Kids cooking camp a sweet summer activity

For five days, this kitchen is their playground.

“First we made a series of spices that we spread on the chicken so we could put them on the enchiladas,” Halle Carter said.

“With corn and other vegetables you put the chicken in with that you wrap it in a tortilla with two cheeses,” Alexa Carter added.

“We have to roll it up and put in the ingredients so it’s how it’s supposed to be,” Riley Backer said.

That’s a recipe for enchiladas, the dish made on the first day of this week’s “Foods Of the World” camp.

“It’s just fun and it teaches me a lot of things so now I can do more in the kitchen,” Backer said.

It’s Cooking With Class’ annual Summer Cooking Camp for kids and teens. From 10-2 all week, a little spice, a little cheese, and a lot of laughs.

There are three camps left this summer: Cook Like a Food Network Star, Chopped, and Baking and Pastry.

The leftovers for home, the graduation ceremony in front of moms and dad, and the cookbook – just a small taste, maybe a pinch, of what kids will learn.

“It gives them a chance to work with moms and dad in the kitchen , a great sense of accomplishment. It teaches them organization, planning, science and math, nutrition. We even teach them table manners and how to set a table,” Jane Angwin, Cooking With Class owner, said.

“It’s basically an art. You get to experiment with everything and something no one has tried before you can do,” Alexa Carter said.

The stirring, the tasting…that’s all easy. The hardest part – waiting for it to cook.

For pricing and more information about classes, go to cookingwithclasslaquinta.com.