10 Recipes to Cook with the Kids

Inviting children to get their hands dirty during the holidays means creating moments of joy as a family while combining fun, useful and wonderful memories. Discover these simple recipes and practical tips to fill the house with laughter—and delicious aromas.

Create a Fun Atmosphere

Before taking out the Santa cookie cutters, create a warm atmosphere to bring the kiddos around the island or counter and add a little holiday magic. Try soft lighting, a garland of lights, a mini tree or a scented candle, and set the tone with seasonal music. By making the kitchen an inviting and joyful cocoon, you’ll definitely pique their curiosity... and their desire to participate in the process!

Turn the Kitchen into a Gift Workshop

The kitchen can take on the air of an enchanted workshop during the holidays, offering your little elves the opportunity to prepare Christmas treats with pride. Put on aprons, line up jars, ribbons and small labels, and then bake festive cookies or bites together to share. By creating their own gourmet gifts, kids can discover the pleasure of giving something made by them.

Gourmet Projects Great for Kids:

• Ready-to-Bake Jars of Cookies
  Stack the dry ingredients in a jar and decorate the label.
• Hot Chocolate Mixes
  Cocoa, sugar, milk chocolate chunks, marshmallows: the ingredients are divided into separate layers in pretty labelled jars.
• Chocolate Bark as a Gift
  Melt the chocolate, spread it out and sprinkle it with colourful toppings (candies, nuts, dried fruit, pieces of candy canes, etc.)
• Decorated Shortbread
  Prepare a royal icing, take out the decorations and the pastry bag and let the fun begin for your little chefs and their delicious creations.

Try these recipes:

Prepare Snacks and Small Bites

To get the kids involved without them getting bored or discouraged, offer snacks and small bites that are easy to prepare. They can have a try at:

• Assembling mini fruit or cheese skewers;
• Shaping meat into meatballs;
• Adding a touch of sweet and salty by decorating popcorn with a drizzle of melted chocolate and dried cranberries;
• Preparing crispy bites in the air fryer;
• Creating Christmas pizzas on pitas with tomato sauce, cheese and star-cut peppers.

The finishing touches are theirs: arranging their creations on a pretty platter and enjoying the satisfaction of having taken part in the preparations for the holidays.

Try these recipes:

Create Edible Decorations

This festive activity invites kids to let their imaginations run wild by decorating cookies with edible glitter or assembling popcorn and dried fruit garlands. You can also make small trees out of vegetables or candies, marzipan flakes, or chocolate stars to hang. The objective: to stimulate their creativity while making gourmet decorations that will seduce both the eyes and the taste buds.

Other Ideas for Inspiration

• Gingerbread house (or graham crackers for a simplified version)
• Edible fir balls (energy balls decorated with nuts and dried fruit)
• Salt dough ornaments (inedible, but great for DIY in the kitchen)
• Cupcakes transformed into reindeer or snowmen

Try these recipes:

Join the Brunch

The kitchen becomes a playground for a festive family brunch. Between preparing pancakes and muffins, assembling mini pancakes and decorating plates, children happily contribute to the meal and see the result of their creativity on the table.

While the holidays are the perfect opportunity to introduce children to meal preparation, there is nothing to stop them from doing so throughout the year. Discover more tips and tricks for cooking as a family here: Tips and tricks for cooking with kids