Simple Bites » Kids in the Kitchen

How to Survive Grocery Shopping with Your Toddler

Aimee — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 13:24:03 +0000

Today I’m excited to be guest posting for my friend Annie and her popular blog PhD in Parenting. She’s created a Carnival of Toddlers and is addressing issues had on that we all face as parents of toddlers. Discipline, food, fun and survival are just a few of the topics that Annie and a line-up of guest writers are covering.

I’m keeping it real in today’s post on How to Survive and Thrive While Grocery Shopping with Your Toddler. I give my best tips for making the best possible grocery shopping experience with your toddler and offer suggestions for making the outing a learning experience.

From the post:

We must have looked a sight, my three-year-old, Mateo and I. It was my last minute attempt to hit up a grocery store before beginning my serious holiday cooking and baking blitz. My shopping list was lengthy and detailed, my time limited, and my energy flagging even before I unbuckled my son and stepped toward my local IGA.

I shivered in the December winds, my winter coat not giving much protection to my 6-month pregnant shape, and inwardly cursed myself for –yet again- forgetting to bring a couple of reusable shopping bags.

Once inside, Mateo shrieked and his little snowsuit-clad form staggered across the wet floors and lurched into a massive red plastic fire truck shopping cart. As I tossed my purse into the top of it, my iPhone dinged to let me know that my email was piling up as I ran errands.

Continue reading How to Survive and Thrive While Grocery Shopping with Your Toddler on PhD in Parenting.

I’ll see you in the comments section over on Annie’s blog!

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How to Survive Grocery Shopping with Your Toddler is a post from Simple Bites

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Cooking with Kids: Maple Pecan Baked Apples

Aimee — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 04:12:42 +0000

Now that Noah is in school, Mateo and I have more time to play in the kitchen. We’ve made apple butter, oatmeal cinnamon muffins, homemade meusli, and a slew of other seasonal baking.

A recent apple picking outing provided us with several bushels of fresh apples, and while we’re munching them daily raw (sliced, with aged cheddar, thank you) we’ve discovered that baking them for the evening’s dessert is another delicious way to enjoy them.

Maple Pecan Baked Apples is a perfect recipe for inviting children to pull up a chair and make along with you. They can mix the filling while you core the apples, then let them stuff the apples (and sample a bit of everything), and into the oven they go (the apples, not the kids).

One-on-one time in the kitchen always leads to interesting conversations. This time Mateo (3) initiated:

Mateo: “Mommy, we’re not ever going to sell the baby are we?” (meaning his future sibling I’m currently pregnant with)
Me. “WHAT? NO! (sternly) Mateo, if a stranger offered you candy in exchange for our baby, what would you say?”
Mateo: (thinking, then:) “Thank you.”

Sigh. Where does he come up with this stuff? Please note that we have since assured him that the baby will never be ‘for sale’. Gracious!

A Snapshot of Apple Varieties and Their Uses

If I had a quarter for every conversation about appropriate apples for the job…well you get my point. Have you ever noticed an apple pie filling resembling applesauce instead of the soft individual apple pieces that it should contain under that flaky crust? That’s a perfect example of having selected the wrong variety of apple for the job.

There are dozens (hundreds, even) of apple varieties and each have their unique job description. Here are just a few of them:

Pie Apple

These apples hold their shape when baking and are ideal for slicing into pancakes, drying for apple chips, or packing between pastry for the perfect apple pie.

Varieties: Braeburn, Cox’s Orange Pippin, Granny Smith, Jonathon, Golden Russet (dries particularly well).

Cooking Apple

If you’re looking to make classic applesauce or puree, these are your best bet. Cook them down even further for one of our favorite spreads, apple butter, or combine them with winter squash for an ideal fall soup.

Varieties: Cortland (my fave for sauce), Empire, Fuji, McIntosh, Spartan, Winesap.

Munching Apple

Straight from the tree is the best way to enjoy an apple! Everyone has their particular favorite, but here are several that are known for their fine munching qualities.

Varieties: Cox’s Orange Pippin, Honey Crisp, Empire, Gala, Golden Delicious, Golden Russet, Granny Smith, Jonathon, Lady, McIntosh, Spartan.

Salad Apple

We enjoyed slivers in a salad just last night, paired with shaved fennel, toasted almonds and pickled red onion. Some varieties are less likely to discolor than others and ideal for salads.

Varieties: Cortland, Russet (my favorite for salads and pizza), Granny Smith ( Cheri uses these in her chicken and apple panini).

Cider Apple

If you enjoy juicing your apples, or making homemade cider, choose apples that are known for their juicy qualities!

Varieties: Cortland, Crispin, Empire, Granny Smith, McIntosh, Winesap.

Recipe: Maple Pecan Baked Apples

We use homemade granola as the base for our baked apples as it provides a wonderful contrasting crunch to the soft apple. You could also use rolled oats, or skip it altogether and instead increase the dried fruit and nuts. It’s your call!

Fresh ground cinnamon, pure maple syrup and butter transform this simple dessert into something extra special – as well as perfume the kitchen with an apple pie aroma.

5-6 medium pie apples
1/2 cup granola
1/3 cup dried blueberries, currants or raisins
1/4 cup chopped pecans or other nuts
2 Tablespoons butter
2 Tablespoons maple syrup
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350°F.
In a medium bowl, mix together granola, dried blueberries and chopped pecans. In a small bowl or Pyrex measuring cup, melt butter in the microwave; stir in maple syrup and cinnamon. Mix well and pour over granola mixture.
Wash and core apples, leaving the bottoms attached (don’t bore all the way through the apple). With a pairing knife, widen the opening on the apple to accommodate plenty of filling!
Place apples in a shallow baking dish and stuff with filling. Place in oven on the lowest shelf and bake for 18-22 minutes or until apples are soft. Baking time will vary with apple variety.
Remove from oven and serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream.

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What is your favorite variety of apple?

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Cooking with Kids: Maple Pecan Baked Apples is a post from Simple Bites

Six Reasons to Visit a Country Fair with the Family

Aimee — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 04:50:42 +0000

Last weekend our family packed a picnic and escaped to the country for our annual visit to a fall fair. We go every year as a family for many reasons – corn dogs, arcades and cotton candy not among them – rather we use the fair as an opportunity to further our family food culture.

Since we know that the connection between source and food is integral to encouraging good eating habits, we make an effort to visit local farms, but a trip to the local country fair is another way to make that link between field and fork.

The fall fair is so much more than fair rides and chicken-fried bacon; in fact, we find that when the line-ups to the arcades and canteens stretch for yards, the barns are always cool, quiet and spacious. Perfect for resting on a bale of hay and watching the milking process on some of the prettiest cows you’ve ever seen.

The weather couldn’t have been more perfect for our outing and I kept the camera handy to capture the day’s events. Today’s post is going to be a little different, almost like a photo essay showing highlights from our day. I hope these six reasons inspire you to seek out a country fair in your area!

Note: My apologies in advance for the photos. Trying to capture children and animals together is quite a challenge!

Real, Live Farm Animals

If a pastoral landscape dotted with livestock is not the view on your daily commute (and if it is, lucky you!) then you probably will appreciate the opportunity to get up close and personal with live animals at the country fair. We had fun spotting Wilbur, Black Beauty, Ping, The Runaway Bunny and many more of our favorite storybook characters in real life.

Noah and I walked slowly, hand in hand, through the stables, kicking up straw and reading the names of each horse as posted above their stalls. We admired cows of all sizes, buried our hands deep in a sheep’s woolly back, and fed handfuls of pellets to eager goats.

A good portion of time was spent in the poultry barn, where we took time to identify wild turkeys, roosters, doves, Muscovy ducks and chickens of all breeds. We laughed watching two ornery roosters conduct a spat through the bars of the cages and sighed over the ever-so-soft rabbits.

It was Animal Science 101, it was ‘Farmer Boy’, and it was the best afternoon ever.

Agricultural Displays

The pumpkin display gave us something to aspire to for our next gardening season, as did all of the gorgeous produce showcased. I loved seeing all the varieties of local vegetables, while the boys checked out art and craft projects submitted by children.

Truck Stop

Where else except the fall fair is your toddler going to pose with a larger-than-life John Deere? This is one event where toys really do come to life for boys of all ages. We spent the good part of an hour walking through (and climbing on) rows of shiny new farm equipment.

Picnic Play

Let’s talk about one of the not-so-great aspects of the country fair – the tendency toward complete and utter junk food. The local canteens offer fried onions, burgers, corn dogs and hotdogs and from there it’s a slippery slope. Cotton candy, deep-fried Mars bars, and caramel corn are just a few of the temptations for children – and let’s face it – pregnant ladies!

Here’s our rule of thumb, which works out for both our health and our budget (fair food isn’t cheap, people): we pack a complete picnic and purchase one ‘side’ from the fairgrounds. Usually french fries (easy to share) or poutine – a Quebec specialty, and if it is really warm, ice cream.

The rest of the day’s grazing is from our own snack bag, dried fruit, cookies, vegetable sticks, and crisp apples purchased at a roadside stand along the way. Just an observation: a bag of whole peanuts goes a long way when waiting for a horse show to start!

Petting Zoo

We found that no one minded if we petted any of the animals in the stables, but there was a petting zoo specifically for holding little furry creatures close. So we did that too.

My boys did ask for a bunny to bring home after holding three different ones each, but truth be told, I was starting to entertain thoughts of a little rabbitry on our property myself. They were just so cute!

Rides

We usually hit the rides early in the day, before it gets hot and while the line-ups are still reasonable. Our children are fresh and ready for some action after being cooped up in the car for the drive there. They aren’t tall enough for most of the rides, so they do a couple each and then we leave the Midway and head for the stables.

Yesterday, it was just too much excitement for Mateo, who passed out on Danny’s shoulder late in the afternoon. It’s so rare that he does this now, that Danny snuggled him close for nearly an hour.

A perfect ending to the day.

Do you have memories of visiting a fall fair as a child? Are you taking time to create these memories now?

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Grocery Shopping With Kids

Megan — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 04:09:01 +0000

Written by Megan of Stetted.

For families with kids, doing the weekly shopping is something that often strikes dread into the heart of every parent. From crying and begging to full-on, lay-on-the-ground-and-kick tantrums that seem to occur at a pin drop, shopping can be exhausting. But taking the opportunity to teach your kids about what they eat and where it comes from can transform the experience from terror to – dare I say it? – fun.

Here’s how you do it.

Before You Go

Have a list

However you plan for the week ahead, having a list of items to buy is essential when the kids are along for the ride. Temptations abound, even in the healthiest of markets and stores, and having a list is one way to tamp down clamors for treats. Ask the kids for their input as you make the list. If they know you’ll be buying apples, they are less likely to call out for candy bars once at the store.

Eat something

Going shopping while hungry results in overpurchasing, and hungry, cranky kids can easily cloud your food judgment. Try to shop right after a meal instead of after school or naptime, when the little ones will surely be hungry.

While You Shop

Talk about it

Talk to your kids about what you’re buying. It may seem silly to tell a baby about zucchini and what you plan to make with it, but consider it practice for explaining the building blocks of healthful eating as your children get older. Kids are curious and want to know everything about everything, and with its wide variety, the grocery store or local market is a good location for education.

Quiz them

My son can name an impressive number of fruits and vegetables, and I know at least some of that comes from his many trips with me to the farmers’ market and grocery store. Kids love to show off what they know. Spending a few extra minutes in the produce section asking your child about the latest featured item will not only build their knowledge, but also help them know their presence is valued.

Put them in charge

Grocery shopping is a great way for kids to practice their reading skills. Remember that list we made before leaving the house? Let your early reader take charge of all or a portion of the list. If they’re learning mathematics, discuss counting, sale prices, and weights.

Let them choose

I let my son pick out at least one item every time we go shopping. No, this does not mean candies or other items that are restricted in our home! Choose from a specific section of the store, whether it be the fruit, the bakery, or the dried grains. My son loves visiting the fish counter to select a filet and choosing pumpkins at the fall fair. This helps connect him to the food we’ll be preparing for dinner later and makes him much more likely to eat it.

While you’re likely to experience a transition period, and not every shopping trip will be a dream, sparking your child’s curiosity in food can help lead to a lifelong interest in healthful eating, cooking, or even farming. It’s never to early or too late to begin.

Do you take your kids shopping with you? Why or why not?

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How to Make Your Own Fruit-Bottom Yogurt

Cheri — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 04:04:11 +0000

We’re so pleased to have Cheri Neufeld of Kitchen Simplicity back as a regular contributor. Welcome, Cheri!

Growing up, Fruit-Bottom Yogurt was always my favorite. I got so excited when I would see one packed in my lunch box. Somehow they always seemed more flavorful then regular yogurt and I loved how the little chunks of fruit would add a burst of flavor in my mouth.

I’m still a big fan of yogurt but I have a hard time eating ones that taste fake or processed. Anything that has the “flavor” and no fruit gives me a bit of the heebie-jeebies.

Eating yogurt is a daily occurrence for my son so I try and make sure that the yogurt I purchase has real fruit in it. One way to ensure that is to make your own.

Why make your own?

It may seem pointless to make your own yogurt when there are so many brands available but here are some of the reasons you may want to give it a try.

It’s adaptable

No more scrounging the store for the perfect flavor that everyone will like. You can make a batch according the likes and dislikes of your family. I’ll share more of how you can do this below.

You can make them allergen free

The first several months of my daughter’s life I couldn’t have milk products because it upset her stomach. I switched to soy for a while but honestly, I didn’t enjoy it. Adding fruit definitely made it a lot more bearable. If you or your children have any sensitivities you can make so many varieties, using the appropriate yogurt, that even a non-yogurt lover may be converted.

No sugar added

The recipe I’m sharing below is sweetened with honey so it’s completely sugar free (besides naturally occurring sugars, of course). Yogurt is my son’s perfect snack before bed and this way I know he’s not getting a surge of sugar just before he goes to sleep.

It’s fun

Get the kids involved in the process and they’ll more then likely be excited to have this healthy snack all week long.

All photos by Cheri

It’s Easy

The concept isn’t as hard as one might think. You make a basic fruit compote, spoon it into jars and top with yogurt. Simple.

Feel free to play around with the ratios. I go with a ratio of 1 part fruit to 2 parts yogurt, but you can add more yogurt if you like.

These fruit-bottom yogurts stay good for a week in the fridge, so you can make a batch on Sunday to last the whole week. Throw them into lunch boxes, sprinkle them with granola for breakfast or save them for an afternoon snack that the kids can grab for themselves after school.

Less waste

This is another great way to recycle small jars, the sealable lids make them perfect for packing along. But tupperware would work fine too.

Or, you can store them separately and layer them right before you dive in. The color of the fruit does start to seep into the yogurt by the end of the week so if you’re worried about looks then you may prefer that option.

Below I’m sharing the basic recipe along with some tips on how to switch up the flavors. You can make your yogurt match the seasons and your kids’ taste buds.

Recipe: Fruit-Bottom Yogurt

It’s best to use stone fruit and berries with this recipe but feel free to experiment.

250g fruit (1/2 lb), peeled and chopped if needed
2 tablespoons honey
pinch salt
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon cold water
1 3/4 cups plain yogurt, sweetened with 1 tablespoon honey, or to taste.

Make compote: Place fruit, honey and salt in a medium sized saucepan. Bring to a simmer, stirring frequently. Stir together cornstarch and water until cornstarch is dissolved. Pour into fruit mixture. Simmer 5 minutes, stirring often, until thickened and no longer cloudy. Allow to cool before layering with yogurt.
Make yogurt: Add two tablespoons fruit compote to a sealable jar or plastic container. Top with 1/4 cup yogurt. Refrigerate, covered, for up to one week.

This makes 7, 6 tablespoon servings which is a great size for kids. Feel free to up the amounts for an adult portion.

Keep in mind: You may need to add more honey when using a tart fruit, such as rhubarb.
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Ways to switch it up:

This recipe is endlessly adaptable. Here are some ideas of how to switch things up.

Stir citrus zest, such as lime or orange, into the compote to add a punch of flavor.
Mix up the fruits. Think strawberry-rhubarb, blueberry-plum or nectarine-raspberry.
Add flavoring to the yogurt. Making a cherry yogurt? Stir in some almond extract. Making strawberry? Add vanilla.
Turn them into a parfait by adding granola on top.

What kind of fruit-bottom yogurt would you like to make?

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Balanced School Lunches for Picky Eaters

Katie G — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 04:08:11 +0000

Written by Katie of Good Life Eats

School is just around the corner for us, and I think we’re all glad of that in the Goodman home. We had a great summer and had a fun family vacation, checked out tons of library books, attended swimming lessons, and more. But I think we’re ready to get back to our regular school and work routines. Part of that routine is packing school lunches.

The problem that many moms, myself included, can have is that packing school lunches often becomes too routine. Meaning, that my kids can sometimes see the same items day after day in their lunch boxes. Here are several ideas to help get you started on the right foot.

After last year, I learned that mealtime at school was the perfect opportunity to mix things up. Why? Positive peer pressure. My picky eater wasn’t going to throw a tantrum at the school lunch table when offered something new. School was a more neutral ground for trying something new because I wasn’t present.

I always put enough food in the lunch that even if he doesn’t try the new food, he will still be full. Then it is completely up to him whether he eats it or not. Simply being presented with the item is the first step to trying new foods.

Tips for Packing Balanced Lunches

Beyond the Sandwich

A lunch box doesn’t need to contain a sandwich as the main dish.

One of Madeline’s favorites from last year were All-Natural, Uncured (no MSG, Nitrates, etc.) Chicken Cocktail Sausages that I found at Trader Joe’s. They weren’t an every day item, but once in a while it was a nice alternative to mix things up.

Also, both of my kids love yogurt, so I’ll definitely be sending them with Cheri’s Yogurt, Cottage Cheese, Fruit, and Granola Parfaits in their lunch once in a while.

Photo by Cheri

Offer a variety of choices that you can alternate throughout the week. Bagels, English muffins, pasta, wraps, homemade lunchables (sliced cheese, meat and whole grain crackers), and last night’s leftovers are all great choices to mix up the typical PB&J offerings.

Speaking of PB&J…

I know this is a heated topic, so I’m not going to get into the hows, whys, rights or wrongs. If your child has a peanut allergy or you attend a school with a no-peanut policy try some of these other spread options to replace the beloved peanut butter sandwich.

Almond Butter (we like Barney Butter)
Soy Nut Butter
Sunflower Butter
Cream Cheese
Homemade Cinnamon Walnut Butter

We’ve found that we actually prefer Almond Butter to Peanut Butter anyway.

Is a Microwave Available?

Find out of the school has a microwave available. This will definitely depend on the school and teacher’s policy, but having the option of a hot lunch can greatly increase the variety of food that you can pack.

We are lucky at our school that the kids eat in class rather than in the cafeteria and teachers are happy to reheat as long as it takes less than a minute.

No microwave? Try using an insulated thermos to pack things like soup and stews.

Fruit and Vegetables

It’s easy to toss and apple or a banana and a bag of carrots into the lunch box, but it is fun to present fruits and vegetables in an out-of-the-box manner.

Photo by Shaina

Try serving fruits with dips, like yogurt or almond/peanut butter. Vegetables are great for dipping in cottage cheese, guacamole, or salsa.

One of my favorite ideas is to make smoothies ahead of time and store them in the freezer. By lunchtime, they’ll be soft enough to enjoy in the lunchbox, plus they’ll help keep any other perishable foods in the lunch box cool.

Try some of these smoothies:

Healthy Treats

It’s fun to have a treat with lunch, but my kids are known for eating their sweets first and picking at the rest of their lunch when I’m not there to encourage eating fruits and vegetables first.

Photo by Katie

I often try to add healthier versions of their favorite treats to their lunch so I don’t have to worry about them filling up on empty calories during their lunch time.

Some of our favorites include:

All-Natural Fruit Leathers: Homemade, Cherry Peach Fruit Leather recipe, or store bought.
Healthy Muffins disguised as dessert: Whole Wheat Triple Chocolate Banana Muffins
Homemade Apple Chips and Sun Butter Bites

Get the Kids Involved

Often I will let Logan help me make the lunches. He is entering 1st grade this year and is an avid reader. I write him a list that goes something like this and let him do the rest:

Put this in your lunch box:

Bagel, Sandwich, Muffin, or Pasta
1 fruit – your choice
1 vegetable – your choice
Yogurt, String Cheese, or a “Circle Cheese“
Fruit Leather or Dried Mango
Fill your water bottle
Napkin

xoxo, Mom

I offer deliberately easy foods for him to prepare. Being involved in the lunch making gives him the opportunity to make food choices within healthy parameters and helps him practice his reading skills.

Need More Lunch Ideas?

5 Tree-Nut and Peanut-Free School Lunches | Family Kitchen on Babble
Eco-Friendly Lunch Containers | Simple Kids
Finger Foods for Toddlers | Simple Kids
New Year, New Lunchbox: 9 Cures for the Mid-Day Blues | Simple Bites

Are you ready for school to start?

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Balanced School Lunches for Picky Eaters is a post from Simple Bites

Whole Family Cookbook Review & Giveaway (recipe: A-B-C Frittata)

Aimee — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 04:09:42 +0000

Every so often you meet a person with whom you see eye to eye on many important topics. Thanks to online connections, these encounters happen more and more frequently. Michelle of What’s Cooking with Kids is one of those friends. Even though we have never met, her philosophy and well-researched posts often have me nodding my head in agreement and occasionally giving her a virtual high-five.

Michelle recently penned “The Whole Family Cookbook” and I knew from the onset that this was going to be a resource I could get behind. Without question, Michelle is an expert in her field of teaching children to cook and instilling a healthy food culture in a new generation. I’m excited to share this cookbook with you, plus offer a chance to win a few copies!

The Whole Family Cookbook lives up to its reputation with the tagline – Celebrating the Goodness of Locally Grown Food. With gorgeous photos and over seventy-five creative recipes, it grabs our attention instantly and practically cajoles us into the kitchen – with kids in tow.

Kids in the kitchen is yet another topic Michelle and I agree on! The first chapter of the book, Raising Young Locavores, dives headfirst into this topic, where Michelle’s passion shines through beautifully. She gives her expert tips on engaging children of all ages in the kitchen – right down to the toddler.

And then there are recipes! Creative, organic, and family-friendly, Michelle’s recipes focus on sustainable ingredients and simple techniques. My favorite section – Mom Approved Treats – has got so many fun treats, we’ll be busy cooking from it for a while!

Handy tips, solid environmental practices and good plain fun is just a sample of what you’ll find in The Whole Family Cookbook.

It’s a cookbook for the modern, eco-conscious family that enjoys the simple pleasures of home cooking.

Recipe: ABC Frittata (Apple, Bacon, Cheddar)

Michelle whips up her frittata’s from her own backyard eggs. Talk about local. Text for this recipe is Michelle’s; photos are my own. And those boys? Yep, mine too.

Those same boys enjoyed this with whole grain toast; Danny and I preferred ours on a bed of lightly dressed baby arugula. A perfect plate for brunch, lunch or a light dinner.

Ingredients:

2 egg whites
8 whole eggs
1 cup cheddar cheese, grated
Salt, to taste
3 slices bacon
Ground Pepper, to taste
2 apples, Fuji or Gala
1 Tablespoon butter

method:

Put the rack in the upper third of the oven. Preheat oven to 450°F.

Crack the eggs, one at a time, over a small bowl. After checking for stray shells, pour each egg into a medium bowl. To separate the egg whites, crack the egg over an egg separator or someone’s clean hands. Carefully let the egg white slip through the fingers into the bowl, with the yolk remaining. Discard the yolk or save for another recipe. Using a whisk, beat the eggs until the yolks and whites are thoroughly combined.

Grate the cheese. Younger children can help you use a rotary cheese grater (which protects their skin). Older children can use a box grater. Add half of the grated cheese to the egg mixture and stir to combine. Add a pinch of salt and pepper, to your liking.

Cook the strips of bacon. You can fry them in a skillet (watch out! They can splatter.) Or, you can bake them in the oven on a cooling rack over a rimmed baking sheet. We like this method because we don’t have to turn the bacon over and the kids stay safe.

Once the bacon cools, crumble the strips with clean hands. Use a vegetable peeler to peel the apple. If you have an apple corer, you may use it. Or, simply cut up the apple, leaving the core behind. Slice the apple pieces very thinly. As you are cutting, be sure to put the flat side of the apple pieces down, so the chunks don’t wobble on your cutting board.

In a medium cast-iron or nonstick ovenproof skillet, heat the butter over medium heat. Add egg mixture to the skillet. Sprinkle the bacon crumbles evenly over the eggs. Gently arrange the apples on top of the egg mixture, in a circular pattern. Sprinkle with remaining cheese.

Move the skillet from the stovetop to the upper rack of your oven. Bake until frittata is firm in the center and cheese is browned, about 20 minutes. Use a flexible spatula to loosen the frittata from the pan. Carefully slide it onto a cutting board. Allow to cool for a few minutes before slicing into wedges.

Serves 4,

Recipe from The Whole Family Cookbook, Used with permission, of course.

Giveaway!

This giveaway is now closed. Winners will be announced in Sunday’s Weekend Links. Thank you to all who entered!
Good news! Two of you will win a copy of The Whole Family Cookbook right here!! Simply leave a comment on this post and answer me this: What was your very first kitchen memory?

This giveaway will end at 11:59 on Saturday, April 9. Good luck to all!

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Simple Tips for Baking with Kids (Recipe: Giant Oatmeal Cookies)

Lynn — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 08:29:27 +0000

Written by Lynn of Cookie Baker Lynn.

As a parent, one of my goals for my children is that they should be able to take care of themselves after they’ve left the nest. I know a young woman who called home from her first month away at college, asking how to boil water. She had never had any kind of experience in the kitchen and was starting at ground level as an 18 year old.

How much better it is if we can start our kids at an early age, letting them get comfortable in the kitchen. I have two kids out of the nest and I love them telling me that they can still hear my voice in their heads teaching them how to hold the knife when cutting vegetables. We practiced cooking and baking together and today they are able to thrive in the kitchen.

I also have two children still at home, so there are many more teaching and baking opportunities ahead for us.

Switching Gears for Baking with Kids

For me, baking with kids requires a different mindset than my everyday baking. When I’m on my own I like to put on my headphones and listen to a book or dance to tunes while I create, my hands working almost independently, they’ve had so much practice. But when my children want to help, I need to take a breath and shift gears, going from fast, efficient mode to slower, teaching mode.

Along the way I’ve learned:

You can’t be in a rush. The day you have to make 5 dozen cookies for the bake sale is not the best day to start baking with your kids.
You can’t expect perfection. Learning involves mistakes.
You need to mentally relax and let the little stuff slide. My mantra is, “It’s just food.” So what if it’s uneven, wobbly, or a bit burned? It’s just food!

If baking with your children seems intimidating, remember that you as parent have been their first and best teacher. Who taught them to walk? You did. Who taught them to talk? You did! Will they ever learn anything more difficult than that? Not likely.

You are very qualified to teach your children how to prepare food for themselves, but there’s a few things to remember along the way.

Be patient.
Assign tasks at their ability level.
Supervise and direct.
Expect messes.
Expect to have fun.

All photos by Lynn Craig

Simple Steps to Baking with Kids

I’ll walk you through a recent baking session that I had with my kids and you can get an idea of what works for us and what you might like to try in your kitchen.

1. Decide what to make. Cookies are always welcome in my house, so we went with a classic oatmeal raisin cookie, with the twist of adding sunflower seeds.

2. Read through the recipe. All the way to the end. Why is this important? It helps you avoid unpleasant surprises, like the dough needing to be chilled overnight, or the recipe calling for a piece of equipment you don’t have.

3. Wash all hands and put on aprons. It’s not absolutely necessary that they have an apron, of course, but it does protect the clothes and make the children feel like they’re really bakers. Washing the hands is non-negotiable.

4. Divide up and assign tasks. Be sure that you assign tasks that they can successfully complete. Also, if you have more than one child, you don’t want them arguing over who gets to break the eggs. If one child can measure dry ingredients, then another child can measure liquids, and they can each break an egg (if there are two in the recipe).

TIP: I have my kids practice separating eggs when all that’s called for is whole eggs. There is zero stress if the yolk gets broken. It’s a good chance to introduce that skill without pressure attached.

5. Get all of the ingredients out on the counter. This does two things. It ensures that you actually have all of the ingredients. It also speeds up the process a bit so that impatient little hands won’t find inappropriate things to do while you’re searching for ingredients.

TIP: When the recipe calls for butter at room temperature, no need to put off the baking for an hour while the butter warms up. Just take turns holding a stick of butter (wrapped!) in an armpit (with a shirt on!). We call this armpit butter and the kids think it’s hilarious. It gently warms up the butter without putting melted holes in it like the microwave can.

6. Use safe and stable stools for smaller children so they can be a part of the action, too.

7. Clean up and put away as you go. Unless you’d like to raise a teenager who leaves the kitchen looking like a war zone whenever hunger strikes, another important lesson should be to clean up after yourself. And by doing it as you go, by the time the cookies come out of the oven, almost everything’s cleaned up!

So, with all that information under your belt, let’s get started!

Giant Oatmeal Cookies

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened (armpit, if necessary)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
1 cup all-purpose flour (you can substitute 1/2 cup with White Whole Wheat, if you like)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup quick-cooking rolled oats (see Tip 1 below*)
1 cups raisins (soaked, see Tip 2 below**)
1/2 cup raw, unsalted sunflower seeds
2 Tbsp granulated sugar (optional)

1- Preheat the oven to 375°F with two racks dividing the oven into thirds. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

2- In a large mixing bowl place the butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla. Break the egg into a small bowl and add it into the large bowl. This way, any stray bits of shell can be easily removed from the small bowl, avoiding “crunchy” cookies. With the mixer on medium speed, beat until the mixture is smooth and well blended.

3- With the mixer off, add the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. With the mixer on medium speed, beat until all the ingredients are well combined. Turn the mixer off.

4- Drain the raisins and pat them dry on a paper towel. Add the oats, the raisins, and the sunflower seeds to the dough. Beat just until all the ingredients are combined.

5- Put the 2 Tbsp sugar in a bowl, if you’d like to dip the cookies in it before baking. This gives a sparkly, slightly crunchy finish to the cookies.

6- Scoop out the dough. (My daughter chose the Tablespoon scoop for dainty cookies. My son chose the muffin scoop for monster cookies. I divided the dough in half and let them each fill a cookie sheet.) If you’d like to, dip the cookies in the sugar. Place the dough balls on the prepared baking sheet, sugar side up.

7- Using a light tapping motion to make a flat circle, about 1/2 inch thick for monster cookies, thinner for dainty ones.

8- The dough will spread, so leave space between the cookies, more for the monsters than the dainties.

9- Using hot pads, carefully open the oven door and place the baking sheets in the preheated oven. (This is a job for older children or a parent.) Bake until the cookies are very light golden brown, about 10 minutes.

10- Using pot holders, remove the baking sheets from the oven. Set each on a rack to cool. When the cookies are cooled, remove them to a cooling rack with a spatula.

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*Tip 1: If you don’t have quick-cooking oats on hand, you can make them easily. Place a cup of regular rolled oats in a food processor and pulse it a few times.

**Tip 2: One of the most common items that kids complain about in cookies is raisins. I have a theory about this. It’s the fault of dry raisins. In the heat of the oven, they have no choice but to become hard and black. If you’ve ever had a burned raisin in a cookie, you’ll know what I’m talking about. They’re nasty. But they don’t have to be.

When you’re baking with raisins, the first thing you should do is set the specified amount of raisins in a bowl and cover it with warm (preferably filtered) water. Allow the raisins to soak while you do the rest of the dough preparation (15 minutes, up to an hour). The raisins will plump up wonderfully. Drain them and set them on a paper towel to dry off before adding them to the dough. When they’re baking, they will have some excess moisture to give up in the heat and still be juicy and delicious in the finished cookie.

Did you bake with your mother, father or grandparent when you were younger? How active were you in the kitchen as a child?

Editor’s note: This will be Lynn’s last post as a contributor here at Simple Bites, but you can still follow her baking adventures and smart writing over at Cookie Baker Lynn. Lynn, thank you for all the wisdom you have bestowed here over the past year!

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Simple Tips for Baking with Kids (Recipe: Giant Oatmeal Cookies) is a post from Simple Bites

Baking with Kids: Baked Apple Gingerbread Pancake

Aimee — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 05:27:17 +0000

Last week was particularly stormy, even for us Northerners. Huge dumps of snow caused my husband to be stranded for an extra day in Toronto and gave two snow days to my kindergartner, Noah. My list of priorities quickly changed at that turn of events.

Of course, the boys and I spent the better part of both days baking up a storm of our own; our time in the kitchen was interspersed with bursts of play in the snowdrifts and lengthy story times. We may have had a few non-suppers as well. Why, with the man of the house away, what better excuse not to cook a real dinner?

A season for kids in the kitchen

Although we often get outside for a snow picnic or sledding expedition, the majority of play in February is indoors. By now, puzzles are getting worn, books read and reread, and just today my eldest sighed heavily and said “I wish it was another season, like spring”. Like most of us, he’s feeling the winter blahs. I think another cooking lesson is in order for this week!

Winter is the ideal season to get kids cooking alongside you in the kitchen. While summer is spent playing outdoors from morning ’til night, the cold weather practically demands you assemble together at the stove and bake up something to warm you from head to toe. Even if your climate is not as cold as it is outside my door, the routine of the winter months makes incorporating a family baking session into the week easier than in the scattered days of summer.

On Wednesday we’ll take a closer look at what to expect when you bake with children, and provide helpful steps to make it enjoyable for everyone. For now, I suggest you brush up on basic kitchen safety and knife skills for children, then make a date with your children for a fabulous baking activity!

Tip: Does your child have a winter birthday? Consider a cooking/baking themed birthday party and inspire kids of all ages to get in the kitchen. Head HERE for a complete guide with tips, links and a suggested timeline.

Recipe: Baked Apple-Gingerbread Pancake

Since our favorite foods for a snow day include both pancakes and gingerbread, I decided to combine then in one perfect dish. We enjoyed it immensely and I knew I had to share it with you!

It’s a great dish for making together, and my five-year-old was able to complete most of the steps with my close supervision.

Ingredients:

1 medium apple
4 Tablespoons organic whole cane sugar (why? head here) or brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup milk, at room temperature
2 Tablespoons molasses
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
pinch of salt

Method:

*Start with all ingredients at room temperature*. This helps the pancake to ‘puff’ without any leavening.

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly butter a non-stick ovenproof skillet (I love the Scanpan CTX Fry Pan) or a Pyrex pie pan.

2. Peel the apple, then quarter and chop into chunks. Transfer to a bowl and stir in 2 Tablespoons of the whole cane sugar and cinnamon.

3. Pour apples into the pan and spread them around the bottom. Place pan in preheated oven and set timer for five minutes. Meanwhile, make your batter.

4. In a blender, combine 2 Tablespoons sugar, eggs, milk, molasses, flour, salt, and ground ginger. Blend for about one minute until smooth.

5. Using oven mitts, open the oven and carefully slide the rack out partially until the pan of baking apples are accessible. Pour the batter from the blender into the pan, slide the rack back in and close the oven door.

6. Bake for about 25 minutes until puffed and golden.

To Serve: Slide pancake onto a large cutting board. Dust with powdered sugar, slice into wedges and serve.

Do your kids show interest in the kitchen?

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Baking with Kids: Baked Apple Gingerbread Pancake is a post from Simple Bites

5 Tips for Surviving with a Selective Eater

Aimee — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 11:49:59 +0000

Today I’m guest posting over at Food for My Family. When Shaina announced her new series on “Breaking a Picky Eater” I was jumping up and down to have my say. It’s been a long, uphill battle for us, but over the years, we’ve seen much improvement.

In my post, I share a bit of our story, and give a handful of tips that helped us stay sane and kept the kids nourished. From the post:

“It has now been five years since that first spoonful of solids was obstinately pushed out of my firstborn’s mouth. Things are better. Much better. My eldest now eats meat, green vegetables, and many fruits. Yes, cheese is still limited to one variety (marble cheddar, SVP), berries are disdained, and orange vegetables are pushed aside, but he eats a myriad of ingredients most kids his age won’t touch. Beans, lentils, and chickpeas are all popular, served up in burritos, soups and curries. Fish disappears faster than the home fries, and cooked cereals are gobbled up every morning.

As I look back on the headway we have made over the years, I’m happy to report that as slow as it was, progress was made. Perhaps that is the encouragement you need to hear today.”

Head over to Food for My Family to keep reading the post and note my five tips for surviving a picky eater. I’ll see you in the comments!

CURRENT SPONSORS:

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5 Tips for Surviving with a Selective Eater is a post from Simple Bites