Recipe for 1st graders

I have sort of a strange, tough request.
I'm working with a first grade class--they are studying the new food pyramid and I'm helping with a series of lessons that exposes them to foods from the different groups (fruits, veggies, protein, grains, dairy). For one of the lessons (probably grains), I'd like to do a recipe with the kids. We tried this last year--the recipe was peanut sauce noodes. But, most of the kids didn't really like it (this year we have outlawed the word "nasty").
Does anyone have a recipe idea for a group of kids that does not involve using a stove, oven, microwave, non-movable appliance and is safe for the kids to participate in? Truffles and foie gras are probably out. Last year we divided the kids into groups of four. Each kid had a different colored sticker on their shirt and the directions on the recipe were color-coded. For example, we'd say "All the reds, stir in the carrots"...
I'd like to repeat that format if possible.
Thanks

I'm intrigued by this exercise, but feel I probably don't know enough about instructional objectives, etc., to be of much help, though I understand that grain is the focus and cooking is not an option. That would mean you'd have to come to class with the grain already prepared. How about a tabbouleh salad? This dish would involve grains (even legumes if you wanted), vegetables (cukes, carrots), and you might even stir in some cheese chunks. You'd probably have to come to class with everything cut up (though there would be some lemon squeezing, rinsing of parsley, etc) -- and it would be possible for different teams to take responsibility for different ingredients. My sense is that you want to push the boundaries of the kiddies' tastebuds just ever so slightly without grossing them out. Tabbouleh might work.

Hammond

The recipe doesn't really have to involve a grain, exactly. It could be pasta, tortillas (a starchy, carby kind of thing). But I would like to do exactly what you suggested--cut everything up, cook what I can at home and basically have them mix and measure.
Last year's class was not a very adventurous group--tabouleh wouldn't have gone over very well. But this class is a bit better. We covered vegetables already--they all tried everything and seemed to enjoy the class. So that may work.
I have two objectives--to teach the kids about healthy, yet tasty foods and to expand their horizons a bit.

I generally just put first graders in a big pot with some onions, carrots and celery, simmer them gently and serve them with some good crusty bread.

How about black bean salad? It's all thawed or canned ingredients (unless you cook your own beans) It tastes great and has lots of colors.
Lots to do with juicing the limes, rinsing the beans, etc

My recipe is pretty simple
Black Beans
Corn (I use Tj's frozen Roasted corn)
Lime Juice
Cilantro
Red Onion
Red Pepper
Cumin
Chili Powder
Garlic
Salt
Pepper

My 2 year old inhales it.....should be good for 1st graders - you can serve it with chips.

YourPalWill wrote:I generally just put first graders in a big pot with some onions, carrots and celery, simmer them gently and serve them with some good crusty bread.

Glad to hear you're getting your appetite back.

What about tortilla pinwheels? That would just be a lot of spreading and sprinkling, and you could hit every foodgroup. (If you wanted to get really fancy you could even make a demonstration tortilla pie chart showing healthy ratios of, like, shredded carrots, bean spread, cheese, and rice.)

Summer rolls might be fun too, what with the transparency and all.

I generally just put first graders in a big pot with some onions, carrots and celery, simmer them gently and serve them with some good crusty bread.

I think you have to marinate them first...

Tortilla pinwheels and black bean salad are both great ideas...Thanks!

First graders can be a bit tough and sometimes have a bite to them. Marinating overnight is always a good idea...tequila, lime, salt and chilis make a great marinade for first graders; loosens up the tough bits.

Black bean salsa sounds good. I've never made it but you could make a whole dip thing by also making that layered dip thingy (beans, cheese, sour cream, guac....etc) - I know...I'm all "chefy" on you.....or maybe a layered salad????

One of my memorable experiences from when I was that age was a field trip we took to a colonial town, and one of the things that was explained to us was about churning butter. Rather than just explain how cream turned into butter, while the rest of the lesson was being taught, we sat in a circle and passed around a mason jar filled with cream. Each kid shook it until he/she was tired, then passed it to the next kid in the circle. Soon enough, the cream turned into butter... (We probably then spread it on toast and ate it, but that's much less memorable.) I suspect that everyone in my class remembers that lesson to this day.

I'm a big believer in multi-discliplinary teaching. I think it's great and more memorable when you can combine subjects like history and science (or nutrition).

I loved making things in class when I was that age! I hope they have a blast - I have more ideas for you, too:

no-bake cookies (maybe that negates the idea of healthy eating ... but most of that kind of recipe do use oatmeal or a grain cereal)

trail mix (splitting them into sections for adding stuff in would really work well with this one)

rice "pudding" (made from cooked rice, vanilla yogurt or instant pudding, and applesauce)

bread pudding (in a crockpot!)

Pinwheels sound great - just wanted to give you more options in case you needed back-up plans. Good luck!

How do you make no-bake cookies?
I'm leaning toward some form of trail mix (O.K. boring as a recipe, but easy and not messy--Ants on a log left peanut butter on every surface of the classroom last week) or black bean salad.
I like the idea of tortilla pinwheels, but cutting them up for all the kids may be a bit much.

in the trail mix realm how about a recipe for Puppy Chow

Puppy Chow

2 c chocolate chips
1 (15 ounce) box Crispixor Cracklin Oat Bran
1 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup butter
3 cups confectioners’ sugar

Heat chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter on HIGH in a glass bowl in microwave until melted — mix well. Combine cereal and chocolate mix. Stir until completely coated. Place confectioners' sugar in a bag, add cereal mix, and shake to coat. Spread on wax paper. Let stand until set.

The problem is no-bake cookies is that you have to melt the chocolate. One resource you might want to consider is Rawfoods.com, which has lots of recipes, not all of which require a dehydrator.

That got me thinking about smoothies and related items. How about they make their own "sundaes" with yogurt, fruit, granola, etc? You could even give them some jam to stir in or spoon on top. Though that misses your "all the reds stir in the carrots" goal. Fruit kabobs? Maybe with a strawberry or pineapple dip (made with yogurt and cream cheese)?

Googling for kids recipes gets you lots more ideas. I came across this interesting one on a Dole site
Trees in a Brocolli Forest

Do let us know what you end up with.

There are all sorts of no-bake cookies - some involve melting chocolate or taking a mixture to a boil, but others just start with a wet ingredient like jam, marshmallow fluff, or peanut butter and are then mixed with something that absorbs the moisture and makes the consistancy stiff.

I googled for you ... but if you are trying to avoid messy, this isn't the food for your kids.

http://www.recipegoldmine.com/cooknobak ... ake20.html
http://www.fabulousfoods.com/recipes/de ... plums.html
http://www.recipezaar.com/143170

Pita pockets might not be as sticky as some of the other things mentioned so far in this thread. Looking forward to hearing what y'all end up with and how they liked their "cooking" experience

Thanks for all the suggestions.
Today was the protein part of of the food pyramid lesson. I too Kafein's suggestion and we made a great black bean salad. I made a few substitutions b/c I was worried about the kids liking cilantro, garlic and onions (all personal faves of mine but potentially problematic for picky 6 year olds). Instead we added carrots, red/yellow peppers and fresh peas. Each kid got to measure and add an ingredient. They were all very adventurous in trying the salad and nearly all liked it.

For anyone interested in cooking with kids, I heard this story on NPR about 2 kids who have their own cooking website with demonstration videos, recipes, etc. They just became the youngest winners of the James Beard award.
NPR link:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5394066

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