7 recipes to cook between girls and boys during the winter holidays

Cooking with our children is something that only brings benefits. Beyond the obvious act of feeding them, if they participate in the food preparation process, they will not only be entertained but will exercise the manipulation of various concepts and learnings, ranging from the origin and use of certain ingredients to the metrics of the different portions used. and much more.

Also, understanding that a plate of food does not only arrive at the table and that there is a lot of work behind each preparation, will always be positive. Finally, in recipes where you have to leaven, bake, or just wait for something to cool or cook, they will strengthen your patience. That being the case, there is no reason not to include children in the kitchen. Always, of course, very carefully and without fear of stains.

There is almost no child who does not like the cake, nor who does not have fun if invited to participate in this recipe. La mayor gratia de esta preparación es que en su estapa inicial, o sea antes del horneado, no tiene ingredientes ni procesos que pudiesen ser peligrosos para los menores: se trata simplye de mezclar distintos productsos hasta conseguir una pasta cremosa y suave que luego se irá in the oven.

Once baked, the typical debate will come: should the cake be eaten hot or cold? Of course, you can eat it hot, and it’s very tasty.

Classic cake (for 4 people)

-1 egg

—1 cup brown sugar

—2 tablespoons marigold oil

—2 cups whole wheat flour

—½ cup skim milk

—1 teaspoon baking powder

—zest of lemon zest to taste

Turn on the oven at 180º. In a large bowl, add all the dry ingredients, which kids can do without problem, and stir to combine well. Then add the liquid ingredients (milk and oil, plus the egg) and using an electric mixer – best for an adult to do this – blend until creamy and smooth. However, girls and boys can again intervene when it is necessary to put the mixture in a previously oiled mold. Finally, pop it in the oven for forty minutes — or until when you insert a stick into the cake it comes out dry — and it’ll be ready.

This preparation, very childish, also amuses them a lot when it is prepared at home from A to Z, including the preparation of the dough. For the same reason, the key here is to pick ingredients they like and then team up to cook that delicacy.

Simple pizza (for two medium units)

—500 grams of flour without powder

—1 teaspoon dry yeast

—1 cup water at room temperature

—2 teaspoons of salt

—1 tablespoon of olive oil

—2 cups grated mozzarella cheese (or similar)

—2 cups of tomato puree

—200 grams of cooked ham

—Oregano and olive oil

First, the dough. On a table, make a kind of “volcano” with the flour and put the yeast in the middle. Add a few drops of water to activate it and leave for a few minutes until it bubbles. Then add the salt to the flour with a little more water and start working the dough with your hands, adding all the water little by little.

Once you have a more or less firm dough, you can leave it for a while for the girls or the boys to help knead it. At the end, when you already have a nice roll, put it in a floured bowl, cover it with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge for two hours.

At the end of this time, turn on the oven at maximum power, take the brioche out of the refrigerator – which will have grown – and cut it in half to make two medium pizzas. Ideally, you should stretch the dough with your hands, but you can also use the rolling pin and do it with the children.

When the pasta is thin, let the kids add the tomato sauce, cheese, and ham — or whatever ingredient they like — plus a sprinkle of oregano and olive oil to taste. They will have a great time in all this work. Finally, put the pizzas in the oven in a pan and cook until all the ingredients are melted with the cheese. Go out and eat immediately.

Another food that everyone loves and is fun to make is bread. Like other pastries or baking preparations, the entire pre-baking stage is a great opportunity for children to literally get their hands dirty.

homemade bread

—500 grams of flour without baking powder

—1 and ½ cups of water at room temperature

—1 teaspoon dry yeast

—½ tsp salt

—½ teaspoon of sugar

—2 tablespoons of olive oil

In a large bowl, put the water and add the yeast plus the sugar. Stir until well blended, then add half the flour and all the oil. Dissolve any lumps with a fork, cover with a clean kitchen towel and leave to stand for 20 minutes at room temperature.

At the end of this time, turn on the oven to medium heat, uncover the bowl and add the rest of the flour, the salt and stir again to combine everything. Then turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and knead it until it forms a soft bun. This time is ideal for children to help as much as they want. Finally, shape it into a loaf and make a few slits in the top with a knife – not too deep – so it won’t break when it rises during baking. In a previously oiled source, bake for 45 minutes or until the bread begins to brown on the outside. Take it out, let it cool for a few minutes and consume it alone or with what you prefer.

One cake that is unsweetened is potato cake, but even so it is generally to the taste of children. And not to spoil anything, preparing it with the youngest members of the household can be a great moment of pleasure.

Potato cake (for six people)

—300 grams of ground black squash

-1 onion

—6 large potatoes

—2 boiled eggs

—12 green olives

—1 cup whole milk

—50 grams of butter

—Salt, white pepper, cumin, nutmeg and olive oil

In a pan of cold water, cook the potatoes with the skin on and a pinch of salt. Once cooked, drain them, peel them and put them back in the pot. Then, grind them well then add a little salt, white pepper and just a pinch of nutmeg. Finally add the butter and milk, stirring immediately with a fork until the mixture has the consistency of a puree. Cover the pot and let cool.

Meanwhile, peel the onion and cut it into very small squares. Then sauté the onion in olive oil with a little salt. Once it starts to turn transparent, add the minced meat plus a little salt, pepper and cumin. Mix well and cook over low heat until the meat is cooked. At the end, in a pudding bowl, first place the pino de carne, then place the hard-boiled eggs on top, peeled by the children and cut into quarters, as well as the olives. Cover with the mashed potatoes — which kids can easily do — and let stand for half an hour at room temperature. Finally, bake for about fifteen minutes then serve in portions.

Do you want children to eat more fruit? Do the following: Ask them to pick the ones they like best, then prepare a plate in the style shown below.

Tutti frutti d’hiver (for four people)

—1 banana

—3 kiwi fruit

—1 red apple

—1 tangerine

—1 mango

—1 orange

Cut the banana into thick slices, same for the kiwis. The apple, without peeling it, cut it into croissants. Peel and slice the tangerine. Peel the mango and cut it into long sticks. Finally, arrange the fruit in a bowl and bathe it with the juice of an orange. Serve immediately.

So that everything is not sweets and dough, a vegetable omelet is convenient for the little ones in the house. Which vegetable is boy and girl proof? Of course, the carrot. And as if that were not enough, their preparation can involve them without too much trouble.

Carrot omelet (for 4 people)

—10 carrots

-4 eggs

— marigold oil and salt

Peel the carrots and then, with great care and supervision, have the children grate them. Separately, in a large salad bowl, let them also break the eggs and mix well. Then add a pinch of salt and the grated carrot. Mix so that everything is integrated and finally brown an adult in a pan with a non-stick surface for about five minutes on each side.

If you are hungry and in addition the boys or girls are bored, here is a solution. It’s an easy, rich and different chicken recipe that can involve them.

Grilled honey chicken trutros (for four people)

—8 long trunks

—1 cup soy sauce

—1 cup of honey

-Miracle Oil

Turn on the oven at medium temperature. In a large bowl, combine soy and honey. Mix well then ask the children to dip each trout in the sauce. Then, place them in a previously oiled spring and cook them for 40 minutes or until they are golden brown.

*Prices for products in this item are current as of July 5, 2022. Values ​​and availability may change.