Baking with Kids - Bigjigs Young Chef's Baking Set

Bigjigs have sent Freddy a Young Chef's Set so he can have some fun cooking up a storm in the kitchen making some tasty treats.  Freddy really enjoys cooking with me, so he was excited to have his very own set of cookery items including a cake tray, loaf tin, shape cutters, rolling pin, whisk, cake cases, measuring spoons and oven glove. Everything is just the right size for little budding chefs to use easily, it's fully functional and good quality.

The set comes in a net bag and is suitable for ages three and up. Everything is made using responsibly sourced materials and conforms to EU safety standards.  It encourages interactive and creative play sessions with parents in the kitchen, as children learn a whole host of important skills.  It can also be used for imaginative role play.

Cooking in itself is an important life skill.  My three eldest children are now all self-sufficient adults who thankfully know their way around a kitchen!  Teaching basic cookery to children and letting them help you in the kitchen is a great first step towards helping them become competent and confident adults who know how to cook for themselves.

Cooking also helps develop a wide range of other important skills too.  Using a recipe allows little ones to practice their reading and teaches them how to follow instructions. They can learn vocabulary and find out about different ingredients and their uses.

Measuring, weighing and counting are all important maths skills that are used when cooking. The science of mixing things, heating things and exploring the textures and consistencies of ingredients gets children thinking scientifically.

We decided to make Fairy Cakes, which is a nice, quick and simple thing to make with kids, giving a delicious end result to reward them for their hard work.

Fine motor skills are put to the test with all the different techniques needed when baking a cake. Freddy is a dab hand at cracking eggs and stirring with a wooden spoon!

Children need to use logic and problem solving when it comes to working out how to divide the mixture out between the cake cases (while leaving a little cake mix so you can lick the bowl afterwards!)

Kitchen safety is also an important lesson as children understand the dangers of hot ovens and other potentially risky things such as electricity and sharp knives.

Putting the cakes in the oven is a chance to brush up on telling the time and thinking about how many minutes they will take to cook.

Exercising patience while the cakes cook and cool can be quite tricky, but with a little help from big sister Kezia to decorate them with frosting and fudge pieces, the end result was well worth waiting for!

We all enjoyed Freddy's cakes and he had a great time in the kitchen, having lots of fun while learning lots of new skills.

The Bigjigs Little Chef's Set is £11.99 and can be found at : http://www.bigjigstoys.co.uk/p/young-chefs-baking-set

Our Gingerbread House

I am not the most talented or creative cook out there, but I do love baking with my kids.  I've always wanted to try to make a gingerbread house with them but figured it was a bit out of my league.  When I saw that Lakeland were selling silicone moulds I had to get myself down there to buy myself one.  I was a little bit ridiculously excited at the prospect of building a little house with Ella, Kizzy and Freddy out of gingerbread and sweeties!

We followed the recipe on the pack and pressed the dough into the moulds before cooking it.  It was easy enough for me and my team to do!

When it was cool we turned it out and stuck it together with some thick icing.  We only had a few slight subsidence issues!  When it was set solid, I set Kizzy and Freddy loose on it with chocolate buttons and Jelly Tots and a tube of icing.

They really enjoyed doing it and had so much fun.  I loved Fred's colour co-ordinated windows!  

Breaking it apart to eat was just as enjoyable and it tasted really good.  This is definitely going to be a new family tradition!

Flora Cuisine...Let's Get Cooking

Flora Cuisine have just launched their Let's Get Cooking recipe book, created by mums for mums.  Featuring 30 recipes chosen by Jean-Christophe Novelli, the cookbook includes ideas for everyday recipes and includes a kid-friendly section for baking with the kids.

I have been sent a copy of the cookbook and the ingredients so I can  try out one of the recipes: Apple Cakes.  I'll be baking these soon and featuring the recipe right here on the blog.

Flora have also launched a weekly competition to win the cookbook and a week’s worth of delicious dinners for a family of four, until Monday 19^th November 2012.  Anyone can enter in one of two ways.

Simply take a look at the recipes on the Flora website where you can download a FREE COPY of the cook book and then either:

• Follow @OfficialFloraUK on Twitter and tweet a bite-size review with a link to the original recipe using the hashtag #CookbookComp
• Or, simply find the recipe you want to review on the website and login with your Facebook details to leave a comment. You will then need to send your details (name, address and contact number) to flora@tmw.co.uk so you can be contacted you if you are one of the lucky winners.

It's National Cupcake Week

Making Baking A Piece of Cake

This week (the 17th - 23rd September) is National Cupcake Week.  Here Inside the Wendy House, we love the odd cupcake or two and here are a couple of our past creations (with links to the recipes)!

Coffee Cupcakes

Bailey's Cupcakes

Baking is such a lovely activity to enjoy with the kids.  So when Wilkinson sent us some baking goodies to try out we were most pleased!  They have a range of durable, colourful and practical accessories which are perfect for encouraging the kids into the kitchen.  The range includes silicone moulds, aprons, scales and utensils, making baking a piece of cake!  It is all such good value.  A pack of 12 bright coloured silicone cupcake moulds cost just £2!  Kids' utensils start at just £1, and have an element of fun that will make them want to help out with cooking.  They are never too young to start!

We received some great cookie cutters in assorted shapes which will make some very appealing, bite size  cookies or gingerbread.  We also have a butterfly shaped cake mould, cup cake cases and an icing bag.  They are all very kid friendly, but also fully functional and good quality. 

So later this week we will be baking ourselves some yummy cupcakes ... how about these delicious Oreo Cupcakes filled with pieces of  Oreo and topped with vanilla buttercream??  It is National Cupcake Week after all!

Oreo Cupcakes

There are four ways to shop at Wilkinsons, the high street 'home of family value' retailer:

In store, from the catalogue, online at www.wilkinsonplus.com or by phone on 08456 080807.

Baking with The Little Ones #Project 52/Week 10

Baking Biccies.

Sampling the dough.

Two Peas in a Pod!

Messy Cooking with Kids and Cleaning Up

Cooking with kids can make a big mess of the kitchen!  Work surfaces, bowls, baking trays and stove tops can end up splattered in food residue and covered in stubborn stains. Cillit Bang have come up with an All In 1 Dish and Surface Cleaner which promises to make cleaning up quicker and easier.

The convenient automatic dispenser delivers the right dose of the intelligent cleaning agent direct to your sponge, ready to tackle any surface you wish to tackle.  There are 160 doses of the concentrated liquid, which is twice as efficient as regular washing up liquids.  The solution removes burnt on grease and food residue without the need for scrubbing.  However the formula is gentle on hands and the scent leaves the kitchen smelling fresh. 

We put the Cillit Band All In 1 to the test with a baking session!  Holly Bell, the Great British Bake Off runner-up has come up with some very messy recipes.  The cleaning up afterwards puts this product to the test with sticky work surfaces and bowls to contend with!

Cornish Ginger Fairing Biscuits

4oz butter

6oz SR flour

3oz caster sugar

1 tblspn golden syrup

1 tspn ground ginger

1/2 tspn bicarbonate of soda

Preheat oven to GM5.

Line two baking sheets.

Melt the butter and syrup in a pan.

Add the rest of the ingredients and mix.

Now here is the fun bit...

Form the Play-Doh type mixture into walnut sized balls.

Put them well spread out onto the baking sheet.

Put into oven for 12-15 minutes.

Cool on a wire rack.

Take a look at our video to see how we got on baking and cleaning up afterwards!

The Cillit Bang really did the job!  It cut through all our messy pans and bowls and brought the surfaces up sparkling clean.  The dispenser gives you a measured dose of the cleaner so you don't waste any or make a mess squeezing too much out.  It looks good by the sink and as it does the job of various cleaning products it is space saving too.  Check out www.facebook.com/CillitbangUK for more information.

The biscuits that we made were delicious too! It's a fabulous recipe, give it a try if you like melt in the mouth cookies that are dangerously moreish!

Starter Kit includes automatic dispenser, 3 X AA batteries, 250ml Lemon Burst refill.  RRP £9.99 for a limited time.  A pack of three refills are £7.99.

***WIN ONE OF FIVE CILLIT BANG ALL IN 1 STARTER SETS HERE!***

Everything You Need For a Spooktacular Halloween!

Halloween is fast approaching and our minds are turning to "Ghoulies and Ghosties and Long Legged Beasties, and things that go BUMP in the night!!"  Children love the terrifying fun of Halloween and enjoy nothing more than immersing themselves into the scary fun of the season.

Aldi, have a range of frighteningly good products at scarily good prices so you can enjoy all the fun at a fraction of the price!  Available as Special Buys from October 6th and while stocks last, you have to be quick to snap up these brilliant bargains.  With items including spine-chilling confectionery, blood-curdling kitchen ware, petrifying partyware and creepy costumes, they have all the essentials for a horrific Halloween!

Trick or Treating can be a costly business with mini witches, vampires and ghosts knocking on your door in search of goodies.  Aldi have a great range of scary chocolate shapes including eye balls, pumpkins, ghosts, bats and cockroaches.  Pop them in a bowl by the front door for Halloween Hunters or scatter on your table as a great looking (and tasty) table decoration.

Prices start at just 79p for a 100g bag of solid shapes...they will see the Trick or Treaters coming back for more!  They look great and, like all Aldi chocolate, taste great too!  The wrappers are colourful, bright and eye catching.

The Party ware is fantastic value and looks great too.  Tableclothes, cups and plates are available in three devishly, delightful designs and are priced at just 99p each.  Perfect for parties or just to give the kids a treat at teatime on Halloween.

My favourite products this year are definitely the Kitchen Ware.  With ice cube trays, muffin trays and cake pans, you can cook up some terrifying treats for the family.

The metal cake pans come in a pumpkin or skull design which will make shaped cakes providing a brilliant centre piece to a party table.  The silicone muffin trays make ghosts or pumpkins.  The ice cube trays could also be used to make your own chocolate treats, or fill with fruit juice for yummy mini ices.  Priced from £1.99 these are really great value and will cater to all your baking needs.

Adults can join in the frightening fun this Halloween with super-scary Halloween costumes. 
Men can choose from Dracula or the Grim Reaper, in sizes medium and large, and ladies’ styles offer a choice of Spider Queen or Red Devilina in sizes 10/12 and 14/16.  Look the part for just £7.99!


Aldi kindly sent me a selection of kitchen and party ware from the range and I can confirm that they are excellent.  The fun party ware designs are perfect for younger children with cute, comical Halloween characters.  The quality is great and the value is exceptional.  The muffin and ice cube moulds are made of good quality silicone.  The metal cake tins feel strong and robust and have a non-stick lining.  The designs are impressive and will definitely inspire some fun cooking sessions over Halloween.


Even though Halloween is still a month away, we decided to test out the cake pans to see if they perform as well as other pricier pans I have used before.  Here is a video of my Tiny Tester Kizzy baking up a storm in the kitchen!  She made a Scary Skull Carrot Cake.

I was very impressed that the non-stick pan worked so well after being brushed with Cake Release.  The cake came out cleanly, keeping the features intact.  It cooked through evenly and made a cracking, creepy carrot cake!  The pan washed up easily and looks as good as new.  I look forward to making muffins and more cakes...I'm a big fan of Horror things so this range will keep me happily baking all year round!!

Remember...these Special Buys are available from October 6th!!!  Don't miss out!

Baking Bigfoot Cookies

Baking Cookies With the Kids!

I was sent a set of Feet Cookie Cutters from ProCook®, the UK's leading specialist cookware retailer.  The fabulously, fun foot design stainless steel cutters come in a set of three which nest together and fit in a handy round tin for storage.  The smallest is 8cm long and the biggest is 11cm long.  They can be used for cookies, pastry or for cutting out icing to decorate a cake.  They are dishwasher safe for easy cleaning.

The design is perfect for celebrating the patter of tiny feet or for a christening, but can also create fun Bigfoot cookies that kids will love.  With this is mind I set about trying out the cutters with my Tiny Testers!

Bigfoot Cookies

Ingredients

115g butter

225g plain flour

175g sugar

1 egg

Method

Rub together flour and butter.

Stir in egg, sugar and up to 2 tblspns water to form a soft dough.

Put in fridge for 20 minutes.

Roll to 5mm thick.

Cut out shapes using the ProCook® small foot cutter.

Cook at GM6/200 degrees for 7-8 minutes.

Cool.

Enjoy sprinkled with icing sugar!!

The shape cutters are really good quality, sturdy and strong, unlike some of the flimsier ones on the market.  I was very impressed.  The cutting edge was sharp enough to cut the cookie dough cleanly.  I hand washed the cutter easily in soapy water and returned it to its tin with the other cutters. ProCook® sell this great tin of cutters for the incredible price of just £3! Hand Shapes are also available.

Check out ProCook® for great value kitchen items at up to 50% off their RRP and with possible next day delivery.  Delivery is free on orders over £50.  They also have 17 stores nationwide.

Follow ProCook® on Twitter and Facebook.

Silent Sunday - Decorating Cup Cakes