Food Explorers Club - Mix Vegetable Indian bread

Hello All,

Last week, lots of people celebrated the Festival of Lights -"Diwali." I had a great time with family and friends, eating delicious food and enjoying the festivities. As part of our class, Kids were introduced to Indian food by making Mix Vegetable Indian bread (Paratha).

Culinary Skills- Kids practiced their grating and peeling skills. They grated variety of vegetables (carrots, bottle gourd and cauliflower). Kids were amazed to see how each vegetable are so different to grate because of their texture. Next, we peeled the boiled potatoes and mashed them with a fork. They practiced their knife skills by chopping spinach leaves into tiny bite size. Kids enjoyed seeing the beautiful green color of the spinach. After the prep work, kids learned to mix all grated, chopped and mashed vegetable with whole wheat flour, a pinch of salt, cumin powder and oil. Kids were looking forward to kneading dough and were surprised when I showed how it is done using palms of both hands. Soon, they started kneading and enjoyed doing it. Each kid made two balls out of the final pressed dough and later flattened it with their hands in shapes of their choice. Lots of kids made a heart shape J . The technique of flipping bread in the pan was another new skill that kids learned (of course needs more practice). Most of the kids were comfortable standing in front of the burner and using a spatula to flip the bread. Overall, the kids learned quite a few new skills and I will encourage them to do so at home under your supervision.

Nutrition Education –Mix vegetable Bread / Paratha, is a perfect dish for kids to explore vegetables cooked with a taste of Indian spice (coriander and Cumin seed powder). Kids were introduced to 3 new vegetables in the class Spinach, Cauliflower and Bottle Gourd. Everyone knew spinach and cauliflower, but only a few knew bottle gourd. We spoke little about the benefits all these vegetables and different ways we can cook and eat them. Bottle gourd is a very versatile vegetable with a high content of water (~92%) vitamin C, K, and Calcium. Also, known to be one of the best heart-healthy foods. This recipe of mix vegetable bread (paratha) made with whole grain flour and 4-5 vegetables served with yogurt, or any other protein-rich food is a complete meal for kids and family.

Working as Team – Parents, I am so happy to share this news that every kid (ranging from 4-12 years of age) in my club, enjoyed eating this dish packed with whole grain and nutritious vegetables. I felt a great sense of achievement when my youngest kid in the class came up to me with a big smile and said “I love this can I please have some more." I am sure you as parents can relate to this happiness when our kids eat that healthy food that we want them to eat. Please feel free to share any cultural foods that are healthy and kids enjoy eating them at home as I am still exploring new healthy dishes cooked in different cultures to share with my kids in the club.