Berries, Jam and Muffin Fun with Kids

  “Kuplink! Kuplank! Kuplunk!”  It’s the sound of late summer berry picking in Robert McCloskey’s“Blueberries for Sal” where Sal and her mother meet Little Bear and her mother bear on the same blueberry hill. The moms mistake each other’s children, but all ends well.

  Berries are perfect for young children. They are the right size to pick, count, and eat. They are little, but packed with vitamins and minerals.  If children are wary of vegetables, try offering berries.

 Picking Berries

  Berry picking is a great way to get the family outside and let children munch as you gather some to take home. They can combine their pails for blueberry snacks, pies, pancakes and muffins or place a bowl next to plates at any meal. Then talk about what animals like to eat berries. There are many fiction books about berries.

  You can have a little economics lesson. Discuss how food gets to our grocery stores and why berries are expensive. What people bring berries to market like farmers, pickers, truck drivers, packers, and grocery store employees?

  Show children how to freeze hand -picked or store bought berries. Spread them flat on cookie sheets so they do not touch each other and place in the freezer.  When they are hard, transfer them to freezer bags and lay flat in the freezer.  These easy snacks will not clump together. 

  Kid’s Freezer Jam

  Children can smash some berries and add a few drops of honey for fresh jam, cream cheese, and a bagel. 

Freezer jam takes only 30 minutes and can have little sugar. This jam uses pectin, a natural thickening agent found in and around plant cell walls that helps bind those cells together. Jars can be kept in the freezer for a year or refrigerator for three months. Low sugar freezer jam recipes are found on premium pectin for less or no sugar needed packages in the canning aisle and surejell.com.

Kids’ Muffins

For easy blueberry muffins you will need 1 cup soy milk, and 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar set aside in a bowl. Meanwhile, in a separate bowl mix 2 cups flour, 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder, ¼ teaspoon baking soda, and ½ teaspoon salt. In another bowl  ix ½ cup plus 2 Tablespoons sugar, ¼ cup plus 2 Tablespoons oil, and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Add a little zest of lemon, if desired. Stir the flour mixture bowl into the sugar mixture bowl. (You may want to save some of the flour to coat the blueberries.) Pour in the soy milk and vinegar curdled mixture. Stir. Finally, fold in the blueberries gently and place in 25 muffin papers in a muffin pan. Bake 20-25 minutes at 375 degrees. Serve cool 

                

More Ideas and Activities....See the authors’ book “Learning Through the Seasons” at area bookstores and grandparentsteachtoo.org. For more help to prepare young children for success in school see the authors’ web site: www.grandparentsteachtoo.org. Also check our audio Podcasts WNMU Radio 90; Youtube video activities; and join us on Pinterest

Photos: Fran Darling, fdarling fotos

Springtime is for Hope and Apple Tarts

  “It’s no ordinary apple tart. It’s the apple tart of hope.  After you’ve taken a bite, the whole world will look almost completely different.  Things will start to change and by the time you’ve had the whole slice, you’ll realize everything is going to be okay.”  Sarah M. Fitzgerald

The Tart Apple of Hope

  Bring on the apple tarts, sunshine, and walks in the woods. This recipe is easy for families to make and a keeper for the recipe folder.  You can make your own crust or use a store bought crust.  The secrets are the apples and the apricot drizzle.

Tart Recipe

You will need four large Granny Smith apples, ½ cup sugar, 4 Tablespoons (1/2 stick) cold butter, small diced, ½ cup warmed apricot jelly or strained apricot jam and 2 Tablespoons water.  Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and line a large tart pan, cookie sheet, or pie pan with parchment paper.

Family Baking is Fun & Tasty!

 You will need a raised edging so the juice from the apples does not over flow and burn.  If you are using cookie sheet, the dough should be like an open pouch around the apples.  You can layer the parchment, a piece of tin foil and then the open pouch crust.  No matter what base you are using, place the prepared pan or sheet in the refrigerator while preparing the apples.

  Adults or teens can peel the apples and cut them in half through the stem. Remove the stems and cores with a knife and a melon baller. Slice the apples crosswise in ¼-inch-thick slices. Place overlapping slices of apples diagonally down the middle of the tart and continue making diagonal rows on both sides of the first row until the pastry is covered with apple slices. Some people make concentric circles. Sprinkle with the full ½ cup sugar and dot all over with the butter. Allow the children to help with everything possible.

All Hands Make this Cooking Project a Success!

Baking

Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until the pastry is browned and the edges of the apples start to brown. Rotate the pan once during cooking. If the pastry puffs up in one area, cut a little slit with a knife to let the air out. Place strips of two -inch wide foil on the edges of the pie pan crust to keep the edges from getting too brown.

   When the tart’s done, heat the apricot jelly together with the water and brush the apples the pastry completely with the jelly mixture. Some people drizzle the apricot mixture toward the end of baking. Loosen tart with a metal spatula and allow to cool. You may add whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

More Ideas and Activities....See the authors’ book “Learning Through the Seasons” at area bookstores and grandparentsteachtoo.org. For more help to prepare young children for success in school see the authors’ web site: www.grandparentsteachtoo.org. Also check our audio Podcasts WNMU Radio 90; Youtube video activities; and join us on Pinterest

Photos: Fran Darling, fdarling fotos
Sketches: Mark Nowicki

Children Love Making Pretzel Treats

Pretzels: Taste good, Low Sugar, Crunchy Treats

Let’s get some of the warnings and negatives out of the way. One large pretzel rod has about 40 calories from the flour, but pretzels are basically nutritionally empty and may be a choking hazard for very young children. Although very salty, pretzel treats are fun and easy to make. Bottom line: pretzel treats  really taste good, reduce some of the sugar of cookies, and add the crunch children like.

   Soft pretzels originated in Europe with the monks in the early Middle Ages and remain an emblem for bakers.  They were brought to Pennsylvania Dutch country by the Germans. The area still produces 80% of pretzels in the United States.  Hard pretzels have no real nutritional value but stay edible a long time and were introduced in 1850.

Pretzels Very Versatile

  Pretzels are good dipped in Greek yogurt, chocolate, mustard, melted cheese. They can be slathered with sun flower seed butter, a good substitute for peanut butter, Nutella, parmesan cheese, jelly, white or dark chocolate.  When crushed they are a good topping for ice cream or yogurt.

  To make dipped hard pretzel logs with children, you’ll need

Make Pretzel Logs

 one 12 ounce package of chocolate chips, dark chocolate or white chocolate; one teaspoon vegetable oil and 24 rods or package twists. Cover a cookie sheet with waxed paper. Mix the chocolate chips and oil in a bowl and place in a microwave for 30 seconds.  Children can carefully stir with a wooden spoon under supervision.  If chips are not melted, return to the microwave for 10-15 seconds.  Dip or spread chocolate with a spatula or table knife. Place on the cookie sheet to harden.

  You can place contrasting melted chocolate frosting in decorator bag and children can drizzle  more chocolate over the pretzels.  Refrigerate for about 15 minutes and place in a covered container or eat on the spot while reading a few books.

Quick Pretzel Cookies

  Another salty sweet snack and not nutritious is pretzel cookies.  You’ll need 1 bag of some kind of flat pretzel like the knot or lattice square and 1 bag of Hershey kisses or 

Very Versatile Snacking

Rollo candy. Spread pretzels on a cookie sheet and place a Hershey kiss or Rollo chocolate butterscotch candy on each pretzel.  Place in the oven at 275 degrees for three minutes. Remove immediately. The candy should be melted.  Come people place an M&M or pecan in the middle. With a Rollo and pecan the cookies taste like a chocolate turtle candy. Refrigerate until hardened and store in a covered container.

  Thin pretzel sticks can be used as skewers or substitute forks. You can place cubes of cheese, meat, tofu, cut grapes, apples, pears, strawberries, blueberries, mango, or raspberries to spear and add nutrition.  For more see grandparentsteachtoo.blogspot.com and wnmufm.org/Learning through the Seasons, live and podcasts.  

Kids Love Getting Pumpkins Early

Pumpkins Smell Like Earth

“Pumpkins smell like earth. They taste like a thousand orange rainbows. They look like a giant golden nugget.”

  When young children get a little help from adults these words have a poetic ring.  Without exception, young children have a poet hiding inside.

  Children start to vibrate with energy and creativity around Halloween so we probably should just get into it early and enjoy the possibilities, too. Waiting until a day before Halloween to buy and carve, misses great opportunities to teach in the family.

Many Pumpkins to Choose

  If possible, visit a place with many pumpkins on display and allow enough time for children to explore, touch, and compare.  Talk about sizes, texture, a wide variety of shapes and misshapes. Which ones are smiling already? Which ones look upset?

Where Can You Find Pumpkins?

  At home, place pumpkins on a table and cover the entire space with paper for writing and drawing. Whole pumpkins work well for sight and sound. Look at all angles and rap on them. Pumpkin pieces and insides are great for smell and touch.  Pumpkin baked goods like pumpkin bread and cookies are mighty fine for taste after the work is finished.

  Help children write words or draw images that represent their feelings. To spark new carving ideas search google images for free pumpkin stencils and templates. Children can combine a few ideas and draw them on the paper.  You are teaching them that planning ahead for any project helps avoid tears and frustration.

Choosing Pumpkins is Exciting!

  As they draw and talk about their pumpkins’ facial expressions and feelings carefully print their words on the table paper. Remind them to look, smell, and touch inside and out.  Encourage them to thump the pumpkin. If you asked a pumpkin a question, what would it say? You can search google for pumpkin jokes and riddles. Then children can change them slightly and make up their own. You can also practice similes, a comparison using like or as. For example, pumpkins are like puffed orange apples.

Write Pumpkin Poetry Together!

Pumpkins for Poetry

  Now read the words and phrases they have said. Arrange them so they sound more fun, poetic, and musical. They can be used as texts or cards with pictures for grandparents and cousins. 

As young authors, children discover the wonder of words through poetry, but this takes a little time. Poetic words paint pictures and stimulate the senses that children use to learn about their world. It is too late Halloween night when the focus is on candy and costumes.

   Writing poetry works well with nearly any ordinary object that can be explored with the senses. Eggs, socks, rocks, toast, a favorite toy, blanket, leaves, and snow are examples to explore.

Photos: Fran Darling, fdarling fotos
Sketch: Mark Nowicki

For more science and math STEM adventures 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.

Easy Math Recipes for Kids

Baking For Fun and Learning

Two fun and successful recipes for young children are "Three Ingredient Apple Danish" and "Eggless Cake." These recipes provide math skill practice and talking time for young children without feeling like work.
Dashing Danish
  These are like little apple pies found at fast food places.
You’ll need three ingredients: 2 medium cooking apples like Granny Smith or Golden Delicious, 1/3 cup white sugar, and two sheets ready rolled puff pastry.                 
  Peel, quarter, and core apples.

Young children can use a table knife to cut after adults have peeled the apples. Place in a saucepan with a few splashes of water.  Cover and cook over medium heat for about 4 minutes until the apples have softened. The apples are also delicious with morning oatmeal.
  Remove from heat and stir through with the sugar. Add a small amount at a time since you may not want to use all the sugar. Then set to cool.
  Children can cut each puff pastry sheet in half and half again and then into two triangles or any other shape.  Talk about shapes with the kids while brushing each border of the pastry with water. Spread big spoonful of apples on top but not too close to the edges. 
Cut another pastry rectangle as you did before and cut a few slits across the shapes being careful not to cut all the way across. Place over the apple covered shapes so they fit together. Lightly press and firmly press along the edges. Children can use a fork to press down on the edges. Sprinkle each lightly with sugar.  Bake 12-15 minutes in a 220-degree oven or until puffed and golden.
Vegan Cake
  This chocolate cake was commonly made in cities during WWII when eggs were rationed and chocolate was saved for a special occasion.
In one bowl mix 1 ¾ cups nondairy type milk (almond, soy), 2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar, 1 ¼ cups unsweetened applesauce, 2/3 cup canola oil, and 2 teaspoon vanilla. 
In another bowl sift together (or gently mix well with a spoon) 2 cups plus 2 Tablespoons flour, 1 1/3 cups granulated sugar, 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, 2 teaspoons baking soda, 1 teaspoon baking powder, and ¼ teaspoon salt. 
Slowly mix (with a mixer) dry ingredients to liquid ones. Children can put their hand on top of yours to get the experience while talking about safety. Mix until very creamy. 
Place in cupcake papers or a cake pan sprayed with cooking spray. Cook in 350-degree oven 25-30 minutes, less for the cupcakes. Check the center with a toothpick.  It should come out clean. 
Let cool. Eat with ice cream and a few raspberries on top.
Sketch: Mark Nowicki
More Ideas and Activities....See the authors’ book “Learning Through the Seasons” at area bookstores and grandparentsteachtoo.org. For more help to prepare young children for success in school see the authors’ web site: www.grandparentsteachtoo.org. Also check our audio Podcasts WNMU Radio, 90; Youtube video activities; and join us on Pinterest

Children’s Pie Crust in a Bag

 Young children enjoy being a part of any special preparations.  Holidays may be over, but as the long winter months roll on, making something special for family meals is a great way to share and create. Children shine when praised for cooking projects.  For easy mess-free cooking, make piecrust recipes in a sealable bag.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, 2 tbsp. sugar, 1/4 tsp. salt, 1/2 cup cold butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces, 5 tbsp. cold vegetable shortening, 8 tbsp. ice water

 Directions: Help children measure flour, sugar, and salt into a sealable gallon plastic bag. Seal and shake to combine. Add chilled butter pieces and shortening to the bag. Press down and flatten the bag with palms to mix well and produce a flaky layered crust.

  Open the bag and add ice water. Reseal, press, and shake until the dough holds together (add more water, if necessary). Take out of the bag. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead together. Divide in half, flatten, wrap in plastic, and chill for 30 minutes.

  Roll out one of the disks on a lightly floured surface until you have a circle that's about 12 inches in diameter. Line a 9-inch pie plate with the dough. Trim any extra from the edges with a sharp knife (adults only). Return to refrigerator ready for the pie. Makes 1 double crust.

Children’s Apple Pie

Ingredients:

 8 Granny Smith or Cortland apples, juice of 1/2 lemon, 3/4 cup sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp. nutmeg, 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour, pie crust, 2 tbsp. butter, cut into chunks, milk for glaze

Directions:

  Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Once adults peel the apples, younger children may cut apples into ¼ inch pieces with a table knife. Place apples in a large mixing bowl or sealable bag. Pour the lemon juice over apples; add sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and flour. Toss well. Empty the spiced apples into the lined piecrust and dot with butter. For a lattice top crust, children cut 14 long strips out of the second piecrust. Working from the middle of the pie toward one side, fold back every other strip. Lay a cross strip across the remaining flat strips. Return the folded strips, then fold back the alternate strips and lay in the next crosspiece. Continue, creating a weave pattern. When one half of the crust is woven, repeat with the other side. Children use thumb and index finger to crimp the edges. Brush the top with milk for a shiny glaze.

  Bake for 45 minutes (with a cookie sheet on the rack below) until crust is golden brown and you can see the juices bubbling. If the crust browns before the pie is fully baked, cover with foil until time is up. Cool pie before slicing into wedges.

For more help to prepare young children for success in school see the authors’ web site www.grandparentsteachtoo.org.

Also check our audio Podcasts WNMU Radio 90; Youtube video activities; and join us on Pinterest.

Photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dan90266/42759561/   http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ad/Apple_pie_filling_arranged_in_the_crust.jpg