Cooking in the Children's House--Jiao Zi

Here's what's cooking this week--

Ingredients                     50 dumplings                               

• 1 lb fresh ground pork
• 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
• 1 ¹⁄₂ teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon rice wine
• ¹⁄₂ teaspoon sesame oil
• 3 ¹⁄₂ ounces cabbage, very finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh gingerroot
• 2 teaspoons finely chopped scallions
• ¹⁄₂ teaspoon white pepper
• 50 round wonton skins, about, 2 3/4 inches in diameter
• all-purpose flour, for dusting
• chili, vinegar or soy dipping sauce, to serve

Directions See How It's Made                   

1. To make the filling mix the pork with the soy sauce and 1/2 teaspoon of the salt. Stir carefully, always in the same direction, to create a thick paste. Add the rice wine and oil. Mix in the same direction. Cover. Let rest 20 minutes.
2. To prepare the cabbage, sprinkle with the remaining salt to help draw out the water. Add the ginger, scallion, and pepper and knead for at least 5 minutes into a thick paste. Combine with the filling.
3. To make the dumplings, put about 1 tablespoon of the filling in the center of each skin, holding the skin in the palm of one hand. Moisten the edges with water, then seal the edges with 2-3 pleats on each side and transfer to a lightly floured board.
4. To cook the dumplings, bring 4 cups water to a boil in a large pan. Drop in about 20 dumplings at a time, stirring gently with a chopstick to prevent them sticking together. Cover, the return to a boil and cook for 2 minutes. Uncover and add a generous cup cold water. Return to a boil, then cover and cook for an additional 2 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and keep hot while you cook the remaining jiaozi. Serve with dipping sauce.

Happy Chinese New Year of the Rooster!

We always feel so connected to the larger world when we celebrate the Lunar New Year at MCH. It has become a highly anticipated tradition for us and a bit of a rite of passage for the oldest students who lead the parade. At this year's celebration we listened to our teacher, Shana, play the erhu, sang Chinese songs and had a short presentation by the extended day students about the legend of the Chinese zodiac animals. We feel strongly about giving children a global experience through our unique world languages instruction. Participating in this holiday celebration gives our students yet another way to feel connected to places far a way from our little Minnesota town.
Happy Year of the Red Rooster!

Yes, our own MCH roosters got a special treat, too!

The Third Year--Montessori Kindergarten

It's that time of year at MCH when parents of our second year students begin the decision making process for re-enrollment. We applaud and support them in this important process. It can seem like an overwhelming responsibility to choose the best class for your child. We hold a special meeting just for them at our school or online to offer guidance and explain which choice we feel is the best for our Montessori students. While not everyone can stay for the third year at our school, our hope is that those who can will do just that. It is a gift that will pay huge dividends in the child's outlook on learning. We feel so strongly about it that all of our scholarship money in the past has gone to making the third year choice an easy one for parents. As an authentic Montessori school, we are committed to the three year cycle in the classroom and to offering the best possible Montessori primary education to each child. We serve the Watcher (3 year old), the Worker (4 year old) and the Teacher (5 year old). It is both our mission and our pure delight.
Here are some of the videos we'll share at our information meetings:

Cooking in the Children's House--Bird's Nests

Video What's Cooking?

Bird’s Nests with Candy Eggs

Nests

Mix 1 cup All Bran cereal with one egg white. Press into a small bowl or cup.

Candy Eggs

2 small pkgs cream cheese

1 lb powdered sugar

food coloring (robin’s egg blue), candy flavoring extract (vanilla)

Knead together cream cheese and sugar. Work in food color and flavoring. Take small amount and roll in granulated sugar. Form into a small ovoids and place into nest to dry.