I had a blast hanging out with Dan's super cute 3 year old niece, Ashah, on Saturday night. We colored and danced and watched some princess movies and, of course, cooked! We made some chicken soup and a giant peanut butter cookie all from scratch and she had a ball getting messy with the ingredients and taking ownership of the preparation.
For the chicken soup, she peeled the onions while I chopped the carrots, celery, and then onions. I put these in a bowl and she dumped them into a pot, she then put some oil in the pot, and then I put it on a burner on the stove top to simmer the vegetables. When the vegetables were cooked she dumped in some chicken stock, and while this heated up we had so much fun ripping apart a cooked chicken carcass I had in the fridge. At first I thought she'd think it was icky but boy was I wrong! When we were finished with this we put the ripped up chicken bits in the soup (& Ashah fed Daisy some of the grosser bits:). Ashah then poured salt, pepper, a bay leaf, and torn fresh tarragon in a small bowl, I dumped these seasonings into the soup. After about 20 minutes of cook time we had yummy soup! Ashah claims she doesn't like soup but she did eat some chicken and carrots with no broth, with a cup of milk that made a healthy meal. Oh yea, but we also had some peanut butter cookie for dessert (well, Ashah had so much cookie dough before we baked the cookie that she coudn't eat any of the final product:)
For the chicken soup, she peeled the onions while I chopped the carrots, celery, and then onions. I put these in a bowl and she dumped them into a pot, she then put some oil in the pot, and then I put it on a burner on the stove top to simmer the vegetables. When the vegetables were cooked she dumped in some chicken stock, and while this heated up we had so much fun ripping apart a cooked chicken carcass I had in the fridge. At first I thought she'd think it was icky but boy was I wrong! When we were finished with this we put the ripped up chicken bits in the soup (& Ashah fed Daisy some of the grosser bits:). Ashah then poured salt, pepper, a bay leaf, and torn fresh tarragon in a small bowl, I dumped these seasonings into the soup. After about 20 minutes of cook time we had yummy soup! Ashah claims she doesn't like soup but she did eat some chicken and carrots with no broth, with a cup of milk that made a healthy meal. Oh yea, but we also had some peanut butter cookie for dessert (well, Ashah had so much cookie dough before we baked the cookie that she coudn't eat any of the final product:)
I took the Peanut Butter Cookie recipe straight from Better Homes & Garden Cookbook. I don't have an electric mixer but it was more fun because Ashah got to use a crank mixer and spoon so she did all of the mixing. We also decided to make one giant cookie so I cut the quantities of the recipe in half and we put all of the batter in a 9" pie pan, it turned out great this way. There's nothing seasonal about these cookies, but hey, they were good!
PEANUT BUTTER-OATMEAL ROUNDS
(Preheat oven to 375F)
-3/4 cup butter, softened
-1/2 cup peanut butter
-1 cup granulated sugar
-1/2 cup packed brown sugar
-1 tsp baking powder
-1/2 tsp baking soda
-2 eggs
-1 tsp vanilla
-1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
-2 cups rolled oats
-1 cup chopped cocktail peanuts
1. In a large mixing bowl beat butter and peanut butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed about 30 seconds or until combined. Add granulated sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, and baking soda. Beat until combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in eggs and vanilla until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. Stir in any remaining flour. Stir in rolled oats and peanuts.
2. Drop dough by rounded teaspoons 2 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake in a 375F oven about 10 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Transfer cookies to wire rack and let cool.
Here's a video of some of our cooking shenanigans!....
PEANUT BUTTER-OATMEAL ROUNDS
(Preheat oven to 375F)
-3/4 cup butter, softened
-1/2 cup peanut butter
-1 cup granulated sugar
-1/2 cup packed brown sugar
-1 tsp baking powder
-1/2 tsp baking soda
-2 eggs
-1 tsp vanilla
-1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
-2 cups rolled oats
-1 cup chopped cocktail peanuts
1. In a large mixing bowl beat butter and peanut butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed about 30 seconds or until combined. Add granulated sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, and baking soda. Beat until combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in eggs and vanilla until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. Stir in any remaining flour. Stir in rolled oats and peanuts.
2. Drop dough by rounded teaspoons 2 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake in a 375F oven about 10 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Transfer cookies to wire rack and let cool.
Here's a video of some of our cooking shenanigans!....