Cooking With Children : Banana Fudge Muffins Recipe

You don't have to have an excuse to make muffins, do you? Good, because Lara and I cooked banana fudge muffins just for the fun of it, and from a recipe that just came to my head so it was a bit experimental. The muffins didn't rise quite as well as I had hoped but this recipe is a basic sweet muffin recipe with mashed banana and tasty fudge pieces so who cares about what they look like - they taste YUM! The muffin mix takes hardly any preparation so it is a great recipe for a toddler to help you out with in the kitchen.

Banana Fudge Muffins (makes 6)


INGREDIENTS
50g fudge chunks (we used Dr. Oetker's pre-chunked fudge chunks but you could chop your own pieces if you fancied it)
1 ripe banana
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp dark brown muscavado sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
60g soft margarine, slightly melted to make it REALLY soft
75g plain flour
50g caster sugar
1 egg
1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to about 180 degrees centigrade (or slightly lower for a fan oven).





2. Mix the caster sugar into the melted margarine until well blended and then beat in the egg to form the batter base. Add the vanilla extract.


3. Mash the banana with the back of a fork and sprinkle over the lemon juice and the dark brown sugar before adding the mashed banana mixture to the batter base.


4. Stir in the flour, baking powder, salt and bicarbonate of soda and beat well until it forms a thick but sloppy batter.





5. Finally stir in the fudge chunks before spooning the batter into a greased muffin tin (we used the Dr. Oetker cake release spray)


6. Cook the muffins in the centre of the oven for about 20-25 minutes until golden. You can check that they are cooked by inserting a cocktail stick or kebab stick into the muffins and if the stick comes away clean then the muffin is cooked.


7. Allow to cool slightly before eating... otherwise the banana pieces will be RED HOT

The banana fudge muffins from this recipe are a wonderful mix of sweet muffin and sweet banana with the fascinating salty touch to the fudge pieces. They did not last long in our house... in fact, they didn't even get to cool down fully.

Angela Chalmers - Boots Parenting Club Pharmacist (and Mum!)

A little while ago I got the chance to interview Angela Chalmers, the Boots Parenting Club pharmacist.

I first met Angela at a Boots event at The Ritz when she was expecting her first child. Angela seemed excited about the prospect of becoming a mum and was eager to hear my tips and experiences.

Angela became a mum in December 2010 and I was interested to know how motherhood had changed her. Angela admitted that, as a pharmacist, her advice to parents had previously been at quite a high level - advice based on theory and current government guidance but with supporting information from friends and family who were parents. Having now experienced motherhood first hand, Angela feels that the advice she can offer as the Boots Parenting Club pharmacist has been enhanced. Angela feels she can offer more detail and support this with personal anecdote.

Being able to conduct a personalised conversation with customers gives people more confidence in Angela's advice when it comes to caring for babies and young children - people take her more seriously now that she has first-hand experiences to share.

When it comes to her own son, Angela still likes to ask others for advice on how to care for him. She thinks it is important for her to recognise that she doesn't know everything about caring for a baby and that it is easy to miss something. In order to remain objective, Angela refers to friends, family and the good ol' internet.

Angela describes her experience of motherhood as having proved that she is just another human being! By that she means that, like all new mums she hasn't had a lot of sleep and that when it comes to looking after a baby, she didn't get the reassurance she needed from a book or the internet. Being a pharmacist hasn't made her any different to any other new mums. Angela looked to her local children's centre or GP when she needed advice.

You can often find Angela contributing to live events on the Boots Parenting Club site.

Raindrops Outdoor Clothing Review

The minute I set eyes on this spotty raincoat on the raindrops website, I knew Lara had to have one. It is so bold and fun and has funky reflective bits to help spot my little girl when its gloomy.

Raindrops are Scandinavian specialists in children's outdoor clothing, especially in waterproof clothing such as Lara's spotty jacket. All of their clothes are produced in an environmentally-sensitive manner using natural products where possible, and they are all free from PVC and pthalates.

Lara's waterproof jacket is one of the finest quality items of clothing she has ever worn. There is absolutely no doubt about it's claim to be 100% waterproof. The day these photos were taken, the heavens let loose all they could throw at the coat and when Mummy and Daddy came home dripping and soaked to the skin, Lara remained totally and utterly dry. This is fabulous because now she has no excuse not to get out and play, even when the weather is pants.

Lara's jacket has a lovely soft, bright yellow lining and a fleecy collar. The hood is elasticated so that it does actually keep her face dry, and it is removable. The jacket has both an inner zip and outer poppers to keep your child dry. Even the sleeves are elasticated and with a velcro fastening to make sure no water gets in, whatever size your child is. The jacket is available in sizes from age 1-5 years and in both spots and stripes. You can also buy matching wellies and waterproof dungarees.



On the inside of the jacket there is a little area for you to mark it with your child's name. This is perfect because I can leave it on Lara's peg at nursery. Lara's nursery is really big on making sure that wet weather doesn't stop the children from enjoying themselves and I know that Lara can be let loose in the nursery garden wearing her new jacket. The jacket is very easy to wipe clean and, I am led to believe, is also machine washable. Bonus.

Do check out the Raindrops website as they have some really very high quality outdoor clothing for babies and children in all weathers.

Lara's spotty jacket was sent to us for the purposes of this review and costs from £28 from Raindrops. DEFINITELY worth the money.