Cooking Matters Alicia McCabe demonstrating skills taught in a cooking class

here in Massachusetts, I didn’t hesitate. Cooking Matters teaches participants (many receiving SNAP and WIC benefits) to shop smarter, cook delicious meals, and how to make healthy choices. With the help of an army of volunteers, participants enroll in a six-week cooking course that include a grocery tour to teach how to shop, read nutrition labels, and stretch their dollars.

• Participants have increased confidence in the kitchen
• Number of meals cooked at home increased
• Families are eating healthier and choosing healthy foods (whole grains, low-fat dairy, low sodium)
• Participants reported increase in their ability to stretch their food dollars

Ever since I started blogging, my family has been subject to trying a new recipe several times a week in my quest to raise adventurous eaters (and to push myself as a home cook). There have been some duds, but more often than not, successful dishes that my kids will scoff up happily. Some recipes included lots of prep, multiple pans, and hours on the stove, causing me to shoo the boys in another room.

Then there are days that the boys beg to help. And while there are days that I think it would be so much faster (and cleaner) if I just cooked it myself, I invite them to be my helpers. And can honestly say, it's paid off in spades. Here's some proof!

Kids love to help bake.

Little fingers are perfect for making baked pita chips.

Fish in Parchment lets kids design their own "presents"

Kids love to tear things up. Have them rip up some basil!

When kids help, they will likely eat it!

Cooking with kids can seem daunting to most parents (let's face it, just plain cooking on a busy school night is daunting). But I've found (as so many others have discovered), that when you involve your kids, they learn so many essential life skills -- including the love for cooking! And when you cook real food, you're establishing a lifetime of healthy habits.

In recognition of National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month, ChopChop Magazine is hosting the Big Picnic this Sunday, 9/22/13. It's a virtual community picnic in which families will cook with their kids and share photos using hashtag #bigpicnic as a fun way to learn and inspire each other. Everyone loves showing off what they made (or about to eat) on social media. So why not show off what your kids made and inspire other kids to do the same?

To learn more, check out ChopChop's Big Picnic web pages. Hope to see you there!

(Full disclosure - I work for ChopChop, but as always, all my opinions are all my own.)

It has been a crazy few weeks around here (thus the lack of blog posts - gah!). Between work, special projects, school commitments, after-school activities, birthdays, holidays, vacations... I'm afraid I haven't had the time to blog as much as I would like. But that doesn't mean we haven't been testing new recipes, plus going back to some tried-and-true ones.

So on a particular busy weeknight, I like whipping this up. It takes less than 30 minutes from start to finish. Plus it's a perfect recipe to involve your kids. Read on to see why!

Shrimp, Tomato, and Basil Pasta
Adapted from Everyday Food: Great Food Fast

INGREDIENTS

• 1 1/2 pounds of medium , peeled and deveined uncooked shrimp
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 can (14.5 oz) diced fire-roasted tomatoes (plain diced tomatoes works too)
• 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
• 3/4-1 lb spaghetti 
• 1 1/2 cups packed fresh basil leaves, torn into small pieces

kids love tearing the basil into small pieces

• 1/4 cup olive oil or canola oil
• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1.5-2 lbs fish fillets (we prefer flounder or sea bass, but almost any firm fish will do)
• 4 fingerling potatoes, sliced thin
• 1 lemon, thinly sliced 
• 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced 
• Green veggies (baby bok choy or chinese broccoli is a favorite), parboiled
• Chopped fresh herbs (parsley, chives, cilantro)
• Sesame oil (optional)
• Sliced ginger (optional)
• Salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Pour olive oil into measuring cup and add red pepper flakes.
2. Prepare four 15 x 15-inch squares of parchment paper (or foil) and place one fish fillet on top of each sheet. 
3. Top each with a few slices of potato, lemon, onion, veggies, ginger (optional) and drizzle with spicy olive oil. Top each packet with fresh herbs, a dash of sesame oil (optional) and season with salt and pepper. 
4. Wrap each into parchment packets. There are many techniques to do this, including twirling the ends to look like hard candy, to calzone shaped or pouches similar to how a they wrap up a sandwich at the deli. Pull up the sides together than roll down the ends until it lays flat on the fish. Fold overhang underneath bundle. Then place fish packet on cookie sheet. 
5. Slide the packets onto a cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and serve one present per plate. Be careful when unwrapping as the steam will be HOT. 

Future executive chef, restaurant critic, or food blogger!

It happened. I don't know how, but it has to my delight. My 6 year-old is passionate about food. The boy loves to shop for food, try new restaurants, and help cook. And most recently, has asked if he could not only help cook, but plan some meals. Hold a moment while I wipe away a tear.

So as not to discourage him from this new-found interest (the trains can finally get a break!), I grabbed a stack of ChopChop magazines, a couple of kid-friendly cookbooks from the public library, a pad of paper and pen and asked him, "so what do you want to try making?" He flipped through recipe after recipe and pointed out the ones he wanted to try as I scribbled away as if he was the executive chef and I his sous chef.

The boy's menu

So the plan is this: he gets to choose at least one recipe a week and we add that to our weekly menu plan. I was happy to see he did not just choose the typical kid-friendly dishes. His tastes ranged from savory breakfast items, hearty lunch dishes to multicultural dinners. This week we made oven-baked pita chips, spinach, mushroom and cheese stromboli, and banana-berry smoothies. Best to start of slow, right?

I have no idea if we'll be able to keep this up, but this pretty much re-affirms what experts preach when it comes to dealing with picky-eaters:

• Get kids involved
• Meal plan with them
• Let them help pick out groceries
• Give them a job in the kitchen

Our youngest has even joined in on the fun and we've noticed dinnertime battles have decreased - albeit just a little bit... but I will take anything I can get.

So if you can, make it part of your routine. Have your kids be in charge of breakfast/lunch/dinner once a week. Just make sure you are not in a rush and don't mind a bit more clean-up!

We have had about two months of school and school lunches under our belt at our house. Here is what a typical week looks like:
Thankfully, my oldest almost always polishes whatever I pack in his lunchbox. It's 50/50 with my 3-year-old. Okay, who am I trying to kid? It's 25/75 with the little bugger. So we're already in a rut and it's only November. *Gulp*

So when I heard about a "Lunch Boot Camp: How to pack a lunch that will be eaten" with ChopChop Magazine held at the Cambridge School of Culinary Arts and hosted by Mommy Niri, I was giddy with excitement... like the day I got my first Hello Kitty Lunch box.

ChopChop Magazine
ChopChop is a quarterly food magazine and website for kids. ChopChop's mission is to educate kids to cook and empower them to make healthy choices. Think Cook's Illustrated meets Highlights Magazine. It is awesome. Here are some reasons why:

Recipes - simple and healthy recipes that are easy to follow with fun photos of kids making the dish. I love how, at a glance, you know how much adult help is suggested, kitchen gear, ingredients and prep time is needed.

The Sally Challenge - Kids challenge Sally to come up with a recipe that will get them to enjoy an ingredient they typically dislike. If Sally can turn Cate into an eggplant fan with her Roasted Eggplant Ratatouille, then maybe my boys will love it too.

Fun & Games - (my son's favorite part of ChopChop) mazes, word finds, puzzles and other games are peppered (pun intended) throughout each issue. It keeps kids engaged about nutrition and exercise while having fun.

Kids love it too! My boys get excited to try the recipes in a given issue. And they love having a magazine geared to them.

Lunch Boot Camp
I had the good fortune of joining a handful of other local bloggers at the Cambridge School of Culinary Arts to hear Sally Sampson, Founder and President of ChopChop, bestow pearls of wisdom on how to pack a lunch that will get eaten. We got more tips from Chef Instructor Dot Jacobson as she gave us a cooking demo on how to make a carrot & apple soup and pasta salad. And lunch boot camp could not be complete without a luncheon.

Founder and President of ChopChop sharing lunch-packing strategies

CSCA Instructor Dot Jacobson giving a cooking demo with Laura Reid, Kim Grenon, Julia Magnusson, Sheri Gurock, and Sally Sampson looking on.

Sandwich and yogurt bar = perfect lunch!

Delicious penne and roasted veggies

Check out the recipes for the Penne and Vegetables with Lemon Dressing and Carrot Apple Soup - perfect for your kids or your own lunch box.

How to pack a lunch that will get eaten

• Involve your kids: Not only should you ask your kids to choose what they want for lunch, but have them help shop, prepare and pack it. The more you involve your kids, the more invested they will be and likely to try new foods.
• Pair new ingredients with favorites: Does your kid hate peas but love tomato sauce? Try adding peas to tomato sauce. Even if they don't gobble up every pea for example, there's a good chance they are trying a few and will slowly realize peas aren't so bad. 
• Texture is key: Kids' palates are not as mature as adults, and textures can make or break a dish in their mind. My boys will gag if you try to give them anything mushy like overcooked vegetables. Dice or puree and combine with other ingredients. My knife skills have never been better!
  
• Make it personal: Most kids love to make it about them. A personal-sized pizza, mini pot pies, kebabs. It's the right size and they get to control what goes in it. 
• Don't give up: Experts say it could take up to 15 tries for a child to get used to and even like a new ingredient. I try to expose my kids to one new ingredient or dish a week. They might not like bitter melon right now, but at least they can pick one out now and remind you it's not their favorite.

Thanks Mommy Niri for organizing Lunch Boot Camp!

Thanks to ChopChop, Cambridge School of Culinary Arts, and Mommy Niri for hosting a great event. Packing lunch has never looked so appealing!

marveling at vanilla beans (first for both of us)

As I've mentioned on this blog, I am not much of a baker. Consequently, desserts around here are usually store-bought. Sure, I'll make the occasional oatmeal raisin cookie, muffins or quick bread. The fact that my boys know exactly what to do with the immersion blender but will look at our stand mixer as some scary kitchen appliance says something about my baking skills.

So as a challenge to myself, I bought myself the Flour: Spectacular Recipes from Boston's Flour Bakery + Cafe cookbook by Joanne Chang. I thought best to ease into what I would consider the master class of baking cookbooks with a no-bake recipe: Brown Butter-Crispy Rice Treats. This would be a fun and easy treat to make with my oldest. And the stand mixer would take a back seat to our stovetop.

split vanilla bean, using the tip of a knife to scrape beans into melted butter

browning butter

mixing rice cereal with 2 sticks of butter and 2 bags of marshmallows

possibly the best rice crispy treats in the world

• The Good: Easy to make with only a few ingredients

• The Bad: You have to be careful not to burn the butter when browning. Vanilla beans can be pricey.

• Grade: A+. My childhood memories of this classic treat comes nowhere close to this rendition.

I admit it. I've experienced that twinge of jealousy when I hear about someone's kid cheering over carrots and hummus, popping grape tomatoes into his mouth as if they were M&M's, or happily chowing down a salad. My boys will eat their share of veggies, but usually if its in a sauce or masked by other ingredients in a dish (check out the recipe for stuffed shells).

A big tip I see all the time on getting kids to expand their culinary palettes is to get them to help you cook. My oldest son will happily help in the kitchen, especially if it involves using a fun kitchen tool or mixing ingredients together. One of our favorite kitchen gadgets is the PalmPeeler by Chef'n. It tucks right into little hands and makes peeling veggies easy and fun.

Fig 1: Boy peeling carrot

Except my boy is not easily fooled. Just because he helped prepare a dish doesn't mean he *has* to eat it. Sigh.

So when I came across "The Gastrokid All-Purpose Get Your Kids to Eat Their Vegetables Dressing" recipe, I had to give it a try. It's the first recipe in The Gastrokid Cookbook by Hugh Garvey and Matthew Yeomans. It features the "three most powerful tools in a cook's repertoire" (fat, salt and acid). You know the saying, "It's all in the sauce." 


The Gastrokid All-Purpose Get Your Kids to Eat Their Veggies Dressing
Adapted from "The Gastrokid Cookbook"

INGREDIENTS:
2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
Kosher salt
Ground black pepper
4-5 Tablespoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 small shallot, minced
1 Tablespoon Honey (optional)

DIRECTIONS:
1. In a bowl, combine the vinegar, pinch of salt and 1/8 teaspoon of ground black pepper and whisk until the salt is dissolved.

2. Whisk in the oil, mustard, shallots and honey (if using)

3. Drizzle on salad, raw cut-up veggies or steamed vegetables

The Good: Easy to whip up and keep a big jar in the fridge. 

The Bad: My kids hated it.

Grade: B. Honey did help cut the tartness. I will make this again, at least for myself, but will try using another acid (lemon juice) or different brand of red wine vinegar.