Parenting Today
Looking for something fun to do with your kids on a night in? Pizza night is an exciting family activity that will bring you and the little ones closer together. Not only will you be able to enjoy a delicious homemade pizza, but you’ll create lasting memories for you and your kids to look back on for years to come.
Read below for some tips on how to make sure all your little ones are involved, and get some ideas for fun pizza shapes to make sure the kids are engaged.
How to Get the Kids Involved
One of the things that makes DIY pizza night a great family activity is that every family member, regardless of their age, can pitch in.
- Toddlers: While toddlers may be unable to help with more tricky tasks, like chopping up toppings, you can still let them get their hands dirty! Have them spread the marinara sauce and sprinkle cheese on their dough, or let them arrange their toppings into fun designs!
- School-Aged Children: Once children are a bit older and can start to take on more responsibility, you can give them more creative and involved tasks. For example, they can help roll out their own dough or cut it into fun shapes using cookie cutters. You can even supervise them while they do things like help you cut up vegetable or meat toppings.
- Teenagers: Teenagers can help with some of the more advanced tasks that come with pizza night. Ask them to help bake the pizzas in the oven, or let them take charge and get creative by getting the ingredients and pizza bar ready for the whole family to use.
Creating the Perfect DIY Pizza
Pizza night is an excellent way for the whole family to get expressive and creative in the kitchen, especially if everyone is able to make their own personalized pizzas. Here’s how you can create the perfect DIY pizza experience for you and your kids:
- Pizza Crust: The first thing to consider is what you’re going to use as your pizza crust. For a quick and easy experience, you may want to purchase pre-made dough from a nearby grocery store. If you’re feeling more adventurous, here’s a recipe for homemade pizza dough.
- Traditional circular pizzas are great, but you can give your kids more freedom in the kitchen by letting them change the shape of their dough. Let them cut it into a heart or a star, or let them use cookie cutters to get a more fun and complicated shape, like a dinosaur.
- You can also consider using alternative ingredients instead of pizza dough, like English muffins or bagels if you’d like.
- Choose Your Toppings: Marinara sauce, mozzarella cheese, and pepperoni are classic toppings, but there are plenty of other delicious possibilities out there.
- Instead of marinara, try barbecue or Alfredo sauce. Offer a variety of cheeses along with different vegetable and meat toppings. You can even let them explore a little by setting out more interesting options, like pineapple or apple slices.
- Bake and Enjoy: Bake your pizzas in the oven until the crust is golden brown and the cheese has melted. Once finished, slice and enjoy them with your family.
Pizza Night — More Than Just Family Fun
Yes, pizza night will be a fun activity for you and your family, but it’s about more than just the food. Spending quality time with your family like this can have a significant impact on your mental health and strengthen your bond.
- Teaching Life Skills: Though having your kid help prepare pizza dough or chop vegetables may seem like simple tasks, they’re actually learning important life skills like how to follow instructions or make decisions on their own.
- Encouraging Creativity: Allowing your kids to come up with their own shapes and designs for their pizzas is excellent for cognitive development. It also gives them space and encouragement to express themselves.
- Building Relationships: Pizza night provides many opportunities to strengthen the bond between your family. Since everyone is working together, there are many opportunities to improve communication and cooperation, and it helps to reduce stress by creating an enjoyable home environment.
If you’re looking for a fun way to spend time with your family while creating lasting memories, having a DIY pizza night at home is a great choice. Whether your kids are toddlers or teens, there are plenty of ways to make sure everyone is involved!
