cooking with kids – Page 4

Blackberry Tie Dye cobwebs

We love this time of year. Sad that the arrival of the brambles is a sure sign that Summer is on its way out, and Autumn is just around the corner….

If you are like us, and have picked a LOAD of blackberries already this year, we have a non-edible way of using them this Fall!

We picked a bucket-load before a weekend away, which meant we didn’t have time to eat them…so we froze them on a tray – using half for a smoothie, and the other half went into a pot of boiling water this week, deep enough for the old hemp carrier bag we had decided to tie-dye as a pressie for Granny’s birthday later in the year.

Whilst the pan of blackberry-dye was simmering away on the stove, we got busy with elastic bands, pulling up sections of the hemp bag, (this works really well on old T-shirts or pillow cases) securing them tightly to create two ‘horns’ (as my son called them)….

We let the dye cool a little before adding the organic hemp bag, and rubber bands, which went into the pot with some chopped up rhubarb leaves – I read somewhere that this works as a fixative, helping to make the colour more ‘fast’…this bubbled away on the stove for about 45 minutes.

We then let this stand cooling for about an hour.

We then rinsed the bag and the boys were SO excited to pull the rubber bands away to reveal our spider cobwebs – we hung it up on the line to dry!

Much excitement that natural blackberries can make such a pretty colour – we plan to try some more natural dyes soon, our youngest loves brewing up nettle tea – and it also creates a lovely khaki green dye –

something to try next!

Want to see me talking about this project? Click the link and photo left, to watch now…. Maggy Woodley from Red Ted Art hosted a fabulous “Fall Craft Ideas” hangout on Google+, (and in fact was the inspiration for the tie-dye experiment!).

Maggy talked us through some lovely owl crafts (how simple was the loo-roll owl?! and loved the walnut shell owls twittwoo) more links to follow from – Adele from playfullearners, and Anthea from bluebearwood. Also our anonymous blogger thefairyandthefrog and Rebecca from herecomethegirlsblog.

Oh, by the way, I’m also on twitter.com/MoreKidsChaos too… Erm, and funnily enough on Google+, Facebook and Pinterest! Pop over to say hello x LIKE IT? Pin it!

Ali also writes over on AGreenerLifeforus.com. This is a commissioned story.

baking, cooking with kids

Cookies in a Jar

A great way of diverting your old jam jars or mason jars from the recycling, is to re-use them at least once… we use ours as drinking glasses, which the kids LOVE… encouraging them to make smoothies to share with the family – a great way of using up excess fruit and sneaking in your five a day!

A not-so-healthy option are cookies…Cookies you say? in a jam jar? uh? Well yes!

These make excellent gifts, and are great for keeping in the cupboard, for when the baking urge takes you, and you’re short of time…

You will need (for four jam jars):

265g self raising flour
115g porridge oats
175g granulated sugar
1 and a half teaspoon baking powder
85g organic Fairtrade chocolate (optional, I just think it makes a nice looking layer in the jar!)
150g chopped nuts (we used almonds – again for another layer, visually)
80g demerera sugar
and a handful of raisins, if your child can bear them! (ours got taken out by 8yo…)

So, dividing each ingredient carefully across each jar, layer them up one at a time, so it creates a layered effect (like the coloured sands we used to have as kids!) make sure the jars are packed tight with ingredients.

THEN – when you’re ready to bake, today, or some time in the future, pour the dry ingredients into a mixing bowl, and simply mix in melted 265g butter (that’s 66g if you are just making up one jar of cookies!) and three heaped tablespoons of golden syrup (and that’s a flat tablespoon for just one jar) together, to a consistency which you can spoon in balls onto a greased baking tray…(I have to admit, you may have to add a bit of flour if the mixture looks a bit to sloppy to ‘spoon’).

Give the ‘balls’ space on the baking tray(s) otherwise they all melt into each other in the oven… bake at 180 degrees, for 10 minutes…they should look something like this, enjoy! >>

So, as you know, I’m on a weekly panel of crafty So-and-So-s invited to ‘hang-out’ on Google+ by the every lovely Maggy Woodley at Red Ted Art. This week this was hosted by Maggy AND Netmums.

I hung out on Google+ for a bit of a vlog…(click the screengrab to watch!) with some craft buddies to share these holiday fun ideas, hosted by the aforementioned ever lovely Maggy from Red Ted Art who has pulled all of these together in a *Mason Jar* post. Also present were Kath from KnittyMummy, Anthea with her Kids’ art keepsakes and butterflies, Liz and her fab matches in a jar for camping! Pop back later for more links soon.

Oh, by the way, I’m also on twitter.com/MoreKidsChaos too… Erm, and funnily enough on Google+, Facebook and Pinterest! Pop over to say hello x Like it? Pin it!

Ali also writes over on AGreenerLifeforus.com

For more Cooking with Kids recipes, join my community over on Google+ here.

cooking with kids

Easy cook – salmon with ginger and soya sauce recipe

Salmon with ginger and soya sauce recipe – a quick one, once you’ve marinated the salmon, (I did this for about half an hour, whilst washing up, and allowing the oven is heating up to 180 degrees). The kids love the simplicity of this, plus click here for a delicious squid taglietelle our kids love making and eating…

You will need (for four people):

Four salmon fillets
Half a red onion finely chopped
Quarter red pepper finely diced
Two garlic cloves finely chopped
4cm root ginger grated
large tablespoon chopped fresh coriander
80ml soya sauce
Two tablespoons of honey

Mix EVERYTHING together, (except the salmon) – and THEN add the salmon, spooning over the mixture, so all of the salmon steaks are all covered. Once the oven is hot enough, place the salmon fillets onto a baking tray, spoon over the mixture, make sure that each salmon fillet has space around it for even cooking… and cover the tray in a little tin foil tent, sealing in, trying not to actually touch the salmon. Pop in the over for about twelve mins, whilst you are cooking your accompanying new potatoes – and serve!

Oh, and I’m on twitter.com/MoreKidsChaos too… Erm, and funnily enough on Google+, Facebook and Pinterest! Pop over to say hello x Like it? Pin it!

Ali also writes over on AGreenerLifeforus.com

For more Cooking with Kids recipes, join my community over on Google+ here.

baking, cooking with kids, gardening with kids

Lavender Scones

So much lovely lavender about, everyone seems to have some in their front garden around here… and it smells so lovely – I ‘pinched’ some from my neighbour’s garden last week (I blame CountryWives and their lavender biscuit recipe – according to them apparently Kate Middleton has been craving lavender biscuits during her pregnancy!)

So, the neighbour returned from her annual hols, to find a few sprigs missing from her lavender bush… guilt took over, and I popped over there, with a bag of flower and a baking tray and we made THESE lavender scones – so easy, and it’s all I could do to stop the kids from scoffing the lot after school… here’s the recipe >>

100g caster sugar (we used some lavender sugar Maggy made last month)
300g plain flour
25g baking powder
100g cold, diced butter
200ml soured milk (yep, we had that too, her milk had gone off in the fridge)
1 egg

Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F) mark 6.
Sieve the flour and baking powder together into a large bowl. Add the diced butter and rub it into the flour until the mixture looks and feels like breadcrumbs.

Pour the soured milk into a small saucepan and warm it gently. Whisk in the egg and sugar and pour the milk into the flour, mixing it all together. Leave this dough to rest for five minutes, then pop it onto a lightly floured work surface and knead it together to form a ball.
Roll out this dough into a rectangle with a thickness of about 1.5cm. Cut out roughly 12 scones and place them onto a baking sheet. Lightly dust the scones with some more flour, and then leave them to stand for 10 minutes before baking. During this time the baking powder will get the little scones rising.
Cook the scones in the preheated oven until golden brown; they will take about 11 minutes.

Another neighbour had kindly donated a tub of Rodda’s Cream (the clotted cream to die for), so we had a delicious ‘lunch’!

I’m on a weekly panel of crafty So-and-So-s invited to ‘hang-out’ on Google+ by the every lovely Maggy from Red Ted Art who talked about lavender bags and how to make a-lavender wand, and lavender bath sachets and finally how to make no sew lavender bags pillows.. I do enjoy hanging out on Google+ for a bit of a vlog…(click the screengrab to watch) with some craft buddies to share these lavender thoughts, Joined by Anthea talking lavender cookies and Kelly with some beautifully amazing lavender fans, and Lizzie was there in spirit homemade lavender lemonade….

Oh, and I’m on twitter.com/MoreKidsChaos too… Erm, and funnily enough onGoogle+, Facebook and Pinterest! Pop over to say hello x Like it? Pin it!

Ali also writes over on AGreenerLifeforus.com

cooking, cooking with kids, crafts, education, Uncategorized

Happy Easter – and melty chocolate…

Chaos writes:

I had recently been singing the praises of Rococo Chocolate on twitter, as earlier this month I had wolfed down a couple of delicious ‘grown-up’ birthday bars (all to myself)….
As a designer by trade, I’ve always loved the packaging, with the repeat patterns of the old chocolate moulds – There’s just something so appealing about the classic blue prints.

You can imagine my delight when the chaps at Achica invited RedTedArt and I to spend the morning with them at Rococo’s Motcomb Street, Belgravia store.

We were welcomed by Julie Rosenberg, the events manager for Rococo, with delicious hot chocolate, and were given a really informative ‘lesson’ on how cocoa is grown, and becomes the chocolate we were then to try.

Julie led us down to the kitchen (which we had spied through the glass window in the floor!) and our Chocolate School continued, with egg decorating, and the fun bit of gluing the two halves of our eggs together!

It’s such a great idea for a birthday or hen party….have a chat with Julie for more info…there’s a Half Term Children’s Chocolate Bar Workshop coming up which looks great!

So, we even got to take home the eggs we had decorated (yes, mine IS supposed to be an owl!)

Joining in the fun too were the very creative TorieJayne, Lizzie Me and My Shadow, and Jen from love chic living, glamorous glutton and lish concepts, and hannah in the house too.

A big thanks to Julie from Rococo for making it such a super morning, and to Achica for inviting us along and making it such a memorable morning!

cooking, cooking with kids, create, kids, life

Cooking with Kids: Squid rings, garlic, rocket and pasta for supper!

Chaos writes:

We have a lovely recipe for Squid with Fennel…. 10yo LOVES it and requests it ALL the time. Trouble is, last time we made it together, 8yo cried the whole way through the meal… So, 10yo and I have come up with a compromise, and have replaced the fresh fennel, and fennel seeds with rocket. So cooking with kids has a new recipe for you….And 8yo was so delighted by this option, he offered to make it all himself!…. Using his beloved Sheeplands Farm Bamboo chopping board (his favourite Christmas pressie can you believe?) check out this speedy easy recipe:

INGREDIENTS: (serves 4)

400g dried tagliatelle
600g frozen squid rings (calamari)
couple of handfuls of rocket leaves
1 lime
3 cloves garlic (finely chopped)
2 tablespoons fresh parsley (finely chopped)
olive oil
sea salt
ground pepper

Heat the olive oil, and gently fry the garlic. Meanwhile, pop the pasta on to cook in a large pan of water. Add the squid rings to the fried garlic (make sure they are defrosted) and the zest of the lime, and half of the lime juice, and the chopped parsley. Drain, and add the cooked tagliatelle pasta, and the rocket too, and give it a good stir.

Season to taste, adding a little more of the lime juice if needed.

We like to grate some parmesan over it to serve (although, according to the OH, this is ‘against the law’ of no cheese with seafood… don’t ask) which is delicious!

Want a speedy pancake pud to follow? Click here for the quickest pancakes in the history of the universe.

This one’s great for the school dinner packed lunch flasks for the next day if there are any leftovers!

For more Cooking with Kids recipes, join my community over on Google+ here.

Oh, and I’m on twitter.com/MoreKidsChaos too… Erm, and funnily enough onGoogle+, Facebook and Pinterest! Pop over to say hello x Like it? Pin it!

Ali also writes over on AGreenerLifeforus.com

baking, cooking, cooking with kids, crafts, kids

Kitkat and Smarties Cake

Chaos writes:

So, as these boys have got bigger, so the cakes have got simpler….

yet… THIS cake has so far been the most popular amongst 8yo’s peers…. “Wow! Your Mum Is AMAZing” apparently, so I will be attempting an alternative version of this next week for 10yo’s birthday sleepover – so, see, I do make an effort, and don’t always BUY the cool cakes that turn up in our house!

I thank the invention of Pinterest for the inspiration, such a great place to pull together visual triggers!

Any ideas of what we could do differently next time? Perhaps jelly babies instead of Smarties? what would we use to hold them all in, instead of #Fairtrade KitKats??? Answers on a postcard, (or below if you like!)

Other ideas for the top, not so colourful, but we DO like the odd Malteser in our house too, especially now they are Fairtrade!

Click here to read more about Laura Dockrill and Maltesers (the calming of the Angrosaurus that is ‘Darcy Burdock’) and for a chance to win a signed book!

Click here to read more about CAKE! And Fairtrade Coffee….