It’s the quintessential toddler food – an entire meal in one bite. And if you keep some in the freezer, you’ll have some crazy, hectic weeknight dinners covered.

People all over the world eat dumplings. We just call them different things. The dumplings I grew up eating are jiaozi.

Jiaozi are a requisite dish during Chinese New Year because they symbolize prosperity. They’re good the other 50 weeks of the year too. They’re good for lunch or dinner or breakfast. They’re good steaming hot just out of the boiling pot, they’re good cold, eaten standing in front of the fridge. Between the filling and the wrapper, a dumpling covers at least three food groups. You can make a simple dipping sauce with soy sauce, vinegar and green onions, but I think dumplings are tastier on their own.

(Or if you prefer to go out for dumplings with the kids, check out The Best Places to Eat Dim Sum with Kids in the Seattle area.)

Homemade Jiaozi Dumplings

You can buy premade wrappers at an Asian grocery store, but why would you, when homemade wrappers are so much yummier and so ridiculously easy? All you need is all-purpose flour and very hot water (but not hot enough to scald you). Slowly pour the hot water onto the flour, kneading as you go, until you reach dough consistency. Then cut off a little piece of dough and flatten it with a rolling pin.

There are too many different types of filling to list here. The standard filling is a mix of chopped-up Chinese cabbage, green onion, pork, and shrimp, but you can use whatever type of meat, vegetable, and flavor you’d like. Spoon some filling into a wrapper, pinch it shut, and freeze the finished dumplings separated on cookie sheets. Once they’re frozen, you can dump them into a bag.

To cook, put frozen dumplings in a big pot of boiling water. Wait for the water to come to a boil again, and pour a glass of cold water on it. Repeat this step three times.

Top Places to Buy Dumplings To-Go

When I visit my mom, every time I turn around she’s whipped up another fresh batch of made-from-scratch dumplings. It’d kill her to hear this, but at times I’ve even resorted to frozen, pre-cooked, sodium-filled dumplings from Costco (which aren’t even Chinese. They’re Korean).

It used to be really hard to find restaurants selling frozen dumplings; the margin of profit is so much lower than serving a couple on a plate in-house. But because of the pandemic, many Chinese restaurants are now selling frozen dumplings.

Here are the best, in my opinion:

Szechuan Noodle Bowl
420 8th Ave. S., Seattle; facebook.com/szechuannoodlebowl

We loved the homey comfort food at Szechuan Noodle Bowl before the pandemic, and we love that they are now selling frozen dumplings. It’s a small, mom-and-pop shop – cooking directions, if you need them, are handwritten on notebook paper. Don’t dump out the water you use to boil the dumplings; they’re so flavorful, you’ll want to drink the cooking water as a fragrant broth. $40 for 50 dumplings. Cash preferred, Venmo accepted.

Xiao Chi Jie
278 106th Ave. NE, Bellevue; thexcj.com

One bite of these bad boys and I thought I’d died and gone to xiao long bao heaven. (For the uninitiated, xiao long bao are dumplings with a bit of soup inside.) The beautiful thing? XCJ delivers – free with a $99 minimum, so you can get a couple of bags to stash in the freezer. $40 for a bag of 50 xiao long bao.

Dough Zone
Various locations; doughzonedumplinghouse.com

Dough Zone is a chain, but it’s a local chain, started in Bellevue in 2014. It’s since grown to nine locations in the Seattle metro area (with a tenth location opening in Woodinville soon). The restaurant feels more upscale than its neighbors in Seattle’s International District, but the prices are lower than those at the gold standard of dumplings, Din Tai Fung (which does not sell its dumplings frozen). Frozen xiao long bao, $35 for 50 dumplings, are a bit smaller than those from XCJ.

Ping’s Dumpling House
508 S. King St., Seattle; Pings

Another tiny shop in the ID. The menu here is handwritten on a white board. The proprietor of Ping’s Dumplings, Ping Liu, is the nicest lady; she even tried to give us a free milk tea. (Seriously?) Ping handmakes her dumplings and her prices are unbeatable. $30 for 50 dumplings.

First published Jan 2, 2022. Updated December 12, 2024

More in Feeding the Family:

The best dim sum restaurants for families in and around Seattle

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Breakfast before school: How busy families get it done

Recipes | ‘I Heart Soul Food’ feast from Seattle author Rosie Mayes

Quick, healthful recipe from ‘Vegetarian Chinese Soul Food’

The post Easy Dinner Idea: Dumplings! appeared first on Seattle's Child.

Gougères

These classic French cheese puffs are not difficult to make, but look so impressive that the other guests will think you’ve been slaving away all night long! They also make the ultimate party food as they freeze well, so can be baked weeks ahead, then warmed up with a few minutes in the oven. Make a double batch and keep some in the freezer for whenever you have unexpected guests pop by.

Makes about 4 dozen gougères

Ingredients

• 7 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 cup water
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 5 eggs
• 1 cup grated Gruyère cheese
• Freshly ground pepper

Instructions

Heat oven to 450° and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Place butter, water, and salt in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Add the flour and stir continuously for 2 minutes. (The mixture will form a ball as the water evaporates, but keep stirring for the full two minutes.) Transfer mixture to a stand mixer and mix with the paddle attachment for around a minute to cool it down.

Add eggs one at a time and mix on medium speed until the dough has completely incorporated, around 5 minutes. Add the cheese, season with pepper, then mix for 30 more seconds. Transfer a quarter of the mixture to a pastry bag (or a ziploc bag with a corner snipped off) and pipe the dough into roughly 1-tablespoon mounds on the baking sheet, leaving about an inch between each. Refill the pastry bag as needed and repeat until all dough has been piped out.

Place trays in the oven and bake for 8 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350° and bake for a further 20 minutes until golden brown and cooked through. If not eating right away, cool on a rack and store in an airtight container, then warm for a few minutes in oven before serving.

(Note: If baking ahead, freeze on a flat tray, then transfer to a ziploc bag. When ready to eat, bake at 350° for around 5 minutes.)

British Sausage Rolls

Move over, pigs in blankets, these little sausage-stuffed pastries are coming across the pond to become a firm favorite Stateside too. They make an easy (and delicious) way to get protein into our kids’ bellies at parties, and are equally good hot, cold, or at room temperature. They also make a perfect picnic food, and are great popped into a school lunchbox.

Makes 24 sausage rolls

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 stick unsalted butter, cut into small ¼” cubes and chilled in the freezer for a few minutes
• ½ cup ice water
• 2 lbs good quality bulk pork sausage (or bulk chicken sausage)
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley (optional)
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage (or your favorite seasoning)
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 egg, beaten

Instructions

Heat oven to 375° and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. 

Timesaving tip: Store-bought frozen puff pastry makes a fine substitute. Just thaw then roll out on a floured surface.

To make your own pastry:

Place flour and salt in a large bowl. Add butter and rub into flour with your fingers until mixture resembles rough breadcrumbs. Add ice water and mix well until dough forms a rough, sticky ball. Place dough on a lightly floured surface and form into a rough square around 1” thick. Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour or overnight. 

Place sausage, parsley and sage (or other seasoning) in a bowl, season with salt and pepper, then mix well. On a lightly floured surface, roll pastry out to a rectangle around 9” by 24”. Cut lengthwise then crosswise to form 4 equal rectangles. Place ¼ of the sausage mixture in the center of each rectangle in a long and even strip, reaching from end to end. Wrap both sides of the dough around the center strip of sausage, and press edges together to seal. Flip so the log of dough is seam side down, then cut into 6 pieces. Place on lined baking sheet, then repeat with other three rectangles of dough.

Brush tops with the beaten egg, then place in oven and bake for 20-25 minutes, until pastry is golden on top and sausage is cooked through.

Blue Cheese Savory Cookies

These elegant little bites are the perfect blend of sweet and savory, and make a great accompaniment to a cheese plate (or just by themselves). The blue cheese is blended into the pastry, giving every bite a subtle cheesy hint, and the jam on top adds a pleasing sweet and tangy note. Kids find these little thumbprint “cookies” hard to resist, so be sure to make plenty!

 Makes around 3 dozen

Ingredients

• ½ cup butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 4 ounces blue cheese crumbles (or crumbly goat cheese works just as well if that’s your preference)
• Freshly ground pepper
• ¼ cup apricot jam

Instructions

Heat oven to 350° and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 

Cut the butter into small cubes. Place the butter, flour and cheese in the bowl of a food processor (or mixer),  then season with pepper. Blend until the dough starts to form a ball and will hold together when pressed between your fingers.

Lightly flour a working surface, then knead the dough for a few minutes. Roll dough out to around 1/8” thick, then cut out with a small cookie cutter and place on baking sheet (lightly dusting the surface with flour if it gets sticky). Use your thumb to make a small indentation in the center of each, then spoon around ¼ teaspoon of the jam in. 

Place trays in oven and bake for around 12-14 minutes, until golden and cooked through. Cool on a rack and either eat straight away or store in an airtight container.

The post 3 crowd-pleasing party appetizers for any celebration appeared first on Seattle's Child.

Bonus: supporting local farms and food makers while you bribe your kid to try a carrot.

Mini Cheese + Veggie Quesadilla

• Use: Beecher’s Flagship Cheese (Seattle)
• Add: A whole-wheat tortilla and finely chopped sautéed spinach or zucchini
• Veggie tip: Look for organic spinach or zucchini from Oxbow Farm (Carnation) or Nash’s Organic Produce (Sequim)
• Pack with: Avocado slices and blueberries
• Fruit tip: Bow Hill Blueberries (Skagit Valley) makes organic frozen berries perfect for lunchboxes. Or there’s always picking your own! 
• Recipe Inspo: Veggie Quesadilla from Picky Eater Blog, mix and match with your fav local veggies!

A simple veggie quesadilla is a toddler lunch staple — make this recipe local by swapping for WA-grown veggies, and use Beecher’s Cheese! (Image: Anjali Shah, pickyeaterblog.com)

Yogurt Parfait with Fruit + Granola

• Use: Ellenos Yogurt (Seattle) or Grace Harbor Farms Yogurt (Custer, WA)
• Add: Local berries (frozen or fresh) and Marge Granola (Seattle)
• Berry tip: Find strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries from Remlinger Farms (Carnation) or Sidhu Farms (Puyallup) at markets and grocers

Yes, we realize we’re suggesting a yogurt-based dish for toddler. Come armed with wipes. (Image: Ellenos)

PB & Banana Roll-Ups

• Use: Manna Butter (Seattle) or Wild Friends Nut Butter
• Add: Banana slices and a soft tortilla, rolled and sliced into pinwheels
• Pack with: bare apple chips (Seattle) or carrot coins
• Carrot tip: Try Willowood Farm (Whidbey Island) or Local Roots Farm (Duvall) for sweet, colorful carrots perfect for roasting or steaming

 

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Bite-Size Pasta Salad

• Use: Cucina Fresca Pasta (Seattle)
• Add: Olive oil, soft-cooked peas, and shredded chicken or tofu
• Veggie tip: Full Circle Farm (Carnation) often includes shelling peas in summer CSA boxes
• Pack with: A side of sliced pears or melon — try Collins Family Orchards (Selah) for kid-loved stone fruit and pears
• Recipe Inspo: Kid-Friendly Pasta Salad from Little Sunny Kitchen. Swap local pasta & veggies from your CSA for a WA-centric meal!

(Image courtesy Diana Alshakhanbeh @ Little Sunny Kitchen)

Frozen (but Local!) Toddler Meals

For days when there’s zero time or energy, a stash of local frozen options can be a game-changer. These Washington-based brands offer toddler-friendly meals with whole ingredients and minimal fuss.

• Beecher’s “World’s Best” Mac & Cheese (Seattle) – Add a scoop of sautéed greens for extra fiber
• Trident Seafoods Salmon Nuggets (Seattle) — Bite-sized, whole grain coated
• Remlinger Farms frozen fruit (Carnation) – Great for smoothies, oatmeal, or a cold lunchbox treat
• Heritage Foods of WA Frozen Entrées (Redmond) – Sustainable and toddler-portioned

(Image courtesy of Beecher’s Handmade Chees

Snack Time, PNW Style

These toddler snacks bring the crunch, the protein, or the fun—no road trip to the grocery store required.

• Beecher’s Cheese Sticks (Seattle) – Kid-sized, high-protein, and super packable
• bare Fruit Chips (Seattle) – Great alternative to crackers
• Tiny cucumbers or snap peas from Local Roots Farm (Duvall) – Crisp and hand-held
• Cascadian Farm Soft-Baked Bars (Skagit Valley) – Check for toddler-friendly varieties
• Theo Chocolate PB Cups (Seattle) – A treat for the grown-ups who packed the lunch

Great, quick snack for toddler (or parent). (Image: Britt Thorson)

Where to Shop Local

Your neighborhood farmers market is a treasure trove of toddler-friendly, local produce—many even accept SNAP and offer matching programs. PCC Community Markets, Central Co-op, and Town & Country stores also carry many of these Washington-grown options.

Supporting local farms and food brands doesn’t just keep things fresh — it keeps our communities strong. Whether you’re packing daycare lunches or picnic snacks, these toddler meals deliver on ease, nutrition, and homegrown goodness.

The post Simple toddler lunches with local PNW flavor appeared first on Seattle's Child.

Here’s the recipe and the how-to, which you could adjust to your own tastes, what you have on hand, and your kids’ abilities and attention spans. Enjoy making this fun Easter snack, and here are some tips for dyeing eggs — while you’re in the kitchen!

Ingredients

• 1 jicama, peeled and sliced into 1/2″ circles
• 2 tablespoons whipped light cream cheese
• 12 chives
• 2 cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 Persian cucumber
• 8 edamame
• 2 breakfast radishes, tops removed and sliced lengthwise
• 2 red radishes, cut into coins
• 8 broccoli florets
• 8 small carrots, peeled

Instructions

1. Place a jicama circle on a plate.

2. Place the whipped cream in a ziplock bag and cut a small piece off the corner to create a piping bag.

3. Slice one half of the Persian cucumber into coins and the other half slice on the bias.

4. Place 2 of the lengthwise cucumber slices at the top of the jicama to create ears. Squeeze a dollop of cream cheese onto the cucumbers and top with 2 slices of the breakfast radish.

5. Squeeze 2 small dots of cream cheese near the top of the jicama circle and press a radish circle onto each one to form eyes. Using the cream cheese as a “glue,” press a cucumber coin and edamame onto each radish eye.

6. Squeeze a small dot of cream cheese onto the center of the jicama circle and place 3 chives on top of the cream cheese, spreading them out to form whiskers. Place a cherry tomato half on top of the chives to create a nose.

7. Place 2 carrots next to the Veggie Bunny and place the broccoli florets at the top of the carrots.

8. Enjoy your fun Easter snack and/or decoration!

The post Make a Veggie Bunny: A fun (and healthy!) Easter snack appeared first on Seattle's Child.

Here now, two pies to put on your list.

Blueberry Lemon Verbena Galette

Makes 1 galette

Ingredients

• 1 recipe Galette dough (recipe follows)
• 4 cups (2 pints) fresh or frozen blueberries
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• Juice of 1 medium lemon (2 to 3 tablespoons)
• Pinch of salt
• 10 lemon verbena leaves, finely chopped (optional)
• 5 tablespoons flour
• 2 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, cut into small chunks
• Egg white wash (1 egg white beaten with 1 teaspoon water) or heavy cream
• Demerara sugar, for sprinkling

Directions

1. Make the dough. Let it rest in the refrigerator for an hour while you prepare the next steps of the recipe.
2. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
3. In a large bowl, mix the blueberries, granulated sugar, lemon juice, salt, and lemon verbena. Taste and adjust salt and sweet as necessary. Add the flour and butter and stir to combine. Set the filling aside.
4. Retrieve the dough from the refrigerator. On a floured surface, roll it out into about an 1⁄8-inch round. It will be large— 14 inches, maybe bigger. (The dough doesn’t need to be perfectly round, but it lays better in the pan if it is roundish.) Trim the edges or patch the dough as needed to make it more round. Fold the dough into fourths, transfer it to the pan, and unfold it, tucking the dough gently into the edges of the pan. Let the excess drape over the edge of the pan.
5. Pour the filling into the dough. Grab some of the excess dough and pull it toward the center of the galette. Grab another spot about three or four inches down and pull it toward the center, continuing until you have used all the dough to create a soft ruffle of crust surrounding a juicy blue center. Brush the dough with the egg white wash, and sprinkle it with the demerara sugar.
6. Bake the galette in the middle of the oven for 10 to 15 minutes, until the crust is blistered and blond. Reduce the heat to 350 degrees F. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes more, until the crust is deeply golden and the juices bubble slowly at the galette’s edge.
7. Cool on a wire rack for at least an hour. Serve warm or at room temperature. Store leftovers on the kitchen counter loosely wrapped in a towel for up to 3 days.

Galette Dough

Makes 1 bottom crust

Ingredients 

• ¼ cup sour cream or room temperature cream cheese (see note)
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• ¼ cup cold water
• 1¼ cups all-purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ cup (1 stick) well-chilled butter

Note: If you use cream cheese, amend my instructions for preparing the liquid as follows: In a 2-cup spouted liquid measuring cup, whisk the cream cheese thoroughly with ¼ cup hot (but not boiling) water. There should be absolutely no lumps. Whisk in the lemon juice. Put it in the freezer while you prepare the next steps of the recipe. The idea is to have the liquid at a very cold temperature, not to actually freeze it.

Instructions

1. Whisk the sour cream, lemon juice, and water in a 2-cup spouted liquid measuring cup and put it in the freezer while you prepare the next steps of the recipe. The idea is to have the liquid at a very cold temperature, not to actually freeze it.
2. In a medium bowl, mix the flour and salt. Cut the butter into ½- to 1-tablespoon-size pieces and drop them into the flour. Toss the fat with the flour to evenly distribute it.
3. Position your hands palms up, fingers loosely curled. Scoop up flour and fat and rub it between your thumb and fingers, letting it fall back into the bowl after rubbing. Do this, reaching into the bottom and around the sides to incorporate all the flour into the fat until the mixture is slightly yellow, slightly damp. It should be chunky—mostly pea-size with a handful of almond-size pieces and a few the size of cherries. The rest of the flour/butter mixture should look like coarse cornmeal.
4. Take the liquid out of the freezer. Pour it in a steady thin stream around the bowl for about 5 seconds. Toss everything lightly a few times. If you’d like a flakier crust, stop adding liquid when the dough just coheres. If you’d like a tender crust, pour most of the rest of the liquid in a thin stream over the dough, each time stopping after about 5 seconds to toss and distribute the liquid. The dough should hold together (no puffs of dry flour) and feel a little wet. Expect it to feel much wetter than American pie dough, but not so wet that it’s like batter. The dough should hold together easily in a ball. Add the rest of the liquid, if needed.
5. With firm, brief pressure, gather the dough into a ball. Quickly form the dough into a thick disk using your palms and thumbs. Wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour or up to 3 days before rolling.

(Image courtesy Sasquatch Books)

The post Pi Day Special: 2 tasty bakes from ‘Pie School’ author Kate Lebo appeared first on Seattle's Child.

One caution: don’t let them try one of the warm, pillowy clover rolls before dinner or you may not have any at the table!

Over the course of teaching classes at Frog Legs Kids Culinary Academy, I have learned that children take great pride in showing off something they have created. And they don’t have to be involved in every step of the process for them to feel proud of their contribution.. Whether they are doing a little or a lot, participating in the creation of a festive holiday meal adds to the specialness of the occasion. 

A few tips:

• Don’t be afraid of messes. After all, you’re going to have to clean the whole place when you’re done, anyway. What’s a little extra flour on the floor?
• Get them involved: pulling herbs, rolling dough, stirring flour, cracking eggs. There are times when it’s just not convenient to have help – I know! – so sometimes I resort to a little trick. The kids will take preparatory steps alongside me, but I won’t use what they did in the meal. They have such fun helping, and it isn’t hard to keep the secret.
• Kids love to cut – just be sure you give them a safe knife. Herbs, peeled fruit, and soft vegetables like zucchini, cucumbers and tomatoes will work perfectly with a kid-friendly blade and will easily involve the kids in food prep.
• From kitchen to table: Have the kids fill all the candle holders, fold napkins, make place cards, or set out the flatware.

Here are some recipes created at Frog Legs that involve the kids and will be a delicious addition to your holiday meal!

Clover Dinner Rolls

Ingredients

• 1 cup warm milk (105 to 110 degrees)
• 5 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon dry active yeast
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 large egg
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream
• 1/4 cup melted butter

Directions

Preheat oven to 350º.

In a medium bowl or glass measuring cup, combine milk, sugar, and yeast. Let it stand for five to 10 minutes or until the mixture is foamy. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, combine softened butter, egg, and salt. Add yeast mixture, beating at low speed until smooth. Gradually add the flour, beating at medium speed until a smooth and elastic dough forms (the dough will be slightly sticky). Spray a large bowl with nonstick cooking spray. Form dough into a ball, and place in a greased bowl, turning to grease the top of the dough. Cover, and let stand in a warm place (85º), free from drafts, for one hour or until doubled in size.

Spray two (12-cup) muffin tins with nonstick cooking spray. Divide the dough into 24 equal portions. Divide each portion into three pieces, and roll each piece into a ball. Place three dough balls in each muffin cup. Brush evenly with cream. Cover and let stand in a warm place (85°F), free from drafts, for 35 to 45 minutes, or until doubled in size.  Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Brush with melted butter. Remove from pans and cool on wire racks.

Shortcut: You can’t go wrong with a Pillsbury crescent roll. They are delicious and easy, and kids can make a lot of them and make it fun!

Positively Perfect Pumpkin Pie

Ingredients

• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 2 cups canned pumpkin, mashed
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg plus 2 egg yolks, slightly beaten
• 1 cup half-and-half
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) melted butter
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• Pie dough – frozen or prepared earlier
• If you have pumpkin pie spice, add 1 to 2 teaspoons to punch up the flavor

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Place one piece of your homemade pie dough down into a (nine-inch) pie pan and press down along the bottom and all sides. Pinch and crimp the edges together to make a pretty pattern. Put the pie shell back into the freezer for one hour to firm up OR follow the directions on the package of your store-bought frozen pie crust for baking with an uncooked crust.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese. Add the sugar until creamy and light, then the cooled melted butter, then the eggs (one at a time, mixing after each egg addition) and beat until combined. Add the pumpkin, half-and-half, and salt, and beat until combined.

Finally, add the vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, and pie spice, if using, and beat until incorporated. Be sure to taste the mixture to ensure it is seasoned enough with the spices. I always do this and sometimes add an extra teaspoon or so of pumpkin pie spice.

Pour the filling into the crust and bake for 50 minutes, or until the center is set. Place the pie on a wire rack and cool to room temperature. Cut into slices and top each piece with a generous amount of whipped cream.

Shortcut: Don’t hesitate to use a store-bought pie crust, remembering the goal is to have your kids involved and feel successful. If there is leftover pie dough, it is fun to use a small cookie cutter to cut out leaf or pumpkin shapes to place on top of your pie or along the edge of the crust.

Cauliflower and Brussels Sprout Gratin with Breadcrumb Topping

Ingredients

• 1 pound Brussels sprouts, trimmed, quartered lengthwise through core (can substitute broccoli)
• 1 head of cauliflower (about one pound), trimmed, cut into small florets
• 1 3/4 cups heavy whipping cream
• 1/3 cup chopped shallots
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh sage
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/3 cup plain dry breadcrumbs
• 1/3 cup pine nuts, lightly toasted
• 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley
• 2 cups grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Prepare the cauliflower by cutting – or breaking; kids love this! – them into florets. If substituting broccoli for Brussels sprouts, prepare like cauliflower. Place each vegetable in a microwavable bowl with 1 inch of water and cook for 4 minutes, or until just tender. Drain the water and set veggies aside.

Combine cream, shallots and sage in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the mixture has reduced to 1 1/2 cups, about 8 minutes—season with salt. Remove from heat. Cool slightly.

Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add breadcrumbs and stir until they begin to brown, about 2 minutes. Transfer to bowl; cool. Stir in the parsley, then season with salt and pepper.

Butter 11- by 7-inch glass baking dish. Arrange half of the vegetables in the dish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, then one cup of Parmesan. Arrange the remaining vegetables evenly over the others and sprinkle with the remaining 1 cup of Parmesan. Pour the cream mixture evenly over everything.

Cover gratin with foil. Bake covered for 40 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle breadcrumb topping over it and bake uncovered 15 minutes longer.

In 2007, Laura Vida Thompson founded Frog Legs Kids Culinary Academy, a cooking school in Seattle and Kirkland, where kids (and adults) have a hands-on, fun cooking experience.

The post Three Thanksgiving recipes to cook with kids appeared first on Seattle's Child.

They’re a spooky choice for a party or a simple recipe for school lunch. If you’ve got leftover hard-boiled eggs or want a high-protein snack, make these Deviled Egg Spiders. They’re simple to whip up and the olive “spiders” give the deviled eggs an unexpected briny kick that will have your little goblins asking for more!

Pizza Mummies

With all the craziness and excitement of Halloween, how do we get everything done and feed the kids too? Just make a big batch of these Pizza Mummies in the morning and all you have to do before everyone shows up for the big fashion show is toss them in the oven for a few minutes.

This year both of my kids have requested I make Pizza Mummies. They’re so darned cute and I like that my kids’ bellies get filled up with something other than the pounds of sugar awaiting them on their trick-or-treat extravaganza.

Chances are your kids may be even more amused by your Pizza Mummies than they are about everyone’s costumes! Weelicious Disclaimer: Pizza Mummies probably won’t prevent your kids from eating candy, but they hopefully will get their night started off in a fun and filling way. Your little ones can even help you make them!

Make Pizza Mummies

Pumpkin Pie Pop Tarts

Pie dough just makes me happy. It’s such fun to work with whether you make it homemade or buy your favorite prepackaged brand. You can use cookie cutters to turn it into fun shapes for Halloween treats and fill it with an unlimited variety of fillings from savory to sweet.

Even better than the final product, though, is making them with your kids. These Pumpkin Pie Pop Tarts are simple to make, don’t use a ton of ingredients and bake up to a golden perfection for Halloween — or really any time.

Make Pumpkin Pie Pop Tarts

(Makes 10 pop tarts)
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 18 minutes
Egg-free, nut-free, dairy-free

Ingredients:

1/2 cup pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 recipe pie dough: How make to pie dough video

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat mat.

2. In a small bowl, combine the pumpkin puree, brown sugar and pumpkin pie spice.

3. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the pie dough to 1/4-inch thick. Use a pumpkin-shaped cookie cutter to cut out about 20 pumpkin shapes. Use a paring knife to cut out pumpkin faces in half of the pumpkin shapes.

4. Place one pumpkin (without any cut-outs) on a floured surface and place a heaping teaspoon of filling in the center. Use a spoon to spread the filling almost to the edges. Lightly dip your finger into water and rub the edge of the pumpkin dough shape with the water. Top with a cut-out pumpkin and lightly press the edges together to seal. Repeat with the remaining shapes and filling.

5. Place the tarts on your prepared baking sheet. Bake for 18 minutes or until golden-brown.

Catherine McCord is the founder of the cooking website Weelicious and the co-founder of the organic meal-box service One Potato.

Originally  published in Oct. 2021

More fall fun:

5 fun and easy fall craft projects for kids

The Playlist: a month of Halloween-themed family fun

Book pick: Two adorable monster stories for Halloween 

The post 3 frightfully good Halloween treats appeared first on Seattle's Child.

Kat Lieu, the former physical therapist turned full-time author, recipe developer, and food influencer, loves three things: Asian food (obviously), writing, and family. 

Lieu, a Seattle resident and mom to 11-year-old son Phil, believes in the benefits of kids and parents cooking together and hopes that her newest cookbook, Modern Asian Kitchen, will inspire families to do it more frequently.

The book is Lieu’s second book in as many years. Her 2022 release, Modern Asian Baking at Home, won raves and robust sales, and Lieu’s Subtle Asian Baking FaceBook page and Instagram pages are popular at nearly 160,000 subscribers each. Lieu expects to release her third book, 108 Asian Cookies, in 2025. That’s a  lot of success for a woman who wanted to be a writer at age 21 but spent 13 years as a doctor of PT because she was told, “Asian culture will not sell.”

Seattle’s Child reached out to Lieu to discuss her newest book and her hope for families who use it. 

Seattle’s Child: Why this book? Was there a need you hoped it would fill?

Kat Lieu: Food is my career now, but it’s also a daily bane of my existence. Meal-prepping and planning for the week has always been a struggle, especially since everyone at home has different preferences and tastes. [This book is about] sharing with the world of busy parents, remote workers, and normal people like me meals that are fast, easy, delicious, and budget-friendly. [It’s for people] who just have to put a hot meal on the table every day for their family. My goal with this book is to show people how easy it is to achieve restaurant-quality Asian dishes at home and to continue building a love and appreciation for Asian cuisine, flavors, and ingredients. And finally, to tell some stories.

SC: How do you choose what to make for your family?

Lieu: I have a handwritten book with all my recipes, the ones I cook every week, on rotation. It’s everything I love to eat, and since I have good taste, what I like to eat tends to be what my family loves to eat. I have a pho recipe for our pho nights and simple one-pan recipes like roasted salmon for nights when it’s already 5 p.m., and I have nothing planned for dinner. Salmon takes 10 minutes to marinate and about 15 to 18 minutes to roast in the oven.

SC: Do you try out your recipes on your kid?

Lieu: Does my husband count as a kid? [My son] Phil is turning eleven this fall. I always try my recipes on him, and we actually cook and bake together. We make a lot of sushi rolls, poke bowls, and sashimi together. He seasons our steaks and gives ideas for what I should make for dinner or weekend brunches. He’s a great foodie and knows how to balance flavors like a little chef.

SC: Why involve kids in cooking?

Lieu: I involve Phil in cooking and baking because it builds his appreciation for the person putting the cooked food on the table. He sees how I prep the ingredients, season the meats, and cook everything. I don’t know what the future holds for him — will he get married in the future? Will he eat out all the time? I want him to be able to cook simple meals for himself, and I get to leave him with all my recipes so he can remember and recreate my food when I’m gone. Also, he hasn’t been to Hong Kong or the Philippines yet, so I want him to experience the flavors and ingredients of his rich, mixed heritage early on.

SC: What do you want for your books?

Lieu: I hope parents find it fun to cook from my cookbooks and make it a family experience. I hope they have their children read through the recipes, pick something to cook, and that they enjoy delicious food together. In writing my cookbooks and experimenting in my kitchen, I found joy in food again, and it’s no longer dreadful to prep or plan a meal. When you eat something you cook, and it tastes as good as a restaurant, you save money and feel a sense of pride. And it’s healthier, too. You control the amount of sodium, sugar, and fats that go into your dishes.

SC: Are the recipes in the book modern adaptations of your own family recipes or brand new?

Lieu: Modern Asian Kitchen is very special, and it’s unlike other cookbooks in that it has a mix of my modern creations and modern adaptations of tried and true recipes. For example, I recreated a laksa from listening to my good friend Jamie describe the best bowl of laksa she had during her trip to Singapore. There’s my pho, which tastes as good as pho you make in 48 hours, but I make it in less than 2 hours. I got the recipe from my Vietnamese auntie Eva, whom I visited a few years ago in San Francisco. It took her the entire day to make a chicken pho. I took her recipe, used an instant pot, and recreated it. 

Then there’s my gochujang chocolate mochi cake, a one-bowl or one-blender cake you can turn into brownies. It’s so good that a Seattle brewery, Lucky Envelope Brewing, turned it into a chocolate stout. There are also recipes from members of my online baking group, Subtle Asian Baking. They’re all recipes from grandmothers or mothers of my group members, and I loved sharing and telling their stories.

SC: Any recipes in the book you feel are particularly “family-friendly?”

Lieu: Not to toot my own horn, but the beauty behind my recipes is that they are highly customizable, like my very easy-peasy sushi bake. Don’t like salmon? Use fake crab meat or scallops. Or make it completely vegan with tofu and veggies. That’s a very family-friendly and easy recipe. The onigiri or rice balls are hit because you can add spam or canned tuna or, again, make them vegan. A family-friendly dessert that anyone loves is halo-halo or Filipino mixed ice. It’s colorful and highly customizable, like an adventure in a glass.

Gochujang Chocolate Mochi Cake from Kat Lieu’s Modern Asian Kitchen cookbook. Photo courtesy Kat Lieu

Gochujang Chocolate Mochi Cake

From Modern Asian Kitchn by Kat Liey

“Chocolate lovers, this is the cake for you. It’s not too sweet, has a fun chew, and will undoubtedly be a stunner at any potluck. If you love to spice things up, drop a heaping tablespoon of gochujang into the batter. Then decorate the cake however way you’d like, because you can’t really go wrong with a beautiful chocolate canvas like this. Enjoy the cake hot, right out of the oven, or give it a day for the mochi to cure. The cake will be chewier then.”

Prep Time: 15 minutes; Cook Time: 50 minutes; Yield: one 8-inch (20-cm) cake 

Ingredients

• 2 large eggs (about 3.5 ounces or 100 g)
• 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup (59 ml) sweetened condensed milk
• 1 teaspoon miso or 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• Up to 1 heaping tablespoon (17 g) gochujang, adjust to taste
• 1 cup (235 ml) milk
• 2 tablespoons (28 g) unsalted butter, melted
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• About 17/8 cups (296 g) glutinous rice flour
• 1 tablespoon (8 g) cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons (14 g) Dutch-processed cocoa powder, sifted
• 1/3 cup (60 g) finely chopped or flaked semi-sweet chocolate

Optional toppings

• Confectioners’ sugar
• Cocoa powder
• Paprika
• Sliced strawberries
• Sweetened condensed milk
• Edible gold flakes

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) with a rack in the center. Generously grease with cooking spray or line an 8-inch (20-cm) round cake pan with parchment paper (including the rim).

2. In a large bowl or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whisk together the eggs, sugar, condensed milk, miso (or salt), and gochujang. Once the mixture is fluffy, whisk in the milk and melted butter until combined. Sift in the dry ingredients: baking powder, glutinous rice flour, cornstarch, and cocoa powder. Mix until well combined.

3. Pour the mochi batter into the prepared pan. Spread on the chocolate chips or chopped chocolate, evenly distributing them around the top of the cake. Bake until an inserted toothpick or bamboo skewer comes out clean and the top is semi-cracked, with a brownie-like crust, about 50 minutes.

4. Remove from the oven and let the cake cool in the pan itself, or take it out to cool on a wire rack. If you prefer cakes sweeter, drizzle with a liquid sweetener of choice.

Decorating with sliced fruits, like strawberries, gives the cake a beautiful pop of color, and if you love edible gold flakes like I do, add them! Dust with confectioners’ sugar and/or cocoa powder, if desired, slice, and serve.

5. Store the leftover cake in an airtight container. It should still be good and chewy the next day.

Note: If you prefer a nonspicy chocolate cake, simply leave out the gochujang. Please note that most gochujang isn’t gluten-free, so including it makes this cake not gluten-free.

Make it vegan: Substitute the eggs with 3.5 ounces (100 g) silken tofu, the condensed milk with vegan condensed milk (available at health food stores or online) or agave syrup, the milk with water or plain plant-based milk, the butter with vegan butter or neutral oil, and use vegan-friendly chocolate chips.

Read more:

Our family kitchen: Three-generation pot roast

Pushing back against ‘mommy wine’ culture

Kids need whole grains for optimal health

The post Kat Lieu makes Asian cooking easy for families appeared first on Seattle's Child.

One such dish is tostadas, a baked or fried corn tortilla topped with refried beans and toppings such as one’s choice of meat, veggies, cheese and salsa. Think of a massive nacho chip covered with your favorite toppings, only without that fake cheese sauce.

Sounds too adventurous for your little ones to try? Call it a “Mexican pizza” since they can eat tostadas with their hands just like a pizza slice. Allow them to choose their own adventure with a variety of toppings. This is what we did with our then-toddler, who loved anything with the word pizza in it. Just shy of 7, she now calls tostadas by their real name and appreciates the independence of adding her preferred toppings like queso fresco, a fresh and tangy Mexican cheese.

Prepping this meal is easy so long as you have homemade or canned beans on hand and corn tortillas to bake or fry. Or simply do what I do and buy the premade tostadas often found in the tortilla section at grocery stores, saving you those precious minutes when the family is teetering on hangry. Then, for toppings, use leftover ingredients from previous meals, like diced chicken breast or minced mini sweet peppers. Plus, the base is gluten-free and can be customized to meet anyone’s dietary needs or picky taste buds. Buen provecho!

Tostadas

Prep time: 20 minutes    |   Yields: 12 tostadas (4-5 servings)

Ingredients:*

12 tostada shells, store-bought or homemade

1 cup refried pinto or black beans, warmed

2 cups cooked protein of choice: shrimp, flaked fish, seasoned ground turkey, beef or chicken, or shredded beef, pork, or boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2 cups thinly, shredded lettuce

1 large tomato, diced

1 avocado, peeled, pitted and diced

½ cup crumbled cotija, queso fresco or any favorite shredded cheese like Monterey Jack or cheddar

Garnishes:

Salsa, hot sauce, pickled jalapeños, lime wedges, minced cilantro, sliced radishes, Mexican crema (crème fraîche or sour cream)

* Note: When considering toppings, remember to use what you have on hand, even if there isn’t enough of one ingredient for all 12 tostadas, because diners can choose their preferred options.

Directions:

1. Spread a tablespoon of refried beans into a thin layer on each tostada shell from the center to just inside the shells’ edges.

2. Top tostadas with a spoonful of protein, if using, followed by vegetables and cheese, respectively.

3. Add garnishes of your choice and serve immediately.

More in Feeding the Family:

Breakfast before school: How busy families get it done

Recipes | ‘I Heart Soul Food’ feast from Seattle author Rosie Mayes

Quick, healthful recipe from ‘Vegetarian Chinese Soul Food’

The post Make it a healthy tostada Tuesday! appeared first on Seattle's Child.

The day celebrates, duh, guacamole and coincides each year with Mexican Independence Day. However, let me clarify that the first guac recipes came from the Aztecs sometime between the 14th and 16th centuries when they lived in central Mexico. In fact, according to Timeanddate.com, the word dip comes from the Aztec word Nahuatl, which means guacamole sauce. 

Another reason to celebrate guac day? Avocados are a good source of Vitamin K and some types of vitamin B. Not to mention this fun fact: avocados are also known as alligator pear owing to the texture of the fruit’s skin. Looking for more reason to mix this creamy fruit into your meals? Bring out the alligator pear to celebrate National Avocado Day in July!

Every avocado-loving family has their version of the perfect dip. My mother passed her recipe to me, and I passed it to my kids. It’s one of the few I’ve encountered that includes lettuce, which bulks up the dish to make it go a little further and sneaks a little more fiber into young bodies.

Grammy Cherry’s Guacamole

4 ripe avocados (the big Hass avos)

½ medium sweet onion finely chopped (hold if you’re kids scoff at the raw)

2 ripe red tomatoes (Roma are good, but she also used cherry tomatoes)

¼ head of iceberg lettuce finely chopped

3 cloves of garlic minced (more if you love a garlicy dip)

Juice from 1 lime

½+a smidge salt

½ tsp black pepper

½ tsp. Paprika

Optional: As much chopped cilantro as you like (keeping in mind that for some folks, it tastes like soap)

Directions:

1. Smash the avocados in a bowl, but leave some chunky bits
2. Add in the garlic, lime juice, salt, paprika, and black pepper and mix well while trying not to smush too much
3. Fold in the lettuce
4. Gently stir the tomatoes
5. Serve with chips 

More at Seattle’s Child:

World Chocolate Day is a thing? Yes!

Party food kids will love to make (and eat)

The post Bring on the Avos. National Guacamole Day is near! appeared first on Seattle's Child.