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Three summers ago, when he was all of 6 years old, Preston Kwei took a cooking class at Oakland’s Sprouts Cooking Club, where he learned how to make a hearty and high-brow poached egg with Yukon gold hash.
The experience — crumbling and cooking pork sausage in a pan, pouring his own glistening hollandaise over perfect egg clouds — stayed with the youngster, and he’s been a regular in his family’s Piedmont kitchen ever since. Yes, even in the morning.
“I just like making it and eating it and sharing it with my family,” says Preston, who is now 9 and puts his own spin on the dish (onions and bell peppers in place of corn and peas). And while he admits that cereal is certainly faster on school mornings, he’s open to whipping up a quick scramble or oatmeal for himself and his 5-year-old brother, Blake, during the week.
Just because kids are back in school doesn’t mean they need to stop cooking. Especially when it comes to the most important meal of the day. Making your own breakfast is rewarding, and new cookbooks, including America’s Test Kitchen’s “The Complete Cookbook for Young Chefs” and Mardi Michels’ “In the French Kitchen with Kids” are making it easier for young chefs to whip up simple and nutritious morning meals.
“I think it is totally awesome and possible for kids to make their own breakfast. It just takes a little preparation and organization,” says Molly Birnbaum, editor-in-chief of America’s Test Kitchen Kids, a new program launching this fall with cookbooks for all ages and a website for kids ages 8 to 12.
Birnbaum says the key is making sure you have the right equipment, ingredients and amount of time to cook, eat and still catch the bus. Prepping a few things the night before — chopping fresh fruit, mixing batter for pancakes — will certainly save time. It’s also an effective way to wind down body and mind before bed.
Many of the 100-plus recipes in “The Complete Cookbook For Young Chefs” (America’s Test Kitchen, $20), which debuts Oct. 18, have do-ahead elements, from Granola Bars and Cherry Almond Muffins to Overnight Waffles, which get their impressive flavor and fluffiness from rapid-rise yeast. Symbols help kids use the cookbook effectively: Chef’s hats denote skill level; an oven or knife illustration indicates cooking method.
If you’d rather save those do-ahead dishes for the weekend, try quick and easier options, like a 5-minute Cheese Omelet, Yogurt and Berry Parfaits or quick French Toast For One. Whichever you choose, allow your child to customize it to meet their tastes. “It is really important for kids to make a dish their own,” Birnbaum says.
Several of the 60-plus recipes in blogger and French teacher Mardi Michels’ “In the French Kitchen with Kids” (Appetite by Random House, $25) are easy to customize. Michels, who runs Les Petits Chefs and Cooking Basics in Toronto, entices her 7- to 14-year-old students with approachable, easy-to-follow recipes for all the French classics.
Those are her actual kiddos’ hands in the book’s photographs, rolling Quick Croissants and stirring their favorite preserves into Creamy Yogurt Pots. Super-easy Individual Baked Eggs are layered with cherry tomatoes and basil, but your budding Jacques Pepin could easily swap those out for another favorite veggie and herb combination.
Like Pepin himself, Michels believes that when kids cook their own food, the smells and tastes of the dishes stay with them permanently, and lead to a lifetime of lasting memories. How wonderful to start that journey first thing in the morning.