The fourth installment in our foodie family Holiday Treats series is with Jennifer Carden, of Novato, California, who writes at The Toddler Cafe and has published a book by the same name. You can also follow her on Twitter, where she wrote recently of her daughter,
“Kidlet is frosting my b-day cupcakes scooping out the middles and filling them w/ peanut butter, she IS MY kid!! I love her!” – Chefjen
Clearly, she has passed on a love of cooking to her five-and-a-half-year-old daughter, Claire. (No, being on Twitter wasn’t a prerequisite to being invited to participate in my series, but it helped…) Thanks for sharing some of your favorite recipes with us, Jennifer!
What was your first cooking experience?
I remember making cookies, chocolate chip of course, with my mom. I used to stand on a chair and “help.”
What is your greatest challenge in cooking for your child?
My greatest challenge in cooking for my child is trying to have a balance between our activities; I don’t want her to be in the kitchen all the time!
What is your daughter’s favorite recipe?
Good old Jewish Chicken Soup with “special salt.” I use a salt blend with lavender, poppy seeds and basil.
Is there any food your daughter just will not eat?
Very spicy, she will try anything but we just can’t get her little taste buds to like hot sauce yet!
What is your family’s favorite holiday treat?
Homemade marshmallows, we always make them in December.
Jennifer graciously shared her homemade marshmallow recipe, below. I just tried making marshmallows for the first time this weekend, using a different recipe that didn’t call for egg whites, and they didn’t come out as perfectly as I would have liked. I’ll be trying this recipe next time!
Marshmallows
By Jennifer Carden, The Toddler CafeYou can make them white or add coloring. Add color during the final mixing right before they go into the pan. Use clear vanilla to get bright white marshmallows; you can get it at a baking supply store.
Ingredients:
Confectioners’ sugar or more for dusting
2 Tbs plus 2 1/2 teaspoons or 3 1/2 envelopes unflavored gelatin
1/2 cup cold water
2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup warm water about 115°F
1/4 tsp salt
2 egg whites
1 tsp vanilla1. Oil bottom and sides of a 13-by 9-by 2-inch rectangular metal
baking pan and dust bottom and sides with some confectioners’ sugar.2. In bowl of a standing electric mixer or in a large bowl sprinkle
gelatin over cold water and let stand to soften.3. In a 3-quart heavy saucepan cook granulated sugar, corn syrup, hot
water, and salt over low heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until
sugar is dissolved. Increase heat to moderate and boil mixture,
without stirring, until a candy or digital thermometer registers
240°F about 12 minutes. Remove pan from heat and pour sugar mixture
over gelatin mixture, stirring until gelatin is dissolved.4. With standing or a hand-held electric mixer beat mixture on high
speed until white, thick, and nearly tripled in volume, about 6
minutes if using standing mixer or about 10 minutes if using hand-held
mixer. In a large bowl with cleaned beaters beat whites (or
Reconstituted powdered whites) until they just hold stiff peaks. Beat,
whites and vanilla into sugar mixture by hand until just combined. Pour
mixture into baking pan and sift 1/4 cup confectioners sugar evenly
over top. Chill marshmallow, uncovered, until firm, at least 3 hours,
and up to 1 day.5. Run a thin knife around edges of pan and invert pan onto a large
cutting board. Lifting up 1 corner of inverted pan, with fingers
loosen marshmallow and let drop onto cutting board. With a large knife
trim edges of marshmallow and cut into small squares.
Shake confectioners sugar over the sticky edges, serve.
Keep them chilled overnight to retain freshness.
Thank you, Jennifer, and happy holidays to you & your family! Here at the FoodieTots’ house, I’m looking forward to spending Christmas Eve doing some holiday baking. Gingerbread trains and snowball cookies are on my list. What’s everyone else baking this week?
