Kids & Their "Recipes"

When you cook in the kitchen a lot, things rub off on your kids. My little girl has been creating her own recipes since she was around 7, some of them have been dang good.... especially in the dessert department, where kids seem to have a knack for sweet stuff.

Last night, my daughter decided to mix sugar free fruit punch & milk. I resisted the urge to make a face and tell her that might be gross. So she made it, declared it "wonderful", and happily drank up her creation.

This morning she wanted to mix milk with cranberry juice. I had to fight even harder not to make a face, as the thought of those 2 drinks together sounded just awful to me. Instead, I gave the OK, and she happily made(and drank) her creation.

I guess the point is that if we don't pass on our own opinions on tastes, then kids are free to develop their own. I've meet a lot of kids who didn't like vegetables, because an adult in their life didn't like vegetable. These little mimic monsters learn by example.

So while my daughter is happily snacking on green peppers and grapefruit, while the combination doesn't sound appealing to my palate, I'm thrilled that she's eating healthy foods by choice. After all, even a "milk-cranberry" drink, while sounding gross to this grown-up, was a burst of calcium and vitamin C to my little chef.