We preach the importance of cooking with our kids but how can we get messy in the kitchen without losing our minds? This week we have craft expert Jodi Levine — author of one of our favorite websites Super Make It —on to talk about how we can have pure fun in the kitchen with our kids without worrying that they will ruin dinner or our batches of holiday cookies. Jodi dishes on her favorite super market ingredients for quick, engaging crafts with our kiddos, plus how she deals with the inevitable messes of cooking up crafts with our kids.
OUR GUEST: JODI LEVINE
Jodi Levine is the craft editor behind the popular website Super Make It and author of Candy Aisle Crafts and Paper Good Projects. A life long crafter, she landed in the Craft Department of Martha Stewart Living where she worked for over 19 years. Her work has appeared in the pages of MSL obviously, but also Martha Stewart Baby, Kids, The Today Show, The View and CBS Morning show among others.
She’s a mom of two with plenty of ideas about how to have low-stress, low-commitment fun in the kitchen with your kids (you have to listen for her brilliant cookie house tip) but don’t expect her to bust out any bento inspired lunch boxes. Jodi talks to us about the pressures of being a crafty mom and how we can raise kids to be creative, engaged kids through simple crafts in the kitchen (and beyond).
And if you’re looking for a new fantastic Instagram account to follow — and who isn’t?! — immediately follow Jodi as @supermakeit. So much inspiration!
Time to get Messy (and Time to Clean Up too)!
We asked Jodi our favorite cooking with kids question: How do you deal with mess?!
Of course, she had some brilliant tips like giving each kid their own space to work on — whether it is a baking tray or a piece of parchment paper. Meghan added that dosing out sugar and sprinkles for little kids to minimize their ability to dump sprinkles on the floor.
But Jodi pointed out — and we love this — that we need to make cleaning up part of the fun too! If you instill the joy of racing the dirty dishes to the sink or sweeping up the sprinkles early, you may find that you no longer have to clean up after a kitchen craft session.
Link Love
This week we skipped our usual what we’re digging to bring you more of Jodi, but here are a few resources and links to the recipes and projects we chatted about in this episode.
Chef’s Table – Christina Tosi episode (ps. Tosi’ has a new cake book we love!)
Jodi’s book Candy Aisle Crafts
Marshmallow Molecules
WE LOVE OUR SPONSOR: RADDISH KIDS
Even kids who don’t love to eat, love to cook. And it’s no wonder: the kitchen is a fantastic place for kids to flex their independence and learn in a real-life context. Plus, it cultivates healthier and more adventurous eating habits, which we parents like too. That’s why we’re such huge fans of our sponsor Raddish Kids, a cooking kit for kids 2- to 14-years-old that sends illustrated recipe guides, activities, conversation cards, a patch and even a kitchen tool to your doorstep every month.
This holiday season, give the gift of bringing a family together in the kitchen to experience the fun of taking risks, getting creative, and maybe even making a few mistakes before enjoying a delicious, well-earned meal together. To learn more about how Raddish subscriptions work, what’s included, and pricing options, go to RaddishKids.com
Try This At Home
This week’s Try This At Home is a 10-minute cooking craft that might even help you use up leftover Halloween candy: Melt some chocolate and go dip crazy.
Meghan’s got these instruction for melting chocolate in the microwave here on the Kitchn. As for what to dip – that is totally up you! What’s in your pantry? Crackers, cookies, cereal, and even chips taste even better with