Play Food

I meant to make a bunch of food to go with L's kitchen this past Christmas, but it just didn't happen. Sometimes, especially when things are busy, the idea of learning another new thing is just one thing too many. Plus, I know there are a lot of talented people already devoting all their creativity to play food. So if you can't make it yourself, letting someone else do it is the next best thing.

I got this play food from OneNOnly on etsy, and really it's absolutely beautiful. I bought it for L's birthday, which is still a couple months away. Mine is still packed away, so these photos are from her product listings. In person, they are even more lovely - just smaller than life size and carefully hand stitched.

There are lots of things to choose from on Etsy, but I wanted to get items that I thought L would be able to combine together in several different ways. The bow tie pasta will be perfect for her soup pot, the sandwich stuff can be combined to make a dozen different kinds of sandwiches, plus some fun stuff on it's own. I'll be setting aside a couple of bananas from the pancake set for J's birthday with lofty dreams of sharing in our future

L's Kitchen

I labeled this under "stuff I made" only because I don't have a category for stuff John made. Perhaps I should.


We talked this out together, but John built it for L for Christmas with very little help from me. My contribution was the little curtain, potholders and apron.


He used an old picture frame for the oven window, and made little shelves to hide all the kitchen toys.


The oven rack slides in and out. He made it from dowel rods.


I forget where we got the idea of using a mixing bowl for the sink, but I think we saw it done several places. We have a bunch of milk glass knobs we're saving for our house that worked nicely here.


John, with his affinity for gadget making, made little fire bits that come up on the stove when you turn the knobs - using dowel rods, paint sticks and hinges. L was very impressed - and so was I.


I found an old set of kids tupperware at a rummage sale and was giddy with excitement. I like to arrange the dishes and food neatly on the shelf, but L likes to throw it all in the sink. I get to play with it my way during nap time.

We have some plastic dollar store food, but really L likes to make rock and money soup. I've ordered some lovely play food for her that I'll share soon...

Springing Forward

I just realized I've hardly posted about anything but food for months. I guess I've been on an extra long break. Last year, I completed several exciting goals, and I think I just wanted to step back and enjoy that for awhile without a lot of new pressures.



With Spring approaching, we've been enjoying playing outdoors, we celebrated our 5th anniversary, and I've begun a new fun project. So, I wanted to assure you I have a new pattern coming soon. Here's a little sneak peak. I'm taking my time, so no promises on when it will be ready.


Happy {almost} Spring!

Sweet Potato Pancakes

Another attempt at meals all three of us can eat during the day. I got this one from Wholesome Baby Food. There website is a great resource for baby food recipes, as well as good information about when to introduce what foods. Most of the information is available free on their website, but you can also buy a downloadable cookbook, which I think is a much easier way to browse and save the information.

This one was exciting for us, because J has just started eating wheat, which is making our lives much easier. L and I had ours with cinnamon and sugar on top, and we just ate them with our fingers. Awesome. The recipe is meant for baby, so if you wanted to make it a family meal, you'd need to double or triple it. As is, it made about 10 cookie sized pancakes.

You'll find the recipe on this page if you scroll down a bit. We haven't introduced eggs or dairy yet, so I used substitutions for those. Their book also has lots of information on varying recipes based on your child's needs, with a long list of egg substitutes for different needs, as well as chapters on other common food intolerances.

Garlic Bread

John likes this Garlic Bread Sprinkle he buys at the store, but I like to make my own. So, okay, I cheated a bit, and read the ingredients of his little bottle before I mixed up mine. His had corn syrup and vegetable oil solids that I was happy to exclude.

Here's my version:
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp parsley
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp turmeric
Add ingredients to small bowl and stir.

Don't you just love learning new ways to use seasonings? I usually only use turmeric when I make fried rice or Indian food. But this was really great. And it made it a pretty yellow, too, which doesn't hurt.

I fix my garlic bread like my mom taught me:
Place french bread on foil and slice. Brush each slice and the top of the loaf with a little olive oil (or butter), then sprinkle the garlic seasoning on each slice. Wrap it up in the foil and place in oven around 200. Leave it until your dinner is ready and then it's hot and ready to serve.

Soup!

A couple of recent watercolors of girls in the kitchen: