Teaching Vegan Cooking Classes for Teens...Suggestions, Please!

[Delicious]

I am going to be teaching teens cooking classes this summer at a teen camp in NYC. The teens will be from ages 13-17. I am so excited! I am also teaching several other classes (but that's another thread entirely!).

I would really appreciate ideas, favorite recipes and so on from those who work with teens, have teens, are teens or remember being a teen!

The ingredients I will have will be pretty basic (I need to keep the recipes affordable and simple, so no exotic ingredients please) and I already plan on teaching them how to make muffins (with several variations), smoothies (with several variations) hummus (again, with several variations) and pasta with homemade marinara sauce etc.

Any ideas on these themes or suggestions of simple, healthy, delicious and 'accidentally vegan' type of foods?

I want to focus on items easily found in most everyone's pantry and refrigerator/freezer to make eating well really easy and healthy for these teens.

Thanks in advance!

[Tigerlily]

I think baked goods will go over well. Everyone likes baked goods.

Maybe how to make banana bread?

Homemade soft pretzels would be great, you can even sneak some nutrition in it by using whole wheat or part whole wheat flour.

Maybe get them to make guacamole with oven baked pita chips? Ooooh and home made salsa to go along with that too. :)

I'll try to think of more ideas.

[Bowwowmeow]

I think at least one cookie recipe. Cookies can be a healthy treat, if you show them how to make them without white flour and white sugar. I remember in chemistry class in high school, two of my classmates did a food chemistry project, which was how to make healthy cookies, and they of course had samples, and the whole thing was very successful!
:cookiemonster:

[Caprita]

Hmm.... :D

Important characteristics of teens, when it comes to cooking:

1) most teens actually pride themselves on not knowing how to cook; there are numerous reasons for that. Most would rather rely on their mums to cook for them. Try to insist on the fact that cooking is actually a pleasant activity, that they can impress their friends with their cooking skills, and that if they ever want to be independent, they should learn to coof for themselves. By the way, I learned how to light the stove. :whistle:

2) teens don't like to wait. Stir-fry is okay, perhaps boiling vegetables too, but I for one choose to stay away from any recipe that wants me to leave something in the fridge for a few hours and only then eat it. :p The recipies must be simple and easy to make, and they must take as little time as possible.

:lightbulb: ideas: :lightbulb:

Sandwiches.

Dips for fries.

Spreads.

Vegan hot dogs.

Something I like to make: scraped (is this a word?) carrots and/or celery with mayo; boiled broccoli with garlic sauce (contains minced garlic, salt, water, your favourite kind of oil); will think of more.

[Cherie]

I was going to say an alfredo recipe (vegan of course) would be good, but I don't know if teens like that. Sandwiches would be good, maybe grilled marinated tempeh & vegetables.

[Delicious]

Oh! Cherie, you just gave me an idea! TEMPEH BACON!!! :eat: How could I have forgotten about that? :)