Recipes for Kids

Here in this thread, we are going to see some easy and tasty recipes for kids. These are almost like normal recipes but we should concentrate more while preparing for children. A little time and effort put into presentation and preparation of the meal will save well worth the time spent on trying to make the child finish the meal. Do not stick strictly to a diet of roti, sabzi, dal rice, routine. Make innovative changes, at least from the kids' point of view, and keepthem guessing.

I have not mentioned chillies in most savoury dishes, since many kids tend to eat bland food, but depending on individual taste and age, which could be 2 or 20 or more, feel free to spice it up with chillies, as desired!

Enjoy cooking.

Here are some useful tips.

Shape the rice into the kids' favourite figure by using the small cookie mould and decorate buttons, etc. with boiled peas carrots, etc.

Most soups (without too many pieces), especially smooth like tomato, spinach, carrot are excellent.

Porridges made from the rice, wheat or bajra etc. are also very nourishing.

If the climate permits, fruit juices are also ideal, but without colouring and artificial flavouring.

If the kids prefer sweeter taste, substitute the saltiness in most recipes with sugar and vice versa.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup wheat flour
1/4 cup rice flour
1 tbsp. soaked moong dal (soaked for 2 hours)
1 tsp. bombay rava
1 tbsp. spinach chopped
1 tsp. paneer or cheese grated
1 tbsp.carrots, beans, peas, cabbage etc.
1 flake garlic crushed
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp oil
2 spring onion stems finely chopped
salt to taste
oil for shallow frying

Method:

Cut vegetables very fine.
Grind spinach to a paste, add chillies if you want.
Mix all ingredients except oil for shallow frying and cheese.
Make a dough of the mixture (consistency like that of paratha)
Roll into small parathas
Heat the tawa and make parathas.
Cook till even browned and golden on both sides.
Garnish with grated paneer or cheese.
Serve hot with ketchup, chutney or jam, as per your child's taste.

Ingredients:

2 plain khakras
1 1/4 cup milk
1 tsp sugar
6-7 raisins
1 tsp chopped walnuts, badham or cashew nuts
1 tsp ghee
1 banana, sliced

Method

Crush khakras into small pieces (like cornflakes)
Put in a serving bowl
In another vessel pour milk and bring to a boil.
Add Sugar. Mix well.
Put all the ingredients in the bowl.
Pour milk on the khakras
It is a filling and easily digestible breakfast.

Note: Instead of banana you can use any fruit as per your child's taste.

Ingredients:

3 phulkas or chappatis from wheat flour
1/2 cup chopped boiled vegetables.(OR)
1 tbsp. boiled chopped spinach.
1/4 tbsp. of ginger and garlic chopped.(optional)
1/2 tsp.maggie masala.
salt and pepper to taste.
1/2 tsp. wheat flour/ rice flour/corn flour
1 tsp. butter

Method :

Heat butter, add vegetables, ginger, garlic and spinach. Stir for a minute.
Add masala, salt and pepper. Sprinkle wheat/rice flour/ corn flour and mix well. Cool it.
Spread 1 tbsp. filling on the chappati.
Roll tightly.
Cover with aliminum foil. So that it will be easy for the kid to remove the foil and eat the chappati.

Note: Use fresh boiled corn, grated carrots, onions, broccroti etc. Flour is added to the filling to absorbs excess moisture.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup dal
(green moong or yellow moong or black eye peas dal) soaked overnight
1/2 cup finely chopped onions
1/2 tsp. grated ginger
1/2 tsp. red chilli powder (optional)
1/2 tsp. cumin seed
3 tsp. ghee or oil
1/4 sp sonf
4 chappatis
Salt to taste
2 sp oil or ghee

Method:

Wash the soaked dal well. Do not remove the skin if using green dal.
Its very nutritions. Drain dal well.
Grind in a wet grinder till fine.
In a kadai pour oil or ghee.
Put sonf, cumin seeds and ginger.
Fry well.
Put the dal mixture and salt.
Mix well and cook. You can cover and sim the flame.
Cook well and remove from the fire.
(It will look like 'parappu usilli')
Keep aside.
Now in another kadai, pour some more ghee or oil.
Put cut onions. Fry for a min or two.
Cut chappati into pieces and put them in that.
Just fry for a min. Then add the dal mixture and mix well.
Remove from fire and serve.

Note: You can add tomatoes or boiled potatoes in this.

Ingredients:

1 cup ordinary steamed rice
1/2 cup wheat flour
1 tsp. red chilli powder
1/4 tsp. cumin seeds
1/4 tsp. sesame seeds (til)
1 tbsp. butter
salt to taste
1 tbsp. of yoghurt or curds
1 tbsp. fresh corriander leaves /fenu greek leaves or spinach leaves
oil to shallow fry

Method:

If using greens, wash and drain very well in colander.
Mix all ingredients well except oil to shallow fry.
And form a dough like chappati dough.
Divide in 5-6 round balls.
Roll into chappatis, and make chappati.
Pack with chutney or sauce.

Note: You can add any veg. of your child's choice instead of greens. Or even you can use apple and banana. My son used to like apples in this dish

Ingredients:

1 cup moong dal flour (green or yellow)
1 tbsp corriander finely chopped
1 carrot grated
1/4 tsp. grated ginger
1 green chilli ground (optional)
1/2 pinches soda bicarb
salt to taste
oil to shallow fry.

Method:

Mix all ingredients in a bowl with enough water to make batter.
Pour the batter in a big spoonful on a warmed dosa tawa or non-stick tawa
Make dosa out of the dough.
Cool and pack.
If desired with green chutney or sauce.

Note:
you can stuff like masala dosa with veg curry or panner masala.
You can soak green moong dal and grind like dosa dough and use.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup each gram flour, rice flour, moong flour
1 grated carrot
1 onion finely chopped
1 tomato finely chopped
1/2 beetroot grated
1 bunch spring onion finely chopped
3 green chillies crushed fine (optional)
2 tbsp. oil
salt to taste
Oil to shallow fry

Method

Mix all ingredients. Add enough water to make batter.
Spread a big spoonful thickly on a hot dosa or non-stick tawa.
Pour oil turn over, roast other side.
Cool, pack with ketchup.

Note: Whenever you make dosa or chappati make it very small. Children will like them. Even now I used to prepare 'Nila dosa' for Krishna my dear son

Ingredients:

1/2 cup fruit pulp
1 tsp. sugar
1 pinch cardamom powder or 1 drop vanilla essence
2 slice wheat or milk bread
2 tbsp. sweetened milk

Method:
Prepare coarse pulp from any desired fruit by just mashing with fork.
You may use mango, banana, chickoo, papaya, etc.
Use a transparent small bowl so that kids can see the layers.
Put 1 -2 sp fruit pulp in the cup.
Place slice of bread at bottom (cut it round with out the edges)
Mix the milk with cardamom powder or essence and the balance pulp.
Put one or 2 spoons of pulp on it.
Cover it by another bread slice.
Allow it to set for a while in the fridge.
Serve chilled on a hot summer afternoon.