Making Corn Bread and Butter

Each week at school we cook on Wednesdays and Thursdays and make our own snack.

Most weeks it is our school bread recipe or apple cake (look under cooking at school for recipes).

However as the school year progresses and as the children become well acquainted with the routine of cooking, we start trying out different cooking projects.

Right before Thanksgiving break it was very fitting that we made corn bread muffins.

 In addition to the corn bread, my assistant, Laura, suggested making butter.

I have had a recipe for this but had not tried it out with the kids, so I was thrilled with the idea.

 

The butter making recipe is simple and wonderful to try at home.

You will need:

*Heavy whipping cream (try to find one that is not ultra-pasteurized, I bought mine at Stewart's)

*2 or 3 marbles

*A clean jar, we used a mason jar

 

The children each added a little whipping cream to the jar, and then we placed the marbles in.

 

The jar went around in a circle and each child was able to have several turns shaking the jar.

Some were sceptical, but they kept up the process, and as they did they started to see lumps forming in the cream.

We passed ours around maybe three times

Here is a picture as the butter was really starting to form.

Eventually, the excess cream was poured off and we had a nice bowl of butter.

 

We placed this butter in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes to firm up a little more.

Later we placed the butter in a butter pad, and each of the children pushed it out onto a plate.

I think this would have worked better if we had refrigerated the butter longer, but it still made cute little pads of butter.

The children each were able to butter their corn bread muffins with their own butter they made and pressed.

 

I wasn't able to take pictures of the corn bread muffin making, but here is the recipe we used:

 

1 cups corn meal

1 cups unbleached flour

1 teaspoons salt

3 teaspoons baking powder

3 teaspoons maple syrup or honey

1 cup milk

1 egg, beaten

1/2 stick of melted butter (save the wrapper for greasing the muffin tins)

 

1. grease the muffin tins.
2. preheat oven at 375 degrees.
3. sift dry ingredients then add sweetener.
4. add the milk and egg and mix until smooth.
5. mix in melted butter.
6. fill each muffin tin half full.
7. bake 12-15 minutes
8. makes 12 muffins