Cooking with your kids is one of the things I treasure most. It's the best way to both ensure that you're making something they'll like as well as teaching them valuable skills for the future. One of my favorite things, though, is teaching kids how to cook with fresh, seasonal ingredients like the delicious Autumn fruits and veggies found in these 5 Latin Fall recipes that are kid-friendly.
From yuca fries (cause what kid doesn't like fries?) with chipotle mayonnaise or boniato mash (like mashed potatoes, only BETTER) with mojo, there's a delicious side dish anyone will love. Then there's the mushroom quesadilla (great for lunch!) or the fettuccine with a tomatillo and cilantro pesto (oh my, YUM!), both of which I'm craving right now. And, of course, you can't end stop until you make a pumpkin spice flan for dessert. Dig in!
Readmore ¿Qué más? 10 Latin vegetables & fruit to eat this fall
Yuca Fries with Chipotle Mayonnaise
Ingredients: 2 lb. fresh yuca (cut crosswise into 2 1/2-inch sections, then peeled with a knife and cut lengthwise into 1/3-inch-thick fries), or 1 1/2 lb frozen yuca pieces (not thawed), About 6 cups vegetable oil, 1/2 cup mayonnaise, 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice, 2 teaspoons minced canned chipotle chiles in adobo, or sauce from can
Directions:
1. Cook fresh or frozen yuca with 1 tablespoon oil in a 6- to 8-quart pot of boiling salted water, uncovered, until tender when pierced with a knife and almost translucent, 8 to 12 minutes for fresh or 10 to 15 for frozen. Transfer with a slotted spoon to several layers of paper towels to drain and let stand 5 minutes. If using frozen yuca, cut pieces into 1/3-inch-thick fries, discarding any fibrous core.
2. Preheat oven to 200°F.
3. Heat about 1 1/2 inches oil in a 4- to 5-quart heavy pot over moderately high heat until it registers 360°F on thermometer.
4. Meanwhile, stir together mayonnaise, lime juice, and minced chipotles (or sauce) in a small bowl.
5. Working in 3 batches, fry yuca, turning, until golden, 5 to 7 minutes per batch, then transfer to paper towels to drain briefly and season with salt. (Return oil to 360°F between batches.) Arrange fries in 1 layer in a shallow baking pan and keep warm in oven while frying remaining batches. Serve with chipotle mayonnaise.
Recipe courtesy of Epicurious.com.
Fettuccine with Tomatillo and Cilantro Pesto
Ingredients: 1 lb. fettucine, 1 lb. tomatillo (husked and quartered), 2 cups packed cilantro (washed and dried,) 2 cloves garlic, 1/4 cup pine nuts, 1 jalapeño (seeds removed), 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, 3 tbsp. fresh lime juice, Kosher salt, to taste
Directions:
1. Cook the pasta according to the directions on the box.
2. While it is cooking, you can make the pesto. Add the jalapeno, pine nuts and garlic to the bowl of a food processor and pulse to combine. Next, add the cilantro, 3/4 of the tomatillo, lime juice, and a little salt and run the processor. While this is happening, drizzle in the olive oil. Season with some more salt and pepper, if necessary.
3. Toss the pasta with the pesto and taste for seasoning. Serve with some chopped tomatillo on top and some toasted pine nuts.
Recipe courtesy of A Thought For Food.
Boniato Mash with Mojo
Ingredients: 4 boniatos (peeled and cut into medium dice), Milk (enough to cover boniato), 1/4 cup olive oil, 1/4 cup thinly sliced garlic cloves, Salt and freshly ground black pepper, 2 limes (juiced)
Directions:
1. Place boniatos in a medium saute pan and cover with milk. Cook boniato in milk until tender.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a small saucepan until almost smoking, add garlic, shaking pan constantly and season with salt and pepper. When the garlic turns golden brown, add the lime juice. Set the mojo aside until the boniato is done.
3. Drain boniato, and while still hot, puree the boniato through a food mill or mash with a potato masher; add the mojo and season with salt and pepper.
Recipe courtesy of FoodNetwork.com.
Prosciutto & Mushroom Quesadilla
Ingredients: 1 large portobella mushroom (diced small), 2-3 thin slices of proscuitto (diced small), 1 garlic clove, 1 tablespoon jalapeño (finely diced), 1 tablespoon butter, 1 tablespoon olive oil, salt, pepper, 1 tortilla, Colby cheddar cheese, Parmesan cheese, 1/2 tablespoon butter
Directions:
1. Heat a fry pan over medium high heat. Add in the olive oil, the butter, the diced portabella and prosciutto. Cook for a few minutes, tossing often.
2. Add in the minced garlic and jalapeño, lower the heat to medium and cook until the mushrooms are softened, about 5 minutes, tossing often.
3. Pour the mushroom mixture in a bowl, wipe out the pan and return to medium heat.
4. Melt the butter and add in the tortilla. Fill half of the the tortilla with most of the mushroom mixture. Top with desired amount of grated cheese. Fold the second side of the tortilla over, creating a half moon.
5. Cook until golden brown then flip and brown on the second side.
Recipe courtesy of NewsTaco.com.
Pumpkin Spice Flan
Ingredients: 6 tbsp. sugar, 4 whole eggs (whisked), 1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk, 1/2 cup pumpkin purée (canned will do), 3/4 cup 2 percent or whole milk, 1 tsp. vanilla extract, 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
Directions:
1. For custard: In a bowl, combine eggs, sweetened condensed & whole milk, pumpkin purée, spices and extract. Whisk for about 2 minutes. Set aside.
2. For caramel: Add sugar to the aluminum flan mold and bring to medium-high heat. Allow all of the sugar to melt down until golden caramel, stirring constantly. Do not allow sugar to burn. When sugar is fully dissolved into caramel, carefully coat the bottom and sides of the flan mold using hand towels to hold the pan. Use a brush if you are not experienced in handling extremely hot caramel. Let sit for two minutes until sugar sets. Pour flan mixture into pan using a medium mesh hand strainer.
3. Baking the Flan: If you have a traditional 10″ flan pan, cover entirely with aluminum foil. If using a more updated version, cover lid and shut tight with latches. Add two cups of water to a large saucepan and gently place flan pan into the baño de Maria. Bring to boil for 45-60 minutes or until custard is fully cooked, but not too firm. Once the flan is fully cooked, immediately low heat and let simmer for 5 minutes. Remove flan pan from the baño de Maria and discard excess water from saucepan.
4. Do not remove flan from pan. Refrigerate for 7-9 hours or overnight. To serve, loosen the sides of the flan all the way around using a butter knife. Take a large plate, place upside down on top of flan and flip!
Recipe courtesy of Flanboyant Eats.
