Baking With Aki

Advance warning: This post is going to be photo heavy. If you're not up for it, please skip this post. 

Maqui (a fellow n@w and a blogger who I greatly admire!) and I have long been planning for a playdate at their place but we always couldn't find the time to make it happen. So a few weeks ago, when we saw a window of opportunity for us to finally make the playdate happen we didn't let it pass! We immediately scheduled the playdate with no specific plans or activities. Maia and Aki have gone to several n@w playdates in the past so they sort of know each other already. They wouldn't have any trouble warming up with each other anymore so we were initially thinking we can just let them play freely like they usually did in our previous playdates. Afterall, our main goal is for the kids to bond and enjoy playtime like they should.

Early last week however when Maqui came up with a wonderful idea of teaching the kids how to bake and decorate a simple cupcake. I got really excited because Maia's never tried baking before (we've rolled up some cookie batter in Waldorf daycare during summer class last year but she never really saw it going to the oven and coming out as cookies) so a first-time is always an exciting time for the both of us. 

So, just how exactly are these pretty, dainty, tasty cupcakes made?

Looks good, Taste even better!

Sorry for the really awkward angle.

I was multi-tasking again and this is another reminder why I shouldn't be. Hehe

First, you have to learn how to stir and mix really well.

wet ingredients first, then add the dry ingredients

And  never hesitate to smile when asked!

Then you have to learn how to put cupcake liners on the pan and come up with brilliant ideas like putting a little surprise in the bottom of the cupcake (tadah -- nips inside the cupcake)

I know it looks like it's only Maia who's interested to do this,
but honestly the choco surprise was Aki's bright idea!

Chocolate overload is always a treat for the sweet palate so feel free to dump everything in when you feel like doing so!

Next, heartily scoop out the batter to each cup. Make sure to watch out for the spills (Maia sure did!). A dirty pan is not a pretty sight (that's according to Maia).

Then, you ask an adult to put the pan into a pre-heated oven and patiently wait for the batter to bake. Make sure you don't come anywhere near the oven. It sure is pretty hot for those tiny fingers to touch.

Wait. Wait. Wait. And after a few minutes (and more because we had to wait for the cupcakes to cool down after they're taken out of the oven), comes the most exciting part of this baking process -- THE DECORATING!

Lastly, DON'T FORGET TO TASTE IT!

AND SHARE IT!

WANSUM, MUM? 

This was really fun to do! Till next time, Maqui and Aki! Thank you for letting us crash into your kitchen!

p.s. Here's a link to the more photos. I'm planning to make a separate post of our playdate but I really don't know when I can make the time to finish that. So for the meantime, you can view this.