While I did my share of fancy cooking with and for the grandkids in years gone by, you won’t see choo-choo trains made from fresh vegetables or pancakes made in the shape of Mickey’s head coming from my kitchen these days. I no longer have little ones here on Halloween to enjoy making ghosts from NutterButter cookies or Christmas trees out of Rice Krispy Treats. However, there are a few special kid-friendly foods I make for visiting grandchildren. Many years ago, I worked as a rep for Pampered Chef and through that endeavor, I acquired a few interesting kitchen tools. One of those is used in the recipe below:
Pizza Pockets
Pampered Chef sells a neat little gadget called a Cut n Seal® and I use it for numerous tasks. To make pizza pockets, you need 2 slices of fresh bread. (It needs to be soft!) Spread a little pizza sauce in the middle of one slice. Top with a slice of pepperoni and some Mozzarella cheese. Place the second piece of bread on top, and cut out the center with the Cut n Seal® tool. Crimp the edges closed by pushing down on the middle part of the tool. Place the small round pockets on a baking sheet or stone and brush the tops with melted butter. Bake at 400 degrees for approximately 8 – 10 min. Watch the oven to be sure they don’t burn.
Kids love these little sandwiches!
PB&J Rounds
Begin with two slices of soft, fresh white bread. Slap peanut butter and jelly in the center of one slice. Cover with the second slice and use the Cut n Seal® tool to cut out the circles and crimp the edges closed. (These could get a bit messy but fun to eat!)
I have also made these little sandwiches with peanut butter and diced apple pieces or a slice or two of banana. Whatever your little ones want should work. If you want to dress them up a bit and use them for an adult affair, you can fill them with a small amount of chicken salad or try a creamed cheese and thinly-sliced cucumber sandwich. Any way you cut and seal it, these little sandwich rounds are sure to please.
Quick Crescent Roll-Ups
Open a can of Crescent Rolls (the original variety) and spread out, sealing the seams together. Use a food chopper to cut up some fresh broccoli and place in a small mixing bowl. Do the same with some sandwich meat. Smoked turkey or ham work well. Add that to the broccoli. Dump in 8 oz. of softened creamed cheese and season with a bit of garlic powder. Mix well and spread across the Crescent roll dough. Top this with grated Mozzarella cheese or a cheese of your choice. Beginning at one side, roll up the dough to form a cylinder and slice in 1/2 inch pieces. Place on a baking stone or sheet and bake at the temperature shown on the Crescent Roll package for approximately 15 minutes. Oven heat differs, so be sure to watch it. Golden brown is perfect. Serve these as an appetizer or as part of a kid-friendly lunch.
*Kids don’t really taste the broccoli in these roll-ups, or at least, they don’t recognize it. I’ve also used chopped, fresh spinach.
