Seeds, Squash and Bread

We've spent the last few weeks studying plants and how they become food - I'm trying not to post too much about our school stuff, so I'm just going to hit the highlights.  We started by sprouting lentil seeds, planted and watered them - and of course, we made a little chart to learn about the process.  Then we went to the West Tennessee Research and Agriculture Center to hear a presentation about pumpkins and other plants.  I worried at first that it would be a bit over their heads, and it was - L was rolling on the ground completely oblivious to the presentation.

UNTIL - we began to walk around and collect flowers and acorns and climb in trees.  My kids love to gather acorns and stuff.  And we got lots of stuff.  It was pretty much the best nature walk ever. 

top left clockwise: buckeyes, hardy oranges, a variety of small pumpkins, wheat celosia, acorns

Hardy Oranges were used for citric acid on old farmsteads.

beautiful wheat celosia plant full of tiny black seeds

I learned (while the kids were rolling on the ground) that butternut squash can be cooked in pies and breads similarly to pumpkin bread.  I'm a new fan of butternut squash, and an old lover of pumpkin bread, so I decided to bring it together.  L and I cut up a butternut squash together, baked it, and then used it in our regular pumpkin bread recipe (from Betty Crocker - I omit the cloves, and used 2 cups of squash in place of the can of pumpkin).  L adores baking with me, and I love starting a study with seeds and ending with bread - kind of a full circle.