Meringue

According to Fine Cooking Magazine, meringue is a whipped mixture of sugar and egg whites,. Meringue is used to lighten soufflés, mousses, and cake mixtures, to make pie toppings, and to make desserts like baked Alaska and crisp baked meringues and pavlovas.

There are three types of meringue; their differences lie in when and how the sugar is added:

French Meringue  - This uncooked meringue is the one most people are familiar with. The sugar is gradually beaten into the egg whites once they have reached soft peaks, and then the mixture is whipped to firm peaks. (It’s best to use superfine or a mixture of superfine and confectioners’ sugar for this, because they dissolve quickly.) This type of meringue is the least stable but also the lightest, which makes it perfect for soufflés.

Italian Meringue - The most stable of all the meringues, this is made with a sugar syrup that has been heated t...

Irish Soda Bread and Scones

In the days before refrigeration, milk would have soured more quickly, so soda breads were a way of making use of it, although now it is more common to use commercially produced buttermilk. Baking soda is the rising agent in soda breads.

Soda bread can be made in minutes! You can also bake this bread as they would have in the old days in a Dutch oven. It can also be cooked on a griddle.

The dough can be made into a loaf or into scones.

Soda breads are best eaten on the day they are made, but are still good for a day or so more. It also makes great toast.

It has a lower glycemic number and is lower in gluten if that is important to you.

We will be using Darina Allen's recipes for today. She is considered to be the Julia Child of Ireland and she owns Ballymaloe Cookery School in County Cork, Ireland. I really want to take classes there some day!

DARINA ALLEN'S SODA BREAD
Ballymaloe Cookery School, County Cork, ...

Taming the Toys - Ashley England

First things First….
Open- Ended Toys: Toys that can be used in a variety of ways depending on your child, the day, and their
imaginations.
“Open-ended toys result in open-ended play. This type of play can evolve over time while also encouraging
children to create and problem-solve as they explore the world around them.” Colleen Smith

Closed toys: Toys that have a clear ending point. Once all of completed, your child is finished and moves on to
the next activity.

Consumables: Toys that are used up and then recycled.

MINIMALISM OR ROTATION?
“As you decrease the quantity of your child’s toys and clutter, you increase their attention and their capacity
for deep play.”
Kim Payne, author of Simplicity Parenting

Rotation: Children have access to a small selection of to ...

Cornbread!

As requested, here is the recipe I use for cornbread.  

1 cup of coarse-ground cornmeal

1/2 cup flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup  buttermilk or milk

2 eggs

This recipe is for a 10 1/2 inch cast iron skillet.

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.  Mix up the batter.  Put the skillet on the stove and put about 4 tablespoons of butter in it.  When the butter is melted and sizzling, pour in the batter.  Put the skillet in the oven and cook for about 20 minutes or until brown on top.  Turn it out onto a plate, cut and serve with lots of butter!