Nothing like homemade Apple Pie! Both Bug and Daddy share a love of pies and this one is a very close second on both their lists… Pumpkin always takes the top spot.
To get the kids really involved in the pie process I had them use the Apple Peeler, Corer, Slicer to prep the apples. Note: this fun little gadget does 2 of the 3 so named things quite well… it leaves a lot to be desired in the peeling category though (unless you have a perfectly shaped apple). I don’t normally use it for pie apples but the kids had fun with it and the girls really liked eating the springy, twisty, sliced apples.
This week’s Unplugged Challenge theme was fruit. We have been doing so many things with apples over the past few weeks (you can scroll through my past blog postings to see more of our apple activities) it was hard to choose the one thing I wanted to label as our Unplugged activity. I decided to share photos from our trip to the cider mill to watch the cider press in action. It was very noisy but the kids thought it was really cool.
I would also encourage you to check out our Apple Print Project. The apple prints turned out great… although I think the kids had more fun playing with the huge box of stamps Gammy unearthed when she went in search of stamp pads for us.
Ok, so we didn’t get Ten Apples Up on Top… but we did try to walk around with one apple up on top. We used some of our fabric apples so no apples were harmed in the shooting of this blog ;).
At the end of the week, the kids always do an illustration and narration in their journals (they dictate, I write). I thought I would share their entries from today on Johnny Appleseed.
Johnny Appleseed and a Friend Picking Apples
Johnny Appleseed planted apple seeds. He talked to his friends along the way. Then he gave his friends apple trees. He talked to them long, long ago. He carried his bible and his bag of apple seeds. He did not carry a knife or gun because he liked all the animals. The animals were nice to him.
Fairy
He picked up apples and seeds. He walked around and planted apples. He was a nice stranger.
We spent the morning at Gammy’s yesterday and took advantage of her seemingly endless supply of art materials (this time rummaging through her entire box of stamp pads). We made our apple prints to go along with our Week Four, Johnny Appleseed theme.
This was a very easy craft! All we did was take a couple apples and cut them in half (some lengthwise, some crosswise) and then used red and green ink pads. You have to press the apple very firmly to get a ‘full’ apple shape. Some we even had to rock slightly… I guess a straight cut really isn’t as straight as you think. If you take a close look, you can really see the star in the middle of some of the cross cut apple prints.
For those of you following along… yes we are jumping ahead a bit. I am switching Week Four with Week Six because we went apple picking this weekend and it just makes more sense for us right now.
Week Four (Sep 22th-29th)
Johnny Appleseed
How Do Apples Grow?
D is for Double Daisy
We will be coloring the Double Daisy page from our Flower Fairies Alphabet Coloring Book and reading the accompanying story in the Flower Fairies Alphabet Book.
Cut one apple in half from top to bottom and another in half across the middle. Dip the apple halves in paint or large stamp pad and make prints on a page. Note the star shape made by the apple cut across the middle. If you make a bunch of Red and Green apple prints on large sheets of butcher paper, save them for cute Christmas wrapping paper.
Consider reading Ten Apples Up on Top as another add on book. You could then print a photo of your child (head and shoulder shot works well), cut it out and glue it to the bottom edge of a large sheet of paper. Then make Ten Apple Prints Up on Top stacked on top of your child’s head.
Hand Print Apple Trees are also a fun activity. Cover your child’s arm in brown paint from the finger tips to elbow. Place the entire hand and arm down on a sheet of paper (fingers outstretched). This forms the trunk of the tree. Then make green thumb prints for leaves and red finger prints for apples.
If you haven’t already, go pick some apples. If you don’t have a u-pick orchard near you try going to the store and getting one of each type of apple (or at least one red, one green, one yellow) and then doing a taste test to see which one you and your child like best. If there are several of you performing the taste test, try graphing the results.
Dutch Apple Pie
INGREDIENTS
1 (9 inch) pie shell
FILLING:
5 cups apples – peeled, cored and sliced (I like Granny Smith’s for baking)
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2/3 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
2 tablespoons butter
TOPPING:
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup rolled oats
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1/2 cup butter
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Fit pastry shell into pie pan and place in freezer.
To Make Apple Filling: Place apples in a large bowl. In a separate bowl combine 2 tablespoons flour, white sugar, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice. Mix well, then add to apples. Toss until apples are evenly coated.
Remove pie shell from freezer. Place apple mixture in pie shell and dot with 2 tablespoons butter or margarine. Lay a sheet of aluminum foil lightly on top of filling, but do not seal.
Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes.
While filling is baking, make Streusel Topping: In a medium bowl combine 3/4 cup flour, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, brown sugar, oats, and lemon peel. Mix thoroughly, then cut in 1/2 cup butter or margarine until mixture is crumbly. Remove filling from oven and sprinkle streusel on top.
Reduce heat to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Bake an additional 30 to 35 minutes, until streusel is browned and apples are tender. Cover loosely with aluminum foil to prevent excess browning.
No, not I. For if I do he’s sure to cry.
Little Boy Blue
Little Boy Blue,
Come blow your horn;
The sheep’s in the meadow, the cow’s in the corn.
Where is the boy who looks after the sheep?
He’s under a haystack, fast asleep.
Will you wake him?
Oh, the Lord is good to me,
And so I thank the Lord,
For giving me the things I need,
The Sun, the Rain and the Appleseed,
The Lord is good to me.
Kindergarten/Preschool Term One Overview: Harvest Time