Quesbo Little Chefs · Cooking adventures around the world
A golden pastry pocket. A crispy cutlet.
A sweet little sandwich.
Fold beef empanadas, coat chicken milanesa and sandwich tender alfajores with dulce de leche. Three family recipes and a new stamp for your tasty passport.
¡Hola! — Hello! Welcome to a new stop in Quesbo’s Cooking Adventures Around the World. Find a grown-up cooking companion, choose your kitchen jobs and discover how good food comes together one small step at a time.
Our menu explores three family favourites associated with Argentina: beef empanadas with a mild filling, chicken milanesa with a crisp breadcrumb coat and alfajores filled with dulce de leche. We bake the savoury dishes and use ready-made dulce de leche to keep the kitchen jobs manageable. Argentina has many regional and family food traditions, so this is a small taste. Choose one recipe today, or enjoy them across several cooking sessions. Each recipe makes four servings or a batch to share, as indicated.
Choose your first taste
A little taste of Argentina
Argentina’s food traditions reflect different regions and the families who cook in them. This little menu brings together filled pastry pockets, a crisp breaded cutlet and tender biscuits with a dulce de leche centre. Our recipes use mild seasoning, familiar ingredients and clear jobs to share. Look for what changes when you fold, coat and sandwich.
Quesbo’s imaginary passport adventure
Quesbo opened the cooking passport beside a sunny kitchen window. Today’s imaginary destination was Argentina, and three small jobs waited on the table: sealing a pastry pocket, setting out a clean plate and spreading a little dulce de leche. One empanada had a tiny gap at the edge. Instead of hurrying, a little chef pressed it gently closed. Another cleared a safe space where the grown-up could put the hot tray. Quesbo wrote CARE in the passport: looking after the food, the kitchen and one another, one small action at a time.
What is one careful action that helps your food, and one kind action that helps another cook?
A pocket to fold 01 / 03
Baked Beef Empanadas
Golden pastry pockets with a mild beef-and-pepper filling
Little pastry half-moons are a satisfying thing to make together. A grown-up cooks the filling and lets it cool, then children can help fill, fold and press the edges. Ready-made shortcrust makes this a practical family adaptation of the many empanada traditions found across Argentina.
Ingredients
For the filling
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 medium onion, about 125 g, finely chopped
- ½ red pepper, about 75 g, deseeded and finely chopped
- 1 small garlic clove, crushed
- 300 g lean beef mince
- 1 tsp sweet paprika, not hot paprika
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- 2 tbsp water
- ¼ tsp fine salt, optional
- 1 hard-boiled egg, cooled, peeled and finely chopped, optional
- 25 g pitted green olives, finely chopped, optional
For the pastry
- 500 g ready-made shortcrust pastry, chilled
- A little plain flour for rolling
- 1 egg, beaten with 1 tsp water, for brushing
Cook together
Little hands can- Measure the paprika and cumin before raw meat is handled.
- Cut pastry circles with a blunt cutter under supervision.
- Add cooled filling, fold the circles and press the edges with a fork.
- Handle and thoroughly cook the raw beef.
- Use knives, the hob, the oven and hot trays.
- Cool the filling safely, brush with raw egg and check the hot centres before serving.
Frying pan and spoon, Separate raw-meat utensils, Clean shallow cooling dish, Rolling pin and 12 cm cutter or bowl with an adult to cut around it, Two baking trays, baking paper, fork and pastry brush, Food thermometer and oven gloves
Let’s cook
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Soften the vegetables
Wash hands and vegetables. An adult prepares the onion, pepper and garlic, keeping the raw beef and its utensils separate. Heat the oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Cook the onion and pepper for 5–6 minutes, stirring, until softened. Add the garlic and cook for another 30 seconds.
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Cook the filling thoroughly
An adult adds the mince and breaks it into small crumbs with a spoon. Cook for 7–9 minutes, stirring and turning it until thoroughly cooked throughout. Stir in the paprika, cumin, water and optional salt, then cook for another 2 minutes. The filling should be moist but have no puddle of liquid. A clean thermometer should read 75°C for 30 seconds, or 70°C for 2 minutes, in the hot filling; keep cooking if needed.
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Cool before little hands help
Transfer the filling to a clean shallow dish and spread it out to cool quickly. Once it is no longer steaming, refrigerate it until cold; allow about 30–45 minutes and always get it into the fridge within 2 hours of cooking. An adult mixes in the optional cold hard-boiled egg and finely chopped olives. Keep chilled while preparing the pastry. Clean the raw-meat work area, utensils and hands thoroughly.
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Cut twelve pastry circles
Heat the oven to 200°C / 180°C fan / gas 6 and line two baking trays with baking paper. On a lightly floured surface, roll the pastry to about 3 mm thick. Cut 12 circles roughly 12 cm across, gathering and gently re-rolling the offcuts as needed. If the pastry becomes soft, chill it briefly. Keep the circles and filling cold until you are ready to shape them. Do not taste raw pastry.
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Fill, fold and seal
Divide the filling between the circles, starting with about 2 level tablespoons in the middle of each and leaving a clear border. Use slightly less if a circle is hard to close; do not force it. Dab the edge with water, fold the pastry over into a half-moon and press gently to push out trapped air. Press the edges firmly with a fork, keeping the filling away from the seam. Place on the trays and let an adult brush the tops with the beaten egg.
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Bake and let the steam escape
Bake for 25–30 minutes until the pastry is golden and cooked through underneath. Swap the trays over partway through if your oven browns unevenly. An adult checks the centre of an empanada is steaming hot; use 75°C for 30 seconds or 70°C for 2 minutes as a thermometer check. Let them rest for 5–10 minutes. Break open children’s portions to release steam and check the filling is comfortably warm before serving.
From the table: Empanadas come in many regional styles across Argentina and elsewhere in Latin America. Fillings can include beef, vegetables, olives or egg, and the pastry may be baked or fried. This mild shortcrust version is a family adaptation using ingredients that are easy to find.
↑ Back to the recipe menuA crispy family favourite 02 / 03
Baked Chicken Milanesa
Thin chicken cutlets with a golden crumb coating and a squeeze of lemon
Milanesa is a familiar comfort-food favourite in Argentina. This oven-baked chicken version has a gently seasoned breadcrumb coat. Children can measure and mix the dry ingredients before the grown-up takes over the raw chicken and coating station.
Ingredients
For the milanesas
- 2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, about 600 g in total
- 40 g plain flour
- 2 eggs
- 120 g fine dried breadcrumbs
- 1 tbsp finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- ¼ tsp fine salt, optional
- A small pinch of black pepper, optional
- 2 tbsp olive oil, divided
To serve
- 1 lemon, cut into wedges
- 2 medium tomatoes, about 200 g
- 150 g cucumber
- 1 tsp olive oil for the salad, optional
Cook together
Little hands can- Measure the flour, breadcrumbs and herbs before raw chicken is brought to the station.
- Mix the dry coating in a clean bowl.
- Arrange napkins and help serve the prepared salad with clean utensils.
- Slice and flatten the raw chicken and manage all coating steps.
- Use knives, the oven and hot tray.
- Check every cutlet is thoroughly cooked and cut safe, comfortable portions.
Separate chopping boards and knives, Food-safe wrapping and rolling pin, Three shallow dishes and a fork, Large baking tray, suitable baking paper and tongs, Food thermometer, clean serving utensils and oven gloves
Let’s cook
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Prepare a clean cooking station
Heat the oven to 220°C / 200°C fan / gas 7. Line a large baking tray with baking paper rated for this temperature and brush it with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Wash the salad vegetables. An adult cuts the tomatoes and cucumber into pieces suitable for the children eating them, then covers and refrigerates the salad in a clean bowl, away from the chicken work area.
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Make four even cutlets
An adult places the chicken on a separate board and carefully slices each breast horizontally into two thin cutlets. Do not wash raw chicken. Put the pieces between sheets of food-safe wrapping and gently flatten thicker areas with a rolling pin until they are about 1 cm thick. Keep the raw chicken and anything it touches away from the salad and other ready-to-eat food.
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Set up the crumb coating
Before any chicken reaches the coating station, little chefs can mix the breadcrumbs, parsley, oregano and optional seasoning in a shallow dish. Rub in the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil with a spoon or clean fingertips so the crumbs are lightly and evenly moistened. Put the flour in a second dish. An adult beats the eggs in a third dish, then takes charge of the raw chicken and all three dishes.
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Coat each cutlet
An adult turns one cutlet in the flour, shaking off the excess, then dips it in the beaten egg and finally presses it into the crumbs on both sides. Place it flat on the prepared tray. Repeat with the remaining pieces, leaving space between them. Discard all flour, egg and crumbs left in the coating dishes because they have touched raw chicken. Wash hands and clean the station thoroughly.
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Bake and check the centres
Bake for about 18–22 minutes, turning carefully halfway through with tongs. Timing depends on thickness, so an adult checks the thickest part of each cutlet with a clean thermometer: 75°C for at least 30 seconds, or 70°C for 2 minutes. Keep cooking if necessary. Without a thermometer, cut into the thickest part and check it is steaming hot throughout, with no pink meat and clear juices. Use clean utensils for serving.
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Rest, slice and share
Let the chicken rest for 3 minutes. Add the optional teaspoon of olive oil to the tomato-and-cucumber salad and toss with a clean spoon. Serve each milanesa with salad and a lemon wedge. A grown-up can cut the chicken into manageable strips, remove any lemon pips and check the serving temperature. Let everyone choose whether to add a little lemon.
From the table: Milanesas are breaded cutlets enjoyed in Argentina in many versions, including beef and chicken. They connect with wider European breaded-cutlet traditions. Baking them is a convenient family option; this recipe keeps the coating simple and serves lemon on the side.
↑ Back to the recipe menuA sweet little sandwich 03 / 03
Alfajores with Dulce de Leche
Tender cornflour biscuits with a creamy caramel-milk filling
Two pale biscuits and a spoonful of dulce de leche make a lovely little sandwich to share. These alfajores de maicena use cornflour for a delicate crumb, with optional coconut around the edge. We use ready-made dulce de leche so children can focus on rolling, cutting and assembling.
Ingredients
For the biscuits
- 100 g unsalted butter, softened but not melted
- 75 g caster sugar
- 2 medium egg yolks
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Finely grated zest of ½ unwaxed lemon, optional
- 150 g cornflour (cornstarch), plus a little for the cutter if needed
- 100 g plain wheat flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1–2 tsp milk, only if needed to bring the dough together
For the filling and finish
- 250 g ready-made thick dulce de leche, preferably labelled repostero or baking style
- 30 g desiccated coconut, optional
Cook together
Little hands can- Weigh ingredients and help beat butter and sugar.
- Cut matching biscuit circles and count the pairs.
- Fill fully cooled biscuits and roll the edges in optional coconut.
- Separate eggs, supervise dough handling and keep raw ingredients away from ready-to-eat filling.
- Manage the oven and move fragile hot biscuits.
- Check ingredient labels and storage instructions for the dulce de leche.
Mixing bowl, spoon and whisk or electric mixer, Sieve, rolling pin and two sheets of baking paper for rolling, 6 cm round cutter, Two baking trays, baking paper, wire rack and oven gloves, Teaspoon or small piping bag and shallow bowl
Let’s cook
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Make a soft butter mixture
Wash hands and prepare a clean work surface. Beat the softened butter and sugar in a bowl for 2–3 minutes until smooth and a little lighter. An adult separates the eggs. Beat the yolks into the butter one at a time, followed by the vanilla and optional lemon zest. Keep raw egg and flour away from the finished filling, and do not taste the raw mixture.
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Bring the dough together
Sift the cornflour, plain flour and baking powder into the bowl. Fold with a spoon, then press the mixture gently together with clean hands; do not knead it like bread dough. It may look crumbly at first but should hold when squeezed. If it remains too dry to join, mix in milk 1 teaspoon at a time, using only what is needed. Flatten into a disc, wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
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Roll and cut matching rounds
Heat the oven to 180°C / 160°C fan / gas 4 and line two baking trays with baking paper. Roll the chilled dough between two sheets of baking paper to an even 5 mm thickness. Peel off the top sheet and cut rounds with a 6 cm cutter. Lift them carefully onto the trays, leaving 2 cm between them. Press the scraps together gently and re-roll once. Aim for an even number of rounds; the exact yield depends on thickness.
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Bake pale, tender biscuits
Bake one tray at a time for about 10–12 minutes. The tops should look dry and set, with the undersides just beginning to colour; these biscuits should stay mostly pale. Let them sit on the tray for 5 minutes, then an adult moves them carefully to a rack. They are fragile while warm. Allow them to cool completely, about 20–30 minutes, before adding the filling.
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Sandwich with dulce de leche
Pair biscuits of similar size, turning one of each pair flat-side up. Use a teaspoon or a small piping bag to add about 1 generous tablespoon of thick dulce de leche, dividing the 250 g between your pairs. Put the second biscuit on top and press very gently until the filling reaches the edge. Support each biscuit from underneath rather than squeezing its top. Use purchased dulce de leche straight from its container, following the label.
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Add a coconut edge and share
If using coconut, put it in a shallow bowl and roll just the filled edge of each sandwich through it, letting the coconut stick to the dulce de leche. Leave some plain if preferred. Let the sandwiches settle for 15–20 minutes in a cool place, then serve. These are treats for sharing across several occasions; store the rest promptly according to the guidance below.
From the table: Alfajores are enjoyed in Argentina and other parts of Latin America in many styles. Alfajores de maicena have pale, tender biscuits made with corn starch, a dulce de leche filling and often a coconut edge. Dulce de leche is a sweet milk spread, different from a thin caramel sauce.
↑ Back to the recipe menuThree words for your cooking notebook
Empanada: A pastry pocket folded around a filling. Our baked version holds gently seasoned beef and vegetables.
Milanesa: A thin cutlet with a breadcrumb coating. We use chicken and cook it in the oven.
Dulce de leche: A thick, sweet milk spread with a caramel flavour, used to fill our alfajores.
Your tasty passport · Argentina
You noticed. You helped.
You cooked with care.
Care can be a gentle fold, a clean spoon or a kind word to another cook. Take your time with the little details and notice how they help everyone enjoy the meal.
- Write ARGENTINA at the top of a new notebook page. Draw the dish you made and add the date.
- Choose a suitable kitchen job with your grown-up. Name one detail that needs a little extra care.
- Notice another cook’s work. Offer a kind word, pass a clean tool or help set the table.
- Earn your CARE stamp: write or draw one careful action and one kind action you tried today.
Food detective: Why do we leave a clean border around an empanada before folding it? The clear edge gives the pastry room to press together, helping keep the filling inside while it bakes.
A word for your journey: Hola — hello. At the table: Buen provecho — Enjoy your meal.
Food and discovery notes for grown-ups
This original Quesbo adventure offers approachable family adaptations with mild seasoning and clearly shared cooking jobs. Empanadas, milanesas and alfajores appear in many regional and household versions, in Argentina and beyond. Here, the empanadas and chicken milanesa are oven-baked; the alfajores use purchased dulce de leche. Follow each recipe’s specific cooking and storage guidance, especially for minced beef, raw chicken and filled pastries. Recipes have not been kitchen-tested. Food images are AI-generated serving illustrations.
- Paulina Cocina — Empanadas de carne
- GOYA — Argentinian-Style Beef Empanadas
- Gaby Melian — Argentinian empanadas family tradition
- Paulina Cocina — Milanesa de pollo
- Paulina Cocina — Cómo hacer milanesas
- Paulina Cocina — Alfajores de maicena
- Maizena Argentina — Alfajores de Maizena
- GOV.UK — Cooking food safely
- GOV.UK / Food Standards Agency — Cooking your food
- GOV.UK / Food Standards Agency — Handling flour and flour products safely
- Fundación BBVA — Diccionario del español actual: hola
- Cambridge Dictionary — bon appétit, English–Spanish
- FundéuRAE — ¡buen provecho!
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