Cooking with Kids: This corn salsa recipe is perfect for children of varying ages

Plus an easy recipe for cornbread that is delicious with chilli con carne

Budding chefs will love this corn salsa recipe

You can buy ears of corn with the husk still on at this time of year. This natural packaging keeps the corn soft and fresh. Taking the corn out of its husk is a nice job for children, peeling back the papery outer layers to find the silky hairs underneath and pulling these from the corn involves lots of different sensations and some dexterity. For either of these recipes you can boil this corn and cut it from the cob and let young people use the kernels.

Otherwise pre-prepared corn works just as well.

The salsa recipe is suitable for children of varying ages. The younger ones can cut up the avocado with a butter knife and older ones can tackle the firmer vegetables. It is good for children to be handling and touching the food even if they are not providing much practical help.

If you have very juicy limes I suggest adding the juice slowly and get the budding chefs to taste as they add it to make sure it is just right.

The cornbread is very popular in the USA and is served alongside dinners such as chilli con carne or roasted chicken. It is particularly popular around Thanksgiving.

Cornbread

recipe by:Michelle Darmody

Cornbread is particularly popular in the US around Thanksgiving

Servings

9

Preparation Time

 20 mins

Cooking Time

 25 mins

Total Time

 45 mins

Course

 Baking

Ingredients

• 50g butter

• 140g plain flour

• 2 tsp baking powder

• 225g polenta

• 1 tbs honey

• 560ml butter milk

• 2 eggs

• 30g cooked sweetcorn kernels

Method

1. Pre heat your oven to 200ºC/gas mark 6. Line a 9-inch square cake tin with parchment.

2. Ask an adult to help you melt the butter in a saucepan over a low heat. Put this aside.

3. Sieve the flour and baking powder into a big bowl. Add the polenta and stir this in.

4. In a jug mix the honey, buttermilk and eggs. Pour these into the dry ingredients than add in the melted butter and the sweetcorn kernels.

5. Stir everything until it is combined.

6. Scoop the mixture into the prepared tin.

7. Ask an adult to place the tin into the heated oven and bake it for about 25 minutes until it golden on top. You can test that is it baked through by putting a skewer into the centre of the cornbread to see if the skewer comes out clean.

8. Allow the cornbread to cool down in the tin then gently remove it and cut it into nine squares.

Corn salsa

recipe by:Michelle Darmody

It is good for children to be handling and touching the food even if they are not providing much practical help.

Servings

8

Preparation Time

 15 mins

Total Time

 15 mins

Course

 Side

Ingredients

• 1 medium tomato

• ½ red onion

• 1 avocado

• a handful of fresh coriander

• 200g sweetcorn kernels

• 2 limes

Method

1. There is a lot of chopping in this recipe. The first thing to chop into cubes is the tomato. This is best done with a small, serrated knife which will not slip on the shiny tomato skin. First cut the tomato in half then put the flat side on the board and cut this into small square pieces. Put these little cubes into a bowl.

2. Cut the red onion into little cubes as well, then do the same with the avocado. Add these to the bowl.

3. Carefully chop the coriander leaves and stir these in as well. Add in the sweetcorn and season it with salt and black pepper.

4. Cut each lime into two and squeeze out the juice. Pour the juice into the bowl and stir everything. You can add some chilli flakes if you would like a little spice.

Activity: Hopping popping corn

This activity makes the popcorn hop up and down. You will need a large clean jam jar, 2 tablespoons of bread soda, 6 tablespoons of distilled white vinegar and a handful of popcorn kernels.

Fill the jam jar three quarters full of water and stir in the bread soda until it dissolves. Add the popcorn kernels and then add the vinegar. Watch as the kernels hop up and down. This happens because of a reaction between the bread soda and the vinegar which produces carbon dioxide bubbles.