Meal Prep for the Family: Rainbow Eggs

Get the Kids Excited About Helping in the Kitchen

 Getting kids invovled in the kitchen early on is a great way to teach them about healthy food and how to create healthy habits. One of the ways I involve to my kids is by involving them in meal prep. 

Even better, eggs that entertain as much as they nourish.

Decorated eggs no longer are reserved for one time of the year in our household. The eggs’ shape and ability to change color seem to fascinate my little ones and make a great activity for when we are stuck indoors. Luckily, my super macho husband doesn’t seem to mind bringing bright pink eggs to work every week.

I make sure to separate my girls eggs into bowls ahead of time so they each have the same number. Athena, my 2 year old, is a stickler for always making sure she and her little sister have the same of everything. 

Athena likes her eggs to sit in the dye for the entire duration of the activity, making for brightly colored eggs.  Artemis will place each egg in each color every ten seconds until they all come out to a brilliant grey/brown 🙂 What will your toddler do? Please let us know in the comments! We’d love to hear about other experiences!

Below is a detailed list of ingredients and how to make boiled eggs and egg dye. 

Ingredients:

• Eggs (week old is best so they peel easier, always a bonus with toddlers).
• Vinegar
• Food Coloring

Equipment:

• Pot for boiling eggs and water for the dye.
• Ice bath bowl for the eggs.
• Small bowls for egg dipping. I recommend having separate bowls for each toddler.
• Spoons for lifting out eggs.
• Newspaper or some material to save your floor! Have a wipe on hand for wall splashes!

Preparation

• Hard boil the eggs.
  • Place the eggs in a saucepan or pot and cover with at least one inch of water.
  • Bring to a rolling boil.
  • Once boiling, turn off the heat and let the eggs sit in the hot water for at least 12 minutes.My family and I are at high altitude so I always let the eggs sit longer, almost 20 minutes.
  • Next, place the eggs into the ice bath to ensure the eggs separate from their shells for better peeling. Save the boil water for your egg dyes.
• It’s time to make the dye for the eggs.
  • Bring your egg water back to boiling.
  • Once it is boiling combine 1 teaspoon vinegar for each half cup of water. Separate out a half cup of solution in each dyeing bowl.
  • Add 10 to 20 drops of food coloring to each bowl until you reach the desired color.
  • Let the color solutions cool.

Now, time for the messy/fun part! Let the kids at it!