The backpack is ready, the pencil case too. But what do we put on our plates to face the return to the desks with energy and good humour?
Whether it’s lunch at home or dinner with the family, pasta remains one of the most popular solutions for children… and most practical for parents.
Easy to prepare, versatile and perfect for a thousand combinations, pasta is the ideal base for creating healthy, balanced and above all fun meals. With a few little tricks and the right formats, it can become a true ally in the daily routine.
Why is pasta perfect for young children?
Pasta is a food that is always a favourite. Thanks to its simple flavour, soft texture and the possibility of inventing something different every day. By choosing suitable shapes, light sauces and seasonal ingredients, we can offer children a meal that nourishes with a smile.
With Valdigrano pasta, made with selected durum wheat, and with the Valbio line, which offers organic and wholemeal alternatives, with 100% organic grains, you have all the quality and variety you need to prepare tailor-made dishes, even for children.
Valdigrano formats designed for children
Eating is not only nourishment: it is also discovery, play and curiosity. For this reason, Valdigrano has created a selection of mini formats designed especially for children: small, fun and tender to chew.
Here are the protagonists of the baby-size table:
• Alfabeto: Learn your ABCs… directly on your plate! Perfect for soups and vegetable soups.
• Giocattoli: Lots of little things to discover… and to eat! Every bite is a surprise.
• Stelline: A dreamy dish under a pasta sky. Ideal for broths and light soups.
• Mini conchiglie: To collect all the flavour of the sea (and more). Perfect with creamy sauces or delicate sauces.
As well as being tasty, these formats stimulate the imagination and make the meal a serene and enjoyable moment. Because even the little ones learn while having fun at the table.
How to make a complete and balanced dish
Very little is needed to prepare a balanced dish:
Pasta: 60-80 g for the little ones, choosing suitable formats.
Vegetables: blended or finely chopped (courgettes, peas, sweet tomatoes)
Protein: legumes, fish, white meat or fresh cheese
A drizzle of raw EVO oil to complete
Any ideas?
• Mini chifferi with carrot and ricotta cream
• Farfalle with grated courgettes and stracchino cheese
• Penne Valbio with lentils and cherry tomatoes
Colourful ideas that make you hungry
The eye wants its part too! Here are 4 easy-to-replicate ideas:
• Sun yellow: pasta with pumpkin and parmesan cheese
• Vegetable garden green: pasta with cream of peas
• Bright red: pasta with tomato and chickpea balls
• Milk white: pasta with mozzarella and basil
Colouring the dish makes it more palatable, especially for wary children.
Engaging them in the kitchen? A recipe for happiness
Involving children in the preparation of the meal – even if only in mixing, choosing the format or washing the vegetables – helps them to appreciate what they find on the plate. It is an educational moment, but also one of play and sharing.
It can be an opportunity to tell them how to cook pasta, when to put salt or why it is important to taste everything. The kitchen thus becomes a small daily school.
The return to school brings a different rhythm to the kitchen as well. Pasta, in its simplicity, proves to be the right dish to feed the little ones with taste, balance and imagination.
With Valdigrano, every dish becomes a small gesture of care. Because eating well, from an early age, is the first real lesson that can be taught.
