Grab the kids and head to the kitchen for this festively fun fix. It’s a great way to serve up veggies as a snack that the kids will love. Studies prove that the more kids become involved in the recipe-making process, the more they are willing to taste test, which can lead to discovering healthier bites they enjoy on a regular basis.
This recipe is not only packed with vegetables like corn, bell pepper and avocado, it’s also filled with life lessons. Depending on your child’s age, there are steps to involve them along the way with dicing, chopping, stirring, whisking, and baking.
Spending time together is never a waste of time and making a recipe creates special memories and healthy habits to last a lifetime.
Flat Leaf Dippers and Corn Salsa Recipe
Total time: 30 minutes
Serves: 10-15 people with 3 or 4 leaves per person
Corn Salsa
INGREDIENTS
1 lb. fresh frozen corn, thawed
1 red bell pepper
1 avocado
1 -14.5 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons onion, finely chopped
2 – 4 tablespoons of fresh cilantro
½ cup olive oil
¼ cup white vinegar
3 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon limejuice, fresh squeezed
1 teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon sea salt
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
DIRECTIONS:
- Wash, remove the center and dice the red pepper.
- Stir the corn, black beans, red pepper, onion, and cilantro together.
- Remove the avocado from its thick skin and dice it into small pieces. Add it to the corn mixture.
- Whisk together the olive oil, white vinegar, water, lime juice, onion powder, sea salt, garlic powder and black pepper.
- Pour the mixture over the corn salsa and gently stir.
- The vinegar will breakdown the avocado to create an avocado dressing.
- Serve the corn salsa with the flatbread leaf dippers.
Flatbread Leaf Dippers
INGREDIENTS
Garden Spinach FlatOut® Flatbread (or look for a flatbread in the 90-110 calories/serving for each of these flavors)
Sun-dried Tomato FlatOut® Flatbread
Whole Grain White FlatOut® Flatbread
Non-stick cooking spray
Canola Oil
Sea Salt
Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Coat a baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray.
- Use a leaf cookie cutter to cut the flatbreads into leaf shapes.
- Place the cut flatbread leaves onto the coated baking sheet.
- Baste the leaves with a very light layer of canola oil and top with a very light layer of sea salt.
- Bake the flatbread leaves for 8-10 minutes until the flatbreads are lightly browned around the edges. Let cool and serve them with the corn salsa.
Note: This recipe makes a great after-school snack or it can be made ahead for a delicious Thanksgiving snack to share with guests.
You can make this recipe ahead of time and serve it as an appetizer during Thanksgiving. Make the corn salsa the night before and leave out the avocado. Have the dressing made and stored at room temperature. The flatbread Dippers can also be made the day ahead and can be stored in an airtight container or sealable storage bag. Mix the corn salsa with the dressing and add the avocado right before serving to guests.
For healthy Thanksgiving side dish ideas, check out some of these recipes from our friends at DeliciousLiving.com.
– By Jodie Fitz, Kids Cooking Club, www.jodiefitz.com