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Main Page Site Index Getting Pregnant Pregnancy Parenting Pregnancy and Parenting Journals Fertility Nutrition Pregnant Moms Morning Sickness Women's Health Child Health	Recipes for Pint-Sized Chefs by Paula Refici Cummings My 2-year-old son pulls his stool up to the kitchen counter so he can watch me prepare meals. He even insists on spreading the peanut butter and jelly on bread himself. "I do it," he says. His father is a cook, so I can see where the interest comes from. Lately I've been on the lookout for simple recipes that can be made by the youngest child. Here are three easy recipes I learned when I was young, which my son also enjoys making. The first two are peanut butter delights which my grandmother taught me to make. The third is my mother's recipe, a treat we used to make for brunches. Peanut Butter Balls 1 cup peanut butter 1 tablespoon margarine or butter 3/4 cup nonfat dry milk 1 cup graham cracker crumbs (or animal crackers) Parent will use a mixer to blend peanut butter, margarine, and dry milk. Put cracker crumbs in a bowl. Line a tray or baking sheet with wax paper. Child can roll dough into small balls. Then roll in bowl of crumbs to coat. Place finished ball on wax paper. Refrigerate until firm (1 hour) Pinwheels 4 pieces of bread, without the crusts peanut butter 1 or 2 bananas Let child use a rolling pin or heavy jar to flatten the bread. Spread peanut butter (with a popsicle stick instead of a knife) Parent will cut banana into thin slices. Child can place a single layer of bananas over peanut butter. Then roll the bread like a jelly roll. Secure open end with a dab of peanut butter or a toothpick. Refrigerate until firm (1 hour) then slice the rolls into circles (pinwheels). Monkey Bread 3 cans of refrigerated biscuit dough 1 stick of butter cinnamon sugar In a bowl, mix 3/4 cup sugar with 1 teaspoon cinnamon. Grease bundt pan with non-stick spray. Have child tear each biscuit into 4 pieces. Toss it into cinnamon sugar to coat. Then place in bundt pan. Meanwhile, parent will melt butter. Add 1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/2 cup sugar, plus any leftover cinnamon sugar from the above step. Bring to a boil, and pour over biscuits in bundt pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 - 30 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes before turning over Paula Cummings is a freelance writer. You can find links to her work through her website http://members.aol.com/paucu/page/index.htm