Cooking with kids: Our favourite recipes

In little under a month, the kids will be breaking up for summer, which means six weeks straight of finding new and exciting ways to keep them entertained. As a child there was nothing I loved more than cooking and baking with my parents. It gave me the chance to get creative, (sometimes) messy and gave me a sense of responsibility, which is why I decided to share the most kid-friendly recipes I enjoyed when I was little.

DIY Pizza

If you’ve never made pizzas with your kids, you’re seriously missing out because you wouldn’t believe how easy it is. Buy a ready-made pizza base (or feel free to make your own) and put a variety of toppings in some bowls. This could include sliced bell peppers, onions, pepperoni, chicken, sweetcorn and cheese- but feel free to add anything you want. Get your kids to gently stir some tomato puree or passata onto the base till it’s completely covered, followed by a little bit of grated cheese, and their toppings of choice. Get them to add a touch more cheese and gently place in the oven. Bake for 10-15 minutes, cool for 5, and then serve.

Easy Cornflake Tart

Cornflake Tart was one of my favourite desserts as a child and still is, even as an adult. But what I love most is how simple the ingredients are- most of which are probably sat in your cupboard already. Click here for a simple Cornflake Tart recipe.

Pasties

The best thing about pastry is you can fill it with anything you like. The downside of pastry is making it can get a little messy, but if you’re prepared for the clean-up, we highly recommend getting the kids involved. When it comes to filling, that’s completely up to you- here is a selection of pasty recipes for you to choose from, but don’t be afraid to let your kids make the dough, it’s really straightforward.

Build-your-own Salad

Most kids hate vegetables and finding creative ways to sneak them into their diet can be really frustrating. Build-your-own salads are a way of making vegetables ‘fun’ and could encourage your little ones to enjoy healthier foods if they have some say in what they’re ingesting! Like the pizzas, set up a station of ingredients, including things like lettuce, tomato, cucumber, sweetcorn, cubed feta cheese, ham, tuna and dressings, and let them create their own bowls. And to make it even more interesting, let your kids cut out fun shapes from some of your harder vegetables, using these stainless-steel shapes.

Chocolate Truffles

Did you know that it only takes three ingredients to make truffles? That’s right- and it can also take as little as 30 minutes to complete your prep. Your kids will love stirring the mixture, shaping the truffles and dipping them in toppings of your choice (we suggest cocoa powder or crushed nuts), second to licking the spoon, of course.

Check out the full recipe here

Eton Mess

Everyone knows what to do when it comes to Eton Mess, but have you ever thought about letting your kids create the layers? Simply prepare the individual components, including freshly whipped cream, sliced strawberries or raspberries, crushed meringue and strawberry or raspberry coulis (optional) and let the kids get to work.

 

If you love our recipe blogs, don’t forget to check out how to BBQ on a Budget and our best 10 Quick lunches.