Fall has arrived!

It's Saturday again and we made another big breakfast.  I promise that my next post will not be about breakfast but I couldn't resist trying pumpkin pancakes this morning. They turned out well so I want to share them with you.

Addy has come to expect cooking on weekend mornings. She climbed into her Learning Tower first thing this morning and started to dig into the spice drawer.  Most of the cabinets at her level are still safety latched but I keep the towel drawer, the kids cup drawer and the spice drawer open for her. It definitely provides her with a sense of accomplishment when she can get out what she needs.  The cup and towel drawers are at her level.  She has to be in the tower to get to the spices.

Even if you don't do a lot of cooking with your kids I recommend letting them have some autonomy in the kitchen so that they learn to do things on their own.  Just be clear and realistic with your expectations.  For example, if your child is going through the stage where they have to take everything out of the container and strew it around, only keep a few cups in the drawer.  Otherwise you'll be picking up and washing way too much.  Once they've passed that you can keep the drawer full.

Yesterday we went to a local pumpkin patch with some of our friends.  We didn't pick any pumpkins put we did pose with them for pictures.  Maybe that's why I had pumpkin on the mind this  morning.  These pancakes start with the basic pancake recipe that we like so I'll list that first with the pumpkin addition at the end.  We served them with whipped cream bananas and honey.  I like walnuts on mine but Chad and Addy skipped that part.

The original part of the recipe comes from the Betty Crocker cookbook.

Pancakes
1 large egg
1 cup all-purpose flour/ replace up to half with whole wheat flour
3/4 cup milk
1 TBL brown sugar
2 TBL vegetable oil
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt


Beat egg until foamy.  Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until smooth.  (You can use an electric mixer but we use a whisk so Addy can do the stirring safely.)  Let the mixture rest a few minutes while you heat the griddle to medium heat.  When you drop a few drops of water on the griddle they should jump around.  Cook pancakes until bubbles form on the first side then flip until evenly brown.

Pumpkin addition:
After beating the egg until foaming add:
1/3 cup pumpkin puree
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp cloves
grated nutmeg
1 TBL brown sugar


Finish mixing with other ingredients and cook as described above.


What do you do to celebrate fall?

Starting Points

I've always enjoyed cooking and pretty much had Addy cooking with me once she could stand up on her own. Before that she was often in the pouch on my back while I cooked.

Here are a few things I've learned from our kitchen time:

1. Make sure your young helpers can comfortably and safely reach.

We started just using a stool or a chair to be able to reach the counter. That quickly became too precarious. We love our Learning Tower. It is adjustable and sturdy. There is room for two or even three kids on it and I can slide it around the kitchen. When she isn't cooking, Addy keeps it by the window. Then she can keep her eye on Suka and the cats or play underneath it. Kylan can stand on it to help wash dishes. It has been totally worth the expense. You can buy them new or watch for them on Craigslist. I saw a couple on there recently for about $60 less than I spent.

2. Forget about the mess. I just don't worry if she sloshes stuff out of the bowl or drops it on the floor. I try to give her advice or demonstrate how to stir or pour more carefully but she's still learning. I keep kitchen towels in a drawer that she can reach so when we're done cooking she can grab one and help clean up. I also use 1:4 vinegar to water plus a couple of drops of tea tree oil to wipe the counters with. That way not only is our cleaning solution better for the environment but if one of the kids comes in contact with it it isn't a big deal.

3. Relax about precision. Although we talk about measuring a lot and usually cook from a recipe I've learned that if not all the flour or what have you makes it into the final product it isn't the end of the world. The best coffee cake I ever made was missing an unknown quantity of the dry ingredients thanks to some enthusiastic stirring and it still rose and tasted delicious. That recipe has never come out as tasty.

4. It probably doesn't need mentioning but I'll say it anyways: Go with the flow. As all parents know, just because you think it is time to do something doesn't mean your toddler agrees. If Addy starts out strong but loses interest half way through a creation I just let her go do her thing or help her get started on something else and finish up on my own. Usually she'll still hang out in the kitchen with me and I'll just continue to narrate to her what I'm doing. That way she's still picking up on the vocabulary and doesn't feel that I'm ignoring her.

Here's a link to the coffee cake. Sour Cream Coffee Cake I suggest adding finely chopped peeled apples to the middle portion of streusel.

Banana muffins

Occasionally I watch my nephews who are almost 3 and 5. When they are here, one of our favorite things to do in the afternoon is make our own snack.

These banana muffins are a big hit with all of us and there is a range of difficulty to the steps so everyone can take a turn that interests them. Addy and Braden enjoy the challenge of one-to-one correspondence while putting the muffin papers in the muffin pan. Kylan enjoys the precision needed to crack the egg and sift the dry ingredients together.

These muffins are super healthy too. Made with whole wheat flour and applesauce; they are low in fat and high in fiber.

Preheat convection oven to 350

Ingredients:

1 egg

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1 ripe banana (use a very brown smooshy banana)

1/4 cup applesauce

2/3 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tp baking soda

pinch salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

Line the muffin tins. We usually end up with 12 regular sized muffins or about 20 mini muffins.

In a large bowl whisk the egg, vanilla and the brown sugar together. In a separate bowl mash the banana with a fork and then add to the sugar mixture with the applesauce. Using a strainer or sifter sift the flour, baking powder, soda, salt and cinnamon together over the sugar mixture. You will probably have some of the whole wheat left in the strainer. Add this to the bowl as well. Stir gently until moist. Spoon into muffin liners. Fill just over half full. Add sprinkles or a slice of fresh banana to decorate. Bake for 12-14 minutes.

The mini muffins make great snacks to take along to the park. Chad taught her to eat a whole one in one bite.