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When you look at all the research showing that kids who get into the kitchen and eat with families have a lower risk of obesity and higher grades in school it’s enough reason to make sure your kids love cooking from day one. When you watch kids get excited about fresh foods, their taste, smell and how you turn them into a recipe they get to enjoy it’s incredibly gratifying.

Here are 3 benefits to bringing your kids in the kitchen_

1. Social time with the family_ as kids get older there’s homework, after school activities and plenty of distractions. When you plan for meals as a family and getting your kids to participate in cooking with you it can be a great time to catch up on your days and hear about moments you might have missed.

2. Educational_ cooking is much more than food. It’s about math, chemistry, working as a team and understanding how foods change depending on how they’re cooked.

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3. Fun_ when you start to look at cooking as an art project that you get to enjoy immediately and share with others it’s a whole lot more fun. By allowing kids to be active participants in the kitchen you’re giving them ownership over the food they put in their bodies, empowering them and hopefully in turn creating a lot of laughs.

LeapFrog Number Lovin' Oven giveaway from weelicious.comPin
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I feel like it’s never too early to get kids in the kitchen and that means even when they’re toddlers. If you’re concerned about them getting hurt in any way, then starting with a toy like the LeapFrog Number Lovin’ Oven is a great start. Little chefs can enjoy hours of pretend-play fun with learning secretly baked in. Designed for ages 2 years and up, the Number Lovin’ Oven talks, sings and gets number skills cooking through 30+ songs and phrases. It helps little ones connect the numbers 1 to 5 on the slider with low, medium and high temperature settings, as well as shorter and longer cooking times.

I got to see just how much my friend Grey (in the video above) became even more interested in cooking through our fun playing with the Number Lovin’ Oven.

LeapFrog Number Lovin' Oven giveaway from weelicious.comPin

Updated October 22, 2022 and Published November 13, 2015 by Catherine McCord

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About the Author

Catherine is a mama of three. A Kentucky girl living in California. Here’s what I know: all kids can be great eaters and mealtime must be easy. I create simple, healthy recipes the whole family will love.

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Comments

  1. Both my son and daughter would absolutely love this. They are always hanging out in the kitchen with us!

  2. My daughter’s first introduction to cooking was making homemade pizza with her daddy.

  4. I let both of my children sit in the kitchen and play with a bowl, spoon, and flour when I was cooking for them. They were probably about six months old.

  5. My granddaughter loves to help me cook. I just know that she would feel like such a big girl to have her own, little stove, pots and pans, food. Would LOVE THIS!!!!

  7. All 3 of my kids love helping in the kitchen. My husband is a chef and so our lives very much revolve around being in the kitchen! I can’t remember first experiences but I am so glad they all enjoy cooking AND cleaning up afterwards as well!!

  8. my little girl would love this because she is always trying to help me in the kitchen

  9. When he was 1-year old, my now 4-year old son would eat anything. It was wonderful! He was adventurous and going out to eat was exciting – we didn’t have to pack back-up snacks in case he didn’t like what we ordered him.

    His first introduction to cooking was with english muffin pizzas. He put the toppings and cheese on everyone’s pizza and served them up proudly. It was wonderful to see how much that sense of accomplishment boosted his self-confidence!

  10. I learned to cook while preparing baby food for my son – he’s two years old, eats very healthy so we’ve started to cook together. Our first dish: your breakfast cookies!! Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us

  11. My twins love to help me stir the batter in all different kinds of recipes.

  14. My two-year-old son loves to watch my husband, a trained chef, cook. He loves all types of food now, especially spicy food and egg rolls! When “helping” us cook, he likes to taste all of the different parts just like we do. Top Chef, watch out!

  15. I have been coming with my kids since they were able to stand! Their first intro to cooking was making applesauce. I would cut and they would put the apples in the slow cooker and sprinkle on the cinammon.

  16. Great giveaway, my kids are in the kitchen, I think its also smart to teach them early!

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