Season 3, Episode 3:
Holiday Baking with Kids
Holiday Baking with Kids
Holiday baking is a treasured time for some parents — a dreaded one for others. But professional chef and baker Jackie Bruchez knows holiday baking with kids isn’t about the perfect cookie. It’s about creating memories. And she’s here to help make it fun and doable for all of us. PLUS, meet our first featured cooking kiddo, Chef Ayo Brazier.
MEET OUR GUESTS
Jackie Bruchez, Seaside Baker
Jackie Bruchez, chief recipe developer and photographer at The Seaside Baker, grew up in an Italian household, where food was the central focus of every family event. She spent her formative years split between Hawaii and San Diego, which led her to develop a fondness for fresh ingredients.
Today, Jackie lives in Oceanside, California, with her three children. Their yard is home to 18 different fruit trees and a dozen chickens.
Jackie’s passion is creating delicious recipes that feature quality products, fresh ingredients, and are simple to make. She published her first cookbook, Decadent Fruit Desserts, in 2019.
Follow Jackie:
Web: https://theseasidebaker.com/
Facebook: @TheSeasideBaker
Pinterest: @TheSeasideBaker
Twitter: @TheSeasideBaker
Instagram: @TheSeasideBaker
Ayo is an 11-year-old aspiring chef. Cooking and baking since the age of 3! He loves to try new recipes and experiment with flavors in the kitchen. Though he loves to cook, his passion is baking and cake decorating. Once a month he gives back by cooking and baking dinner and dessert for a local charity that supports 25 residents with severe mental illness. Ayo’s goal is to one day own his own restaurant and have a cooking show on TV; both would be called Chef Ayo’s Kitchen.
Follow me on Instagram!
Instagram: @chef_ayo
Episode highlights
2:54 – How Jackie Bruchez plans holiday baking
5:33 – How to involve kids
7:29 – What kids look forward to
9:31 – Making holiday baking easier
12:31 - A great trick for cookie decorating
13:12 – Kitchen Questions
15:32 – Meet our Cooking Kiddo, Chef Ayo Brazier
20:19 – Closing Thoughts
OUR FAVORITE QUOTES FROM THE EPISODE
“When it's holiday baking, I think the main goal is to create the experience and the memory. And so taking the time out of your day and having them really be involved will get everybody really excited.”
“I come from a very large Italian family, and my grandfather would let me skip a week of school, and we would bake hundreds and hundreds of pounds of Italian cookies. And then we'd assemble it on a plate and give them to everybody. So I want to recreate that with my kids.”
“Bring the kids in from start to finish. Have them help you decide. Go on Pinterest, look up recipes, have them help you decide what you're going to make. Take them to the store. Say, “What color frosting do we want to use? What color sprinkles do we want to use?” I think if you bring them in from start to finish, they're more likely to finish it with you and also be really excited about it; and also bring them in on deciding how you're going to assemble the trays or who you're going to give them to, and just get them really excited about the whole process.”
“Any recipe can be kid-friendly, as long as you have patience. And you have to just say, ‘You know what? The kids are going to make it. It may not be perfect, but it will be theirs. And this is what they’re going to remember.’"
“Make sure you don't mix up your baking powder and your baking soda, and help the kids measure important ingredients such as salt and spices.”
“I feel happy because I'm baking and cooking.”
“Even if you don't want be a chef when you grow up, it's still important to learn how to cook and bake and stuff like that. Because when you grow up, you have to be able to cook so you can make your own meals, so you can cook for yourself.”
RESOURCES