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Better Family Bonding Through Baking

Fill Your Plate

03.19.2014

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Baking — Bond with your family as you make one of these fun recipes (photo credit: BigStockPhoto.com)

For many families, time spent together in the kitchen can be the best time to strengthen bonds and spend a solid quantity of quality time together. There was a time when this happened regularly as mothers passed the family recipes on to their daughters, but these days, simply making supper at home is a novelty for some families. Making an effort to spend time together in shared activities like cooking and baking is beneficial to everyone involved and it is a crucial part of creating the memories, traditions, and sense of belonging that creates the kinds of family relationships that last a lifetime.

Here are some great ideas for getting everyone together in the kitchen for some family fun with delicious results.

1. Cookie Time

One of the first things most of us did in the kitchen was helping our mom or grandmother bake cookies. Granted, we weren’t always that much help and probably ate a little too much raw dough, but there is something magical for little kids about the first few batches of cookies that they helped make from scratch. Spend an hour or two this weekend with your kids in the kitchen and make a batch or two of everyone’s favorite cookies. You can cook them all or take half the dough and freeze it so you can have fresh, homemade cookies throughout the week. Try these recipes from the Fill Your Plate recipe box.

2. When Life Hands You Lemons…

Making lemonade from scratch can be really fun for kids of all ages. It is also an easy way to do something together in the kitchen that doesn’t involve a lot of things little ones can’t help with. Make a big pitcher for the fridge and you might end up inspiring your kids to start a lemonade stand this summer. Try these two lemonade recipes.

3. Make Your Own Take Out

Another great way to spend some together time in the kitchen is to eat in, instead of going out, and have everyone help out with making the meal. Common take-out items like tacos, burritos, and pizza are great things for kids to help make. Older kids can learn the fine art of chopping vegetables while littler ones grate cheese or work the assembly line. They will have fun making the meal and have a more nutritious meal to eat than they would if you got it from a drive-thru window. Best of all, you will be teaching them valuable lessons about working together and helping out around the house. Here are some great recipes to make with the kids.