The Mini Kitchen of Your Dreams for Teen Programming at Your Library

I’ve gone back and forth in my 30 years in libraries about food based library programming. And I have had the situation where I have worked at libraries with full kitchens and worked at libraries with no kitchen. Today, I am going to share with you one of my favorite library kitchen program ideas. Before we start, I need to make clear: this is not a paid endorsement. I just happen to be one of those people who do that ADHD thing where you hyper-fixate on something AND am always thinking about how everything can apply to libraries. That is how I came to write this post about the mini kitchen of your library dreams.

There is a product line of kitchen appliances made by someone named Dash and they make a variety of mini items. They are my favorite things. Ever. Over time I have accumulated a variety of them for the express purpose of doing food things with teens.

The first one I bought was a mini toaster oven. I bought it because it was cute.

It turns out, the teens and young adults that I parent or invade my home love this! They make mini bagel pizzas. It’s quick. It’s easy. You can make them from scratch or buy frozen ones.

But Dash also makes mini waffle makers, mini griddles, mini grills, a mini smoothie maker and a mini bundt cake pan. We have made and decorated bundt cakes for a fun night with friends. I have done Cupcake Wars inspired programs before and this is a fun way to do that.

There is a weird egg maker thing, which I bought so that The Mr. could make himself little egg bites to take to work in the morning. In this picture you will also see hashbrowns made out of left over mashed potatoes in the mini waffle maker.

There are a ton of Tik Toks that talk share fun things to do with a mini waffle maker. You can make omelets, hashrow, Nutella waffles and so much more. It’s amazing what people are out there doing with these mini waffle makers. For example, here are 25 things you can do with a mini waffle maker.

Each mini machine can cost as low as $10 – for the mini waffle maker – to around $30. So it took me a little bit of time to accumulate my collection, which I have slowly been doing in part to share this all with you. If you have a friends group or are great at writing grants, this would be something to consider. You’re looking at around $300 to get started with the items I have mentioned here.

If you only can do one thing, I recommend getting a few mini waffle makers. Also, take note, they have a variety of fun ones that can do fun images in the waffle like snowflakes, hearts and more. I have one that does Grogu from the Mandolorian.

I’ve done library programming for years with teens and they like food. This is such a cute, fun and easy way to do food programming with teens, especially if you don’t have a kitchen in your library. But even if you do, mini food is fun.

Here are some of the things you can do:

1. Have a cooking/adulting 101 classes and teach the basics of cooking. This is also a great way to teach some nutritional basics.
2. Have a bund cake or waffle making and decorating Cake Wars type program. Or, do something like Chopped and given them a basket of ingredients and see what they come up with.
3. Have a study hall or after school time that is open and just have the devises and ingredients available. 1 in 5 kids are food insecure, it’s a great way to get food in their bellies while they are studying and feeling safe.
4. Have a tiny/mini food party. There are cookbooks dedicated to this concept.
5. Explore creative ways to use the devices, such as a Will it Waffle type program. There are a ton of Tik Toks where people share the creative ways you can use your mini waffle maker. One of my favorites is left over stuffing or potatoes, as you saw above.

There is even a mini dog treat maker which would be great if you have some type of a pet themed program. My dog, Fisher, loved his little peanut butter treats. This would have been great to have on hand when I did my Love Your Pets program a few years ago.

And because they’re mini, they are easy to clean and store. I have 8 and I keep them in a tub in a closet.

There are some things you will want to keep in mind:

1. There is an initial investment, as mentioned above.
2. You will also have the additional cost of ingredients each time you want to use them. Food based programming is some of the most expensive programming that libraries engage in.
3. You’ll want to be aware of food allergies. Some food allergies – especially peanut and shellfish allergies – can be deadly.
4. You’ll want to make sure and have additional items like plates, silverware, table cloths, etc.
5. We’re talking about cooking, and the surfaces can be hot. Make sure you have the proper gear available, like silicone tongs and finger protectors. They also make silicone mats which I would place under the devices.

And here’s some books that might inspire you:

And here’s some previous food program posts to inspire you:

Food TPiB: Waffle It Edition

TPiB: Tiny Food Party

I love my mini kitchen and have done a lot of amazing things with teens. I highly recommend this. It has so many possibilities.

Filed under: Cooking, Food, Food Crafts, TPIB