We thought it might be useful to post those easy, child friendly recipes which others might not have thought of. Please do comment with your own suggestions and I’ll post them up:
A couple of staples in our household are broccoli pasta and fruity snacks. Broccoli pasta is Coswise’s favourite food, extremely easy to make and freezable. She would eat bowls and bowls of this if allowed to.
Broccoli pasta (makes loads)
Ingredients:
Half head of broccoli
1/3 tub of cream cheese
Optional: Pesto 1/2tsp
Favourite pasta shapes
Boil water, set pasta to cook.
Cut broccoli head into average size florets and cook until just soft.
Drain broccoli, reserve 100ml or so of liquid.
Using stick blender puree broccoli and cream cheese, adding some cooking liquid as necessary to loosen. You should end up with light green smoothish puree thick enough to coat pasta.
Stir into cooked pasta, add pesto if desired and serve. Portion up remainder into containers and serve. To defrost – 3 mins in microwave.
Fruity snacks
I think of these as a cheaper version of Humzingers. They are great for using up dried fruit that’s been sitting in the cupboard for a while and children can help make them. They are always very popular.
Ingredients
Three mugs full of mixed ‘ready to eat’ dried fruit, or normal dried fruit soaked in boiled water for 40mins. I use lots of prunes, mi-cuit apricots, figs (they don’t notice the seeds) and raisins.
1/2 mug of porridge oats plus extra for rolling
Small splash orange, apple or cranberry juice
In food processor process fruit and not quite all oats. You are aiming for a sticky mass that is just moist enough to hold together. Add oats or smal splash of juice as necessary to get this consistency.
Spread oats over work surface like flour for pastry rolling.
Roll mix with hands into long sausages about 2cm in diameter, coating with oats.
Cut into scant cm thick slices to get disks. You can then either store as is or…
Dry out in very low oven (100 deg if it goes down this far) for about an hour. Pack into containers and use as emergency snacks when out and about.
Let me know if they work for you and what your children thought of them.
