Kids friendly coconut macaroons

This weekend, I found a really easy coconut macaroon dessert in one of my favourite cook book. It's so simple and easy that my 4 year old could make it and all I did was to help put it into the oven. It smells and looks good and is also very light.

It makes a great sensory activity as the textures of the ingredients are very different and the kids could feel them and taste them. Just don't offer them raw eggs!

It took about 10 minutes to prepare and another 15 minutes baking time.  C'est simple!

Here's the recipe:
4 tablespoons desiccated coconut
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
Pinch of salt
1 egg

Preheat oven to 350F
Mix all the ingredients into a bowl.
Mould them into small balls and place into a baking tray with parchment paper.
Bake 10-15 minutes

The kids had these little bites with a cup of milk before bedtime. Next time we will invite some friends over for tea and bake some of these lovely coconut macaroons.
Bon appétit!

Healthy snack for the soul

Blueberry soy muffin for a healthy afternoon tea.

I have been looking out for healthy snacks for the children and wanted to use what we had in our pantry instead of going to the grocery...again.
With coconut oil, blueberry, 1 egg and soy milk, and little time, I decided muffins would be best.

Recipe for 7 muffins as follows:
Dry ingredients:
1 1/2 C unbleached all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Wet ingredients:
1 egg (room temperature)
1/2 C granulated sugar
1/2 C soy milk
1/4 C coconut oil
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 C fresh blueberries
Coarse sugar for sprinkling (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven 200 degree Celsius.
Line muffin tray with muffin case or spray with non stick spray.

1. In a large bowl, mix all the dry ingredients together and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl,  whisk together egg and sugar until combined. Add in oil, soy milk and vanilla extract. Mixture will be pale yellow.
3. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients in 2 batches. Batter will be thick and lumpy.
4. Fold in blueberries
5. Pour batter into prepared muffin tray, filling all the way to the top. Top with sugar sprinkle if preferred.
6. Bake at 200 degree Celsius for 5 mi s then reduce to 180 degree Celsius for another 10-15 minutes until tops are slightly golden. Test for doneness. 
Remove from oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes before enjoying it.

Sophie totally enjoyed it and had 2 muffins at one seating. Wow!
Perhaps the next time, I'll bake with her as this is really easy for a toddler to have some sensory play and learning about food.

Independent play

Getting a 3 year old to follow instructions is a challenge. But a little preparation goes a long way. We did a simple activity to make bubbles.
A little preparation on my part - no more than ten minutes. Setting up the props such as bottles for water, golden syrup, dishwashing liquid, cups, bowls and tablespoon.  Did a visual presentation on a board with the steps.

When Sophie saw the set up, she was excited and ready to start. I gave a simple explanation on what she was going to make and the materials that we had. Showed her the visual aid on the board and it was self start. It's a simple activity that builds independence, counting and measuring, motor skills to pour and mix and sensory when the solution is done.

The results were encouraging and I intend to try other activities such as making puffy paint and slowly moving to making her own muffins by herself. 

Children need to be in control and this is an activity that gives them that!

Vibrant edible paint

My one year old loves putting things to his mouth. While I know most paints for children are non toxic, I wasn't quite comfortable with him eating huge quantities if it happens. I found a site for homemade edible paint using cornstarch, water and food coloring. This was good for us and I made a small batch to try out. It turned out really well in terms of color and my three year old ended up with all the fun as the little one was napping. 

I picked 3 colors that complemented each other. Pink, blue and yellow. While playing, she discovered green, orange and purple.

We used aluminum foil instead of paper as that is sturdier than paper and it reflects the colors very well under the afternoon sun. 

Overall, Sophie had a fantastic time. Can't wait for Luke to wake up and try this out.

I experimented a little for the paint to get the right texture that I wanted. 

2 cups cornstarch
1 cup cold water
4 cups boiling water
Food coloring (I used wilton food coloring gel)

Stir 1 cup of cold water into the cornstarch.  Pour the hot water cup by cup and stirring between each cup.
Try to achieve a custard like texture. If it fails, put it under stove,  medium heat for 1 minute and the solution should thicken.  Stir out any clumps.
Pour into bottles and add coloring of your choice.

Adapted from this site.

Building 'blocks' using canned foods

Building blocks with stuff from home. Our household has a few canned food such as baked beans,  tuna,  tomatoes, etc. Luke prefers playing with these canned food over the wooden blocks. Perhaps these cans are different in sizes, shapes and weight. He fiddles with them, rolls them around and sometimes drops them to hear the sounds it makes. Thought this is a quick way to keeps young ones entertained for a while and also introducing them to different attributes of the objects.  What items do you use for building blocks other than wooden ones?

Pink Friday! Play dough fun

Sophie loves play dough and she loves pink! What a better way to spend a Friday afternoon playing with this while Luke is napping. 

All supplies can be found at home. It's homemade play dough (not gluten free)

Recipe for play dough as follows:
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup water
1/3 cup salt
2 tablespoons cream of tar tar
1 tablespoon of vegetable oil
Sprinkle of cinnamon powder (optional)
Food coloring (your choice)

Combine all ingredients (except food coloring) into a pot and turn on the stove. Stir the mixture until it clumps up and forms a sticky dough (about 3 minutes)

Remove the dough and let it cool a little. Divide into portions and add coloring of your choice.

We usually play the dough in a tray and add a few items (rolling pin, beads, goggle eyes, etc) for her imagination to have free play.

Do share with me ideas on setting up a play dough activity that will entice your child to play. Cheers and have a good weekend!

Building blocks

Free play with building blocks are great for creativity. Sophie is at an age where she wants to build cities with the blocks whereas Luke just simply loves to knock them over.
No building blocks? Cardboard boxes and toilet rolls would also do wonders. The sky is the limit when it comes to children's imagination. 
I just look forward to more cities.

Homemade teepee/tent on a scorching day

This is a simple idea for wet days and really hot days (impossible for outdoor play). We just took some large cloths (I used muslin and also a quilt blanket) and pegged it over a couple of dining chairs. The kids had fun playing peekaboo and hiding in there.  We moved this over a carpet so the kids could be more comfortable. 
This makes good sensory play if using different fabrics.
Hope you enjoy this simple idea.

Ocean Sensory Play

Ocean sensory play

I have been unsuccessful at making homemade slime for my daughter and then I decided that the texture of jelly could pass off as slime somewhat. Be prepared for real mess. So pick a place where you can clean up easily. We did our ocean sensory play at our backyard.

I tried out 2 versions of jelly. One using gelatin powder and another using koniyaku jelly powder. The former gives a softer texture and the latter a very firm texture.

Then I tinted the jelly with blue food coloring to mimic the sea and threw in some toob ocean toys, some pebbles and sea shells. Sophie had an enjoyable afternoon cutting, squeezing and throwing the jelly around. She also decided to add water into the tray and it made it look even better! We also included some rice to mimic sand.

We had so much fun that we did a second batch for the following day for a playdate activity. The kids enjoyed it thoroughly.

Some fun tips:

 

1.   In the jelly tray, put in some toys, pebbles and shells so that the kids and dig them up.

2.   Give them some water and this really makes the play super fun

3.   You do have to prepare the jelly in advance so that it is sufficiently firm

4.   Perhaps throw in some artificial flavors to create a nice smell

5.   Make it educational and talk about the ocean animals, fish, corals, how shells are formed, etc.

If you have more ideas for this sensory play project, please feel free to comment.

 

Welcome

Children need the freedom and time to play. Play is not a luxury. Play is a necessity.

Kay Redfield Jamison
Contemporary American professor of psychiatry

Welcome to Tinyminds@play. 

This space is dedicated to the activities that I have done with my two young children and that they are simple for you and your family to also implement and enjoy the journey. I hope to grow this space such that it inspires creativity and provides an avenue for positive mindset when nurturing our little ones. It is a challenging journey and we always need some encouragement from others that we are not alone. 

Yours sincerely

Sharon

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Romans 12:12