If you’ve ever wanted your toddler {and the rest of your family} to eat kale, but didn’t know how to prepare it, or got the thumbs down on the way you did prepare it, this is for you. Not only are kale chips fun to make with munchkins, but if your little ones are anything like Gracen, they’ll munch them up by the bowl full. I’ve always liked kale, but I must admit, the first time I tried kale chips I was not a fan. I’m not sure what it was, but I’m so glad I tried them again recently. For me, the key to delicious kale chips is that they are very crisp (who wants to eat soggy chips?!), not overly oily, and slightly salted. And eating them when they’re fresh out of the oven increases the deliciousness even more. Here’s how Miss G and I whipped up our batch this morning…
{Scroll to the bottom to see our updated method… But in the meantime – Baby G – GAH!}
First, start with a couple of bunches of kale. The fresher, the better.
Fill your sink with cool water and give the leaves a good washing.
Rinse your leaves under cool running water, shake them out, and place on a clean towel to dry.
Place another clean towel on top of the leaves and pat gently to remove excess water.
Next, remove the stems and chop the leafy parts into chip-sized pieces.
Although the chopping part is obviously not toddler-friendly, while I did the chopping, Gracen’s job was to collect the soon-to-be chips and place them in a large bowl. In order to keep her little fingers safe, we stuck with the same rule we always use – no touching anything on the chopping board. This is something I’ve reinforced since I started cooking with her and she’s very good about waiting for me to move things onto the counter before she touches them.
Next, drizzle a small amount of oil on the leaves (a little goes a long way). We used grapeseed oil because it’s flavourless, but olive oil works too.
Mix well.
With the oil evenly distributed, move about half of your leaves onto a large baking pan (Judging by her heaping pile, G got a little excited).
Arrange them so that they are in as close to a single layer as possible…
And grind just a very tiny touch of sea salt on top.
Do the same thing with the other half of your leaves, and pop both pans into the oven. Be sure to watch them quite closely and flip them every now and then to ensure an even crispness.
Voila! Done. They may not look like the prettiest things, but I promise they’re yummy.
Serve them on their own as a snack, or in this case, as a side with lunch (smashed avocado and chickpea roll ups).
Homemade {Toddler-Approved} Kale Chips
- 2 bunches of kale
- 2 tablespoons of grapeseed oil
- 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt
Wash, rinse, and dry your kale. Remove stems and chop leafy parts into large chip-sized pieces. Drizzle kale with oil, sprinkle on salt, and mix well until oil is evenly distributed. Using 2 large baking sheets, arrange leaves so that they are in as close to a single layer as possible. Bake at 400 degrees, flipping them every now and then. Remove chips as ready to avoid over-browning. Eat immediately or store at room temperature.
Enjoy!
UPDATE: After years and years of making kale chips at home, a) they’re still a favourite and b) our method has changed just slightly. First off, we’ve discovered lacinato kale – the kind that has fairly flat leaves {we get it at Nature’s Fare here in Vernon}. WELL. Game changer. It cooks much more evenly which means that you always get the perfect, crisp kale chip. We also add garlic powder {and sometimes nutritional yeast} because… YUM. As far as prep goes, we now use a salad spinner (so much faster and easier) and we’ve switched to doing just one bunch of kale at a time which I think helps the chips crisp up better. With two bunches / pans in the oven at once I was finding that it sometimes got steamy in there, which is not really what you want when making crisp chips.
Here’s our updated recipe {though the first one does still work just fine}…
Crispy Homemade Kale Chips (UPDATED VERSION)
- 1 bunch of lacinato kale (approximately 10 leaves)
- 1 tablespoon of olive or avocado oil
- 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon of sea salt
- sprinkling of nutritional yeast (if desired)
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Wash your lacinato kale leaves and dry them fully using a salad spinner. Using a knife, remove the stems and cut each leaf into 4-6 big pieces. Dump the kale onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone liner and drizzle the oil on top. Use your hands to toss the leaves and evenly distribute the oil. Sprinkle on the garlic powder, sea salt, and nutritional yeast if using, and toss them with your hands once again. Arrange the kale in a single layer and pop them into the oven for 10 minutes. When the timer goes, remove the pan, flip each individual chip, and bake for an additional 3 minutes.
Serve fresh out of the oven or let cool completely and then store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.
Enjoy!
Get started by peeling and coring your apples. (I haven’t yet taught Gracen how to peel things, so I peeled and cored our apples while she gathered all of the scraps and placed them in a bowl for composting.)
Next up, chop your apples into smallish pieces. (We both did this job – Gracen using a regular butter knife, of course. FYI: I’ve done this several times with my Kindergarten classes and decent-quality plastic/wooden knives work too.)
Then, chop your strawberries.
Dump everything into a large pot.
Add a little bit of water…
Just a touch of pure maple syrup… (Only if you want some extra sweetness – turns out ours could have easily done without.)
And a good amount of pure vanilla.
Give everything a quick stir and pop it on the stove at medium heat.
Slowly cook the fruit, stirring occasionally, until everything is soft and easily mashed with a fork. 
Remove from the heat and mash until the sauce reaches your desired consistency. If you like a smoother texture, an immersion blender works well.
Dish out a small bowl…
And give it to your extremely excited toddler. Watch her gobble it up and ask for more.
Start off by dumping your pumpkin seeds into a large mixing bowl.
Give the seeds a little mix and set the bowl aside.
Get out a separate smaller bowl, and dump in your onion and garlic.
Stir really well, allowing enough time for the chia seeds to absorb the water and thicken the mixture.
Next, take a few pinches of kosher salt, add them to your mixture, and stir again.
If your monkey is anything like mine, they may try to lick the seeds straight off the pan. (No joke – this really happened. Multiple times in fact. Crazy girl.)
Next, it’s time to pop the pan into the oven.
When you take them out, they should be crispy and golden.
Serve to your very anxious and excited toddler. Be prepared to hear “Mmmmmmmm!” and “More! More! More!” endlessly.
We chopped up a couple of big slices of watermelon, grabbed a lemon and lime from the fridge, and clipped a couple of mint sprigs from the garden, and we were good to go.
Put your watermelon chunks into a blender.
Taste midway through to ensure yumminess.
Next, juice a lime…
And a lemon.
Pull out the seeds and pour the juice and pulp into your blender.
Next, sniff in the deliciousness that is fresh mint.
Then pop it into the blender.
Secure the lid on the blender and blend everything until smooth. (Depending on the juiciness of your watermelon, you may need to pulse and shake the blender a few times in order to build up a little liquid.)
Once fully blended, carefully pour the mixture into your popsicle moulds.
Then add the sticks and pop them into the freezer.
If there’s any leftover, let you toddler have a little taste and watch her eyes light up with excitement. If Grae’s reaction to the frozen pops is anything like the reaction she had to the juice, I know she’ll love them.
We started by gathering our ingredients. Here’s what you need: mango, plain Greek yogurt, lemons, and pure vanilla (and a blender, spoon, and popsicle moulds of some sort).
Get started by putting all of your mango chunks into your blender.
Then add a generous amount of really good, thick Greek yogurt. (We used the no fat kind this time around because it’s what we had on hand, but since these popsicles are really for Gracen more than anyone else, I’d normally use the full fat kind.)
Next up – juice a couple of lemons…
And add the juice and pulp to the blender.
Lastly, add a splash of pure vanilla for a little hint of sweetness. (Depending on the sweetness of your mango, you may want to add a tiny bit of honey or pure maple syrup at this point too, but if your mango is ripe and naturally sweet, you won’t need it).
Next, blend away!
While your mixture is blending, get your moulds out and ready. (I love these old-school Tupperware ones from Gma Char… They remind me of summers on the back deck as a kid!)
When your mango mixture is smooth and creamy, pour it into the moulds, leaving a little room at the top for expansion.
That’s it! Let your little one slurp up the extras, put the lids on the moulds, and pop them in the freezer!
First things first, gather the following: rhubarb, strawberries (fresh or frozen), wholewheat flour, vanilla, pure maple syrup, old-fashioned oats, and olive oil. The biggest necessity however? One silly little doodle sporting a tiny apron and her “smile face”.
To get started, dump your fruit into a large mixing bowl.
Enthusiastically add some wholewheat flour…
Some pure maple syrup…
And a touch of vanilla.
Then mix it all up. If you’re feeling adventurous, follow Grae’s lead and sneak a piece of flour-covered rhubarb into your mouth (yuck).
When everything is mixed, pour the fruit mixture into a glass baking dish and spread it around evenly.
With the fruit filling complete, it’s time for the topping. Grab a fresh bowl (or rinse the one you have) and dump in some wholewheat flour.
Next, add some old-fashioned oats…
Some cinnamon…
Some olive oil…
And a little bit of pure maple syrup.
Mix everything well.
Next, shake your oat mixture out on top of your fruit, trying to distribute it {somewhat} evenly over the dish. Gently pat everything down in place.
That’s it! Now pop it into the oven for a bit.
And take it out when the fruit is bubbling and the oats are golden brown. Let cool on the counter while you eat dinner.
Then dish out two little bowls, one for you and one for your toddler, and listen to her exclaim “Mmmmmmmmm! Nom-a-nom-a-neh” while she shovels heaping spoonfuls into her mouth. Be prepared – she’ll most likely finish before you do and then ask to eat yours on top of her own. ☺
Here are the required ingredients…. Chopped watermelon, fresh mint, and a lemon or two (ours was of the sweet variety, hence the orange colour, but any lemon would do).
First step – put your watermelon in a blender.
Be sure to save the last chunk for eating purposes. ☺
Pluck the mint leaves off of the stem.
And put them in the blender.
Next, squeeze the juice out of your lemons and into the blender.
Be sure to remove the seeds first or catch them while squeezing!
Then, blend! At first, it may seem as though there is not enough liquid to allow the mixture to blend properly. Start by ‘pulsing’ and then removing the blender from its base to give it a good shake. After doing this a few times, you’ll have plenty of liquid to blend the entire mixture. For a smoother texture, blend for a couple of minutes, and for a chunkier texture, blend less.
Pour a munchkin-sized glass for your wee one…
And a mason jar full for yourself!
Everyone’s got to have a job, right?
First up, we worked on our dry mixture. In with the breadcrumbs…
Then the flax, herbs, and spices…
And then the fresh parmesan.
Gracen gave it all a good mix and it was ready to go.
Next, we worked on the wet mixture. And let me tell you, things got wet. Oopsies. Like they say, don’t cry over spilled milk.
Mess cleaned up, we continued on our way by adding some wholewheat flour to the milk.
And then just a little apple cider vinegar.
Then Miss G gently stirred it up into a thin paste.
With our wet and dry bowls ready to go, we began the dipping process. First the zucchini slices got dipped into the milk/flour mixture…
And then into the breadcrumb mixture. (Grae loved this job.)
Once they were nicely coated, we placed them on a baking sheet lined with foil. (Note to self: Must buy more parchment paper.)
As you can see, things got a little messy, but such is cooking with an enthusiastic one-year-old assistant.
With our baking pan crammed full of coated zucchini coins, we popped them in the oven to bake for a bit.
In the meantime, my little helper and I cleaned up. ☺
Thirty minutes later, our zucchini chips were ready! We added them to a plate with wild rice, chicken, and steamed broccoli, and dinner was served.
First up – the banana almond yogurt pops! Gracen popped a couple of frozen bananas into the blender to get us started.
Then she added some all-natural almond butter.
And a generous amount of whole organic plain yogurt.
We decided to add in a little sprinkling roasted ground flax seed at the last minute too…
Then we blended it all up.
And poured it into our little containers (I’ve been searching for mini popsicle molds for a while now, but haven’t had any luck… This is my interim solution).
Miss G was pretty stoked at the fact that there was a little left over. Mmmmmm!
No need for a blender with these ones… Grae started us off by putting some yogurt into our bowl.
And then Gracen mixed it all up.
And we poured it into the remaining containers.
We put on the tops, popped in some wooden popsicle sticks, and put them in the freezer. Tomorrow we shall see how they taste!
First off, our ingredients… Fresh baby spinach, green grapes, honeydew, a frozen ripe banana, a green apple, and coconut milk.
Start off by putting your frozen banana into a blender.
Add your apple chunks.
Be sure to stop and take a bite.
Dump in your honeydew.
And then pour in your grapes.
Next, fill up your blender with fresh baby spinach.
And pour in some coconut milk (or your preferred type of milk).
Pop on the lid…
And blend until bright green and smooth.
Pour into glasses (or sippy cups).
Enjoy!