Ideas for simple meals DS could try cooking

[Brogley]

DS is 11yo and wants to try cooking. He can currently make cheese on toast using the grill, sandwiches, snack things in the toaster like toast/pop tarts/waffles, and heat-to-eat type things like microwave rice and snack pots that you add hot water to. He's autistic with some development delay so while he's 11yo hes probably closer to 7 or 8 in terms of cognitive ability and he's easily overwhelmed by large chunks of information.

He's asked to make dinner for us one night next week and beyond Freezer Surprise or pitta bread pizzas I'm a bit stumped about what would be easy for him to make with minimal adult support.

Any ideas?

Spag bol. You don't have to do the soffrito, red wine, make your own sauce and let the flavours develop for hours thing (though that is lovely).

You can just do mince, jar bolongese sauce. Spaghetti in a seperate pan.

Pre-rolled puff pastry tart.

Top with whatever you/he likes - pizza-ey tomato purée & cheese etc or pesto & mozzarella

Feels impressive, is actually really simple abd akin to cheese on toast!

It’s great he wants to get cooking 😃, so many adults lack the skill to do even basic cooking things so it’s a great thing to teach young.

I see his younger than his years and I’m assuming that’s why your worried about chopping? I have a child safety kitchen knife and my 4 year old cuts veg with it! Would something like that help with the chopping side of things?

Omelette ( assuming you have a good non stick frying pan, it’s very easy to get right)

A basic Spag Bol? Spaghetti in one pan. In another brown a chopped onion, chopped garlic/garlic purée, add mince/veggie mince and then add chopped tomatoes, basil, oregano, black pepper, tomato purée. Drain spaghetti and stir in the sauce. Grated cheese. Will make a very basic one. ( or use a jar of sauce if that’s easier for him)

Fajitas is a good shout

Basic cupcakes? (Recipe makes 24, half the recipe for 12)

250g unsalted butter, softened
250g caster sugar
250g self-raising flour
4 medium eggs
4 tablespoons milk

All in a bowl. Whisk (using electric whisk is easiest if you have one) use an ice cream scoop to put in cupcake cases. Bake 190 for 20-25 minuets, decorate with icing sugar (made up with water) and smarties/silver balls etc etc

He could microwave a batch cooked chilli, but do cous cous with it for a change? (Cous cous is easier to get right than rice and still ‘cooking’ a little)

Lamb kebab meat?
500g lamb mince
2 tea spoons of harrisa
2 Tea Spoon cumin
2 tea spoon garlic powder
2 Tea spoon onion powder
Grind of black pepper

Put in a bowl and use your hands to make it a square shape, mixing all the herbs in. Wrap in foil. Bake at 180 for 25-30 minutes. Serve with warmed pitta, any chopped up salad you like and

Sorry just seen he doesn’t like pasta so could have spag less Bol with rice, cous cous, jacket potatoes, roasted veg

Also pancakes? If you own a sandwich toaster you can make them in that! Just tip the mixture in and treat it as you would a sandwich

Have a look at the app 'Tasty'. Lots of very simple (and delicious) recipes, and each has a video of every step so you can see exactly what it is supposed to look like, how you should stir etc.

Californian Wraps
Baseless Quiche (with tofu instead of egg if he doesn't like egg)
One Tray Roast
Pasta and Homemade Sauce
Risotto

A really amazing recipe for tomato sauce for pasta. This involves minimal chopping and instructions but the results are AMAZING. It’s my go to tomato sauce. You can practice cooking pasta at the same time!

smittenkitchen.com/2010/01/tomato-sauce-with-butter-and-onions/

He's very visual. A list of instructions/steps will have him muddled up and cross by around step 3 or 4 and he doesn't always interpret the information correctly (like with the cheese on toast), he finds pictures alongside the words easier.

We have the usborne book too. It's really good and perfect for what you've described here

I was going to suggest the usborne book too. They have seasonal/specifics versions too like Xmas cookery and desserts if you want to widen the range at any point.

Really easy pasta bake:
use fresh pasta if you want it boiled.
Cherry tomatoes
500ml passata mixed with 2 table spoons of olive oil and about 100ml cream season with salt and pepper, add dry herbs like oregano, thyme or mixed herbs.
Half the tomatoes.
Place pasta and tomatoes in baking dish poor over the passata and mix, sprinkle with cheese and bake for 25minutes at 200°C. Serve with garlic bread or salad.

Cheese straws - get a ready made thing of puff pastry and add cheese and twist.

Stir fry, you could do all the prep and he could fry it up and maybe some of those ready noodles to stick in.

Mac n cheese ? Cheese sauce is quite easy to make.

Fairy cakes

DS has just turned 8

He can do Spag Bol, cottage pie (but needs help with the potatoes) a lot of stuff with mince, his fav is spicy beef that he has on chips.

But not sure how much that helps you

Burgers - soften onions and garlic, add to minced beef, Worcestershire sauce, egg, Dijon mustard and some herbs.

One of the first things DS learned to make was pasties. Ready rolled puff pastry and pick your filling. His favourite is sausage, cheese and beans. He likes the leftover mixture warmed on toast. He's 12 now and makes them from start to finish unaccompanied for lunches.

Am laughing at the number of people suggesting omelette - I'm mid 50s and it is still touch and go as to if my omelette turns into a scrambled egg half way through

OP, what about a cheese pie ?

We've just bought the jml saucepan for omelettes. Works a treat.

Sorry I meant the jml frying pan

Thank you for the ideas. I've order the Usborne book and I'm going to write down the suggestions to show him tomorrow.

I see his younger than his years and I’m assuming that’s why your worried about chopping? I have a child safety kitchen knife and my 4 year old cuts veg with it! Would something like that help with the chopping side of things?

He has some problems with co-ordination and muscle weakness so often uses a maladaptive grip - OT speak for "holds it wrong" - two things which don't go together well with knives. He also sometimes gets these 'what would happen if...?' moments where an idea will occur to him and he will immediately act on it like jumping from the top of the stairs or intentionally letting go while climbing a tree or drinking some of the nice smelling shampoo. I'd supervise him while using a knife but it's a worry. I'm going to look at child safety knives though, I didn't even know they existed.

Oh my world kitchen they cut loads of things with scissors. Could that work?

He could probably do burgers, ie grill them or if your being adventurous make them from mince adding onion etc.

What about sausage rolls? 🙂

Easy recipes my kids can make not involving eggs or pasta (they are a bit older though)

Sams toad in the hole (a fab bbc recipe)

Chicken and chorizo tray bake - chicken thighs with skins, mini chorizo or chunks, red onion (outer skin removed and quartered), new potatoes, orange zest and ideally thyme.
Put all in oven proof dish. Roast for 45 mins (200 degrees ish), turning everything half way through.

Chicken enchiladas (start with a box set, add less spice than recommended!)

Stuffed pittas

Quesadillas

Baked potatoes & toppings

Tortilla pizza (using tortilla base - takes 5 mins max to cook)

Cheesy nachos