3 Easy Chocolate Crafting Ideas for Kids
When it comes to ultimate sweetness am sure chocolate will make first place on most of our dessert and snack lists. Chocolate brownies, chocolate chip cookies, chocolate pudding, chocolate ice cream, chocolate bars, I mean, it’s a chocolate invasion!
Now, am sure you have seen how a child’s face lights up when you throw chocolate in a conversation with them. Something else that children love, a session of fun craft work. They enjoy the painting, the modelling clay, the crayons, cutting out shapes you name it.
Right in this write up we will look at what happens when sweet meets fun. We are talking chocolate crafting ideas that will project the creativity in your child and also have them smiling after a delicious chocolate treat.
Children learn better when they are engaged in practical activities so chocolate crafting is a great way to get them involved and stay motivated throughout the activity. Let us look at three simple fun ideas to try out with your children during a craft lesson using la chocolat.
- The little chocolatier
Bring out the creator in your child by having them come up with their own chocolate shapes and flavors. They can create with chocolate bars by using commercially prepared moulds or even an ice cube rack. Chocolate spoons are easy to make too and make great gifts!
Chocolate moulds come in various shapes, from the classic rectangles to cute bunny forms. You can even ask them what shape of chocolate they would like to make then look up available options. Get some food color and a variety of flavors to make their creation more interesting.
You can help them melt the chocolate to a runny consistency then have them pour it into the container chosen. For the chocolate to set, it can be chilled in the fridge for a few minutes. The solid chocolate slips out of the mould and voila! Homemade chocolate bar made by the little cocoa master.
Another fun alternative is to come up with the chocolate shapes without a mould by simply piping out the desired shape onto a parchment paper. For this melt the chocolate for your child and help them load it into a bag with a piping tip. The genius creation is then chilled.
For a great Christmas treat, your child can make chocolate snowmen using this technique. Grab some white chocolate chips or tubs like the Santa Barbara chocolate and melt them. Your child can pipe out a snowman shape with two simple circles and use candy to come up with the eyes and the pointy nose.
With parchment paper your child can even follow drawn outlines by using the parchment paper as a tracing paper and the chocolate loaded piping bag like the pencil. They can draw butterflies, stars, and even their names.
- Decorate with some chocolate
Let the kids do the garnishing. Most professional chocolate and icing toppings are done using fillers and markers. It is true that it will only go for around ten dollars but why not make your own. All you’ll need is an empty toothpaste tube.
Rinse it well then leave it to dry. Make several, one for each child. You now all need to go shopping. Pick different types of chocolates, cupcakes, cookies and other sweet pastries. Let the kids choose. For this illustration, I shall use cupcakes. Everybody loves cupcakes.
Don’t forget to tag along some edible food colors and sprinkles. Depending on the occasion, pick different colors not forgetting your kid’s favourite. Go for bright-eyed-catching food colors like red, yellow and light green. Once your back, it’s time to get busy!
Get the cupcakes on a counter where everyone can reach. You will then have to melt the chocolate under low heat on a stainless steel pan. Choose one food color and add it to the chocolate. Mix it slowly as it melts.
Once it has a pasty consistency, one similar to that of toothpaste, use it to fill every chocolate marker. Chocolate hardens very fast so you’ll need to be quite fast. Now to get to the fun part, have them squeeze it out through the opening while drawing different patterns on the cupcakes.
Have them do spiral and circular patterns. They can also draw different shapes. Once they are done, you can have them add sprinkles and then leave the cupcakes to cool. Once the chocolate has hardened, you can all finally dig in. Don’t forget to take selfies.
You can do the same for many other pastries; from cakes to cookies to pies depending on the occasion. It is high time you challenge them to decorate your birthday cake. They might surprise you.
- Chocolatey art!
You don’t need a Leonardo da Vinci in the house to have your children appreciate art in a fun way. Through food, chocolate to be specific, the child can get their art game on. There are some simple and quick art techniques you can teach your children at home without spending a dollar on an art tutor.
You can have them do chocolate printing. This technique is quite simple and straightforward. All you will need to do is to melt the chocolate in a bowl using the microwave. Once it has melted completely and is very fluid pour it onto a warmed metallic tray. Have them place the palm of their hands on the chocolate.
Let them press their palms on a white sheet of paper to have the prints of their hands. You can go an extra mile and have one of them dip his or her face on the tray and place it on the paper to have a face print might be quite messy but it will be fun.
Have their masterpieces hanged somewhere in their bedrooms for memory’s sake. You can also have them doing leaf and feather prints using leafs of different shapes and feathers of different birds. All you’ll need to do is to repeat the same procedure but using leaves and feathers this time round.
You can also have them do chocolate painting. Literally! All you will need to do is to melt chocolate, preferably white chocolate. Separate them to different patches. You can then add different food colors. Give them brushes and let them paint. You can so have them paint different foods like cakes, bread and cookies.
In conclusion working with chocolate, other than being fascinating for the child, also teaches them the versatile nature of the things around them. They grow up appreciating innovation and improvising.
They also get a thing or two on patience because the no child wants their chocolate bunny to have a squishy face so the chilling time has to be adhered to. They also get to bond with their siblings and adults working with them. Don’t forget the new words they get to learn too.
After seeing his or her fine creation, your child will not only squeal in delight as you applaud their skill. They will also be assured of the long-desired prize; a taste of their accomplishment!