Bad day? Bake some bread!

Posted on July 12, 2010 by viviankirkfield

We all have bad days…alarm fails to go off and everyone is late, coffeemaker filter had a hole in it and your mouth is full of coffee grounds, you’ve just finished buttoning and zipping your toddler’s outfit and he spills his breakfast all over it…and these are the little things. Health, relationships, finances…we won’t even go there!

Life can definitely be frustrating. I’ve found that baking bread, especially with young children, can lift your spirits, help lessen anxiety and get rid of negative feelings (all that kneading and punching down the dough…I think bakers must be among the most peaceful people in the world). It also provides a wonderful activity (with science and math concepts) for you and your preschooler AND everyone gets to enjoy delicious homemade bread!

When my children were young, we baked bread at least twice a week. They had fun. The house smelled like heaven. Here is a recipe for their favorite bread.

CHILD-FRIENDLY SWEET WHEAT BREAD

You will need: 2 cups warm milk, 2 packages of yeast, 1/2 cup canola oil, 1/2 cup honey, 1 egg beaten, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp vanilla, 1/2 cup wheat germ (optional), 5 cups (or a little more) flour, 1 Tb milk, 1 Tb honey, large bowl and 2 lightly greased loaf pans.

Combine milk and yeast in large bowl and mix well. Then beat in 1 cup flour.
Add canola oil, honey, egg, salt, vanilla and wheat germ and beat well.
Add enough flour (about 4 cups) gradually, mixing till you can knead the dough.
Knead 5-10 minutes (you can give your child a small piece of his own to work on), keeping a little flour nearby for your hands if the dough is too sticky.
Put kneaded dough in a lightly greased bowl and cover with a clean cloth (dish towel is fine) and let rise for about an hour. Then punch down(YES! Get rid of all those negative feelings…you and your child will be laughing by the time you finish punching the dough) and shape into loaves and let rise till a finger mark remains when you press a finger into the dough (about 1/2 hour).
Heat the oven to 350 degrees and bake about 25 minutes. Brush tops with milk and honey, if desired, and bake 5 more minutes. Cool on wire racks.
Makes 2 regular-size loaves or 4 or 5 mini-loaves.

The new parenting book I’ve just written has quite a few delicious, child-friendly bread recipes that have been favorites in our home for decades. Encourage your young children to help with the planning and preparation of family meals. It will provide a GREAT boost to their self-esteem. Positive parental participation develops a life-long parent-child bond.

So, make it a GOOD day…bake some bread!

Have any healthy, child-friendly recipes to share? I’m going to be setting up a contest to solicit recipes for my next book…winners get a free copy of the book (SHOW ME HOW! CELEBRATING THE HOLIDAYS THROUGH READING, CRAFTING AND COOKING) and their recipe will appear in the book with credit given to them.

Best job: work from home or not?

Posted on July 11, 2010 by viviankirkfield

I was going through the fridge and freezer this morning, chucking “out-of-date half-eaten yogurt containers and planning next week’s meals based on stuff that needs to be used up.

It hit me how much less time I have, working outside the home as compared to when I worked from my home.

Years ago when my own children were young, instead of returning to my position as a kindergarten teacher, I had decided to operate a home daycare.

I guess I had a well-ordered schedule with established routines for the children as well as for myself. In addition to my own 3 children (1 was in 3rd grade, 1 starting kindergarten and my youngest was only 10 months old), I took care of 5 teacher’s children (ages 8 months to 4 years) every day. I also had a lovely kitchen garden in season and shelves of canned and preserved fruits, veggies and jams. I baked bread with the children at least twice a week (they each got their own piece of dough to knead, bake and take home to share with their families…in tomorrow’s blog I’ll include the BEST bread recipe ever…at least my children always thought so). I never bought a Christmas or birthday gift…I crafted everything.

Now, although I only work 3 days a week outside my house, my children are grown with families of their own, and I’ve traded my hat as daycare provider for that of writer of parenting and children’s picture books, I find I have LESS time than before. Is it that I am older and have less energy? Am I less organized than I was before? Or does life become more complicated even though it seems it should be more simple.

I know it is different for everyone…each person’s situation and personality dictate how they feel about working from home or outside the home.

What is your experience? Better to work at home? Or better to work outside the home?

Money-saving summer snack

Posted on July 11, 2010 by viviankirkfield

Yesterday I said that summer vacations and activities can put a strain on your budget. When we get stressed about money, life can seem more difficult and overwhelming.

You don’t have to spend a lot of money on snacks or desserts!

Try this simple and economical one (as in easy and cheap) that even your preschooler can help prepare and EVERYONE in the family will enjoy eating.

COOL AND REFRESHING ICE POPS: Simply pour grape, apple, orange or any other juice into 3 ounce paper cups. For a less sweet, less concentrated pop, dilute the juice with water. Put in the freezer (stand the cups up in a plastic container so they won’t tip over…you can also cover each cup with plastic wrap). After the cups have been in the freezer for about 90 minutes, insert a popsicle stick into each cup and return to the freezer till completely frozen. Tear away the paper cup and you will have a delicious, healthful, economical ice pop for snack-time or dessert. So much less expensive than buying ready-made pops from the store. And, NO preservatives or additives!

For a more “gourmet” ice pop (this one will taste like a creamsicle):

Put 1 cup softened vanilla ice cream or ice milk, 1 cup orange sherbet and 1 (11 oz) can mandarin orange sections (drained) into a blender and pulse till well-blended.
Spoon into 3 oz paper cups.
Cover and freeze till firm (about 90 minutes).
Insert popsicle sticks if desired…or your child can eat it out of the cup with a spoon.

Important tip: You and your child can experiment with different fruit, sherbet, ice cream and yogurt combinations.