This week

We planted daffodil bulbs.  I thought Bug would totally be into the whole digging, planting, watering process but after initially peering over my shoulder and watering one single bulb in with the hideous duck watering can she insisted we buy, she preferred skipping around the garden and rolling my poor bulbs down the drive way and onto the road - fingers crossed they still grow.   

I made cereal.  Its a recipe for homemade Cheerios but I cant comment on its likeness to a cheerio as I've never had them.  I used the top recipe but replaced the butter with coconut oil and I  left my oats whole, just cause.  I also threw in a handful each of linseed and chia seeds. I used the crumble method as I was aiming to make something I could mix chopped dried fruit through and use as a healthy snack.  It worked wonderfully and its quite addictive. (They say on the recipe that the cheerios dissolved quickly in milk, I didn't have this problem at all.  They softened but held their shape so not sure if it was luck or if the coconut oil makes them more robust)

We also baked some one knead bread.  I used to make bread a lot in uni because its sort of procrastinating but the rising times allow time to write that report you are putting off. My mother in law dropped of some quinces (they have to be the best smelling fruit, beautiful) and a small jar of quince jelly which is amazing dolloped onto homemade bread with a generous smear of butter.

Oh and if your wondering about the whole sourdough thing, 2 weeks ago I sort of killed my sourdough starter (it smelt like turps I'm pretty sure it was dead).  Poor little fellow. So I'm sticking to yeasted breads for the moment, which I prefer over sourdough flavor anyway, but I got seduced by the idea after reading blogs by girls (here and here) I thought I'd give it a whirl. Cest la vie.

 

I've started reading a brilliant Montessori blog.  While I don't fully proscribe to the beliefs of Montessori a lot of her ideas do resonate with me.  To give children both freedoms and boundary's is something I both believe in and at times struggle with, especially with my headstrong toddler. Anyways whether you a believer in the Montessori method or not Kylie's blog is a great resource for activities to stimulate and entertain your minis from 2 months onwards.  The sponge activity was a great way to allow me to do the dishes without a 'helper'. Bug still spilt a bit of water but not as much as I expected, and I could quickly wash up without having to make the water lukewarm or put up with winging.

I also was inspired to hang a bell for Bebe.  Such a lovely and simple idea. I already had a gorgeous bell that I wore while pregnant and have been meaning to put on a thinner shorter chain, but now its been restrung onto some ribbon and hung from the baby gym. Already (at 6.5 weeks) Bebe is engrossed in it and it won't be long till she's batting and playing.

We dyed some pasta, for Bug to thread, (the red is dye using raspberries I was pretty pleased how well it worked. I plan to play more).  I gave her skewers (the sharp ends stoppered with fimo to stop her pocking her eyes out and to stop the beads falling off.  She aced it so next week we'll up the difficulty and we'll try useing wool and crochet needles. 

 

This week

This Week We

Baked: Magic Custard cake via. rasberri cupcake. It's my sisters birthday on Monday so we had early birthday dinner Friday night and this was the cake I made. Yummy, creamy, but not too sweet, and definitely different. Delicious with berry's and icing sugar. There's also a version with berries baked into it, which looks amazing as well, but I'm yet to try it. 

 

In return my Sis made blueberry lime and mint cake (did I mention we're twins) . Are you a mojito lover? This is a mojito in cake form minus the rum (although you could add that to the drizzle if you were feeling footloose and fancy free)! Mmm.

We ate: breakfast at Rococo's in Acland street, St Kilda. Rococo's is our official go to cafe for St Kilda brunch dates. While a bit noisy, the tables are spacious you can fit a pram in, and best of all, the food is consistently excellent. We have a theory that if your paying for food it should be better than what you would make at home, and Rococo's has yet to disappoint. The down side (if you can call it that) is all the amazing bakeries you pass on the way down Acland st. I came home with chocolate cannelloni and cream brûlée, a sugar laden end to the week! 

We made: salt free, sensitive skin friendly Play dough. Containing honey, cornflour, oats, coconut oil and water, the Dough is soft and lovely to play with. It's great for kids who shove everything in there mouths and for younger babies to have some sensory fun, as well as sufferers of eczema and other skin sensitivities, but it's quite pricey to make in comparison to regular play dough, (coconut oil isn't the cheapest option), but is probably still cheaper than brought stuff. If left out it gets a crusty skin on it but it goes really hard if stored in the fridge due to the coconut oil, and needs to be hand warmed to become pliable again. I'm still experimenting with storage and shelf life. 

And I began a sourdough starter. I'm at day 5 and making bread with it tonight. I'll go into more detail when I get it to the maintenance stage, (about 5-10 days) and try a few more recipes. 

I read: (yup I read a whole book! thanks  to mum and her Bug wrangling, and the enforced sofa bound time early bfing brings)Jody Picoults 'The Storyteller'. I cried, BWB even teared up when I explained why I was crying. It is brilliant, thought provoking and heart breaking. Highly recommended.

Said good bye to my mum. Arg! We will miss her terribly! Next week could be a rough one without that extra set of hands juggling minis and washing and music class and supermarket runs! And Bebe's in the midst if her first wonder week (I have the app) which will not help! But we'll get there... I hope... 

Have a great week *K*

The great hot x bun bake

It's the perfect autumn day in Melbourne today. The sun is shining and there's that slight winter nip in the air, so you feel inclined to open the blinds and the windows and let that fresh, healing sunlight stream on in. 

The only thing missing is the blaze of autumn colour lacking in my street. (Rose hips is the best I can do in the way of Autumn hues). At home (NZ) the farm is dotted with vibrant Liquid Amber's, and chestnuts crunch and prickle on the ground... Perhaps I should invest in a potted maple so Bug and Bebe can fully appreciate the blaze of true autumn.

Anyway I'm babbling again. The point of this is that it's also a perfect day to embark on some hot cross bun baking. It's also the Thursday before Good Friday meaning it's a bit late for anyone fancying creating their own batch in time for Easter. Sorry.

I used this recipe for sticky spelt hot cross buns  from City Hippy Farm Girl. I would love to try the sour dough version and must get a starter started. But we made the yeasted version.  These are great for those with minis, as they have a lot of rises but very little kneading they so your not covered in dough and flour while trying to stop your mini hugging your mini-mini to death.

Bug had her own bowl, measuring cups and spoons and a scant handful of fruit and desiccated coconut to mix measure and eat (a great way to keep toddlers sticky little fingers out of your baking). 

I used 250gm of Angas Park fruit medley which is a mix of sultanas, apricots, apples, peaches and pear. Then I added an extra handful of sultanas (cause you can never have too much fruit). I only had calvados so that went in instead of regular brandy, and because I didn't buy my dried fruit till this morning I only soaked it for 20mins or so, instead of overnight. I also forgot the raw sugar so I just used caster sugar. 

After the first rest I mixed the butter and salt in by hand to make sure everything was incorporated properly, and put it into a clean bowl for the first rise. 

My sister and I have made it a tradition to make hot cross buns ever since she moved to Melbourne so I was a bit sad that she was working a split shift and  wouldn't be here to help. However she turned up just in time to do the crosses. Yay! 

As you can see we just spooned the cross mix on, rather than pipe then. The cross mix may have been a little thin as they spread a bit. Never mind, they taste amazing and that's all that matters! Next time though, I think a bit of egg wash or a milk glaze, would give them a prettier finish.

Wishing you all a yummy Easter

*K*

This week

This week we:

Made - this lemon meringue pie to say thanks to my MIL for her help with Bug. (Easy, but read the comments, I accidentally put the full amount of sugar into the lemon filling, and it was still quite sour so use less lemon),

Banana Bread to keep in the freezer (I turned mine into muffins, didn't bother with the topping, eliminated the sugar and used 1/3 C maple syrup, and extra banana instead... just cause). 

A Super easy mobile

Visited - the Springvale Markets, where we brought dragon fruit, super fresh salmon and pork belly.   Having never cooked pork belly I used this recipe, amazing! 

And the McClelland Gallery and Sculpture Park (more detailed post to follow).

Learnt-  how lucky I am to have the health system we do in Australia when it comes to new life. 

How brave my daughter is, she barely flinched with her 18 month injections. She's so amazing (and she gives the best squeezy cuddles! Mwah!)

Am waiting expectantly for both my mum (8 days!) and second daughter to arrive

Have a great weekend

*K*

Playing play-dough

In a desperate move to  entertain the Bug (possibly molars moving, arg who knows? but a grumpy clingy babe needed distracting) I made some no cook play-dough (recipe from The Imagination Tree, I've tweaked the method a little). 
Normally I have two go to play-dough recipes. The one my mum always made from the cream of tartar box (lets dub it the traditional version), and a jelly crystal one my sister found on Facebook. The jelly crystal one is a much nicer consistency and doesn't leave that salty feeling on your hands. The 'traditional' one is easier in that I always have the ingredients in the pantry (jelly is not a common staple... yet). Both take a bit of elbow grease and dedicated (aka un-interrupted by minis) mixing over a hot stove. However up until now I'd never tried a no-cook option. Maybe because pre-motherhood play-dough was not really a priority, and also because mum had always made the cooked version, therefore it never occurred to me there was any other way. However the following recipe was simple, quick, mostly child participation friendly and had pretty much the same result as my 'traditional' version as far as texture and performance go.

No Cook Play-dough

1C flour

1/4 C salt

1T cream of tartar

(Optional) Natural fruit based Powdered Glob paints

3/4 C boiling water (divided into 2portions - 1 half cup, and 1quater C measure) 

1T vegetable oil

(Optional) Few drops of glycerin (apparently it makes it glossier) 

(Optional) food colouring (if not using the powdered paint) 

Mix the first 3 ingredients in a bowel. If using powdered colour you can add it now. Bug loves to mix while I add. She especially liked when I added the powder paint because she could see the result of the mixing better (I'm now thinking aloud (sorta) that turmeric or coco powders could be interesting to experiment with... Hmmm). 

Add the oil and glycerin (if using)  to the 1/2 measure of hot water and add to the dry ingredients. This is the part mummy takes over for a few minutes, despite possible protests from your mini. Mix into a dough adding the 2nd measure of water a little at a time till mix pulls together into a sticky ball. You may not need all of the hot water. Add desired amount of food colouring.

Knead till dough looses it's stickiness (add a little more flour if needed) and the colour is evenly mixed. 

It is now ready to squish and shape or stick into an airtight container and store in the fridge (apparently it keeps for up to 6months)
How easy is that! I'm not sure I'll bother with cooking play-dough ever again.

Potato mashers, jam jar lids, spoons, forks, cups, and textured plastic toys (that can be washed) make for good squishing and mooshing toys.

 We also chucked in some Rose petals for some texture and colour (they didn't stick to the dough so could be removed before we packed away.

 

And yes, for an hour or so I had a happy mini... until she started throwing clumps of play-dough on the floor and after repeated warnings, had to go into time out. Ah well. Tomorrow will be a better day!

 

*K*