One thing we love to do is cook with our children. Cooking has allowed us a unique avenue to reinforce what the kids are already learning in school, teach them new things, and spend time as a family. The kitchen is The Lady’s classroom and real lessons go on in it. We thought it might be cool to share one of our lessons here today, in case you have little ones who love to cook, or you want to get them interested in it. We pick an ingredient or a theme, and we just go with it. This lesson’s ingredient is the Asian Pear.
First we discussed what an Asian Pear is. Asian pears are also known as “apple-pears” or “Nashi pears.” They grow on trees found mostly in Asia but they are grown in Australia and New Zealand as well. They have the texture of a pear, but are round and have a similar taste to apples. Like apples they are pome fruits having a core with tiny seeds in it. They are much juicier than apples, or pears. Then we talked about the continent of Asia where it is, some countries in Asia, and some ingredients that are used frequently in their cuisine such as peanuts, and Chinese 5-Spice Powder. Since Asian pears are a lot like apples, and crisps are one of our favorite desserts, we took a chance at making Asian Pear Crisps.They turned out great!
The main ideas enforced in our ASIAN PEAR CRISP lesson: Ingredient Identification, Asia, Counting, Following Directions, Creativity
Asian Pear Crisp
Serves 4.
2 Asian Pears, peeled and sliced
½ c. Sugar
½ c. Brown Sugar
2 tbsp. Flour
1 tbsp. Chinese 5-Spice Powder
¼ tsp. Salt
1 tsp lemon juice
½ Stick of Butter
Topping:
4oz. (1/2 c.) Peanuts halved, or chopped
3/4 stick of butter diced small (cold)
2oz. (1/4 c.) flour
½ c. Brown Sugar
¼ c. Sugar
1tsp. Cinnamon
¼ tsp. Salt
½ c. Oatmeal
Preheat oven to 350. Place pears in a clean bowl. Add sugars, 5-Spice, salt, flour, and lemon juice, and mix until the pears are covered evenly. Melt butter in a skillet on medium heat and sauté pears for about 5 minutes. Spoon the pears into ramekins or other oven-safe dishes evenly. Mix all ingredients for the topping in a separate bowl and top each dish. Bake until topping is golden brown, about 15-20 minutes depending on your oven. Top with whipped cream or serve with ice cream. Enjoy!
Do you cook with your kids? What are some fun things you do to incorporate learning in the kitchen?
