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Cooking with Kids

Kids love to help out in the kitchen and kids love to eat pasta. Making a pasta meal together is a great way to engage your kids. Besides, the kitchen is an endless magical place to spend time together as a family. Not only will you teach your kids how to make the foods they love to eat, but this is a perfect way to share family meal traditions. The time you spend in the kitchen with your kids will be rewarding for you and fun for the whole family.


Grating Cheese
Grating parmesan or mozzarella cheese right onto pasta can provide an extra boost of protein, which helps make the energy provided by the carbohydrates in the pasta last longer. Kids love to help in the kitchen; let them grate the fresh parmesan cheese for the family to enjoy!

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Piccolini® Mini Penne with Ham, Peas and Parmigiano

Piccolini Grating Cheese

Snipping Basil
Adding fresh herbs to a pasta dish is an easy – and healthy – way to add flavor. Why not substitute that extra salt for some flavorful fresh parsley or basil? Let kids help “chop” the herbs by giving them a pair of kitchen scissors and letting them cut away. Little fingers are also perfect for tearing basil leaves into small pieces.

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Piccolini® Mini Farfalle with Cherry Tomatoes, Basil and Mozzarella

Piccolini Picking Peas

Measuring Pasta
Provide kids with a measuring cup so they can pour dry pasta right from the box and measure the amount needed for the family. When kids are involved in mealtime preparation, they’ll be more excited to try everything on their plates.

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Piccolini® Mini Ziti Baked with Cheeses and Zucchini

Piccolini Pouring Pasta

Chopping Vegetables
Kids can add their own vegetables to pasta and sauces. A food chopper, found in many kitchen appliance stores, enables kids to chop vegetables easily.

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Piccolini® Mini Farfalle with Green Peas Cream, Cherry Tomatoes and Mozzarella Cheese

Piccolini Chopping Vegetables
Create a Rainbow on the Plate
Fruits and vegetables come in a rainbow of colors that represent a host of health benefits. Fruits and vegetables are packed with vitamins, minerals, fiber, antioxidants and phytonutrients, all of which are essential to good health. Try out some of these ideas to bring more of the rainbow to your family’s meals.
  • For picky eaters, puree vegetables in a food processor so they are less noticeable; add to sauces or put directly on pasta.
  • Let kids select a color for each night of the week, and pick a fruit or vegetable of that color to try at dinnertime.
  • Make a chunky pasta sauce by chopping and steaming carrots, peppers, zucchini, squash or broccoli to add to your pasta sauce.

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Piccolini® Mini Wheels with Peas, Ham and Tomato

Piccolini Selecting Tomato