Cooking with Kids

Well.

Caroline is a baker, and not a cook. I did not know this.

Actually, I knew she was a baker (Best Cookies award on the cross country team four years in a row!) and I know that baking and cooking do not always go together, but her cooking challenges have surprised me. Equally surprising is that Tim, who spends as little time in the kitchen as possible, is able to plan out how to make a meal and do prep ahead of time, while also asking intelligent questions of his parental assistants.

Yesterday, we discovered that Caroline can't melt butter and grate cheese at the same time. She also doesn't know how to ask for help in such a way that people are very willing -- she kept asking someone to grate the cheese while she herself was sitting in a chair in the living room. Needless to say, no one was very enthusiastic!

And today, this . . .

Mom: "For your risotto, you will need chopped onions and mushrooms, grated Parmesan, chicken broth and rice."

Caroline: "Okay."
Mom: "Is there anything you think you should do first, before you start cooking?"

Caroline: "Measure the rice?"

Mom: "Okay . . . anything else?"

Caroline: "I don't know!!" 

Really? Can't think of anything? Anything at all? Measuring the rice is certainly a key step, but maybe she could do a few more things before standing over the pan, stirring the risotto. Maybe. Not sure where the sense of panic comes from, but she does seem challenged by multitasking. And the grater.

Tomorrow, she is ordering pizza.