With 2011's
Goal#3 in mind (to be a more deliberate mother), I finally caved.
Olivia has been begging for an Easy Bake oven for years. Literally 2 years. And she's 5. So, yeah, almost half her life.
And until this Christmas I had steadfastly refused. Why? Because I didn't want to have to bake with her. I didn't want the mess, I didn't want to pay money for those silly little mixes,
I didn't want to be bothered.
Yikes, that sounds even worse when I type it out.
I don't like to do crafts with the kids because I know I would go all perfectionist on them and freak out if their handmade bracelets didn't have an exact pattern, if they couldn't do it the way
I would do it. Because a 33 yr old and a 5 yr should be able to make the same calibre bracelet. I know, I get the ludicrousy. (Is that even a word?!)
OK, selfishness acknowledged.
Technically, Olivia had begged for the Easy Bake
cupcake maker - but all the reviews I read on it said it was a piece of junk, so I convinced her that the
oven was what she wanted, and I finally gave one of her Grandmas the OK to get it for her for Christmas this year (God bless all Grandmas who wait for permission for these types of gifts!!). And, oh, let me tell you, was she ever in her glory - it was as if the heavens had opened up!
Now, my old self
may would have been tempted to let that Easy Bake oven sit on the shelf hidden away, giving the "Later" or "Another day" answer a million times over (yes, this is Olivia - it would've been a million times!). Or I would've just made Emma do it with her. Yes, there are definite advantages of having older kids around! ;)
But my new self, my 2011 self with Goal#3 in mind, did not do that.
Oh, no!
In fact,
the very next day after she got that gift, on a Sunday afternoon no less (sacred napping time around these parts), she asked to "do the Easy Bake oven" and I said "Yes!". And so we made cake with icing (both mixes included in the original box).
Psst - you know what?
I had fun.What was that Tammy? We couldn't hear you.OK, OK,
I had fun!And Olivia? Well she had an absolute blast!
Sidebar: Technically that was in 2010 but I already had my 2011 goals in mind at the time ;)Then we left for Alberta to visit family. The very next day after we returned, guess who was asking to do the Easy Bake oven again? Yup, Olivia! And guess who said yes? Yes, 2011 Tammy! So, we made the cookies from the mix that came with the box. Olivia even let Sophia help! They each got to make 3 cookies in their pan, and we even melted chocolate chips and butterscotch chips in the oven warmers to put on top of the cookies.
Both times it took much less time and mess than I thought and resulted in happy children - why have I not done this earlier?
So, now that all the included mixes had run out, I went to my trusty old friend
Google to find some homemade Easy Bake oven mixes because my
cheap Mennonite thrifty side would not allow me to spend $ on those mixes. Plus, they can't exactly be healthy if all you have to do to get cake or cookies is add water to powder (see Goal#4 - I'm getting a 2 for 1 deal here!)
And Google did not disappoint (though I should've searched with the Swagbucks tool bar to earn Swagbucks, but I digress).
Turns out there are oodles of things you can bake in those Easy Bake ovens and oodles of recipes to choose from.
This post has pretty close to
200 (!!) recipes split into categories and labeled as easy, intermediate or advanced. Everything from cakes, brownies, cookies and bars to biscuits and scones, to pizzas and bagels - your own creativity is the limit after viewing these recipes!
So, I picked the
Baked Cinnamon Apple recipe because, after quickly clicking on a couple recipes, it used ingredients I had on hand! ;) Olivia loved them! Although I think she actually liked eating the extra/leftover ones before they had cooked (one large apple does not fit into 2 of those little pans!) better than the baked ones afterward. She really wanted to make the
brownies, so I picked up some chocolate syrup so we can try those next time!
Here are the recipes (after all, that's what my post title promised you - took me long enough to get around to it, I know!)....
Baked Cinnamon Apples1 large apple1/4 teaspoon butter1/8 tsp cinnamon1 tablespoon sugarWash a large apple, remove center core.Slice across apples to make 1/2" thick rings.Grease pan with butter.Place apple slices in pan.Sprinkle lightly with cinnamon then sugar.Top with butter.Bake in Easy-Bake Oven about 20 minutes.Brownie Mix2-1/2 tablespoons sugar2-1/2 tablespoons flour1 teaspoon oil1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract4 teaspoons chocolate syrupBlend all ingredients until the batter is smooth.Pour batter into greased and floured toy cake pan.Bake as directed in child oven (I think it's preheat for 15 and bake for 10)I also found a recipe on Allrecipes.com for a larger cake mix, good for 10 batches, to save time - and create your own little mix package!
Easy Bake Oven Cake Mix1 cup white sugar1 1/2 cups flour1 tsp baking soda1/2 tsp salt1 tsp unsweetened lemonade drink mix1/3 cup shorteningIn a medium bowl, combine sugar, flour, baking soda, salt, and lemonade drink mix and stir to blend.
Cut in shortening with a fork or pastry blender until mixture resembles corn meal.
Spoon about 1/3 cup mixture into 10 small containers or sealable plastic bags.
Label and store in cool, dry place. Use within 12 weeks.
Preheat Easy Bake oven for 15 mins.
Grease and flour a 4 inch miniature cake pan.
Empty the contents of one bag cake mix into a small bowl.
Using a fork, mix with 4 teaspoons water until smooth.
Bake according to manufacturer's instructions (I think 10 mins)
In fact - according to
this recipe, all you need is regular commercial cake mix (3 tbsp any flavour) mixed with 1 tbsp milk) and voila - let them eat cake! How easy is
that?!
Easy, but not as healthy (processed and all that!). So, here's another homemade version...
Easy Bake Oven Chocolate Cake4 tsp flour2 tsp cocoa1 tbsp sugar1/8 tsp baking powder1 dash salt1/8 tsp vanilla4 tsp water2 tsp vegetable oilIt would be pretty easy to multiply that by 10, omitting the wet ingredients, in order to make your own mix to have on hand, ready to just add water and oil at baking time!
Recipezaar (now Food.com) has a whole ton of recipes as well - you can check them out
here - including omelettes!
Easy Bake oven Omelet1 egg4 tsp shredded cheddar cheese1/4 tsp oregano (or spice of your choice)1 pinch salt1 pinch peppercooking sprayPreheat the Easy Bake Oven for 15 mins.Spray 2 Easy Bake Oven pans with cooking spray.Scramble the egg in a bowl.Divide the egg between the 2 pans.Sprinkle with oregano, salt and pepper.Sprinkle 2 tsp of the cheese on top of each egg.Bake for 15 minutes.One thing to keep in mind - since the Easy Bake Oven works by simply using a light bulb, you have to be careful when baking meats that you only use meats that need to be
warmed,
not cooked through!
OK, I was going to be done, but then I found
this ....
Easy Bake Oven Deep Dish Pizza2 tbsp flour1/8 tsp baking powder1 dash salt1 tsp margarine2 1/4 tsp milk1 tbsp pizza sauce1 1/2 tbsp shredded mozzarella cheesePreheat Easy Bake Oven 15 minutes.Stir together flour, baking powder, salt and margarine until dough looks like medium-sized crumbs.Slowly add milk while stirring.Shape dough into a ball and place into a greased pan.Use your fingers to pat the dough evenly over the bottom of the pan, then up the sides.Pour the sauce evenly over the dough, then sprinkle with the cheese.Bake 20 mins.You could even add a slice of pepperoni or veggies or some other meats that only need to be warmed up not truly cooked through.
Honestly, I'm actually getting a little excited to try some of these! Apparently you can teach an old dog new tricks. ;) And, I only thought of it now, I totally should've taken a picture!
Goal#3 is officially underway.
