Cooking with Kids

Encouraging youngsters to enjoy cooking has always been big in our household. Our nieces over the years have cooked up some pretty amazing meals with and for us, and it has been so fun to watch them get better and better at it as the years progressed. They are now grown and are all impressive cooks, with one of them a well-regarded chef in New York (I know, I am a very proud Uncle), the below photo taken last Summer with paella on the menu. When our 8 year old godson Magnus recently said to TPS that he wanted to cook a meal with him, they started planning the menu on the spot. This Sunday was the day.
Steamed clams with pesto bruschetta
Grilled shrimp
Orzo pasta with grilled cauliflower & broccoli + tomatoes
Grilled portobellos with parmesan
Flourless chocolate cake with raspberries
Blueberry & peach crisp
It was cool to watch him in the kitchen cutting, mixing and cooking away. I think when I was that age I was making peanut butter & jelly sandwiches. The rest of us chatted the afternoon away out on the deck in the sun as they cooked away and then were treated to all the above. What a special meal, what a special day.