Add to That Spring Bouquet

Here are more paper flowers to add to the bouquet you made last week. These make great Mother’s Day or Grandparents' Day gifts, and in our house they are the centerpiece of the Easter table as all the grandchildren make their own and I have a lasting memory of how they have grown.

White paper

Yellow paper

A Stem (click to see last week's Kids, Crafts and Concoctions, on how to make stems for flowers or pussy willows)

Picture 1 - Lily hand

Trace a child’s handprint onto a sheet of white paper and cut it out.

Picture 2 - Putting together the lily hand

Take a strip of yellow paper about an inch wide by 2 inches long and roll it up in a pencil as you did for the stem. Cut about half way down from the top to make a fringe effect to the yellow. This will become the center of the flower or the stamen.

Picture 3 - Lily flower

Next, glue it to the top of the stem. Now wrap the hand around the stem with the stamen in the center. Glue it at the palm and thumb and pinkie finger to make your lily shape. When the glue is dry take the pencil and roll down each fingertip (except the thumb) to make the petals curl.

Picture 4 - Lilies in the bouquet

Now add it to your pussywillows and daffodils and you will have a beautiful bouquet.

I came across this quite by accident. I was making this soup last week and my 3-year-old grandson was running around my house. He climbed up in the kitchen chair to watch me cutting onions and garlic. Then I grabbed my kitchen shears and started to cut the center veins out of the kale.

Picture 5 - Cutting

He ran to his art supplies, got his scissors, and tried to cut with me. I quickly grabbed his scissors and washed them and his hands in soapy water. That began our cooking experience making kale soup together.

Picture 6 -Child’s cutting

We both had a great time and made plenty for him to bring home and share with his family.

Kale is a form of cabbage. It is green or purple, and the central leaves do not form a head. It is considered closer to wild cabbage than most domesticated forms. Kale is very high in beta carotene, vitamin K, vitamin C, lutein, zeaxanthin, and reasonably rich in calcium. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kale)

It's easy to grow kale here on the East Coast, and is one of only a few plants you  can harvest through the winter. I usually sow my seeds in the spring in a corner of my garden and let the plants go. Come fall, they are about 3 feet tall and very leafy. They call to be picked but do not be tempted as they will be bitter and somewhat sour. I wait until after a couple of good frosts. Then all winter I pick at the plant until it is almost bare.

Chop your kale up and add it to spaghetti sauce, tacos, meatloaf - just about anything.

I also serve it by itself (my kids will not eat this, though). I add butter, onion, and garlic to a pan and cook it until the onions have turned a bit translucent but not browned. Then I add the kale and cook it much like spinach. Add a dash of lemon juice and it is good to go.

If you do not like cooked spinach, you will not like this. However, if you take the onion, garlic, and kale mixture after cooking it and send it through a food mill, food processor, blender or some other grinder, you will have a great base for spaghetti sauce. I usually cook up a lot of it at once and freeze it inside of snack zipper bags to just pull and add to dishes.

My kids know it is spring when kale soup appears on the table. They know that I have picked the plant bare and this will be the last of it until winter.

The following is my kale soup recipe. It tastes even better the next day reheated. Even the soup-hater will love this soup. This makes a huge pot full, so make sure you have a big pot to start with.

Picture 7 - Ingredients

6 Italian sausage links

2 Tablespoons olive oil

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 large onion, chopped

1 bunch (about 8 to 10 stems) kale

3 stalks chopped celery

6 chicken or vegetable bouillon cubes

8 Cups water

1 15 ounce can diced tomatoes

1 15 ounce cans of Cannelli beans

6 medium potatoes

½ pound carrots

1 T Italian seasoning

2 T parsley

Cook the sausage and put aside to cool. Add the oil (only if needed), add garlic and onion and. Cook until translucent.

Remove the center vein in the kale leaf and then chop kale into small pieces (I find this is easier to do with scissors and kids love doing this part).

I also add chopped celery to this. Cook until the kale is wilted but not soggy.

Next, add bouillon cubes, water and canned tomatoes and beans. Do not rinse the beans first as you will want all that goodness for the broth.

Chop the potato and carrots and add to the pot. I have my kids use their scissors on the baby carrots. If I am using big carrots, I peel and slice them the long way into sticks and then let the kids cut them into chunks with their scissors. Now we take the sausage links, cut them lengthwise into sticks, and use the scissors to cut them into chunks also and add to our soup. Last, add the seasonings and let simmer until potatoes and carrots are tender.

Picture 8 - Simmering soup

Other vegetables can be added to this mixture such as corn, string beans, etc. We like to add a handful of shredded cabbage that I freeze from fall. Most of the ingredients are items you have on your shelf. I like it cause I can empty out my freezer of bits of leftover chopped celery, carrots, diced tomatoes and other vegetables that I have left from last year's garden.

This makes enough for a family of 8 to 10. For us, whatever is a leftover goes back into the freezer for a quick dinner. Serve with a biscuit or roll and a salad and you have a delicious meal.

Picture 9  - Yum!

For vegetarians, omit the sausage and use vegetable broth. It's every bit as delicious.