One of Lara's role models in life is Dora the Explorer and, having been at home with Lara over the past week while she suffered with a cold and infection, we couldn't have failed to noticed the adverts for the new magazine - Dora the Explorer Little Cooks Collection. i will admit that I've struggled to make the connection between Dora and cookery (I've never ever seen Dora cook anything!) but Lara loves to cook so I KNEW this new magazine series would be ideal for her. And then, as if by some divine intervention, Little Cooks Collection contacted us to ask if we would review the series as part of Dora's Cooking Club.
The first edition of the magazine is all about bananas! It comes with a set of four easy to clean silicone muffin cases and a plastic Dora the Explorer plate. Each edition of the magazine will come with a different small set of products to help your child enjoy cooking, eating and sharing their own food.
Inside the magazine there are lots of puzzles as well as learning games and a story. In this edition there were a number of quick ideas for snacks with the featured ingredient (bananas) as well as one main recipe that is easy for children to follow.
This weekend Lara and I tried out the recipe - Banana Muffins. I shan't reveal the secret ingredients here but let me tell you, the muffins were awesome. Bouncy, banana-y and sweet.
Lara has so much fun in the kitchen. It is our bonding time together and her eyes light up just at the prospect. Lara was able to use the pictures to tell me which ingredients to fetch for her and then she followed the instructions from the magazine to see what ingredients she had to add next. Even at 2 and a half years old, Lara needed very little help at all from me or Mr. B because the images were clear and the steps were simple.
When we put the muffins in the oven to cook she turned to me and said "Mummy, let's make some more". I managed to convince her that a diet comprised only of banana muffins wasn't an enormously balanced one and instead we set to with some of the craft activities inside the magazine - colouring, cutting and sticking.
My favourite part of the magazine was a pull-out wall poster of different vegetables. Not only because it is great fun to watch Lara point out all the different fruit and veg that she knows (she struggled a bit with aubergine) but also because the poster has both english and spanish names for each item. If Lara can learn the spanish for aubergine then I think her panamanian uncle might be very impressed!
15 minutes later the banana muffins came out of the oven and after a little while cooling, Lara took her first taste of her handiwork. The verdict? Dora knows what she's doing when it comes to muffins!
The Little Cooks Collection is a bi-weekly magazine and the normal price will be £4.99 but there are introductory offers for the first two editions. If you subscribe, there are some REALLY great special gifts on offer too.
The first edition of the magazine is all about bananas! It comes with a set of four easy to clean silicone muffin cases and a plastic Dora the Explorer plate. Each edition of the magazine will come with a different small set of products to help your child enjoy cooking, eating and sharing their own food.
Inside the magazine there are lots of puzzles as well as learning games and a story. In this edition there were a number of quick ideas for snacks with the featured ingredient (bananas) as well as one main recipe that is easy for children to follow.
This weekend Lara and I tried out the recipe - Banana Muffins. I shan't reveal the secret ingredients here but let me tell you, the muffins were awesome. Bouncy, banana-y and sweet.
Lara has so much fun in the kitchen. It is our bonding time together and her eyes light up just at the prospect. Lara was able to use the pictures to tell me which ingredients to fetch for her and then she followed the instructions from the magazine to see what ingredients she had to add next. Even at 2 and a half years old, Lara needed very little help at all from me or Mr. B because the images were clear and the steps were simple.
When we put the muffins in the oven to cook she turned to me and said "Mummy, let's make some more". I managed to convince her that a diet comprised only of banana muffins wasn't an enormously balanced one and instead we set to with some of the craft activities inside the magazine - colouring, cutting and sticking.
My favourite part of the magazine was a pull-out wall poster of different vegetables. Not only because it is great fun to watch Lara point out all the different fruit and veg that she knows (she struggled a bit with aubergine) but also because the poster has both english and spanish names for each item. If Lara can learn the spanish for aubergine then I think her panamanian uncle might be very impressed!
15 minutes later the banana muffins came out of the oven and after a little while cooling, Lara took her first taste of her handiwork. The verdict? Dora knows what she's doing when it comes to muffins!
The Little Cooks Collection is a bi-weekly magazine and the normal price will be £4.99 but there are introductory offers for the first two editions. If you subscribe, there are some REALLY great special gifts on offer too.
