Cooking with Children

The recipes that are being shared are recipes that are kid-friendly. There are elements/techniques in each recipe that children can learn if you, as a parent, will take the time to teach and train how to perform certain tasks in the kitchen.

RUTHIE’S CHOCOLATE FRENCH TOAST with QUICK RASPBERRY SAUCE
(Sara Moulton, Cooks at Home)

6 large eggs
2 cups whole milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 TBSP sugar
3 TBSP. unsalted butter
Eight ½ - inch thick slices brioche or egg bread
4 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, broken into large chunks and finely chopped
1 cup Quick Raspberry Sauce
½ cup fresh raspberries
Several fresh mint springs for garnish

Beat the eggs with the milk, vanilla, sugar and salt in a large shallow dish. Working in 2 batches, melt half of butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat or heat a griddle to medium hot. Dip half the bread slices quickly in the egg mixture until lightly soaked. Transfer to the skillet and sprinkle each slice with one-fourth of the chocolate. Dip the remaining bread in the egg mixture and place on top of the chocolate. Press gently but firmly with a spatula so the slices adhere. Turn down the heat to medium and cook, turning once, until well browned and cooked through, 5 minutes per side. Cut in half on the diagonal and serve on warmed plates. Spoon a small amount of the raspberry sauce around the toast and garnish with whole raspberries and a sprig of mint. Serve the remaining sauce on the side.

QUICK RASPBERRY SAUCE

1 pint fresh raspberries
1 TBSP. fresh lemon juice
½ to ¾ cups powdered sugar

Combine the raspberries, lemon juice and ½ cup powdered sugar in a food processor. Taste and add additional sugar if desired. Process until well blended and strain through a fine mesh strainer.

BREAKFAST TARTS (JoAnna M. Lund, Cooking Healthy with the Kids In Mind)

1 (7.5 – oz.) can Pillsbury refrigerated Buttermilk biscuits
1 full cup finely diced ham
1/3 cup grated Cheddar cheese
4 eggs or equivalent in egg substitute
2 TBSP. milk
½ tsp. lemon pepper
1 tsp. dried parsley flakes

Preheat oven to 400*. Spray 10 wells of a 12-hole muffin pan with butter-flavored cooking spray. Separate biscuits and place each biscuit into a muffin cup, pressing dough up sides to edge of cup. Evenly divide ham and Cheddar cheese among biscuit cups. In a medium bowl, combine eggs, milk, lemon pepper and parsley flakes. Spoon mixture evenly over top. Bake for 10 – 15 minutes or until centers are firm. Place muffin pan on a wire rack and let set for 2 – 3 minutes. Serve at once. Serves 5 (2 each). (Fill extra muffin wells with wire for even baking.)


FOCACCIA BREAD (Adrienne Larson)

Mix together:
2 pkgs. Yeast (or 2 TBSP.)
2 cups warm water
Add:
2 TBSP. Olive oil
1 tsp. Salt
5 - 5 ½ cups flour
2 TBSP. Dried Onions
2 TBSP. Dried Parsley flakes
½ tsp. Crumbled Rosemary
½ tsp. Dried Sage

Mix together and knead 5 minutes till stiff, not sticky. Cover bowl and let raise. Punch down. Break in half. Make two round, flat loaves like pizza dough. Poke with fingers. Brush with ½ cup olive oil INFUSED with 1 - 2 cloves of crushed garlic. Brush pan with oil and garlic mix. Bake at 375* for 30 minutes. Sprinkle on Kosher salt and dried rosemary just before baking.

BREAD STICKS: Divide dough in half; roll each half into 16 BREAD STICKS to make total of 32. (Follow baking instructions for bread.)

NEVER-FAIL YEAST ROLLS (Kayla Gentry, Taste of Home Magazine)

1 pkg. active dry yeast / or 1 TBSP. yeast
1 ½ cups warm water
3 ¼ cups flour
1 pkg. (9 oz.) yellow or white cake mix
½ tsp. salt
Melted butter or margarine

In a large mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Beat in the flour, dry cake mix and salt (do not knead). Place in a greased bowl. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. Punch dough down; divide in half. Roll each portion into a 12-inch circle; cut each circle into 12 wedges. Roll up, beginning at the wide end; place point side down on greased baking sheets. Brush with butter. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 25 minutes. Bake at 350* for 12 – 15 minutes or until golden brown. Yield: 2 dozen rolls.


FRENCH STRING BEANS (Ina Garten, Barefoot Contessa, Episode #IGSP03)

1 pound French string beans, both ends removed Kosher salt 1 red onion, large-diced 1/2 red pepper, large-diced 1/2 yellow pepper, large-diced Good olive oil Freshly ground black pepper
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Blanch the string beans in a large pot of boiling salted water for just 4 minutes. Drain immediately and immerse in a large bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. When they are cool, drain and set aside.
Meanwhile, in a large bowl toss the onion and bell peppers together with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Place in a single layer on a baking sheet and roast for about 15 minutes, tossing with a spatula from time to time to be sure the vegetables roast evenly.
Just before serving, reheat the string beans in a large saute pan drizzled with a little olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and arrange on a platter. Spoon the roasted vegetables over the string beans and serve hot or at room temperature.

HONEY MUSTARD CHICKEN (Susan Berdahl - Family Fun Magazine, Oct. 98)

1/4 to ½ cup butter, melted
½ cup honey
1/4 cup prepared mustard
1 tsp. Salt
½ - 1 tsp. Curry powder
3 to 4 pounds chicken pieces, such as drumsticks, wings, thighs, and breasts

Preheat the oven to 350*. Combine all ingredients except chicken in bowl. Place the chicken in a shallow baking dish and pour the honey mustard mixture over to coat. Bake for 1 hour, basting occasionally, until the chicken is tender and has a golden glaze. Serves 8 to 12.


PIZZA MEATBALLS (Janet Higgins)

1-1/2 pounds ground beef
1 tsp. Onion powder
1 egg
1 cup Panko bread crumbs (Japanese breadcrumbs; or use Italian Seasoned Bread crumbs)
1-1/2 tsp. freshly chopped garlic
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper, to taste
Italian seasoning (marjoram, thyme, rosemary, savory, sage, oregano, and basil)
8 ounces mozzarella cheese, cut into 1/4-inch cubes

Preheat oven to 350* degrees. Line a flat baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large bowl add ground beef, onion powder, egg, Panko crumbs, garlic, Worcestershire, salt, pepper, couple dashes of Italian seasoning. Mix thoroughly. Shape into 1-inch balls. Push into the mixture a cube of cheese. Reshape the meatball. Place on lined baking sheet. Do this until all of the meatballs have been formed. Bake in the oven until browned, about 15 to 20 minutes. If the cheese cube that was used is too big it will melt out of the meatball.

In 3-1/2 cups of TRADITIONAL TOMATO SAUCE, add meatballs once they are done cooking. Serve with toothpicks.


PENNE MOZZARELLA PASTA

16 ounces Penne Pasta
2 cups Traditional Italian Tomato Sauce
1/4 pound fresh mozzarella cheese, chilled and cut into small cubes

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta, and cook until al dente, 8 to 10 minutes, or according to package instructions. Remove from heat, drain, and set aside. Meanwhile, in a large sauté pan add Tomato Sauce and simmer until thickened, about 5 minutes. Season to taste. Add the cooked pasta and cubed mozzarella to the sauce, tossing until coated and heated through. Serve immediately. Dish will be stringy with cheese!

OVEN-FRIED CHICKEN WITH ALMONDS (The South Beach Diet Cookbook, pg. 217)

1 cup whole wheat bread crumbs
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
¼ cup finely chopped almonds
2 TBSP. chopped parsley
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tsp. salt
¼ tsp. dried thyme
Pinch of black pepper
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded to ½ “ thickness and cut into 12 pieces
Sprig Italian parsley, for garnish

Preheat oven to 400*. In a medium bowl, combine the bread crumbs, cheese, almonds, parsley, garlic, salt, thyme, and pepper. Mix thoroughly.
Place the oil in a shallow dish. Dip the chicken first in the oil, then dredge in the crumb mixture. Place the chicken in a shallow baking pan.
Bake for 25 minutes, or until a thermometer inserted in the center of a piece registers 170* and the juices run clear. (Do not turn the chicken during cooking.) Garnish with the parsley. Makes 6 servings.


TWO-STEP CRUNCHY CHICKEN STRIPS (BH&G Magazine, May 2005, pg. 262)

Non-stick cooking spray
2 ½ cups crushed bite-sized cheddar fish-shape crackers or pretzels
Bottled buttermilk ranch salad dressing
1 lb. chicken breast tenderloins

Preheat oven to 425*. Line a 15x10x1 baking pan with foil; lightly coat with cooking spray. Set aside.
In a shallow dish place the crushed crackers. In another shallow dish place the ranch dressing. Dip chicken tenderloins into the ranch dressing, allowing excess to drip off; dip into cracker crumbs to coat. Arrange chicken in prepared pan. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink. Serve with additional ranch dressing. Makes 4 to 6 servings.
Quicker version: Use a 10-ounce package of cooked refrigerated chicken breast strips instead of the chicken breast tenderloins. Prepare as above except bake only 5 to 8 minutes or until heated through.


PEANUT BUTTER BLOSSOMS

Sift together:
1-3/4 cup flour
½ tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
Cream together:
½ cup shortening or butter
1/3 cup peanut butter
Add:
½ cup sugar 1 egg
½ cup brown sugar 1 tsp. vanilla

Shape into balls; roll in sugar. Bake on greased cookie sheet for 8 minutes; remove from oven. Place Hershey Candy Kisses in center until cookie cracks around sides. Return to oven; bake from 2 - 5 minutes longer. Bake at 375*. Makes 3 dozen cookies.


CREAMY LEMON PIE (Jell-O)

1 ¾ cups cold milk
2 - 4 oz. pkg. JELL-O Vanilla Flavor Instant Pudding
1 - 6 oz. can frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
1 tub (8 oz.) COOL WHIP, whipped topping
1 - 9" prepared graham cracker crumb crust
Lemon slices, optional

Pour milk into large bowl. Add pudding mixes. Beat with whisk 30 seconds. Add lemonade concentrate. Beat with wire whisk 30 seconds. (Mixture will be thick) Immediately stir in whipped topping. Spoon into crust.

Refrigerate 4 hours or until set. Garnish with lemon slices, if desired. Store leftover pie in refrigerator. Makes 8 servings. *Can divide filling into 2 pies!

PUPPY CHOW

6 oz. Chocolate chips
½ cup peanut butter
¼ box of Chex or Crispex cereal
1-1/2 cups powdered sugar

Melt chocolate chips and peanut butter in a double boiler on medium low heat. Stir continually so mixture does not burn. (Or you can heat in microwave, 1 minute at a time till melted.) Pour mixture into large bowl. Gradually stir in cereal until it is well covered with chocolate mixture.

Pour powdered sugar into a large plastic bag. Pour cereal mixture (half of it) into the powdered sugar bag. Close bag and shake until coated. Pour coated cereal into large bowl and repeat with second ½ of cereal.

BUTTERY CARMEL CORN - MICROWAVE (Virginia Prestel)
(Adult will need to prepare caramel mixture and pour onto popcorn, but the kids can participate with the shaking and eating!)

1 cup brown sugar 1/4 cup light Karo syrup
1 cube butter or margarine ½ tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla ½ tsp. baking soda
16 cups popcorn

Combine sugar, syrup, butter and salt in 2 qt. glass measure or microwave-proof bowl. Cook on High 2 minutes. Stir well. Continue cooking 3 minutes, stirring once or twice. Stir in vanilla and baking soda.

Place popcorn in large brown paper bag, not recycled. Pour mixture over popcorn, fold bag ends and shake well. Cook on High as follows, keeping bag closed:
1 minute - then shake bag
1 minute - shake bag
30 seconds - shake bag
30 seconds - shake bag

Pour onto large piece of foil to cool. Store in airtight container.


STRAWBERRY FOOL
1 lb fresh strawberries 1 cup cold heavy cream 1 TBSP freshly squeezed orange juice 5 TBSP sugar 1/2 cup vanilla yogurt 1. Wash the strawberries with cool running water. Select 3 of your prettiest strawberries to use as decorations; set them aside. Hull the strawberries and cut them in large pieces. Put strawberry pieces in a bowl and mash with a potato masher. Put mashed berries in a strainer set over a bowl and let them drain for 15 minutes. 2. Pour the cream and the orange juice into the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the whisk attachment on the mixer, beat the cream on low speed until it begins to thicken; then increase the speed adding the sugar, and beat until the cream forms stiff peaks. Remove the bowl from the mixer and use a large spoon or rubber spatula to fold in the vanilla yogurt. (You can also whisk the cream by hand or with a hand mixer) 3. Gently fold the drained, mashed strawberries into the cream mixture. Using 6 bowls or pretty glasses, divide the mixture evenly in each container. Chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve. 4. With reserved strawberries, cut each in half from top to bottom. Garnish each serving with a strawberry half, placing it cut side down on top of the fool. Great served with cookies!

*TIP: Chill bowl in freezer before whipping cream.