Harold and the Purple Crayon, Apricot Oatcakes, and a Sweet Knitted Pouf!

Like a lot of kids out there my little girl loves books. She has many, and from those she also has her favorites. Lately, one of those faves has been Harold and the Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson. If you're not familiar with this book, it is a classic first published in 1955. It has a very simple story and single color illustrations (purple, of course) that promote the ideas of drawing, story, and imagination.

I had bought a set of washable markers, which happened to have a purple that closely matched the purple from the book. So one day I gave the marker to Lilie and explained that it was like Harold with his purple crayon. She liked this and started to hold it, and often ended up wanting it with her when she read the book. About a week later, I let her try her own drawings on the inside cover of the book, which mimicked the kind of scribble drawing included on the cover page. My daughter loved this! The added participation no doubt brought her closer to the book, helping her make more connections to it, as well as introduced her to the exciting activity of drawing.

Recipe:

Dried-Apricot Oatcakes

Before I left Vegetarian Times I was lucky enough to score press copies of a couple baby recipe books. This quick, sweet, healthy snack comes from Lisa Barnes' Cooking For Baby, which includes recipes (and tips) for first foods up to a year and a half.

Ingredients

vegetable oil spray
2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/8 tsp. salt
2 Tbs. unsalted butter, melted
1 Tbs. honey
3 Tbs. finely chopped dried apricots
2 Tbs. finely shredded unsweetened coconut

1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray large baking sheet with oil.

2) In a mixing bowl, combine oats, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Make a well in the center and add the butter and honey. Combine with a spatula until all oats are coated. Mix in apricots and coconut.

3) Heat 1 cup of water to hot, but not boiling. Add hot water, 2 tablespoons at a time to oat mixture, stirring after each addition, until oats become wet and sticky. (Not all the water will be needed.) With wet hands mix the dough a final time. Dough will be sticky and loose.

4) Use two large spoons to scoop and drop dough onto prepared baking sheet. With wet fingertips, shape dough into 2-inch round, flat oatcakes. Bake oatcakes until edges turn golden brown and centers are firm and not sticky, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Project: Knit a Pouf

Why? Because it is a great piece of kid-friendly furniture. Lilie LOVES to sit on it! And it's easy to knit up-- you just do the basic knit stitch throughout.

What you will need:

18 balls of yarn suitable for #13 needles
US 19" circular needles
stuffing (old duvet covers, old down jackets, etc…)

Follow pattern at pickles.no/puff-daddy-knitted-stool (link embedded above)







Children enjoy the present because they have neither a past nor a future. -Jean De La Bruyere