Lasher said. • Don't be afraid of messes: "You don't want kids to feel they are doing things wrong. I think that's a big thing - making them comfortable," Lasher said. "Kids are going to make messes.
Kids cooking classes
Around the Table 316 N.E. Dallas St., Camas Kids Cook: Kids ages 10 and older prepare a meal to take home to their families. 3:30-5:30 p.m., April 25. $60. Kids Baking: Kids age 6 to 8 bake muffins and cookies. 3-5 p.m. April 11. $25 Info: around-the-table.com , 360-834-0171
Class Cooking & Catering Kim Mahan's Vancouver home A class is planned for August, but it's not yet on the schedule. Info: class-cooking.com , 360-906-0439
Camas Parks & Recreation Camas Community Center, 1718 S.E. 7th Ave. Story Book Cook: For parents and their 2- and 3-year-olds. 2-2:45 p.m. beginning May 1. $20 for Camas residents and $25 for others. Story Book Cook: For 3 ½ - to 6-year-olds. 3-3:45 p.m. beginning May 1. $20 for Camas residents and $25 for others. Info: www.ci.camas.wa.us , 360-834-5307
Cutline: Photos by steven lane The Columbian Sky Marie Hill, 4, pours mixed vegetables into a pot of soup during a nutrition class offered as part of Clark County Public Health's Women, Infants and Children program. Cheylani, 6, and Sir Wilson, 3, get help opening a can from their mom, Crystal Misner.
Articles appear as they were originally printed in The Columbian and may
not include subsequent corrections.
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