Food & Garden
Pg 9 - The Sunshine Express
2012 October
dimensions, temperatures, adding,
subtracting, dividing and multiplying.
Children can learn at all ages, from the
early days when they can stack mea-
suring cups, count out the number of
ingredients that go into a recipe to more
complex tasks for older kids, like work-
ing with fractions and calculating the
costs, and savings of do-it-yourself (DIY)
baking.
* Health - As you pick out recipes and
ingredients for baked goods, it's the per-
fect opportunity to talk about the nutri-
tional value and function of the grains,
milk, eggs, fruits, veggies, sugars, butter,
leavening and salt used in baking.
There's sometimes a misperception that
baking can't be healthy, but teaching
kids how to divide and control portion
sizes, and to bake using a wide variety of ingre-
1 large egg
dients actually helps young people try new foods
1 cup low-fat milk or skim milk
and ingredients.
3 tablespoons melted butter or vegetable oil
Bake To Learn
* Personal economics - Learning about managing
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese or reduced fat
household resources is a skill that will benefit kids
cheese
How baking serves up a batch of skills for chil-
throughout their lives. Baking not only teaches
1/3 cup chopped green onions
dren, tweens and teens
kids how to make delicious foods for themselves,
1/3 cup chopped green, red and/or yellow peppers
(ARA) - When you think of baking, your mind
but it also includes lessons about how much it
Directions
probably goes right to warm cookies, fruit-filled
costs when others prepare food for you, how
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
cobblers or pies and savory bread. While those
much you can save with a few DIY food skills,
2. Grease bottom and sides of 9-inch square or
are all the happy results of spending some time in
saving and managing money. The economics of
round baking pan.
the kitchen, when children, tweens and teens get
an active lifestyle includes food skills that save
3. Combine cornmeal, flour, sugar (optional), bak-
involved in baking, they'll come away from the
money and time all while burning calories and
ing powder and salt in medium mixing bowl.
experience with a lot more than just happy taste
building traditions.
4. In separate small mixing bowl, beat egg with
buds.
* Literacy - Another critical skill comes with
fork or whisk. Add milk and melted butter, beat-
It's no secret that kids learn while they're at play,
reading ingredient lists, recipe directions and
ing well.
but baking is a particularly great way to make
sequencing preparation steps. Combining reading
5. Add egg mixture to dry ingredients; mix only
learning interactive, effective and fun. With so
with baking emphasizes comprehension, because
until dry ingredients are moistened and com-
many positive outcomes wrapped up into one
kids apply what they're reading to an activity. If
bined.
activity, teachers, parents and others responsible
you miss a step in the instructions or don't read
6. Stir in cheese, onions and peppers. Do not over
for helping young people learn can use baking to
it properly, it can have a dramatic effect on what
mix, the batter will not be smooth. Pour batter into
create hands-on experiences that relate to every-
you're baking. But all is not lost - this leads to
greased pan.
thing from science to managing money.
evaluating the results, problem solving and criti-
7. Bake 25 to 30 minutes until golden brown and
Consider all of the ways that baking can apply to
cal thinking to improve the product.
wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.
school subjects, everyday life skills and a richer
Baking at home was far more common, if not
Option: Pour batter into greased muffin cups.
food future:
essential, in past generations. Many adults have
Bake 18 to 20 minutes. Makes 12 muffins.
* Science - Chemistry goes hand in hand with
lost those skills. However, research conducted in
Excerpted from "Baking with Friends," the 2012
baking. A range of results can be clearly seen
2011 by Mintel for the Home Baking Association
Purple Dragonfly Award-winning children's
when including - or leaving out - key ingredients.
showed that adults still know baking brings value
cookbook, by Sharon Davis and Charlene Patton.
Biology, agriculture and local food production
to life - 33 percent say they would bake from
The book has also received the Benjamin Franklin
become real when kids learn where ingredients
scratch, if only they knew how. Because no one's
IBPA and Kansas Notable Book awards.
like flour, butter, sugar, and leavening come from,
too old, or young, to learn to bake, it can be a
Funny Food
or the physical changes that occur in a product
great way for parents and kids to share a learning
when substituting ingredients to meet health and
A man visits his aunt in the nursing home. It turns
experience. And if you try out some of grandma's
nutritional needs.
out that she is taking a nap, so he just sits down
or great-grandma's baking recipes, it can be a
*Math - Baking is an activity that applies sequenc-
in a chair in her room, flips through a few maga-
tradition-rich, multi-generational family affair.
ing, ordering, fractions, weights, measures,
zines, and munches on some peanuts sitting in a
In the classroom or at home, there are countless
bowl on the table.
opportunities for kids to gain a deeper under-
Eventually, she wakes up, and her nephew real-
standing through baking. For classroom baking
izes he's absentmindedly finished the entire bowl.
lessons, after-school activities, kitchen science
"I'm so sorry, auntie, I've eaten all of your pea-
experiments, a complete baking glossary, resource
nuts!" he says to her.
links and more visit www.homebaking.org. On
"That's okay, dear," she replied, "after I've sucked
the site, you'll also find the DIY Baking Channel,
the chocolate off, I don't care for them anyway."
where you can watch
baking videos and learn
how to make anything
from fruit tarts and
whole grain breads to
pizza and Confetti Corn-
bread.
Confetti Cornbread,
Makes 12, (2.25 ounc-
es/66 grams) squares or
wedges
Ingredients:
1 cup white, yellow or
whole grain cornmeal
1 cup all-purpose flour
(may alternatively use
"God comes to the hungry in the
half whole wheat/half
all-purpose flour)
form of food." - Mahatma Gandhi
1 or 2 tablespoons
"God gives all birds their food but
sugar, optional
does not drop it into their nests."
2 1/2 teaspoons baking
powder
- Danish Proverb
1/2 teaspoon salt
