Cooking 101

House of Bedlam went on the road last week with our very first cooking class! Thanks to all the little chefs that helped make it a huge success.

Their enthusiasm was contagious as they rolled dough, slurped up sauce, sprinkled cheese, and got really really messy! Our dessert was the hit of the party and even though a lot of chocolate ended up on their faces most made it on to the plate!

As you can see a delicious time was had by all:

Interested in planning a mini-cooking class with your kids? Are you located in Lower Westchester?

Contact House of Bedlam for more information.

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Worm Pizza

Celebrate National Pizza Month with a Halloween inspired pizza-

Check out our latest recipe at Kidville: Voices from the Ville:

Worm Pizza – Eaters Beware!

Appetizers

In the past few years we have rung in the New Year at 6pm and then put the kids to bed. Now that Matthew can tell time he is wise to us and we might have to let the boys stay up till 9 or 10 (yikes!) Ignorance is bliss – why on earth did we have to show him how to read his Spiderman watch????

As long as we have to be up and the kids want a party I thought I should put them to work making some appetizers. Here are three great ideas we came up with for the toddler party set:

–       Mini roasted veggie pizzas

–       Mini garlic knots

–       Sweet cinnamon sticks

3 great apps from plain old pizza dough – easy, cheap, fun to make – and I am pretty confident the little angels will eat them….

MINI ROASTED VEGGIE PIZZAS

Ingredients

1 medium onion

1 red pepper

2 1/2 Tbsp olive oil, plus more for brushing

Salt & Pepper

1 pkg. fresh pizza dough

Flour for dusting

1 cup mozzarella cheese, grated

2 Tbsp Parmesan cheese, grated

2 Tbsp fresh basil, chopped, optional

 

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Cut onion and pepper in large chunks and toss with 2 tbsp of olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast vegetables on baking sheet until carmelized, about 25 minutes. Puree with 1/2 tbsp of olive oil, set aside. Wipe baking sheet and add lightly oil.

Roll out pizza dough – use flour as needed so dough does not stick to rolling pin. Cut out 3” rounds with cookie cutter or upside down glass or bowl.

Top with vegetable puree first, then the mozzarella and lastly sprinkle with grated parmesan and fresh basil.

Bake at 500 degrees for approximately 12 minutes until crust is golden brown.

And the VERDICT is:

Matthew: I guess I like it Mommy

Liam: I want big pizza, not little! I’m not eating this. The sauce made me stop eating it, not my fault!

Dylan: Hey, there is no cheese on this, where is the cheese!?

 

MINI GARLIC KNOTS

Ingredients

1/2 cup unsalted butter, plus more for brushing

1 package fresh pizza dough

Flour for dusting

3 Tbsp minced garlic

1 1/2 Tbsp dried oregano

Sea Salt

 

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Lightly oil a baking sheet.

Roll out pizza dough – use flour as needed so dough does not stick to rolling pin. Cut into 4 “ strips and tie into tiny knots. Bake for approximately 12-15 minutes until golden.

In a small saucepan, combine butter and garlic. Heat until butter melts and garlic is fragrant, about 5 minutes. Do not boil. Transfer to a large bowl and mix in oregano.

Toss warm knots in bowl with butter mixture. Sprinkle with salt.

And the VERDICT is:

Matthew: Just like the pizza place!

Liam: Too hot – but I am eating it anyway….

Dylan: I want 5 or 10

 

SWEET CINAMMON STICKS

Ingredients

1 package fresh pizza dough

Flour for dusting

2 Tbsp butter, melted

1 Tbsp honey

2 Tbsp sugar

1/2 tsp cinnamon

 

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Roll out pizza dough – use flour as needed so dough does not stick to rolling pin. Cut into 6“ strips (about 1/2 inch wide) and lay out on baking sheet.

In a small bowl mix butter and honey. In a separate bowl, mix sugar and cinnamon. Brush dough with butter mixture and generously sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.

Bake until sticks are browned, approximately 15 minutes. Serve alone or with vanilla ice cream.

And the VERDICT is:

Matthew: It’s better dipped in the ice cream!

Liam: It makes me cough and get sick (funny, he ate 2!)

Dylan: Tastes like a frozen ice pop, gimme another stick!

And the clear winner – GARLIC KNOTS!

Sunday Breakfast

Sunday breakfast in our house is usually an elaborate affair. We break out the silverware and fancy plates (no Thomas Train plastic) and cross our fingers that the boys don’t break anything.  To date, there has only been one plate casualty, not bad considering the clientele!

I used pumpkin in this recipe but sweet potatoes work too if there are any leftovers still sitting in the fridge from Thanksgiving.

Making them small takes forever but it’s worth the extra effort. Plus, using the pumpkin adds some cooking time so silver dollars are the way to go.

These were so good the boys never even asked for syrup! Of course there was a little in the mix but it was a lot less then they would have normally poured over them…..

Pumpkin Cranberry Pancakes

Ingredients:

1 cup pumpkin puree

1 3/4 cup 2% or whole milk

4 Tbsp butter, melted

2 eggs, beaten

3-Tbsp maple syrup

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/2 cup dried cranberries

 

Directions:

Combine puree, milk, butter, eggs, and syrup in a mixing bowl. In a separate bowl mix flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg. Add wet ingredients to dry and stir just enough to combine. Fold in cranberries.  (Batter can be made and refrigerated overnight – just leave out the cranberries till the next morning)

Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Scoop a heaping tablespoon onto griddle or pan. Brown pancakes on both sides.

Extras can be frozen and popped into toaster to reheat. Cool completely before freezing.

And the VERDICT is:

Matthew (big brother): Not as yummy with the raisins – but still delicious.

Liam (little brother): Maybe I do like the raisins, I need a toothpick

Dylan (littler brother): I only want crabby patties for breakfast! (hmmmm, too much Spongebob maybe?)

Leftovers

One of my assignments this year for the Thanksgiving feast is sweet potatoes. Yes, somehow I managed to escape hosting another year! I have never made traditional mashed sweet potatoes so I did a trial run before the big day. Consequently, we had lots of leftovers even before Thanksgiving.

I knew the boys wouldn’t go for the mashed sweet potatoes straight up so I came up with a great idea for pizza that I thought they would love. Anything with cheese usually does well at our house.

Since the sweet potatoes were well hidden I was counting on the boys to like it. Plus the recipe called for maple syrup to sweeten the deal – how could I go wrong with that? But then again, our crazy crew tends to react exactly opposite to what you would expect…. I think they do it just to drive me insane  keep me on my toes– but that is another story…

“Sweet” Sweet Potato Pizza

Ingredients:

3 small sweet potato, peeled and cubed

1/4-cup milk

2 Tbsp butter, room temperature

1/4 cup maple syrup

1/4 tsp salt

1 Tbsp Olive Oil, plus some extra for brushing on dough

1 lb sweet sausage, casings removed

Pinch of salt

1 ball pizza dough (16 oz.)

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 cups grated fresh Mozzarella cheese

 

Directions:

Make the mash:

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add potatoes and cook until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain well and mash with fork or potato masher. Add milk, butter, syrup and salt. Blend until smooth and set aside. (Potatoes can be made ahead, bring to room temperature before using)

Make the sausage:

Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat and add the sausage and salt. Using a wooden spoon, break up the sausage and sauté until cooked through, about 10 minutes. Transfer sausage to plate with slotted spoon, then set aside to let cool. (Sausage can be made ahead)

Roll out the dough:

Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Lightly oil a large baking sheet. On a lightly floured surface, roll out pizza dough with rolling pin and transfer dough to baking sheet. Lightly brush dough with olive oil.

Spread sweet potato mixture evenly over dough, leaving about 1/2 inch border. Top with mozzarella cheese, sausage, and grated Parmesan cheese.

Bake until the crust is golden, about 16-18 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool slightly. Cut into slices and dig in! Yield: 12 square slices.

And the VERDICT is:

Matthew: The BEST PIZZA I ever had! (total = 2 1/2pcs)

Liam: It tastes burnt- the sweet potato is disgusting (total = 2 1/2pcs)

Dylan: Mmmm, Mmmmm, Mmmmm (total = 2 pcs)

Brian: When I saw you spreading sweet potato on pizza I was skeptical but this is really good! (total = 4pcs)

This pizza came out so yummy, entirely worth the effort. Next time I am making two because if you do the math there was not much left for me!