Carmelised hazelnut or fresh berry popsicles? Try these 5 recipes of snacks for children

Gluten-free pancake recipe by Chef Zareen Clive, owner at La Dolça Pasteleria, New Delhi

Tired of making the same snacks for your children everyday? Here are five easy-to-make healthy snack recipes your children will love you for. Greek yoghurt and fresh berries popsicles, fig nuts and chia seed bar topped with caramelised hazelnut and berry compote is delicious and healthy. So is healthy zucchini blossom and kumta style red chicken with French fries.

You may have to hide away the pretty looking Berliner Dough Nuts as they will be finished in no time and kids will have a blast making them with you. And then is nothing like pancakes once it comes to treating kids with a special feast. All these recipes for snacks below are healthy, fast, and easy to make.

Gluten-Free Pancakes

By Chef Zareen Clive, Owner at La Dolça Pasteleria, New Delhi

Ingredients: Gluten-free flour, 2 cups; Sugar, 4tbsp; Baking powder aluminum free, 1 tbsp; Sea salt, 1 tsp;  Unsalted butter (melted), 4 tbsp;  Whole milk start with 1 ½ cups and add milk as needed; Vanilla, 2 tsp; Eggs, 2;

Method: In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt / In a large measuring cup, melt the 4 tablespoons of butter in the microwave. This will take about 45 seconds. Once the butter is melted, add the milk to the butter and warm in the microwave for an additional 45 seconds. Make sure that the milk is warm enough so that the butter is liquid and floating on the surface of the milk, but not so warm that it cooks the eggs when you add them in the next step / Add vanilla extract to the milk and butter. Finally, whisk the eggs into the milk and butter / Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. The batter will be slightly lumpy which is good. If the batter feels too thick to you, add a splash of milk and mix again / Choose your favourite frying pan or griddle and warm over medium heat. Spray pan with a little bit of canola oil or add a bit of butter to the pan. Once the pan is warm, use a ¼ cup measuring cup to pour circles of batter onto the frying pan or griddle / Once the middles are bubbly and the edges look as if they are beginning to cook, flip the pancakes and cook for an additional minute until cooked through / Serve pancakes fresh with your favourite fruit and some warm maple syrup / Store left over batter in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. To make fresh pancakes, simply warm your frying pan and scoop batter directly from the refrigerator.

Berliner

By Chef Gaurav Motling, Pastry Chef, Taj Santacruz Mumbai

Ingredients: 

For the dough: Flour, 150 gm; Castor sugar, 12 gm; Salt, 2 gm; Gluten, 3 gm; Improver, 1.5 gm; Yeast, 8 gm; Egg, 2; Unsalted butter, 18 gm; Vanilla essence, 2 ml; Milk, 20 ml

For the pastry cream: Milk, 500 ml; Sugar, 150 gm; Eggs, 1; Egg yolk, 7; Flour, 75 mg

Method: Mix all the dry ingredients together (flour, sugar, gluten, improver and butter) / Mix yeast, milk and vanilla essence in another bowl and add it to dry ingredients / Add eggs gradually to the dough / Finally add salt to the dough / Once the dough is ready, let it rest for 30 minutes / Then cut with appropriate cutter and let them proof for 45 minutes / Once the proofing is done, start frying in hot oil  / For making pastry cream, boil milk and sugar together / Temper egg and egg yolk to the mixture / Warm it for some time till it starts getting thick / Finally, add flour and cook for five minutes. Remove it from fire after this and let it cool / Once the dough and pastry cream have cooled down, start filling / Melt white chocolate with food colour and dip half the Berliner in to it / Add food colour to melted chocolate and design as per the character (Minion and Doremon)

Zucchini Blossom

By Chef Shashwat Shivam, Brand Chef, Julius, Mumbai

Ingredients: Zucchini flower, 3; Goat cheese, 10gm; Processed cheese, 10 gm; Thyme, 3 gm; Zucchini green, 1; Zucchini yellow, 1; Oil, to fry; Salt, To taste

For Paprika sauce: Tomato paste, 50 gm; Tomato juice, 20 ml; Garlic, 5 gm; Onion, 5 gm; Paprika, 2 gm; Salt, To taste; Black pepper, 1 tsp

For zucchini batter: Tempura flour, 50gm; Water, As required; Salt, To taste

Method: Clean the zucchini flower with water / Mix goat cheese, thyme and processed cheese / Stuff the cheese mixture inside the zucchini flower /
Keep the stuffed flower in refrigerator and let it rest for some time / For batter, mix the tempura flour and water and make sure the batter is thick enough / After the flower has cooled down, put the flower in tempura batter and fry till golden color / For sauce in a hot pan, add onion and garlic, and saute till it is golden brown. Add tomato juice and tomato paste, and season it with salt, pepper and paprika / After the sauce is ready, roll up the zucchini flower with slice of fresh zucchini and serve hot with your  hot paprika sauce.

Magic Yoghurt and Berries Bites

By Vikram Kumar Jaiswal, Executive Sous Chef at The Leela Ambience Gurugram Hotel & Residences

Ingredients (For 4 portion): 

For Greek yoghurt and berries popsicles: Greek yoghurt, 300 ml; Blueberries, 90 gm; Raspberries, 90 gm; Honey, 90 ml; Milk, 200 ml

Healthy seeds and nut bar: Shredded almond, 90 gm; Hazelnut meal, 90 gm; Pistachio, 90 gm; Cashew butter, 60 gm; Honey, 75 ml; Rolled oats, 120  gm; Hazelnut toasted, 90 gm; Chia seeds, 100 gm; Chopped or sliced dried figs, 120 gm

Garnish: Berry compote, 5 gm; Hazelnut, 2 to 3

Method: Blend or roughly mash fresh berries and keep it aside. Mix yoghurt, berries and milk and honey / Gently fold the mixture together, Pour the mixture in popsicle molds / Freeze popsicles until solid, probably 2-3 hours / In large bowl, stir cashew butter and honey / Add rolled oats, hazelnut meal, Chia seeds, and chopped hazelnuts, almond, pistachio and chopped dried figs, stir until combined – mixture will be thick and sticky / Transfer mixture to lined pan and place in freezer to chill for 30 minutes / Once bars have hardened, gently lift from pan and cut in to desired shape / Put healthy bar in plate, topped with Greek yoghurt Popsicle, caramelized nuts and berry compote / Serve either for breakfast or for a healthy chilled meal options in summer.

Kumta-style red chicken with French fries

By Chef Anika Fernandes, Frys with Fries, Mumbai

Ingredients: Boneless Chicken cut into cube-like pieces, 500 gm; Ketchup, 2 tsp; Finely chopped green chilly, 1; White pepper powder, 1 tsp;  Grated Ginger, 2-3 gm;  Chopped Garlic, 2-3 gm; Plain flour, 5 tbsp; Salt, To taste; Oil, for deep frying

Method: Mix all the ingredients, except chicken, oil and flour, into a thick red paste / Add the chicken pieces and massage well / Keep aside to marinate for 10-15 minutes /  Heat oil in a deep bottomed pan / Add the flour to the marinated chicken pieces and mix well. The mix should be semi-dry / Add the chicken to the hot oil, one piece at a time and let it fry till reddish brown on the outside /  Serve hot.