Today I was joined by ten lovelies at Sprout Soup for the third October Kids Cook lesson. We started by making graham crackers. This recipe is super easy and has the advantage of being egg free so kids can play with the dough without worry about salmonella.

¼ cup milk or buttermilk 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice or vinegar (omit if using buttermilk) ¼ cup canola oil 1/3 cup honey or maple syrup 2 ½ cups sifted whole wheat flour, plus more as needed ½ tsp. baking soda ½ tsp. baking powder ¼ tsp. sea salt

1. Combine milk and lemon juice, set aside for a few minutes to curdle. In a small bowl, whisk the oil and sweetener together, and whisk in the curdled milk.

2. In a medium-sized bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Make a well in the center and pour in the liquid mixture. Stir gently until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl and balls up in the center. You might have to add extra flour, or if you’re using whole wheat bread flour, you might need to add a little more milk.

3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease baking sheets if they are not non-stick. Using a rolling pin on a floured surface, and using more flour as necessary on top of the dough, and on the rolling pin, roll the dough out about 1/8-inch thick. Cut out shapes with cookie cutters. Arrange them on sheets.

4. Bake for 10-15 minutes, until lightly browned and crisp. Transfer crackers to racks and cool them before storing in a tightly closed tin.

Recipe adapted from Alison's Lunch.

We sang 'Do You Know the Muffin Man?' with ASL signs for muffin, cracker, and bread.

While the crackers were baking, we explored wheat kernels. Everyone got to feel and taste them. We ground them with a mortar and pestle to release the endosperm from the bran.

We ate our crackers while listening to the story Little Red Hen.

Next week's class will be about the fall favorite squash, including pumpkin!