Recipes to Cook with Kids in November
For Recipes to Cook with Kids in November, we continue to focus on seasonal produce and holidays, like Thanksgiving. There are so many easy recipes that will get kids excited to get in the kitchen and try new foods. The whole family will enjoy recipes like Cranberry Applesauce, Apple Pie Stuffed Biscuits, Creamy Pumpkin Pasta, and much more!
Still have some Halloween candy kicking around? Try these Monster Cookies Bars with some mini chocolate bars chopped up and mixed in. They are so good! And so fun for kids to help make.
Seasonal Recipes to Cook with Kids:
Roasted Squash Hummus: Easy, homemade hummus with a seasonal, veggie-packed spin. Roasted Squash Hummus is a creamy plant based, vegan dip that’s also totally kid-approved. This would be a great snack or appetizer for a Halloween gathering, Thanksgiving, or any family event. Hummus is so simple to make from scratch and it tastes 100 percent better than the store-bought tub. Roasting the squash and garlic adds so much flavor without much effort at all. Serve with your favorite dippers, some crackers, and crunch veggies.
Sweet Potato Pancakes: Sweet potatoes are not just for dinner! These are simple, nutritious pancake recipe that kids will love. Plus, they have an extra boost of nutrients and fiber thanks to whole wheat flour and mashed sweet potato. Make a batch and heat them up all week for easy breakfasts.
Creamy Pumpkin Pasta: This higher protein, veggie-packed pasta sauce comes together in 3 minutes. It’s so easy! Creamy Pumpkin Pasta is a great way to use up any canned pumpkin you may have in the fridge. Blend up some cottage cheese, the pumpkin, and a few other simple ingredients and pour it right over any cooked pasta you like. It’s a quick meal the whole family will enjoy!
Giving Back: Cooking with Kids for Service
Because in the US, Thanksgiving is always at the end of November, we often reject on how we can give back to those in need. Food insecurity is a global and local problem we should pay attention to year round. However, this month, I want to especially highlight ways kids can help serve their communities through cooking.
Food pantries often have programs that you can sign up for to cook specific things or make sandwiches they can deliver to those in need. Do a quick google search or put a post up on your local Facebook group to see if anyone knows of local organizations that serve the food insecure.
Serving others can be as simple as having your kids help go to the grocery store and pick up some extra pantry items to drop off. If you have a neighbor or family member that’s going through a hard time, make them a pot of soup or a batch of muffins (Muffins Recipes to Cook with Kids).
Thanksgiving Recipes to Cook with Kids
Bread in a Bag: You knead bread dough in a large zip-tip bag! This is a recipe I make every year in my kids cooking classes. There are a few versions online like in this blog post by Busy Toddler. I like to sub half the all-purpose flour with whole wheat and use honey instead of sugar. It’s a really fun activity to do with kids. You can talk about the science of yeast, measure, mix (with less mess but it’s still a little messy), and kids are so proud when they’ve made bread.
Cranberry Applesauce: This is one of my favorite recipes to have kids help make ahead for Thanksgiving. However, the applesauce isn’t just for the dinner table. We love it as a sweet topping for plain yogurt or oatmeal or simply in a bowl as a little treat or snack. Kids can really practice their knife skills while chopping apples for this applesauce.
Cranberry Orange Muffins: Baking these muffins is a great way to introduce kids to cranberries. They are wholesome, sweet, and full of festive cranberry and citrus flavors. They be made from whole wheat or gluten-free flours, and can easily be vegan too. Perfect quick recipe to cook with kids and get some antioxidant-rich cranberries into the day.
Apple Pie Stuffed Biscuits: These are such a fun way to get apple pie flavors into a more fun and kid-friendly little package. I have not put this recipe on my site yet (working on it). However, check out this video on Instagram to see how to make them. The recipe is also in the video caption.
Honey Roasted Pear Salad: These roasted pears are delicious on their own too as a side dish or snack. I feel like pears are the forgotten fruit of fall and don’t get as much love as apples. So, I created this super easy way to enjoy pears that kids also really love. Just toss slices, firm pears with a little olive oil, honey, and salt then roast or airy fry. The pears get slightly crispy and sweet. See this video HERE for a quick tutorial and recipe.
Pumpkin Pie Alternatives: See my blog post, Thanksgiving Recipes to Cook with Kids, for a full list of delicious recipes to make together. I especially love the desserts that can stand in for any pumpkin pie, such as Maple Glazed Pumpkin Cookies and Pumpkin Pie Parfait Cups.
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