Cookshop Kids: Spring 2023
Week 1 (April 5th)
Today was our first day of the spring session, and we jumped right in by making fruit tartlets! The dough, called pate sucre, was made ahead. The kids got to roll out dough, bake the tartlet shells, make a batch of pastry cream (basically cooked vanilla pudding!) and then assemble a tartlet or two.
Week 2 (April 12)
This week the kids made empanadas! I was so happily surprised how much they loved the black bean poblano filling too (several kids were eating it the extra filling by the spoonful and asked to take it home!). FYI we made the dough ahead of time, as it needed to chill, but it is made with the same technique as your average pie dough. Mix the flour, salt and cubed butter in the bowl of a stand mixer or food processor. Blend with the paddle (or give a few pulses with the food processor) until the mixture looks like pebbly sand. Next, add in the egg and water and blend just until the dough comes together. Wrap dough in plastic and chill for at least 20 minutes before rolling out.
Week 3 (April 19)
This week the kids made brownies and blondies!
Week 4 (April 26)
This week the kids made lavash crackers and a pistachio dip! Recipe for the crackers will be added soon, and the dip was a variation on a recipe from local author and food stylist, Eva Kosmas Flores. We substituted ricotta for the feta, and omitted the yogurt.
Week 5 (May 3)
This week the kids made crêpes! We followed the basic recipe from Martha Stewart, then added fruit, nutella, chocolate, lemon juice and sugar. This was a big hit and the kids did great handling the sauté pans and flipping the crêpes.
Week 6 (May 10)
This week the kids made biscuits and jam! We used a tried and true favorite recipe from Alton Brown for the biscuits, and made a quick and easy chia jam. Note: we thawed some frozen strawberries to make the jam, which eliminates the need to cook the fruit first. This is a handy tip for chia jam, and a great use for those mountains of berries we are all about to pick this summer!
Week 7 (May 17)
This week the kids made tacos! We asked the kids a few weeks back what they would like to make if they could make anything, and the resounding answer was crispy tacos! We started by making out own taco seasoning mix (this is a gifted link to a NYT Cooking recipe), then sautéed ground beef, plus a black bean and onion filling. We chopped tomatoes, shredded lettuce and cheese, and then sat down to enjoy a very “American” version of tacos, which we all decided were delicious!
Week 8 (May 24)
This week the kids French Macarons! We followed my favorite recipe for the cookie, and used cream cheese frosting, jam and nutella as filling options. If your family would like to learn more about these delicious, finicky cookies, I teach a macaron class every month!
Week 9 (May 31)
For the final week of Cookshop Kids this spring, we made strawberry shortcake cupcakes! The recipe comes from Serious Eats, one of my go-to websites for trusted recipes of all types. I hope all the kids had a great term at Cookshop, and I hope to see you all again this summer or fall! I’ll send out info on the fall sessions of after school cooking options as soon as we have our calendar figured out, likely in early July. Happy summer!!