| Charlie's Kitchen The Famous Chef Cooks For His Son And Dads Everywhere By Charlie Trotter Cooking for your children can be a daunting process, especially if they are anything like my son, Dylan. He likes any kind of meat, as long as it's chicken, and any kind of vegetable, as long as it's potatoes. The good news is your kids aren't expecting a five-course gourmet meal, they just want foods that taste good. But, whether your kids are finicky eaters, or not, one thing is certain: they are much more likely to eat foods that they have been involved in preparing. Cooking with your children may sound like a recipe for disaster, but there are things that even 3 or 4 year olds can help with. My son always enjoyed making this French toast when he was younger. While I was mixing the eggs he would cut out the bread shapes with cookie cutters. Sometimes we would have pumpkin shapes in February and Santa Claus in July, but he was happy, and he ate it. French Toast Cut Outs Serves 4 3 eggs 1/3 cup milk 1 teaspoon vanilla 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon 8 slices bread Lightly beat the eggs in a medium bowl. Add the milk, vanilla, and cinnamon and stir until completely combined. Cut the bread into shapes using cookie cutters. Warm a lightly oiled nonstick saute pan over medium-low heat. Coat the bread shapes with the egg mixture and place in the pan. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, or until golden brown. Serve with maple syrup or jam. This hearty chowder makes a great cold weather meal. Your kids can help prepare the muffins while you are preparing the chowder. Corn Chowder with Corn Muffins Serves 6 1 pound bacon 1 large onion, chopped 2 pounds potatoes, peeled and diced 3 cups corn kernels 6 cups milk Salt and pepper Cut the bacon into 1/2-inch wide pieces and cook in a saute pan over medium heat for 10 minutes, or until crispy. Remove the bacon from the pan and drain on paper towels. Reserve 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat and discard the remaining fat. Heat the bacon fat in the saute pan, add the onion and cook over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add the potatoes and cook for 10 minutes. Add the corn and cook for 5 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender. Puree half of the potato mixture with the milk for 3 minutes, or until smooth. Combine the puree and the remaining potato mixture in a large saucepan and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes, or until warm. Stir in half of the bacon and season to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle the soup into 6 bowls and sprinkle with the remaining bacon. Corn Muffins 1 1/2 cups cornmeal 1/2 cup flour 1 tablespoon sugar 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon salt 2 eggs 1 cup milk Preheat the oven to 350º. Combine the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Beat the eggs and milk in a small bowl and pour into the dry ingredients. Stir until well mixed and spoon into paper-lined or well greased muffin tins. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until firm to the touch. Here is a quick and easy dish that you can prepare for your family in about 30 minutes. Almond Crusted Chicken Breasts with Spinach and Citrus Vinaigrette Serves 4 3 tablespoons orange juice 2 tablespoons lemon juice 3/4 cup olive oil Salt and pepper 6 cups fresh spinach 4 boneless chicken breasts, skin removed 1/4 cup chopped almonds 2 tablespoons canola oil Combine the orange juice and lemon juice in a small bowl. Whisk in the olive oil and season to taste with salt and pepper. Cook the spinach and 1/4 cup of the vinaigrette in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat for 2 minutes, or until just cooked. Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper and press the almonds onto one side to form a crust. Place the canola oil in a hot sauté pan, add the chicken, and cook, almond side down first, for 3 minutes on each side, or until done. Place a bed of spinach in the center of each plate and top with a chicken breast. Spoon the vinaigrette over the chicken and around the plate and top with freshly ground black pepper. Charlie Trotter runs the much-acclaimed restaurant, Charlie Trotter's, in Chicago, and recently won three awards from the prestigious James Beard Foundation. He also runs a mentoring program at his studio kitchen, working with the public schools, to bring children into the restaurant business and instill his goals-"Stick with it and work hard."
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