Blog Archives

Gomashio

12/21/2013

Gomashio is a Japanese seasoning used regularly in macrobiotics. It is an excellent condiment to use during the holidays as the minerals from the sesame seeds and the alkalizing quality of the salt helps to balance out the effects of all the sugar in holiday treats. We use it year round with the kids because they love the taste of the salty toasted sesame seeds. We call it our 'magic fairy sprinkle' because it suddenly make fresh veggies more appealing to the kids.

Step 1
Roast 1/4 cup of salt in a cast iron skillet. To keep the salt moving we practiced writing letters and created salt drawings. Roast for a few minutes until salt begins to turn grey.

Step 2
Place salt in a suribachi and grind. Roast 4 cups sesame seeds. Keep the seeds moving to avoid burning. Seeds are done when they smell very fragrant and change to a darker brown color. Did you know that sesame seeds have more calcium per ounce than milk?

Step 3
Crush sesame seeds and salt together until seeds are about half way crushed. Pass the suribachi around the group so everyone's love goes into the gomashio! Be sure and smell the yummy toasted sesame sees as you grind.

Gomashio is delicious served on simple brown rice!

First these two classified all the blocks by color and then built a rainbow tower.

We started our garden beds! The kids helped break up the clumps of soil and sifted out rocks.

We had another two birthday girls this week, so we made chocolate cupcakes with sprinkles!

The kids love to help clean up.

Free play!

Birthday party!

Dress up!

More fairy flight!

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Strawberry Cupcakes

12/15/2013

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We like to celebrate birthdays and these strawberry cupcakes were delicious! Can you guess how old our birthday girl is?

Ingredients:
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup grated carrots
1/2 cup sliced strawberries
1/4 cup unsweetened coconut
2 cups almond flour
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp baking soda
2 eggs
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup cashew cream (soaked cashews blended with maple syrup)

Step 1
Begin by prepping the first 3 ingredients. It's important to emphasize to keep both hands on the handle when instructing children to use a crinkle knife - these guys are doing great!

This strawberry slicer is a favorite with the kids and creates beautiful thin slices of strawberries.

Step 2
Crack and whisk the eggs and mix with the other wet ingredients. It's incredible to see the skill and confidence the kids have now with regular cooking classes. I didn't crack eggs with such bravado until I was in my 30's!

Step 3
Combine wet and dry ingredients with the carrots and pecans. The secret to a fluffy cupcake is to very gently mix the ingredients until just blended.

Step 4
Grease the muffin pan with coconut oil and add spoonfuls of the mix to the pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes. Allow to cool then top with cashew cream and strawberries.

Step 5
Sing 'Happy Birthday' together and enjoy with your friends!

We made our own birthday hats to get into the celebratory spirit. The kids were given access to a variety of artistic materials and then allowed to create freely.

We explored the alphabet and spelling our own names with these stencils.

We played with varying states of play dough as we added flour and water to create different consistencies.

And then we love to help clean up after making a big fun mess!

'Just as humus in nature makes growth possible, so elementary music gives to the child powers that cannot otherwise come to fruition.... The imagination must be stimulated; and opportunities for emotional development, which contain experience of the ability to feel, and the power to control the expression of that feeling, must also be provided.' Carl Orff

Making homemade play dough!

We took the play dough outside to cool and Kristin showed us how to make pinch pots.

The kids love to help make lunch. Here they were presented with a variety of tools and tongs to make bean and cheese tacos.

Stamps provide an excellent opportunity to explore shapes, patterns, textures, and creative expression. Here Kristin helps a friend turn diamonds into a kite flying scene.

Spooning hummus into containers is a fun and simple exercise of hand eye coordination and fine motor skills. Being involved in the preparation and using aesthetic presentation helps kids to be more open minded to trying healthier foods.

"There's more than one way to use a magnifying glass!"

The kids created a TV with a Winnie the Pooh show in the butterfly tent.

The kids put on a puppet show. Here a monkey and a monster get lost in the jungle. Dramatic play can be a wonderful experience in practicing cooperation skills and problem solving.

Free play!

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Llapingachos - Ecuadorian Potato Pancakes

12/6/2013

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These fried potato pancakes were a huge hit with the kids! They loved mashing and making patties with the soft potatoes, but even more, they LOVED eating them! "Llapingachos" is also really fun for the kids to say aloud. Our ingredients were simple with potatoes and mozzarella fried in olive oil and salt. Next time we make these we'll try adding more veggies into the potato mix and see how they like them.

Step 1
Peel potatoes with a child safe peeler. This was a challenging task, but they persevered and yelled "I did it!" when they got some peel off.

Step 2
Slice potatoes with a child safe crinkle knife - check out their knife skills!

Step 3
After potatoes have been boiled and cooled, get your friends together and take turns mashing. Mashing is an excellent activity for gross motor development.