Craving something sweet? Rather than nipping to the shop, why not whip up some santa hat brownies? We have a family-friendly recipe from My Little Sous Chef that is illustrated for the youngsters; making cooking with kids super easy…
My Little Sous-Chef is the first tandem cookbook for kids and parents to cook together. It is made up of two separate books: one for the parents and one for the children. The two books have the same recipes, which are all quick and easy to make. These recipes are clearly explained in the parents’ book, while the children’s one is illustrated and has only the simplest passages, so that kids can follow along and get cooking themselves.
The brains behind the project are Laura Pantaleone and Francesca Grassi, founders of Ink Inch Design, a multidisciplinary design studio based in London, and Caterina Falqui, an editor. The team came up with the idea on a summer’s night in 2015, while discussing various things including food, childhood memories of cooking and their Italian heritage.
Santa Hat Brownies
Hands-on time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes plus decorating
Total time: 45 minutes
Difficulty: 2
Serves: 4
Ingredients
135g butter
265g dark chocolate
200g caster sugar
135g plain flour
3 eggs
2tbsp vanilla extract
salt
3tbsp icing sugar
300ml double cream
100g strawberries
Directions
For the brownies
– Preheat the oven to 180°C.
– Break the chocolate into small pieces. Melt the butter and chocolate in a pan over a low heat.
– Once the mixture has melted, pour into a bowl and allow to cool.
– Add the sugar and mix well. Add the eggs and keep on stirring. Then add the vanilla extract, flour and a pinch of salt.
– Line a deep baking tray with baking paper and pour the mixture in.
– Bake in the oven at 180°C for 25 minutes or until a knife comes out clean.
For the decoration
– Wash the strawberries and cut off the stems.
– Once the cooked brownies have cooled, cut into little round shapes.
– Whip the cream in a bowl with the icing sugar, until firm peaks form.
– Decorate the brownies with a teaspoon of cream and one strawberry. Finish with a little extra cream for the top of Santa’s hat.
Tips
– If you don’t have a small round cookie cutter, use a small glass or cup.
– Refrigerate your whisk before whipping the cream, it will help achieve a firm texture.
Cooking with kids
Task for the little sous chef
- Add the butter and the sugar to the melted chocolate and mix.
- Add the eggs and mix.
- Add the vanilla extract, salt and flour and mix.
- Pour the mixture into a baking tray.
- Cut little circles of brownies.
- Decorate with the cream and strawberries.
My Little Sous-Chef has now released a small Christmas Edition, with three festive recipes, which is available for purchase on Etsy; the complete books will be published digitally in January 2017.