Bake Austin Kids Baking Blog: Clean up ur mess!

Does this look like fun?
It sure does, doesn't it! Baking and cooking is so much fun and eating it afterwards is even better. 
But it also makes a big mess and we are going to talk about that today.

Listen, I know how hard it is to clean up, I have to do it every day. And its not always fun, is it?!
But I promise you, when you also clean up the mess you make, your parents will much more likely let you bake or cook.
​Also, a clean kitchen is something every chef prides him or herself in. A clean kitchen is a good start and a great end to every dish you create. ​

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TIP:
Here is how I do it, when I don't feel like cleaning up. (I do this usually when I put whatever I bake in the oven).
I put on a song I love to listen to, I plug in my headphones and clean up as much as I can until the song is over.
First I put all the dirty dishes in the sink and soak whatever needs soaking. Then I put all the ingredients I used back where they belong. (If you don't know where they go ask your parents, or leave them in a neat stack on the counter). 
Next I wipe the counters down... (oh, but maybe the song is over, then start another one).
Now I have two thing left to do. 
​I wash the dishes or put them the dishwasher, dry them if I hand washed them and put them away. Lastly I sweep the floor. And viola, I am done and it rarely takes me more then two or three songs. 
​That wasn't so bad, was it?! ​

This is what my sink looks like after a class. Be glad that is not what your kitchen usually looks like. 

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FOR PARENTS:
As a mom I am filled with joy when my kids cook or bake something on their own.

Most of the time they also leave me all the dirty dishes, leave the ingredients on the counter and a huge mess on the floor and work space. When I work with my students I encourage them to keep their surface clean and put the ingredients back where they belong. Cold things back in the fridge and dry ingredients in their proper place. Having a rag that they can use is helpful. Having pride in a clean surface is what I try to teach, as a professional baker I have to constantly clean up my work surface and I try to instill that pride in them as well. I tell them that you also eat with your eyes and a clean kitchen is a kitchen one wants to eat from! Enjoy these tips and come back for more, I'll always be here for questions, too!