Kid-Friendly Summer Supper

Photography by Dave Bryce /Story and Styling by Keith Recker/ Kitchen Design by Jessica Denn, James Mohn Design, and Splash/ Food by Sarah Lujetic/ Dinnerware by Jono Pandolfi, jonopandolfi.com

Sarah Lujetic starts not with a menu but with a conversation. She will typically ask a series of questions, including: What’s the occasion? What do you like to eat? Are the kids picky eaters or supertasters? Do they like to cook? Where will you serve the meal? Do you like leftovers? Answers in hand, Sarah shapes a menu and an experience just for you and your family.

“I help my clients with both weekly meals as well as dinner parties of all sizes. Everything is prepared in the client’s home kitchen, and each menu is unique to the individual client. Once I get to know what your vision is, I can help you create memories with friends and family through food,” she says about her role as personal chef. Her amiable way with little hands in the kitchen is a huge asset. “Making food with kids is a great way to see food through the lens of simplicity. Sometimes we think every dish needs to have complexity and many ingredients. But when you cook with kids, they’re happy when they get to drizzle balsamic glaze over mozzarella or eat something with dirt on it from a garden. They bring fun into the equation every time.”

When Kirk and Mike called as recent transplants from the Pacific Northwest, Sarah asked all of her questions. She learned that one dad and one son were “seafood skeptical,” but willing to taste. Otherwise, all food was generally welcome in the family-of-four celebration they wanted to hold in their new garden. She also learned that both brothers had taken cooking lessons in the past and thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

Armed with this knowledge, a menu of kid-friendly dishes organized itself in her mind. Nothing weird or complicated, just good, fresh food prepared with care. Nothing formal, either. The young ones always react well to a smorgasbord approach, where they get to be in charge of tasting a little or a lot of a variety of dishes.

As predicted, the boys took pleasure and pride in helping Sarah to chop, arrange, drizzle, and sprinkle. They had fun composing the cheese and charcuterie board, enjoying a “direct to the mouth” tidbit here or there along the way. The big hit of prep session: a squeeze bottle of balsamic glaze, which allowed the brothers a Jackson Pollock moment in a kitchen filled with their laughter.

The smiles continued outside to the table, and well into dessert, where Sarah had prepared a little ice cream cone bar, with a few flavors of ice cream, and several species of gummy worms, fishes, and bears as topping.

During cleanup, she proudly declared: “The best part of my job over the past 11 years in Pittsburgh has been all the wonderful people and families I’ve met. Each new client has a different story, and from that I help create their experience. Food has always made me happy and I’m able to make others happy with my food. It’s a great feeling.”

Follow Chef Sarah Lujetic on Instagram @chefsarahlu.

Chef Sarah’s Kid-Friendly Summer Supper

Corn Dog Mini Muffins

Prepare a mini-muffin pan with avocado oil cooking spray. Cut 3 or 4 Nathan’s Famous All Natural beef hot dogs into 2 ½-inch pieces. You will need between 40 and 48 pieces.

Mix up a batch of Jiffy cornbread and fill the mini-muffin slots halfway. Get the kids to help by pressing one hotdog piece into each slot. Bake at 375 degrees for 15 to 22 minutes. Let cool in pan before removing with a small spatula.

Watermelon Caprese

This completely kid-friendly and summery alternative to the classic Tomato Caprese is a hit with everyone. Cut watermelon into cubes and ask the kids to help prepare mini skewers that alternate watermelon, fresh mozzarella, and fresh basil leaves. Or just get them to sprinkle salt and drizzle some balsamic glaze over skewers you’ve prepped. This combination works as a salad, too.

Summer Herb Baked Feta

This flexible recipe allows you to play with the herbs you have on hand: basil, thyme, dill, parsley - try one at a time or all of them together. If your kids are ready to use a knife, let them roughly chop your herbs, and rub them into a block of feta. Let the cheese marinate at room temperature for 1 hour. In a baking dish, mix Kalamata olives and sliced Roma tomatoes, and more chopped herbs. Bake the marinated feta in this mixture at 400 degrees for 25 minutes or until the cheese starts to turn golden brown. Serve with sliced focaccia bread.

Charcuterie Board

The only limit to what goes on a charcuterie board is your imagination! Mine come out differently every time. Shown here is a kid-friendly board stocked with perennial favorites for picky young eaters: cheddar cheese, hard salami, grapes, and water crackers. After a good hand washing, even little helpers love arranging everything on the board.

Summer Vegetable Panzanella Salad with Fresh Dill and Champagne Vinaigrette

Shop at the farmers’ market, the local grocer, or your own garden. Then chop! Keeping the kids in mind, I threw cucumbers, tomatoes, green beans, and carrots, along with a few easy-to-eat-around radishes for the grownups, into a big bowl with a handful or two of fresh bread cubes. Something savory like a rosemary bread from Mediterra works especially well because it enhances the bright, fresh flavors of summer. A tablespoon or two of chopped fresh dill adds intensity to the mix.

Make the champagne vinaigrette in a blender or food processor. Start by blending a small shallot cut into quarters, 2 teaspoons of honey mustard, 1 tablespoon of local honey, 1 teaspoon of black pepper, and a pinch of Himalayan salt. Once the shallot is broken down, add 3 to 4 tablespoons of champagne vinegar, ¼ cup avocado oil, and ½ cup mild extra-virgin olive oil. Blend until emulsified. Taste, and adjust seasonings to your liking.

Pour vinaigrette over the chopped vegetables and fresh dill. Toss and finish with cracked black pepper. Serve over large pieces of herbed focaccia bread.

Grilled Herb Shrimp

In the summer, I use fresh herbs on and in almost every dish, though off-season marinades are also delicious with dried herbs. Combine the juice of 3 lemons, 2 tablespoons each of chopped dill, basil, and parsley, and 5 minced cloves of fresh garlic. Add 25 fresh shrimp, deveined and peeled. Drizzle with avocado oil. Toss until shrimp is well coated, and let sit covered at room temp for 45 minutes. Place on skewers or in a grilling basket, and cook approximately 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Line up the shrimp on a platter and serve hot alongside a dish of chimichurri for dipping or drizzling.

Chimichurri

In a food processor chop a ½ bunch each of parsley and cilantro. Add 2 teaspoons ground cumin, 2 pinches of pink Himalayan salt, and ½ to ¾ cup extra-virgin olive oil with remaining ingredients. Process until everything is emulsified, and pour into a small serving dish. Serve at room temperature with grilled meats or seafood. Can be refrigerated for up to 7 days.

Grilled Salmon

Remove 4 eight-ounce pieces of fresh salmon from the fridge 30 minutes prior to cooking. Season simply with salt, pepper, and California granulated garlic. Grill on high heat for 4 minutes per side for a medium level of doneness, which allows the true flavors of the fish to come through. Finish with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice.