School’s out for summer and already the children are getting teasy! Head to your bespoke kitchen and take the opportunity to instil a love for cooking from very young with our easy ideas to keep little ones entertained. By combining food preparation and creative projects, you can transform your modern bespoke kitchen into a hive of activity, learning and family fun – you might even get dinner prepped in the process.

Pizza party

Skip the pizza delivery and transform your kitchen into a pizzeria. Making your own pizza dough is easiest in a bread maker, or you could prep some dough in advance and leave it to rise in the fridge overnight. Better yet, buy pre-made dough balls that are ready to roll.

Let your kids get hands-on with the rolling pin, punching out the sides to make a 12-inch pizza base each. Cover and rest as they prep the toppings. Make a quick pizza sauce by mixing 200g of passata, 2 tbsp tomato puree, 1 tsp Italian herbs and ½ tsp garlic puree in a bowl.

Go for a variety of toppings, such as pepperoni, peppers, mushrooms, olives and pineapple – the more colourful the better – and grated cheese. Invite your children to create fun designs and interesting combinations on their pizzas, taking the opportunity to encourage them to try ingredients they wouldn’t usually pick.

While the pizzas are cooking (around 10-12 minutes at 200°c), set up a crafting station where they can make and personalise their own pizza boxes using cardboard, tape, stickers, crayons and colouring pens. Once the pizzas are ready, cut them up and pop into boxes for them to enjoy while watching a film or in the garden.

Cookie competition

This is a fun activity to keep kids entertained during playdates in the school holidays and encourages a little healthy (albeit sugar-filled) competition! Aprons are essential for this one. Bake a batch of basic cookies in advance or get the kids to help you. Leave out the chocolate chips – you’re aiming for a blank canvas for the them to decorate.

Next set up a decorating station with sprinkles, edible glitter, icing sugar google eyes, and icing bags pre-filled with butter icing in various colours. Set themes for the contest, such as pets, seaside, fairground and flowers. 

To keep them engaged while the cookies are cooling, you can also get them to create chef hats using white card and then decorate with their names and favourite patterns. Once the cookies are all decorated – set a timer for added fun – hold a contest with prizes for the most creative, best pet design, accuracy etc and give out certificates. Then let them eat their creations, and head straight to the park to burn off that sugar!

All scream for ice cream!

Set up an ice cream sundae bar on your kitchen island where kids can create their own delicious frozen masterpieces. Dish up a choice of toppings like sprinkles, chocolate chips, syrups, whipped cream, marshmallows and fresh summer fruits. Provide tubs of ice creams, in different colours for extra prettiness. Focus their attention by giving prizes for the neatest design, the tallest sundae and most colourful.

To add a crafting moment, buy paper bowls to decorate with stickers and colouring pens. Set a theme to up the challenge. If you’re hosting a party, you could buy plain white bowls and coloured Sharpie pens for a more permanent gift to take away.

Open a cafe

Turn a regular cooking session into a crafty learning experience by setting up a Kids’ Café in your kitchen. Get their ideas on the menu – simple food like sandwiches, fruit salad and fairy cakes work well – and have them participate in every step. From designing the menus and choosing pretty crockery to making the sandwiches and chopping fruit (carefully monitored!). They can also choose a playlist for the café’s background music.

Talk about how to set prices for each item on the menu, thinking about the different values and the cost of ingredients, and make a pretend card reader using cardboard and pens. Consider creating a recipe book to sell in their café, writing down the steps of each recipe, with illustrations. This will help them feel involved in the cooking process and learn about the value of money.

Once the café is set up and ready, invite family members and friends for afternoon tea, with the children working as waiters – and pot washers when everyone has left!

Foraging adventure

If you have a vegetable garden, get your kids outside to pick fresh herbs, fruits, and vegetables for their own dinner. (If not, try their grandparents’ gardens or head out to your local Pick Your Own farm.)

Prepare a simple recipe that incorporates as many fresh ingredients as possible, for example a salad, smoothie, or pasta dish. Add in a gardening craft, like decorating terracotta plant pots with acrylic paints or making plant markers using old lolly sticks.

This activity is a great way to help children understand where food comes from and the importance of fresh ingredients. It might even encourage them to try new foods.

Our expert kitchen designers can help you make the best choices for your Roundhouse bespoke kitchen, furniture or wardrobes. Visit any of our seven Roundhouse showrooms; Wigmore St, Clapham, Fulham, Richmond, Cambridge, Guildford & Cheltenham and get planning!