12-10-11 Kid Chef Eliana demonstrates 2X2 Chicken Fajita Soup from her cookbook

Hey Young Chefs!

This past Saturday, I had a cooking demonstration and book signing at Barnes & Noble in Metairie, Louisiana. I demonstrated by 2X2 Chicken Fajita Soup from my cookbook, Eliana Cooks! Recipes for Creative Kids.

12-10-11 Kid Chef Eliana pours cumin into her soup

When I served my soup, everyone said it tasted “delicioso!” Some people even lined up for seconds and thirds! Even kids who are normally picky, loved it! I met a sweet 15 year old girl named Savannah. She bought my cookbook and said that she is going to try several of my recipes. Yay, Savannah!

12-10-11 Kid Chef Eliana takes a picture with fan, Savannah

This recipe is called 2X2 Chicken Fajita Soup because the amounts of each ingredient equals 2. For example, 2 cups, 2 tablespoons, 2 cans, etc. It’s a super simple recipe that takes 20 minutes to cook. It’s great for kids and college kids, and perfect as a weeknight meal for busy moms. Here is the recipe:

2X2 Chicken Fajita Soup

Ingredients
2 qts. water
2 pkts. taco seasoning
2 cans corn, drained
2 cans sliced new potatoes, drained
2 c. Fajita, Southwest or Mesquite chicken strips
2 tbsp. cumin
2 tbsp. garlic salt
2 cups fresh salsa (I like to use my “Fresh from the Garden Salsa” recipe)

Directions
Combine all ingredients in a large sauce pot over medium heat. Cook for 20 minutes. Optional: Top with cheese and serve with tortilla chips. Serves 8 to 12.

Cool kids Cook and Get Creative in the Kitchen!
Bon Appetit, Kid Chef Eliana

Hey Young Chefs!

Here is the video of me cooking shrimp etouffee’ at the New Orleans Seafood Festival. The recipe is on my previous blog post.

Cool Kids Cook and Get Creative in the Kitchen!

Bon Appetit, Kid Chef Eliana

9-11-11 Kid Chef Eliana prepares to demonstrate her shrimp etoufee at the New Orleans Seafood Festival

Hey Young Chefs!

Today, I did a cooking demonstration at the New Orleans Seafood Festival. I cooked up some tasty shrimp étouffée.

9-10-11 Kid Chef Eliana shops at Becnel's Farmer's Market in Belle Chasse for fresh produce for her cooking demo at the New Orleans Seafood Festival

But my recipe started yesterday at Becnel’s Farmers Market in Belle Chasse, Louisiana, where I bought bell peppers, onions, and tomatoes. I used the tomatoes to make a rich, homemade tomato sauce. Inside the sauce, I had bell peppers, onions, celery, carrots, Cabernet wine, and carmelized honey. I took the sauce to the festival for my etoufee’. Good food starts with fresh, local ingredients.

9-11-11 Kid Chef Eliana pours cornstarch into her shrimp etoufee at the New Orleans Seafood Festival

Did you know that etoufee’ comes from the French word, etoufer, which means to “smother?” I smothered Louisiana shrimp in that delicious homemade tomato sauce, trinity (bell peppers, onions, and celery), green onions, heavy cream, and white wine. To thicken the sauce, I added cornstarch instead the traditional roux (a cooked mixture of flour and oil or flour and butter used to thicken sauces and stews). The shrimp was added and cooked for a few minutes, until they turned pink and plump.

9-10-11 On the big screen, Kid Chef Eliana plates her shrimp etoufee

I plated my shrimp étouffée with Cajun Country rice. Cajun Country was a big sponsor of the festival and I enjoyed meeting Mr. Robert Trahan, whose father founded Cajun Country Rice in Crowley, Louisiana. I was invited to take a tour of the facility. We passed out samples to the crowd and everyone loved the étouffée.

9-11-11 Kid Chef Eliana signs her cookbook for fans at the New Orleans Seafood Festival

After my demo, I signed my cookbooks for fans. There was even a line waiting for me. I had a great time with Mr. Greg Reggio as the emcee and hope to come back to the festival next year! Thank you so much, Mr. Greg!

Here is my recipe:

Eliana’s Shrimp Etouffée

Ingredients:
2 tbsp. butter
1 lb. Louisiana shrimp
About 5 stems of green onions
1c. of trinity (a precut mix of bell peppers, onions, and celery)
8oz. tomato sauce
1/2 c. heavy cream
1/2 c. water or shrimp stock
1/4 c. white wine
1 tbsp corn starch for thickening
1 tbsp water
2 tsp of Adobo seasoning (found in Latin section of super market)
1tsp. Cajun seasoning

Directions:
Melt the butter in a pan on medium heat. After butter is melted, add trinity, green onions, tomato sauce, white wine, Cajun seasoning, & Adobo. Next, pour in heavy cream and water. Stir for a while. After a few minutes, add shrimp. Mix corn starch & 2 tbsp of water together in a cup. While stirring, pour in corn starch a little at a time. The étouffée is ready when it starts to bubble and shrimp is pink and plump. Serve étouffée on a bed of rice. Enjoy!

9-10-11 Kid Chef Eliana takes a photo with a fan at the New Orleans Seafood Festival

Cool Kids Cook and Make Shrimp Etouffée!

Bon Appetit, Kid Chef Eliana

7-22-11 Kid Chef Eliana in the WWL-TV Studio Kitchen

Hey Young Chefs!

On Friday I made an appearance on WWL-TV Morning Show with Sally-Ann Roberts and Eric Paulsen! It was so cool being on WWL. I cooked three different dishes and a drink. I made my Devil’s Food Monster Muffins, Baked Scotch Eggs, and Garlic Cumin Potatoes. As a drink I made Sparkling Pomegranate Punch. If you’re wondering what Scotch Eggs are they are hardboiled eggs encased in sausage, breaded in bread crumbs, and deep fried. My Scotch Eggs are baked and made out of turkey sausage. That way it’s healthier.

7-22-11 Kid Chef Eliana with Sally-Ann Roberts and Eric Paulsen at WWL-TV

Ms.Sally-Ann and Mr.Eric were so nice! Mr.Eric even tweeted ” you are going to be a rock star in the culinary world”. That is so cool! Here is the link to the segment on WWL-TV.

When the show was over, the crew raced to the kitchen to eat! They loved the food.

7-22-11 The camera is on Kid Chef Eliana in the WWL-TV Studio Kitchen

I had a blast at WWL-TV! Everyone is amazing there.

Cool Kids Cook and Get Creative in the Kitchen!

Bon Appetit, Kid Chef Eliana

6-29-11 Kid Chef Eliana prepares for her cooking class at Camp Girl Power

Hey Young Chefs!

Yesterday, I taught 3 cooking classes at Camp Girl Power in Destrehan, Louisiana.

In this picture I prepared my food for the cooking class at the camp. Then I was asked to appear on stage to answer questions from the girls. I also sang my song, “Cool Kids Cook”.

6-29-11 Kid Chef Eliana performs and answers questions at Camp Girl Power

Next, we went to the kitchen to make “Fresh from the Garden Salsa” from my cookbook, Eliana Cooks! Recipes for Creative Kids. Here, the girls are sweeping their cilantro that they chopped, into the blender.

6-29-11 Girls sweep cilantro into the blender for their salsa

After we blended all of our ingredients, it was time to taste the salsa. The girls were in LOVE with it. I tried everyone’s salsa. They did a great job and all of their salsas were delicious.

6-29-11 Girls eat their tasty salsa creation

Tons of fun!

Cool Kids Cook and Eat Salsa!

Bon Appetit, Kid Chef Eliana

6-19-11 (L-R) Ashlynn, Camrynn, Jasmynn, Me, and Josie

Hey Young Chefs!

On Father’s Day, I had my Cupcake Cutie Birthday Bash! It was so fun! First, we made cupcake tacos. Cupcake tacos are made with a small tortilla inside a ramekin baked at 400 degrees for 7 minutes. When cooled, you add the lettuce, cheese, and ground meat. On top, you pipe sour cream to make it look frosting. Sprinkle cheese. Add a grape tomato as a cherry. Isn’t it cute?!

6-19-11 A cupcake taco

After we ate our cupcake tacos, we made Strawberry Shortcake Cupcakes with a Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting. I used fresh strawberries. Yum!

6-19-11 We made Strawberry Shortcake Cupcakes with a Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting

Then, it was present time. My best gift was my new cupcake cutie room!!! Everything is cupcakes!

6-19-11 My new cupcake room!!!

Another one of my presents was a Susan Spicer cookbook from my mom and dad!!!

6-19-11 A Susan Spicer cookbook!!!

Next, we had a cupcake collage contest. We had to tear pieces of construction paper up to make the cupcake. We only had 20 minutes to finish. It sounds like a lot of time, but it’s not. It was hard.

6-19-11 Everyone holding up their cute cupcake collage

We all voted who won 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. I got every vote except mine. Can’t vote for yourself. I won 1st place, Camrynn won 2nd place, and Josie won 3rd place! We got some pretty cool prizes.

6-19-11 Me, 1st Place, Camrynn, 2nd Place, Josie, 3rd Place

Then, we all created chef hats! ( If you want to know how to make them, I blogged it in an earlier post.)

6-19-11 We all created chef hats

Finally, we decorated plain canvas bags with fabric paint. We all designed our own cupcake on our bags. Here are the different bags.

6-19-11 Look at our creative cupcake bags

After that, we all went to bed. But, whoever was the first to fall asleep was going to get creamed. I creamed Ashlynn. She didn’t even notice. I forgot to take a picture. Sorry.

I had a blast at my party. And so did everyone else.

Cool Kids Cook and Eat Cupcakes!

Bon Appetit, Kid Chef Eliana

5-22-11 Kid Chef Eliana with her prosciutto, melon & capiello salad

Hey Young Chefs!

I love summer because there are so many fruits and vegetables available at the market. This recipe is a great summer salad, using in season cantaloupe and fresh mixed greens. Here I am scooping out the melon balls with a special tool called a “melon baller.”

5-22-11 Kid Chef Eliana scoops melon balls

This recipe also has prosciutto, which is a thin, salty Italian ham and capiello, a marinated, slightly spicy mozzarella. If you get tired of regular salad, try this sweet and salty combination. Check out this gorgeous salad. Don’t forget the melon balsamic vinaigrette!

5-22-11 The sweet and salty salad. Mmmmm!

Prosciutto, Melon & Capiello Salad
Ingredients
Mixed greens
Capiello (marinated mozzarella)
Prosciutto
Cantaloupe

Directions
Place your desired amount of mixed greens on a plate. Pull apart a slice of prosciutto with your hands and place on top of mixed greens. Cut capiello into quarter inch strips and pull it apart. Place capiello on top of salad. Cut cantaloupe in half and use a melon-baller to scoop out as many melon balls as desired. Arrange on top of salad.

Melon Balsamic Vinaigrette
Ingredients
2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar (good quality)
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp. cantaloupe juice
1 pkt. Splenda (or other sweetener)

Directions
Pour balsamic vinegar into a bowl. While adding olive oil, whisk. Add sweetener and cantaloupe juice. Whisk again. Drizzle on top of salad.

Cool kids cook and get creative in the kitchen!

Bon Appetit, Kid Chef Eliana

Hey Young Chefs!

I hope you enjoy this video of me demonstrating “Fresh from the Garden Salsa” from my cookbook, Eliana Cooks! Recipes for Creative Kids. Here is the recipe!

Fresh from the Garden Salsa
3 medium tomatoes, diced
2 tbsp. onion, finely chopped
1 tbsp. cilantro, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced (½ tsp.)
1 tsp. lime juice
½ tsp. chopped jalapeños from jar
½ tsp. cumin
¼ tsp. salt

Directions
Mix all ingredients in bowl for a chunky salsa. If you prefer smooth salsa, blend in food processor.

Cool kids cook and get creative in the kitchen!

Bon Appetit, Kid Chef Eliana

5-21-11 Kid Chef Eliana gets ready for a Mexican Fiesta, demonstrating her Fresh from the Garden Salsa at the West Bank Regional Library in Harvey, Louisiana

Hey Young Chefs!

Yesterday, I was at the West Bank Regional Library in Harvey, Louisiana doing a program sponsored by the Kiwanis Club of West Jefferson. There was a great article in The Times-Picayune newspaper written about me! The cool thing is that the library is down the street from where I live! The Kiwanis Club is doing a program called “Reading Around the World.” I was presenting Mexico. First I started with a song I wrote when I was 5 years old called “Hola, Hola.” Then I did a Powerpoint presentation on my travels to Mexico.

5-21-11 Kid Chef Eliana presents a Powerpoint on Mexico and shows the kids artifacts from Mexico. She's holding a mask made from abalone shell.

I showed them pictures from Cancun and Cozumel.

5-21-11 Kid Chef Eliana shows the audience Mexican hand-painted clay pottery

After my Powerpoint slide show, it was Fiesta time! I demonstrated “Fresh from the Garden Salsa” from my cookbook, Eliana Cooks! Recipes for Creative Kids.

5-21-11 Kid Chef Eliana puts ingredients into her Ninja blender for her Fresh from the Garden salsa

After demonstrating how to make the salsa, everyone got to taste it with tortilla chips. Sabroso! Delicious! Then I signed cookbooks and postcards for the kids.

5-21-11 Kid Chef Eliana autographs cookbooks and postcards

We passed out business cards, postcards, and coloring sheets.

5-21-11 Angel does a great job on her Eliana Cooks coloring sheet!

This little girl, Mya, was my biggest fan! Her dad said that she had never tasted tomatoes in her life. Because of my demonstration, she ate salsa (and tomatoes) for the very first time! Yay, Mya!

5-21-11 Kid Chef Eliana with big fan, Mya

We played salsa music and everyone danced. It was tons of fun!

5-21-11 The audience danced around the sombrero

A special thank you to Ms. Bridgette Becnel of The Kiwanis Club of West Jefferson for organizing this event and inviting me to the West Bank Regional Library. Ole’!

5-21-21 Kid Chef Eliana with Angel and Bridgette Becnel of the Kiwanis Club of West Jefferson

Cool kids cook and get creative in the kitchen!

Bon Appetit, Kid Chef Eliana

4-30-11 Kid Chef Eliana gets ready to teaching a Mother's Day Breakfast cooking class at Barnes & Noble in Harvey, LA

Hey Young Chefs!

On Saturday, April 30, 2011, I taught a cooking class at Barnes and Noble in Harvey, Louisiana. I taught kids how to make a Mother’s Day Breakfast. On the menu was Cup O’Breakfast and Sparkling Pomegranate Punch from my cookbook, Eliana Cooks! Recipes for Creative Kids. Cup O’Breakfast is layers of potatoes, sausage and scrambled eggs in a clear glass. It is garnished with cheddar cheese. First I sauteed the potatoes, making my Garlic Cumin Potatoes from my cookbook.

5-2-11 Kid Chef Eliana sautees her garlic cumin potatoes

At the same time, I was cooking pork sausage. Mmmmm! After cooking scrambled eggs, it was time to plate the creation.

4-30-11 Kid Chef Eliana plates her Cup O-Breakfast

After making the Cup O’Breakfast, I showed everyone a quick, easy and pretty drink – Sparkling Pomegranate Punch.

4-30-11 Kid Chef Eliana makes sparkling pomegranate punch

Then my mom, Author and Storyteller Dianne de Las Casas, taught the kids how to fold two different napkins. She also showed them a cool, creative way to make a breakfast tray… with a pizza pan and a cookie sheet!

4-30-11 After teaching kids how to fold a napkin, the food is arranged on a pizza pan and presented. Gorgeous!!

Both of my grandmothers were there and we gave the two breakfast trays to them. My Nana and Abuela both enjoy their Cup O’Breakfast!

4-30-11 Kid Chef Eliana's grandmothers enjoy their early Mother's Day Cup O'Breakfast

Then it was time for for the kids to make their own Cup O’Breakfast with their moms!

4-30-11 Moms and their kids make Cup O'Breakfast at the Kid Chef Eliana food station

After we all ate, my cousins, Camrynn and Jasmynn, and I performed a dance we made up to the song, “Pretty Girl Rock,” Keri Hilson. It was so much fun!

4-30-11 Kid Chef Eliana and her cousins, Jasmynn and Camrynn, put on a Pretty Girl Rock dance show

I had a blast at Barnes & Noble in Harvey. A special thank you to Stacey Hensley, CRM, for organizing the event!

Cool kids cook and get creative in the kitchen!

Bon Appetit, Kid Chef Eliana