Teaching the next generation how to make meringues

My Niece and Nephew came for the afternoon and dinner after my husband's family Christmas get together. Over time we have baked together a lot. Today I was making meringues to take to a Christmas get together with my friends. 

Meike asked if she could help and then went and got her apron and away we went. It was the first time she had used a piping bag, as well as the first time I had tried to teach someone. It took a bit for me to work out how to let her know when to squeeze and when to stop so each meringues remained separate. 

Of course the best bit is always to lick the beaters after. I had a lovely batch to take to my friends and Meike had a small bag to take home with her.

There seems to be a lot going on here.

I don't know about you but my home life seems to be like my craft life at the moment. A rather large number of projects on the go and nothing actually being completed. When they finally do it will all look amazing!!

And on top of this we still have to get carpet in the hall and bedroom and finish painting everything in the lounge.

Firewood being chopped and a grumpy Jakob stacking it.

A new woodsheet being built - The most solid ever.

A new garden and paths being marked out. Do you see the paint lines?

Eli getting stuck into making Donna Hay easy muffins.

The muffins out of the oven - red currant as the fruit.

Yummy muffins - from Donna Hay T.V programme

Into a bowl sieve together:

2.5 cups of self raising flour

1 tsp Baking powder

1 cup caster sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Into the well put

1/2 cup vegetable oil

3/4 cup milk 

1 egg

mix the wet together in the bowl to ensure the egg is beaten and then mix all together. The mixture is quite stiff.

Add whatever fruit you want. 300g fresh or frozen fruit. Put into muffin tins (put the mixture over 12 muffin tins) and sprinkle the top with granulated sugar. 

Bake at 180 deg C for 30-35 minutes until the top is crunchy.

I link to these places.

a baking holiday

Well these holidays I have been concentrating on keeping the kids in the new routine of them both baking once a week and helping with making an evening meal.

Jakob has made white and milk chocolate cookies

I made meringues - all the time thinking of Kerryn

Eli made tan square

We had old fashioned doughnuts for afternoon tea one day

I have just finished the birthday cake

With the leftover eggs and the
abundance of lemons I made - Lemon curd

I link to these places

Eli's lunch

Eli has just made his lunch today and is sitting behind me making very appreciative noises. He loves sushi so on the weekend I bought some smoked salmon.

He made sushi rolls. He has cucumber from the garden, some carrot sticks and smoked salmon. Then he put some wasabi and some ginger on the board. He is very pleased with himself and I have to say that it looks great.