Cooking with our children, what a joy! But it's even more than that: by teaching them to cook early, you are also teaching your child the importance of good nutrition and autonomy. Let's take advantage of the break to initiate them!
Yogurt parfait
A little yogurt parfait, it's delicious, and easy as pie! It can be eaten for breakfast, or as a he althy snack or dessert. Nice, your child will be extremely satisfied with the result of this meal that he can concoct by himself! Who knows: maybe the urge to prepare you breakfast in bed will take him at the same time?
Ingredients
- 250 ml (1 cup) vanilla yogurt
- 250 ml (1 cup) blueberries
- 60 ml (1/4 cup) muesli cereal
- 30 ml (2 tbsp.) maple syrup (optional)
Preparation
- In two clear glasses, place 60 ml (1/4 cup) of yogurt.
- Place half of the blueberries on the yogurt. Add cereal.
- Pour in the rest of the yogurt and finish with a layer of blueberries.
- Add syrupmaple.
French Toast
A simple and delicious French toast. By learning to use the stove, your child opens up a real world of possibilities!
Ingredients
- A few slices of raisin (or nut) bread
- 375 ml (1 1/2 cups) 2% milk
- 2 eggs
- 30 ml (2 tbsp.) maple syrup
- 2 pinches of nutmeg
- Fruit decoration
Preparation
- Combine milk, eggs and nutmeg.
- Dip the slices of bread in the mixture.
- Brown both sides in a non-stick pan with a little butter over medium heat.
- Serve immediately, with maple syrup and fruit.
Sandwich
The sandwich is also one of the first meals that children can learn to prepare themselves. Of course, we vary the ingredients and the spreads (pesto, mayonnaise, mustard, jelly) as well as the breads (olives, carrots, wheat, grains, etc.). Little by little, he will learn to make mixtures that he likes, and to see the possibilities offered by the combination of certain foods. Teach him how to use a panini grill if you have one, the results will be even more varied. And delicious!
Ingredients (1 sandwich)
- 4 slices of smoked turkey breast
- 2 slices whole grain bread
- ¼ avocado, peeled and sliced
- 4 cucumber slices
- Alfalfa (from radish ormustard)
- 30 ml (2 tbsp) red pepper jelly (optional)
Preparation
- Also place the smoked turkey breast slices on 1 slice of bread.
- Garnish with cucumber, avocado and sprouts.
- Spread the other slice of bread with the pepper jelly (or another spread) and close the sandwich. Serve immediately.
Pizza
Kids love pizza: that's good, it's so easy to prepare! Also, if you don't have time to make your dough, you can make individual pizzas on pitas or tortillas. Place several ingredients on the table for your children to choose from. Tonight, everyone makes their own pizza!
Ingredients (your choice)
- Cheese (feel free to suggest new ones, bolder than mozzarella)
- Vegetables (peppers, onions, spinach, tomatoes, mushrooms, asparagus…)
- Tomato sauce
- Proteins (chicken, cold meats, shrimps…)
- Toppings (olives, dried tomatoes, nuts…)
Preparation
Everyone makes their own pizza. Place in the oven at 350°F for 20 to 30 minutes.
Bruschettas for children
We ask the child who wants to help with the meal to prepare the starter: what a great idea! Tonight he treats guests to delicious bruschetta!
Ingredients
- 2 English muffins or toasted bread croutons
- 1/2 diced tomato
- 1/2 green chilli, diced
- 4 slices of cooked bacon
- 1 cup cheddar or mozzarella cheese
- Onion (optional)
- A little paprika
Preparation
- Apply butter to the English muffin halves to prevent them from burning in the oven.
- Place tomatoes, peppers, bacon, onions and cheese on English muffin halves.
- Add the paprika to the cheese.
- Bake at 350°F for 10 minutes, or until cheese is golden.
Mini quiches
Kids love quiches. What's good is that the mini-quiches are easy to prepare and they fit well in our children's lunch the next day. Ham, vegetables or other: it's your choice! We love this variation offered on the show Smart cooking, parents in a hurry, in which we replace the traditional pie dough with mini pitas. In doing so, we cut fat, cost and preparation time! You can of course replace the salmon with meat or vegetables.
Ingredients
- 5 eggs
- 30 ml (2 tbsp) unbleached all-purpose flour
- 2 cans of skinless, boneless salmon, 150 g (5 oz) each
- 100 g (3 ½ oz) soft unripened goat cheese
- 60 ml (¼ cup) of milk
- 30 ml (2 tbsp.) chopped fresh dill
- Pepper and S alt
- 12 mini pitas
Preparation
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Place the rack in the center of the oven.
- In a 1 liter measuring cup (or bowl with pour spout), whisk the eggs. Using a sieve, sprinkle the flour in a fine bead over the eggs and whisk again to incorporate.
- Add the salmon, half the cheese, milk and dill. Generously pepper and s alt. Mix well.
- In the bottom of the holes of a 12-muffin pan (or two 6-muffin pans), place a mini-pita: it will serve as the crust.
- Spread the salmon mixture over the pitas and garnish the tops of the mini-quiches with the remaining cheese.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until eggs are set and mini quiches are golden brown on top.
- Serve with a green salad.
Keep 3 days in the refrigerator or 3 months in the freezer.
Apple Crumble
In season or not, you can eat delicious Quebec apples all year round… and make a crumble!
Ingredients
- For 4 people
- 4 apples
- 2 tablespoons of butter
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 4 tablespoons of sugar
- 6 tablespoons flour
Preparation
Cut the apples into slices. Put them in a dish. Combine flour, sugar, cinnamon and s alt. Melt the butter and add itto the mixture. Roll until you get crumbs and put everything on the apples, without packing. Bake in medium oven for 25 minutes.
Serve warm, with ice cream.
Cake in a cup
Requiring more ingredients and handling than the crumble, this individual cupcake is still very easy to make (and just as hard to miss!)
Ingredients
- 45 ml (3 tbsp) unbleached all-purpose flour
- 30 ml (2 tbsp.) brown sugar
- 10 ml (2 tsp) cocoa
- 1 ml (¼ tsp) baking powder
- 45 ml (3 tbsp) milk
- 15 ml (1 tbsp) canola oil
- 1 drop of vanilla extract
- 10 semi-sweet chocolate chips (1 tsp/5ml)
Preparation
In a coffee cup with a capacity of about 250 ml (1 cup), mix the flour, brown sugar, cocoa and baking powder. Add milk, oil and vanilla. With a fork, stir gently until the batter has no lumps. Then sprinkle the chocolate chips on top. Microwave the cake for 45 seconds. Let the cake cool for 5 minutes to allow it to finish cooking.
For 40 more mug cake ideas, get the brand new Microwave Cakes - 40 Quick Microwave Cakes Recipe Book, by Mima Sinclair. All recipes are quick and easy (minus15 minutes) to be prepared by children.
Oatmeal Chocolate Cookies
Chocolate oatmeal cookies are a classic! Less complicated than a cake (which might not rise), but more convoluted than one-cup recipes, cookies are a great gateway into the decadent world of baking! It will also allow you to teach your children to pick up and wash the utensils they have used.
Ingredients
- 3 cups (750 ml) rolled oats
- ¾ cup (180 ml) softened butter
- 1 cup (250 ml) packed brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 c. (10 ml) vanilla
- ½ c. (2 ml) baking soda
- ¼ c. (1 ml) s alt
- 12 oz (375 g) semi-sweet chocolate chips
Preparation
In a large bowl, beat the butter for 30 seconds. Add the brown sugar, beating constantly. Add eggs and vanilla, and beat until smooth. Reserve.
In another bowl, combine rolled oats, baking soda and s alt. Add dry ingredients to reserved butter mixture and beat until smooth. Using a spoon, stir in the chocolate chips. Drop the dough, 1 tbsp. (15 mL) at a time, on parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing cookies about 3 inches (8 cm) apart. Lay out a cookie sheeton the top rack of a preheated 300°F (150°C) oven and another on the bottom rack. Bake for 13 to 15 minutes or until the cookies are lightly browned (invert and turn the sheets halfway through baking). Place the sheets on wire racks and let the cookies cool completely before removing them from the sheets. Bake the rest of the cookies the same way.
For best results, process half of the oat flour in a food processor until it has the texture of white flour.
