photo by A. Davey

I have mentioned in prior posts that I once read the New York Times Magazine's food column, but have since given up.  One of the main drivers that chased me towards the travel section was the addition of a series called "Cooking With Dexter".  The series centers on a young cook, maybe 4 or 5, that has more annoying foodie street cred than some of the bloggers I've read.  I have a kid the same age, and other than making play dough, I can't imagine him ever showing the slightest glimmer of the overly precocious Dexter's behavior.

I was poking around the interweb, learning about African street food, when I caught some mentions of Dabo Kolo.  The only African food I cook on a regular basis are Moroccan tagines, so its time I learned more.  One post in particular got me thinking about whether drawing the kid into cooking would be a good idea.  Seems like a simple recipe and very kid friendly.

The short answer is it was a total failure.  The Dabo Kolo turned out great, but the kid kept insisting we use his recipe, which had more to do with assembling everything in the pantry into a grey mush and cooking it.

The optional part of this recipe is the pepper.  If you include the chili, I use the same reshampatti chili I use in Indian recipes, the end result is going to have a bite kids won't like.  If you want to go the kid friendly route, cover the pieces with a little butter and cinnamon sugar while they are still warm.

Dabo Kolo

1 cup flour

1 Tbsp sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp hot red chili

1 Tbsp melted butter

1/2 cup warm water

Directions

1. Mix all the ingredients together.  Add the water slowly and mix together, making sure the dough is not too sticky.


2. Knead on a floured surface.


3. Pull off a ball of dough the size of a golf ball, roll out to form a strip of dough.


4. Cook in a skillet with no oil until each piece is golden brown.  Turn regularly.