Mum's post: Baking with Amelie

Goes a little something like this:

So I'm making dinner late and I have a girl who really wants to help out, but nothing for her to do, so she offers to bake a cake.
Ok.
Get out the recipe, bowls, and basic ingredients.
She mashes bananas, pours, mixes, tastes and mixes more.
She is fabulous.


While the food is burning on the stove I want to record this fabulous moment.
"Smile Amelie!"
And here's what I get:

Yup, that's her. Fantastic Amelie, super girl wonder and super hero helper.

P.S. The cake was great.

Recipe here:

Kari’s Fab Breakfast & Snack Banana Cake

1 cup mashed ripe banana (2-3 bananas)

¾ cups sugar

1 ¾ cups flour

½ tsp baking soda

¼ tsp salt

Pinch of ground nutmeg

1/3 cup vegetable oil

½ cup milk

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

½ cup chopped walnuts

In a small bowl mix bananas & sugar, let stand for 10 mins. While you’re waiting, Pre-heat oven, grease & flour baking tin.

In a large bowl mix oil, milk, eggs, & vanilla. Add banana mix.

Sift dry ingredients together into wet stuff. Mix until just combined.

Quickly stir in nuts.

Spread batter into pan and bake 40-60 mins at 180 C.

I double this recipe and bake in a bunt tin for 60 mins. Good luck.

Princess Mia: Celebrating 7 twice!

I celebrated my 7th birthday two times! Some of my friends came over and we had a fun play time at the park with my other Christian homeschool friends, then ate yummy dinner and then dressed up for a party!

KP came to visit and we sang her happy birthday because she is a Cancer just like me. That's why she likes me so much.

We also watched Duma and had a sleepover.

******************

I had another party with my friends from school. We played games and decorated cupcakes. They were so yummy and we had lots of fun.

Smile!

The Princesses: Whole wheat molasses cookies

We made these whole wheat molasses cookies the other day with our teacher and they are soooo, soooo, good!

The Princesses: Onigiri's & Man VS Wild

Welcome to Onigiri Making 101

Lay out that cling wrap, sprinkle with water and douse with salt

Add the rice, make a hole in the middle and put your filling in (tuna, umeboshi, etc.)

Squish into a triangular shape... or a ball

Tada! You have an onigiri

Mmm! Good stuff.

If you want a really good tutorial check out this link
and this one
and this one.

jan, ken, poi!


Chia with head back pointing at the sky: "LOOK IT'S MAN VS. WILD'S HELICOPTER! "
Mum: "Oh really?"
"Yes, he's going to land here and go HUNTING!"
"How exciting! Do you want to meet him?"
"Hmmm yes... but mummy, we can't let him IN OUR HOUSE!"
"Why not?"
"Because he will EAT ALL OUR FOOD!"

It turned out the helicopter was checkin' out this smoke column.

Princesses Amelie: How to make Irish Soda Bread

Chia suggested we bake raisin bread for Daddy's snack so we thought we'd show you how to do it. It's very fun but you have to follow the instructions step by step -don't leave any out else it might not work.
NOTE: Must have two (or more) kids to lend their expert cooking skills. Don't have two? Ok then, even one will do.

Step 1: Practice kneading on homemade play dough while mummy gets the bread ingredients together.

No cook play dough recipe
2-4 cups flour
1/4 cup salt
1 cup hot tap water
splash of oil
food colouring

Add more flour in as you knead to make it not stick & be just the right texture. Easy! (we made ours back in August and it's still working great. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.)

Step 2: Choose a recipe. Hmm... no yeast left, lets find another recipe

Step 3: Get started with measuring

Step 3: Use your hands to "sift"

Step 4: Do the important measuring while your big sister is occupied with "sifting"

Step 5: Must count the cups of flour -good math practice you know.... One...

Two...

Four!
(No photo of three, mum was laughing too hard)

Step 6: Prepare the raisins

Step 7: Sift some extra flour onto the counter and floor for good measure

Step 8: Mince your raisins... just for fun (This is what a grown-up is good for)

Step 9: Add the liquids a cup at a time


Step 10: Add the raisins
VERY IMPORTANT: Test the flavour of the raisins. I like to call this a "quality control check"


Step 11: Mix it all up-focus intently when mum checks to see if you're still eating -I mean doing a "quality control check" on the raisins


Step 12: One last "quality control check"


Step 13: Divide the dough in half and lovingly shape into two rough circles


Step 14: Place on a floured greased oven tray & cut a 1cm cross into them.


Step 15: Brush tops with melted butter & bake at 190 degrees C for 30-40 mins or till it sounds hollow when tapped


Step 16: Photograph the tired grown up with flour and dough covered hands to show how much you love her

Step 17: Pull it out and cool it down for 3 hours

Step 18: Dig in (with butter or cream cheese of course)

Click to watch something that Chia insisted on stating ad infinitum after tasting the bread

Ahh, satisfaction. There's nothing like the taste of home made bread. Oh, we'd better save some for daddy!

The End.

PS. We love baking and hope to make this sometime soon. (Don't worry Al, the goods are stowed in the freezer till we can do it -won't be long now!)