February 2015
SanTan
FAMILY FUN “An award-winning publication” A publication of the
SanTan Sun News
What’s inside Pages 2, 3 SanTan Family Fun Calendar
Page 4 Police explorers celebrate 30 years
Page 6 See science in a new way with Science Spectacular
Page 7 Where kids eat free
Page 8 Sponsored by City of Chandler Recreation Division
1
The joys of baking with kids By Alison Stanton
According to the Home Baking Association, February is Bake for Family Fun Month. As the association notes on its website, this is the ideal time for parents to share the joy of baking with their children. Sharing family values in the kitchen As far as Chandler mom Josephine Morris and her 4-year-old daughter Samantha are concerned, every month should be devoted to family baking time. As Josephine recalls, from the time Samantha could sit on the kitchen counter, they have enjoyed preparing various dishes together. Because her family is vegan, Josephine says it was important for her to teach Samantha from an early age about what they are eating and why with me but she is also fortunate to have they have decided not to eat anything two sets of grandmothers who like to be that comes from animals. in the kitchen with her too.” The mother-daughter duo regularly In addition to creating pleasant spends time in the kitchen, baking vegan kitchen memories for her daughter, Amy desserts and more. also wants Kyleigh to learn the basics of “Samantha and I love baking baking and cooking at a cupcakes, chocolate young age, so that she chip cookies, and can feel brownies, and occaconfident about herself sionally we make a and her abilities when cobbler, apple pie, she gets older. breakfast bars, or “It also teaches her other things,” about life and how Josephine says. important it is to follow She handles the rules or directions tools like the oven in order to achieve a and mixer. successful outcome,” Samantha loves to Amy says. help select recipes, Since the two of measure, pour, them have a sweet stir, and mix the tooth, they especially ingredients. DYNAMIC DUO IN THE KITCHEN: From the time she was a young baby, Samantha Morris has like baking cookies Josephine says helped her mom Josephine prepare tasty and cakes. that a family friend vegan meals. Submitted photo “The look on her sent Samantha her face when her cookies turn out perfectly a baking set for kids when she turned 2, is priceless. And her dad loves when they so she enjoys using her own measuring do too, because he gets to enjoy in her cups, spoons, spatula, whisk and other rewards.” utensils. Teaching about cultures and traditions “Food is a big part of everybody’s At Pollack Chabad Center for Jewish life every single day. In my opinion, it is Life in Chandler, Youth Director Faygie an easy place to start giving your kids a Lew says they regularly teach Kids in the sense of freedom, choice, and a sense of Kitchen cooking classes to groups of accomplishment,” Josephine says. young kids. For example, from 12 p.m. Rekindling childhood memories to 2 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 22, the center When Amy Gantz’s daughter Kyleigh was about 6 years old, she started to help will host a Perfectly Persian Pastries class for children in grades one through six. her mom in the kitchen. By the time she During the class, kids will learn to cook was 8, Kyleigh was able to follow recipes and bake a variety of delicious treats like and measure most of the ingredients by herself. For Amy, baking and spending time in the kitchen with Kyleigh is a great way to recall her own happy memories of baking with her own mom. “When I think back on my childhood I can remember my mom cooking and baking with me, and because of that I wanted to give those happy thoughts and feelings to my daughter,” Amy says. She especially enjoys watching Kyleigh and her mom baking holiday goodies together. “Kyleigh not only cooks and bakes
hamantaschen and baklava, and will also create their own cookbooks filled with recipes. Lew says the Kids in the Kitchen classes have become increasingly popular with kids. “In our classes, we focus not only on cooking but also on the holidays or traditional Jewish foods,” Lew says. “So in addition to learning about the science of cooking and awesome skills, the kids are also learning about holidays, the laws of kosher and more.” Lew says it’s great fun to watch the kids’ expressions as their baked creations are taken out of the oven. “It’s just a really cool skill for them to learn to use, and when they see that what they have made comes out really good, it just makes them so happy.” The cost for the class is $12 per child. For more information or to register, call Lew at (480) 855-4333 or email youth@chabadcenter.com. Pollack Chabad Center for Jewish Life is located at 875 N. McClintock Dr., in Chandler. Alison Stanton is a freelance writer who lives in the East Valley. She can be reached at alison@santansun.com.
Resources Websites: • www.homebaking.org/familyfun • www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/articles/bakingwith-kids.html
Books: • “Baking with Kids: Make Breads, Muffins, Cookies, Pies, Pizza Dough, and More!,” by Leah Brooks • “Kids’ Baking: 60 Delicious Recipes For Children To Make,” by Sarah Lewis • “Williams-Sonoma Kids in the Kitchen: Sweet Treats,” by Carolyn Beth Weil
LEARNING ABOUT CULTURE AND TRADITIONS: At Pollack Chabad Center for Jewish Life, cooking classes for kids have becoming increasingly popular. Submitted photo