Cooking with grandkids can be a fun, rewarding and memorable experience. Nutrition and food services staff members from Good Samaritan developed some healthy meals for grandparents to cook with their grandkids, along with tips on how to make your time together meaningful.
Healthy meal ideas
Cooking with grandchildren is meant to be fun. Let them be creative and explore the world of cuisine. They may have ideas for what to try making with you. Here are five ideas to help get the cooking started.
- Chicken and veggie kabobs
Ingredients: Chicken, bell peppers, cherry tomatoes, zucchini
Tip: Put the ingredients onto the skewers together. - Chicken noodle soup
Ingredients: Diced chicken breasts, low-sodium broth, diced carrots, egg noodles
Tip: Let your grandkids help with the prep work – cutting chicken breasts, pouring noodles in the pot and more. - DIY pita pizza
Ingredients: Whole grain pitas, tomato sauce, low-fat cheese, various veggie toppings
Tip: Have your grandkids choose their toppings and spread the sauce. - Fruit kabobs
Ingredients: Assorted fruits
Tip: Let your grandkids create their own skewers. - Vegetable stir-fry
Ingredients: Colorful vegetables (bell peppers, carrots, snap peas), chicken, soy sauce, garlic, ginger
Tip: Give your grandkids the opportunity to chop the vegetables with a kid-friendly knife (and supervision).
Bonding while teaching
When cooking with your grandchildren, it’s important to keep them engaged and involve them in simple and safe tasks. It’s an easy way for them to develop basic skills, such as proper measuring and cutting techniques, that will benefit them later.
Take out the measuring cups and help them measure and pour ingredients into the mixing bowl. Or let them turn on the mixer.
The cooking process can be a great bonding experience that creates lasting memories. Take this time to tell family stories, either from your own childhood or stories about their parents when they were young. It can also be an opportunity to talk about healthy eating and why it’s important to develop balanced eating habits.
When you and your grandkids get to make something together, it’s special and creates lasting memories.
