Four family-friendly recipes from our Specialized Services for Youth holiday guide
With families spending extra time at home this holiday season because of the coronavirus pandemic, our Specialized Services for Youth program has compiled a holiday guide with recipes and activities to help your family stay busy and connected.
Cooking with your children is a great way to work on math concepts like counting and measuring, lay down the groundwork for healthy eating habits, and inspire creativity. Here are four family-friendly recipes that our Specialized Services for Youth staff rounded up for you to enjoy this holiday season!
1) Grinch Kabobs
Difficulty level: Easy
Ingredients
10 mini marshmallows
10 strawberries (with tops removed)
1 banana slides into 10 round pieces
10 green grapes
10 toothpicks
Directions
First, wash the fruit! Next, assemble your kabobs — first a mini marshmallow, then a strawberry, a banana slice, and one green grape. Enjoy and refrigerate for up to one day!
2) Funfetti Cookies
Difficulty level: Easy
Ingredients
Funfetti cake mix
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a baking sheet and set aside.
Mix the cake mix, oil and eggs in a large bowl. Refrigerate for 15-20 minutes.
Scoop the dough onto the prepared baking pan. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until cookies are set. You do not want them to brown over in the oven. Allow to cool on the pan for a few minutes and transfer to a cooling rack.
You can also frost and sprinkle these cookies, if desired!
3) Cinnamon Cheesecake
Difficulty level: Medium
Ingredients
Large graham cracker crust
2 packages cream cheese (softened)
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla
Directions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Blend cream cheese, eggs, sugar, milk, cinnamon and vanilla using a hand mixer.
Pour ingredients into crust
Bake for 1 hour.
Recipe from Katie Kiner, Specialized Services for Youth home-based supervisor
4) Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Cinnamon Butternut Squash with Pecans and Cranberries
Difficulty level: Medium
Ingredients
Roasted Brussels sprouts
3 cups Brussels sprouts (with ends trimmed and yellow leaves removed)
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
Roasted butternut squash
1 1/2 lb butternut squash (peeled, seeded and cubed into 1-inch cubes)
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Other ingredients
2 cups pecan halves
1 cup dried cranberries
2-4 tablespoons maple syrup (optional)
Directions
Roast Brussels sprouts
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line baking sheet with foil and grease with 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
Slice Brussels sprouts in half, then combine in with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and salt in a medium bowl.
Place on sheet cut side down, roast for 20-25 minutes, turning over for the last 5-10 minutes.
Roast butternut squash
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line baking sheet with foil and grease with 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
In a medium bowl, combine cubed squash, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, maple syrup and cinnamon.
Place on the baking sheet and bake for 20-25 minutes, turning halfway through.
Note: You can roast the Brussels sprouts and squash at the same time on two separate baking sheets.
Toast pecans
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Place the pecans on the baking sheet and bake fro about 5 minutes or until they are darker in color.
Mix it all together
In a large bowl, mix the roasted Brussels sprouts, roasted butternut squash, pecans and cranberries.
For more sweetness, add 2-4 tablespoons of maple syrup.
