Children Love Comfort Foods

Make Bread and Butter with Little House!

Making bread and butter with children brings us back to the times of the Little House chapter books of Laura Ingalls Wilder.   

 Making Butter 

Pour one pint of room temperature whipping cream into a large glass Mason canning jar with a tight lid. Fill only one half of the jar to leave enough room for shaking.

  Place the lid on tightly and take turns shaking for about 15 minutes. In the first few minutes the shaking sound will stop because whipped cream is formed. 

Laura Ingalls Wilder's Tells Her Life

Continue shaking until there is a ball of butter. Pour over a thin meshed strainer and catch the butter milk in a bowl.

  The butterball will remain fresh for 3-5 days if kneaded, rinsed off thoroughly with cold water, lightly salted, and wrapped in plastic in the refrigerator. There are no preservatives.

 Bread in a Bag

Here is an easy bread recipe: 2 cups white flour (a little extra for kneading), 1 cup whole wheat flour, 1 cup hot water, 1 package rapid rise yeast, 3 T (tablespoons)sugar, 3 T nonfat dry milk 1T salt, 3 T vegetable oil, 1 gallon size resealable heavy plastic storage bag, 1bowl, spoon, small greased loaf pan, plastic wrap. 

Wilder's 8-book Series Captures Prairie Life 

  Mix 1 cup white flour, packet of yeast, 3 tablespoons sugar, and 1 cup hot water in the plastic bag. Let most of the air out of the bag, close it, and press down on the bag to mix ingredients.  After about 10 minutes, the mixture will start to bubble as the yeast makes carbon dioxide for a bread with fluffy texture.

  The bag will also expand slightly. Let the mixture bubble.  In a separate bowl, mix 3 T nonfat dry milk, 1 cup whole wheat, 1 T salt (or less), and 3 T oil. Open the bag and add these ingredients.

  Release most of the air out of the bag, seal it closed, and press the bag again to mix everything until smooth. Open the bag and add the other cup of white flour.  Reseal the bag and smoosh the bag with your hand until dough is smooth, about two minutes.

  Take the dough out of the bag, put some flour on your hands, and knead it for another minute on a floured surface. Kneading makes the dough stretchy and creates a nice chewy texture. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Mmmmmmm....many ways to bake breads!

  When the dough looks smooth, stretchy, and doesn’t stick to your hands, put it into a greased loaf pan and cover it loosely with plastic wrap.  Let it rise for about 30 minutes. Remove the plastic wrap and place it in the preheated oven. Bake for about 35 minutes until golden brown and allow to cool before cutting. For more information on Laura Ingalls Wilder see her online Bio: http://shsmo.org/historicmissourians/name/w/wilder/  and her “Little House” book series: http://shsmo.org/historicmissourians/name/w/wilder/#section5

Photos: Fran Darling, fdarling fotos

For more go to -  grandparentsteachtoo.blogspot.com and wnmufm.org/Learning Through the Seasons live Tuesdays at 4:30pm and Saturdays at 8:30 am and pod casts archived on the site.