Future Jamie Oliver or Emeril? Watch Out Iron Chef!

Ben and I have been trying to engage Carter in food prep & cooking lately as a way of getting him more interested in different foods. Carter has a very limited diet and we are really trying to expand on it. "Experts" claim that cooking with your children can help get them interested in trying healthy (or different) foods they might normally refuse. In addition, if Carter is in the kitchen cooking with us, it means more time spent together as a family and less time for Carter to veg out in front of the TV after school.

Carter helped me make Apple Walnut muffins yesterday. He helped me measure out ingredients with measuring spoons. I also had him use a stainless steel measuring cup as a "mallet" to break up the walnuts into little pieces. He especially loved this as it was an opportunity to make lots of noise. Carter got a kick out of watching me shred apples in the food processor. He even helped a little with the mixing.

I especially like this picture because it looks like he's reading the recipe.

The best part of it all: he couldn't wait until they were done baking. As soon as they were cool enough to eat, he ate four of them (granted they were mini-muffins). This is a much better snack than Goldfish crackers!

Today, Carter helped Ben with a homemade pizza. We figured this is a healthier option than delivery and it would be fun and easy for Carter. He was really into sprinkling the cheese very evenly over the entire pizza. When he was finished, he shoved a few handfuls of cheese into his mouth for good measure! He stood by the oven and watched it cook.

One thing is for sure, we sure have a lot of fun together and it really gives him a sense of accomplishment. Next task - a vegetable garden. Once the weather is finally warm enough, I am going to have Carter help me plant a small vegetable garden. Hopefully planting the veggies and watching them grow will get Carter a little more interested in actually eating some of them.