Children’s cookery classes

Helping your child to develop a love affair with food

In a relaxed and fun environment my cookery classes help children from 2 yrs understand 

the basics of cookery, reveal how fun cooking and baking are, whilst promoting healthy eating

and a sense of accomplishment.

Each session lasts an hour, recipes are prepared from scratch and your child takes the dish and 

recipe card home with them. These sessions are especially great at helping fussy eaters to like 

their food.

Savoury sample dishes:

Cheese & carrot muffins

Pizza bites

Courgette tarts

Home made fish fingers

Sweet sample dishes

Individual apple crumble

Individual rice pudding with fruit

Cup cakes with butter icing

Courses are held at various venues in North London and a set of 6 sessions costs £48

please contact Natasha on 07734 054 649 for more details

www.kinderkitchen.org.uk

NOW ALSO HOLDING COOKERY PARTIES FOR CHILDREN 3+

Healthy kids recipes - easy celery, leek and tomato sauce



Healthy kids recipes - easy celery, leek and tomato sauce

A winner with all children

Like most children I know, my two love pasta with tomato sauce with a sprinkling of cheese on top. It's even a favourite of mine now. Tomato sauce is easy to freeze and stores in the fridge for a good couple of days. Tinned tomatoes on their own can be a little boring and to make sure my two get their 5-a-day I add other ingredients to the sauce and then blend it all together so that they are unaware of what is actually in the sauce.

Ingredients:

1 small onion, chopped
3 stalks of celery, washed and sliced
1 large leek, washed and sliced
2 tins of canned plum tomatoes
2 tbsp of tomato ketchup (optional)
1 clove of garlic, crushed (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste (optional)

Method:

1. Fry the onions, celery and leek in a little olive oil on a medium heat for 10 minutes
2. Add the crushed garlic, tinned tomatoes, ketchup, salt and pepper
3. Place a lid on the pan and allow to simmer on a low heat for at least an hour. (The longer you leave it the better it will taste) Remember to stir occasionally so that the sauce does not stick to the bottom of the pan
4. Before serving, blend it with a hand blender or in a liquidiser
5. Poor onto pasta and serve with a sprinkling of parmesan or your choice of cheese

Tons of hidden goodness in a simple bowl of pasta!

Healthy kids recipes - easy cheese muffins

Healthy kids recipes - easy cheese muffins

These healthy muffins are easy to make, can be as nutritious as you wish them to be as you can add little extras and your children will love to help you make them. They are great for breakfast, a packed lunch box, a snack or served with a bowl of soup.

My son about to eat his cheese muffin

Ingredients:

250g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
2 eggs
80g butter, melted and cooled
150g grated cheese (cheddar, masdam, gruyere)
230ml milk
Pinch of salt and pepper (optional depending on age of child)

Method:
 

Preheat oven to 200 C/gas mark 6

1. Place 12 muffin cases in a muffin tin 
2. Sieve the flour, baking powder, salt, pepper (if using) into a bowl and stir in 120g of the grated cheese 
3. With a hand held whisk or electric one, beat the eggs in a separate bowl and add the milk and butter and whisk everything together until well mixed 
4. Now with a spoon stir this mixture into the bowl with the flour in and mix well 
5. Spoon the mixture into the muffin case. (The cases should all be about 2/3rds full) Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top of the muffins 
6. Bake in the oven for around 20 minutes until the topping is golden brown

Kinder Kitchen packed lunch ideas - potato salad

I overheard a couple of mums at the school gate discussing ideas for packed lunches, so I thought that I would post a couple more ideas up as also requested by a couple of friends.

My two haven't yet mastered potato salad but varying it and adding things your children like it could be a winner, and healthy too! It can also be a meal-in-1 by adding protein and vegetables.

Packed lunch potato salad

Method:

1. Wash and then boil baby, new or salad potatoes in boiling water until soft (for extra nutrition you can keep their skins on)
2. Allow to cool and then cut into small child bite size pieces
3. For a simple version of this salad add some mayonnaise, finely chopped red onion (optional) and thinly sliced fresh mint

Further suggestions:

1. Mayonnaise with sliced bacon and green peas
2. Salad cream, chives and sweetcorn
3. Natural yoghurt mixed with mayonnaise (healthier option), finely chopped chicken breast and cucumber

Kinder Kitchen cooking tip - fussy eaters

Well, although I eat nearly everything, both my children don't. My son has never eaten an egg or baked beans, my daughter rarely eats rice or couscous. I am lucky as they have healthy appetites but I have to be inventive and clever at the same time. Carrots get grated into homemade hamburgers and pasta tomato sauce gets blended prior to serving so they don't recognise the celery or leeks I put into it. Below are some tips to help parents/carers with fussy eaters. I'd love to hear from you with any of your tips and tricks so please post them up on here or on my Facebook page.

• Try and sit down with them as a family as much as possible. Even if you are eating different food to them, they will look at what you are eating and sometimes want to try what you have – and may even like it. This is how I realised that my little boy likes biryani rice although his sister won’t touch rice at all
• When possible get your children to help you prepare/cook the meal. If they are too young, beside you, they could make pretend food with some play dough or even play at doing the washing up in the sink
• Try and vary their meals as much as possible – not every day but once a week at least – even changing how you serve potatoes gets them used to different textures – mash, roast, boiled, oven fries, sautéed
• Kids like sauces. They can find it hard to chew dry food. Try to serve a sauce with their food as much as possible. Even try condiments once in a while such as mayonnaise and ketchup and even plain yoghurt to ensure the meal is not so dry
• Try to limit snacks and sugary drinks between meals. Young children will only eat well when they are hungry
• If they refuse to eat a meal, don’t immediately replace it with something they like. Let them sit at the table for a while and try again, say, ½ hour later. Children will eat when they are hungry but they can use it against you and try to demand something that they do like. They are not silly!

Kinder Kitchen packed lunch ideas

As many children go back to school this week after the summer break, many mums I speak to find it difficult to think up varying packed lunch ideas. My daughter starts school nursery next week and I will need to send her in with a packed lunch on a couple of those days, so it has got me thinking.
Many of us will turn to a sandwich (ham or cheese) straight away and although our children need the carbohydrates they get from bread, it nonetheless clogs up their system like it does our own, and too much bread long term is not good.
So below are some ideas for different packed lunches. If you have any ideas please post them on my facebook page or on my blog page, as this is really an issue that mums are faced with nationwide!

• Chicken legs roasted in olive oil with thyme and garlic
• Chicken breast roasted and sliced 
• Rice cake sandwiches with hummus
• Plain yoghurt sprinkled with raisins
• Dried apricots
• Homemade sweet potato crisps