Food for tot

Summer vacations are a great excuse to get some much-needed help in the kitchen. Get crafty with your kids and get them to try their hands at a few fun recipes. We get two enterprising mommies to give it a go.
Cooking fascinates children as much as getting their hands dirty in wed mud or messing around with water colours. The excitement of using elaborate appliances, fancy cookware, bright ingredients and the allure of a yummy delight at the end is good enough to catch any kids’ fancy.Instead of shooing them away, give their curiosity a whiff. Two readers, Mallika Sampat and Bharti Kapadia keep their children busy in the kitchen as the sun scorches its way through their vacation time.
Top tips
- Never leave children unsupervised in the kitchen » Keep sharp objects (scissors, knives) at bay. Keep first aid kit handy
- Heat or boil liquids on the back burner » Encourage the concept of hygiene while cooking
- Aprons and tied-up hair are a must (Tips by Chef Pooja Dhingra. Pooja undertakes cooking classes for children at Le 15 Patisserie)
Trick and treat
Simran is carefully counting tablespoons as she sieves millet, cornmeal, nachini and whole wheat flour to make a multigrain dough. Her mother, Mallika Sampat instructs her on the right way to bind it together, by moving her hand in circles. “Someone needs to supervise, otherwise we will have a soup instead of dough,” says the mother of this 11-year-old. They’re trying their hand on a multi-grain quesadilla, which is Mallika's creation and a trick to keep her kitchen free from processed flour. She uses the same dough to make taco shells, frankie wraps and stuffed parathas. According to Mallika, helping in the kitchen makes children more aware of ingredients and lets them distinguish between healthy and unhealthy food. Simran then brings the dough together, arranges mixed vegetables, cheddar cheese and olives on semi-roasted tortillas. Once that is done, she instinctively runs a wet finger around the edges of the tortilla and seals it with another fresh chapatti. The Mexican dish is pan seared on a hot griddled by Mallika and cut to size.
A smart cookie
Four-year-old Harsh Kapadia was introduced to cooking two years ago. His mother Bharti started off by including him while she made his favourites — cookies and cakes. At first, he handled easy jobs such as mixing a cake batter and greasing the tin. “Slowly Harsh has graduated to doing more complex things such as shaping cookies using the cutter and peeling boiled vegetables without help,” she says.
Bharti feels that involving kids in the kitchen encourages patience as they wait for the cake to rise or the jelly to set. “It teaches younger kids basic mathematic concepts like half and full and counting the number of spoons.” Today the duo is making healthy chocolate and oatmeal cookies. The process starts with Harsh mixing all the dry ingredients together in a large bowl. He carefully counts his spoons as instructed, and brings the dry ingredients together by adding liquids. The dough is cut to size with a heart-shaped cookie cutter and before we know it, the house is filled with a sweet smell of freshly baked biscuits.
Multigrain quesadilla
Ingredients: 2 tbsp nachni flour, 2 tbsp millet flour, 2 tbsp cornmeal, 2 tbsp multigrain flour, water to bind the dough, ½ cup boiled corn (crushed), 2 tbsp onions (chopped), 2 tbsp capsicum (chopped), 7-8 olives (chopped), 2 tbsp bell peppers (chopped), 2 tsp oregano, 1 tbsp cheese, 2 tsp olive oil, pinch of chilli powder, pepper, salt and pepper as per taste.
Method: Make a dough using the flour, a tbsp olive oil and water. Roll it out into thin chapattis to make tortillas. On a hot griddle, semi-cook the tortillas and keep aside. Saute the vegetables in another pan and season it with oregano, chilli powder, salt and pepper. Now, top a tortilla with vegetables, cheese, olives and cover it with another roti. Cook it on a hot griddle for a few minutes on both the sides and serve.
Oatmeal and chocolate cookies
Ingredients: 3 tbsp butter, ½ cup brown sugar (powdered), 1 tbsp honey, ½ cup oatmeal, ½ cup whole wheat flour, 1-2 tbsp cocoa, ½ cup milk
Method: In a large bowl, cream together sugar and butter. Add honey, oats, whole wheat flour and cocoa powder. Mix this gently with your fingertips until it resembles bread crumbs. Add some milk to make a tight dough and cover it with a plastic sheet. Refrigerate for 10 minutes. Roll it onto a thick sheet using a rolling pin and use a cookie cutter to cut shapes. Bake the cookies for 15 minutes at 180 degree celsius and serve with a bowl of whipped cream and fruits.
Sonal Ved mirrorfeedback@indiatimes.com