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!

Pan Sauces 101/Cast Iron Care

So, you just bought a cast iron skillet. Now what?
Peel off the sticker and wash the skillet in hot soapy water. What! I thought you weren't supposed to use soap on cast iron! Well, you're only going to do this one time to remove residue from the factory. Dry it with a paper towel thoroughly and then you are ready to go.
Today we are going to cook some pork chops in several skillets and learn how to make a pan sauce.
Here's how to do that.....
Season the pork chops with salt and pepper.
Put the skillet on the stove and turn the heat to high. Add a tiny bit of olive oil or ghee. When the oil or ghee is hot, add the pork chops making sure not to splatter oil on yourself. Now.....leave them alone for about 3 minutes and then check for browning. Do not disturb them more than you have to in order to check for browning. When they are really brown on one side, turn them over and allow the second side to brown.
When both sides are brown, remove the chops to ...