So don't laugh, but in a few weeks I have to go into Cal's classroom to give a cooking lesson. Me. Giving a cooking lesson.
I KNOW.
I didn't volunteer for it, exactly, but Cal's going to be "Person of the Week" at the end of March, and each Tuesday, a parent of the Person of the Week has to come in and give a cooking lesson in which the kids can participate, and which teaches something about the basics of measurement and timing and...I don't know, hygiene? Anyway, I'm one of the last parents in the class to come in for this cooking lesson (I was originally scheduled to do this in October but I couldn't accommodate it into my work schedule on such short notice so I traded with someone else) and I have no idea what to cook. The other thing is that I think everything that seems easy and reasonable (little pizzas, smoothies, muffins, what have you) have already been done, like a thousand times over. Could I still just do another smoothie? Sure. But I want it to be special! I want to impress the five year-olds! They are the arbiters of cool!
So here's what I know about the cooking thing.
1.) It has to be a preparation process in which the kids can meaningfully participate. And for clarification, this is a kindergarden class of 23 kids. No high flame wok grilling of vegetables fine-diced on the spot, in other words.
2.) It has to be something involving measurement.
3.) Actual cooking with heat can be involved, although it doesn't have to be. For instance, if I were going to make pizzas (done, done and done by, like, three other parents) there's an oven in another building where I could take them after assembly.
4.) No nuts. There are all these nut allergy kids in the class and I want them to live.
5.) Nothing too hard to do. By necessity, I will be post-call that morning (it's the only way I can get the morning off without actually being on vacation), and I fear my fatigue-addled mind might not be able to handle more than, say, five ingredients.
Does anyone have any cool ideas? I mean, I guess I could just make cookies or something, but I'm sure that's been done before too, and then all the other wholesome moms will think I'm poisoning their kids with refined sugars and whatnot. Why can't I be a wholesome mom? You know, like randomly incorporate bulger wheat into things. Or someone who knows what agave nectar is.
Actually, I don't want to be a wholesome mom anymore. Someone just tell me what I should make that the kids are going to love. Make me into a classroom hero, guys. The comments section is open for ideas.