Build-Your-Own Pizza

Pizza is by far the dish we've made the most at Kids' Table over the past 7+ years. We love showing kids that pizza doesn't have to come from a restaurant or the freezer. There are so many benefits to making your own. You know exactly what's in it, you can make it just the way you like it, and it's fun!

Pumpkin Pie Dip

We love cooking with pumpkin this time of year. But sometimes "cooking" isn't an option for us at Kids' Table. For example, when we don't have access to kitchen facilities (at most of our after school programs), and/or enough time to bake regardless (for short projects at outdoor festivals). We decided to explore the idea of a dip styled after a no-bake pumpkin cheesecake.

Carrot Ginger Soup

Every time we make this soup we wonder why we don't make it more often! It's great for both those warmer end-of-summer days and the chilly fall ones to come. If you can get your hands on local carrots, you should, because they are the star of the dish, after all. And should be easy to come by this time of year. 

Strawberry Rhubarb Parfaits

Tis the season of strawberries and rhubarb! Enjoy it while it lasts. You can get strawberries year round. But they won't hold a candle to what you can find at your local farmers' market right now. And rhubarb is one of those rare veggies (yup, technically a vegetable!) that is hard to find outside of its late spring/early summer season.

We use this unstoppable duo to make a compote. Stirring the chopped strawberries in after cooking down the rhubarb preserves a nice freshness and texture. We pair it here with Greek-style yogurt and a tasty whole grain crumble topping. Try full fat yogurt swirled with a touch of honey, or vanilla ice cream for a more decadent treat. Make a double or triple batch of the compote - its uses are endless!

Asparagus Sunflower Pesto

We love pesto because it's fresh, versatile, delicious, and surprisingly easy to make! So easy that kids got to make it with us at Green City Market this past weekend using a really neat manual food processor (coming very soon to our retail store!).

In this spring-y play on traditional pesto, we use asparagus in addition to basil. The raw sunflower seeds stand in really well for pine nuts. And in our market version, we used Brunkow's Little Darling cheese instead of parmesan. We served the pesto as a spread on Potter's Classic Wheat Crackers. It also makes a great pasta sauce, pizza base, or sandwich spread. Enjoy!

Minty Asparagus Quinoa Salad

Thanks to the dozens of kids who cooked with us at the Club Sprouts tent at Green City Market's opening day on May 3. Our recipe featured spring stars like purple asparagus and ramps from Mick Klug, lime mint from Growing Power and Nordic Creamery's parmesan. We love local!

The Minty Asparagus Quinoa Salad was a hit among kids and parents alike. Feel free to go off script and swap out asparagus for sugar snaps, fava beans, english peas or edamame. And when ramps aren't around anymore, you can use scallions or red onions. We love how well raw asparagus works in this dish, but you can also roast it for a different flavor.

Spinach Apple Cheddar Wraps

We took our culinary show on the road this week and cooked up an Earth Day treat with our friends at Sod Room! Tots and kids chopped and rolled their way to this delicious Spinach Apple Cheddar Wrap, featuring local ingredients provided by Irv & Shelly's Fresh Picks. As all good chefs do, the kiddos sampled ingredients as we went, and we loved seeing the kids go in for seconds of the raw spinach!