Spirited Sons - Conundrum of the Culinarily Challenged...

Welcome to My Blog!

Schooling two active boys has never been more... interesting. That's the word I'm looking for! I love my boys! God has given them the blessing of strong, active bodies and minds. We continually pray the first will remain intact, and the second will remain engaged with Him first, and then the school work. You'll meet my sweet sons, both entirely different, but both loving God to the best of their ability in the way He made them. I lovingly refer to them as my Bell Pepper Boy and my Habanero or Hambone. That should say it all! This blog is an eclectic mix. The events, conversations, and the thoughts behind it all will be in here. Every once in a while I'll try to capture something I don't want to forget. I hope you find things you enjoy. Please let me know if you do! Blessings!

Our Curriculum

Mystery of History vol. 1
Saxon 5/4
Horizons Grade 2
A Beka Language
Spelling Power
Apologia Zoology 1

Books I'm Reading

The Bible
Adam and His Kin by Beechick
It by Groeschel

Favorite Links

Thursday, February 7, 2008

Conundrum of the Culinarily Challenged...

Posted in School Things

(I wonder if I spelled conundrum right...)

Okay, so it's Thursday! Yay! Thursdays are generally innocent, at least in the beginning. It's different than Maniacal Monday...or Murphy's Law Monday. I place it higher on the "praise list" than, say, the gaining-momentum Tuesday or the mid-week "Hump Day" on Wednesday. It doesn't quite make the grade with "Finishing Friday" or "Slumbering Saturday" or "Super Sunday!" Thursdays are just Thursdays. Basically, they are harmless.

So, here I sit on Non-Threatening Thursday, and it's not entirely non-threatening. Tomorrow, while I would usually think "Finishing Friday" is a bit more "Frantic Friday" than I like. Ah, well. It will all pan out like gold in a stream, I imagine. (Assuming God shows up!)

If you're wondering where the culinary part comes in to this post, it's now.

I'm "inventing" and activity for our Geology day along the igneous lines. I envisioned the kids making their own gingerbread icing to make "lava rock" that would harden nicely.

So, I got this far. . .

1 plastic sandwich zip top bag
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons water

The kids mix this up, and then cut the tip off of the bag, allowing them to "pipe" their lava rock.

Yes, there is no egg white in this recipe. There is no cream of tartar. I'm guessing I need these more than I thought. The recipe I just tested doesn't set up as hard as gingerbread icing, and wouldn't last long. It sure does a good job of illustrating, but I'm looking for longevity.

The cream of tartar would be easy to mix with the powdered sugar in advance. The egg white is a little more challenging, but not impossible.

Here are my questions for those who are culinarily wise:

What makes the hardness factor in the gingerbread icing?
What does cream of tartar do?
What does the egg white do?
Is it worth tracking down the "powdered egg white" for something like this?
Assuming I added the cream of tartar and the egg white, would it still work with the kids "mixing" it in the bag? (I don't need fluffy. I need it to set up and harden, though.)

Hope someone knows the answers to these little things. I'll try testing it, of course, but the theory behind the whole thing is what I'm after. I won't have a recipe that works with my exact portions, etc. If someone here does, that would be GREAT!

Thanks in advance!

P.S. From the ever-so-reliable Wikipedia...

Cream of tartar (potassium bitartrate) is an acidic salt that can be used to change the pH of the egg white to an acidic range by boosting the number of free-floating hydrogen ions in the egg white. This has the effect of stabilizing the foam, and is therefore an alternative to using a copper bowl. 1/8 teaspoon/0.5g cream of tartar should be used per one egg white to create this effect. 1/2 teaspoon/2ml of lemon juice can also be used to create the same results.^[12]

• Post A Comment! • Send to a Friend!

Comments

Thursday, February 7, 2008 - Untitled Comment

Posted by SuzyScribbles

You could buy plaster of paris. It hardens really fast when it starts cooling down. Fast volcanoes, hardening into solid rock. Just like the read thing. But really--you gotta go FAST! LOL

Cream of tartar is, I think, the primary ingredient in baking powder. (Don't ever play Trivial Pursuit with me. Weird things flash into my brain about the most insignificant facts of life).

The internet will supply you with all your other answers, I believe. It is quickly becoming the "Sum of all Human Knowledge."

I love your funny entries about your days. LOL

• Permanent Link

Thursday, February 7, 2008 - Who'd A Thunk?

Posted by MayTheyBeMightyMen

1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/8 t. lemon juice
1/4 t. egg white
1 t. water (This is the critical part...must not be too watery!)
Might add food coloring (?)

By George, I think we've got it!

You can mix it in the plastic bag pretty well. If it's thick enough, you can get some nice form. The less-thick parts make a nice lava "flow" type rock.

I've put them in the freezer to see if that hardens them quicker. Thank goodness, we have really cold weather, so we should be able to take them outside and let them cool quickly tomorrow...

WAIT! The freezer idea cashed it, but...another possibility that looks even MORE promising:

1 part flour
1 part salt
A little water
A little Elmer's glue
(Make it thick in a baggie, and it's awesome!)

This recipe has so many MORE pluses. It is thick, has form, and has substance to it. It's a piece of cake to make, and harder than the normal "clay" you'd make because of the glue involved. It will dry hard. It could be painted, you wanted. It's GREAT! (And, as a bonus, if small children eat it, it's basically harmless.)

"Oh frabjous day!"

Is this a halfway decent experiment????

Edited by MayTheyBeMightyMen on Thursday, February 7, 2008 at 3:56 PM

• Permanent Link

Thursday, February 7, 2008 - Untitled Comment

Posted by Tiany

Great questions and neat project! I look forward to reading the answers you get! :-)

Have a blessed and productive week my friend!

• Permanent Link

Thursday, February 7, 2008 - Untitled Comment

Posted by blessedwith2angels

I think this sounds like a great activity. I am going to try it with my son. I think the kids will have lots of fun with it. All I know about cream of tartar is that it makes things thicker.
I have tried the plaster of paris and the clay experiment and they turned out well. I have a song on my hh blog for younger kids about the 3 rock types (look under earth science.)
Pam

• Permanent Link

Monday, February 11, 2008 - Untitled Comment

Posted by CrossView

Wow!
Just think of all the chemistry you're learning... =P
I'm too late to help which is fine since I couldn't, anyway. =/

• Permanent Link

Last Page | Next Page

Blog Things

My Thoughts

I love comments!