It’s been said that March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb, but here in Vermont March is just a mean bitch. Aside from sugar season (that’s maple sugar for those who don’t know) it has few redeeming qualities. One day you can run outside in a t-shirt, the next you need 50 layers just to take the trash out. She’s mean, she’s confusing, and the only way to get through is to grit your teeth and hope April comes soon. Today is one of those 50 layers of clothes days, and I’ve quit the cold. I’m all done for this year, I don’t want to deal with it, I quit. The kids are feeling this too, so on the t-shirt days we spend almost all day outside, then on the 50 layer days I don’t feel bad about hunkering down and being warm and snuggly all day. Today we found our warmth in the kitchen.
Tomorrow is supposed to be a much nicer day (nothing like a 40 degree temperature swing to keep you guessing) and we’re planning to help my dad chop some trees. We thought we should have some treats to keep our energy up. As usual, we couldn’t come to a consensus on exactly what to make, but since we had the day we didn’t need to! One kid chose coconut macaroons, one kid chose no bake cookies, and I chose blondies!
We started with the macaroons since they needed to bake then cool before we could dip them in chocolate. We went to King Arthur Baking (obviously, I’d hope you could guess that’s where we’d be heading by now) and found a recipe. https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipes/our-bakerys-coconut-macaroons-recipe These are no joke! After I opened up the can of sweetened condensed milk the kids were off. They didn’t need my help with this recipe (aside from separating the eggs, maybe some day they’ll do that on their own) the measurements and directions are simple enough to follow. They scooped them onto the cookie sheets and I put them in the oven! After they were cool I set up the big kid with a double boiler, she measured out the chocolate chips, and watched it until it was melted. Together they dipped the cookies and I think they turned out beautifully!
Sisters who bake together…oh I don’t know, there’s got to be some saying there. (And yes I know, STILL Christmas pajamas)
Once those were done we started on the no bake cookies. Since these are made on the stove top and the 5 year old wanted to be in charge I kept a little bit closer eye on things. We measured everything out before, including the peanut butter and the oats, and just set those aside. She kept and eye on the stuff in the pot and stirred it when necessary. She’s had a fair amount of practice at the stove and has been getting more comfortable there recently. If your young baker in inexperienced working on the stove top have them pull up a stool next to you and watch and you talk them through what’s happening. Be sure to focus on safety, such as where it is safe to touch and where it is not. Talk about what happens when you get a burn, and how to handle it when the inevitable happens. Let them build their confidence slowly and before you know it they’ll be confidently working!
The last thing we took on were the blondies! We got into the cookie book that started it all and found the recipe for blondies. We followed the recipe exactly until it came to the add ins. At the kids request we added chocolate chips, salted caramel chips (thanks to our road trip to King Arthur Baking a few weeks ago), and white chocolate chips. OH MY GOSH! They are incredible! They’re gooey, chewy, and also light at the same time. I have a hunch that topped with some salted caramel ice cream these would be one of the best desserts ever! You can find the recipe in Sarah Kieffer’s 100 cookies book (https://www.thevanillabeanblog.com/100-cookies please don’t tell me if you haven’t already bought it, just do it now so we can still be friends!). Funny enough you can also find a recipe for a salted caramel no churn ice cream in that very same book. I’m just here to make dessert dreams come true! You can thank me later.
I’m super impressed with the finished product of all of the treats we made today. I’m more impressed with how focused and how long my kids worked together in the kitchen. It is so fun to see them really take charge and invest in the outcome of their baking. It’s taken a lot of bakes, and a lot of work, but it’s well worth it to see them succeed at something that can be difficult even for adults!
As promised, here is my recipe for no bake cookies:
INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup (1 stick) salted butter
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup of milk
1/4 cup unsweetened baking cocoa (my favorite is King Arthur Baking Triple Cocoa Powder)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup CREAMY peanut butter (I’ve tried the natural stuff and while you CAN use it if you want the really tradition no bake cookie texture go with Skippy or Jiff or something similar)
3 cups rolled oats
DIRECTIONS
Put butter, sugar, milk, and cocoa in a saucepan. Heat over medium heat until boiling, boil for approx 2 min, stirring occasionally so as not to let the sugar burn. Remove from heat, stir in the vanilla, then the peanut butter until smooth. Then add the oats, mix until coated completely, scoop out onto parchment paper and let harden!
Send us a picture and let us know how they turned out! You can find us on Instagram @100daysofbakingwithkids and on Facebook at 100 days of baking with kids. Come see all the fun we’re having!
100 days of baking with kids 