I have wanted to make soft pretzels for years. When I finally got around to it, my son and I had a great time twisting the dough into letter and number shapes. As a kitchen activity, this one ranks high on our list of fun times spend together!
Making Cooking with Kids Fun
Every parent knows the experience of planning an activity they think will be enjoyable only to have it dissolve through a combination of tantrums, whining, uncooperative behavior (and let's face it, I'm not just referring to the kids!) and frustration. It is an all too common scenario.
What is less common is having an activity in which you place little hope of success but are pleasantly surprised by an enjoyable experience. It just so happens that despite all my pessimism, all the stars were aligned last week when Kiddo and I made soft pretzels. Even my youngest was happily observing it all from his bumpo perch. I guess it is all about expectations.
Follow Their Interests!
I was expecting to do it all by myself as my son showed no signs of interest. Until, of course, I involved numbers and counting. (Regular readers of this blog know that my son loves numbers.)
I started talking to myself...
Me, talking out loud to no one in particular: " I am going to divide this dough in half, that makes 2. Then I cut the 2 pieces in half, that makes 4. Hmmm, when I cut 4 pieces in 2, I wonder how many I will have?....."
That got his interest and he came right over to see what I was talking about!
First he counted out the sections of dough.
Next, he brought over his ruler so that when we started rolling out the balls of dough into strips, he could make sure they were 16 inches long.
After every piece of dough was measured, he started acting a little bored. Making traditional pretzel shapes did not interest him. Truth be told, I was not doing a good job and the shapes were definitely a little weird.
Instead, I surprised him by shaping the pretzel dough into an 8.
"Mommy, make a 1!"
Success! His interest was renewed, and after helping me make several more numbers, he started to form the pretzel dough into caraway seeds.
Finally, when all the dough was shaped, he enjoyed brushing the pretzel shapes with an egg wash and sprinkling on some salt and herbs.
Look how great they came out!
The secret to cooking with kids? Have low expectations and cater to their interests!
More cooking activities with kids:
UPDATE: I've been asked several times for the recipe. I also put a recipe in the comments below, but here's one for 30 minute homemade soft pretzels.
sunnymama says
What a fun and yummy activity! It was fun reading about and seeing the pictures 🙂
BranFlakes says
What was your recipe? We made some a couple months ago and they were gross, so I need a good recipe.
Lisa says
Love it. I have always wanted to make pretzels too, but haven't done it yet. These look delicious!
Mom and Kiddo says
2 1/4 cups flour
1 c white whole wheat flour (I used regular whole wheat)
3/4 cups rye flour
1 1/2 TBSP sugar or malt powder
1 tsp salt
1 1/4 cups water
1 TBSP canola oil
1 large egg yolk.
1TBSP yeast
This was a bread machine recipe. If you don't have a machine, I'm sure it would work if you used the knead-rise instructions from another recipe.
Divide dough in 16 portions, shape, let rest 20 min, brush with egg white, sprinkle with salt or caraway seeds.
Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes
Enjoy!
Alycia in Va. says
Isn't it funny how every activity turns into a learning experience. You can check off division 🙂
BranFlakes says
thank you!
Allie says
That is awesome!
Kate says
Great idea to make these fun treats with a number and literacy theme! And thanks for sharing the recipe in the comments.
Carrie says
Great idea. I’m going to try it with my 3 year old and keep my expectations low. He loves making letters so I am hopeful.
Erica says
Enjoy! Keeping expectations under control always results in a much more relaxed experience.