Nothing seems to fascinate a child more than the science of homemade crystals. Since crystal making is a popular classroom project, why not supplement your child’s education at home with the following experiments? All can be made with ingredients and supplies commonly found in most households. Be sure to have a magnifying glass on hand so your child can examine her creations more closely.

Charcoal Crystal Garden

Materials:
6 or 7 charcoal briquettes
6 T. warm water
6 T. liquid bluing (available in the laundry section of the grocery store).
4 T. table salt
1 T. ammonia
Food coloring (optional)

Layer the charcoal in a shallow pan. In a separate bowl, mix the water and bluing together, stir in the salt and ammonia. Pour evenly over the charcoal. In a little while, you will see white fluffy crystals forming on the crystals. For different crystal colors, place a few drops of food coloring onto the coals after pouring the solution. You can keep the garden growing  by adding more solution every day.

Rock Candy

This is the one crystal-making project your child can actually eat!

Materials:
Powdered sugar
Hot water
Foil
Glass or wide-mouthed jar
Heavy string,  a pencil and paper clips.

Pour 1/4 cup hot water into a mixing bowl and add enough sugar until absolutely no more will dissolve, approximately 1 cup. Next, tie two or three lengths of string to a pencil, and fasten a paper clip to the other end. Pour the solution into a glass with the weighted strings in the solution. Several days later, as the water evaporates, you will see the crystal formations on the string.

Borax Crystals

These crystals look like snowflakes and make great winter, window-hanging decorations. They can also be used to decorate Christmas trees.

Materials:
Wide-mouthed jar
String
Pencil
Pipe cleaner
1 cup boiling water
3 T. Borax
Food coloring (optional)

Take the pipe cleaner and fashion it into a shape like a star or heart. Tie a piece of string to one end and suspend it into the jar until the shape is about 1/4″ from the bottom of the jar. Tie a pencil to the other end of the string and rest on top of the jar. In a large measuring cup, mix together the Borax and boiling water until dissolved. If you like, you can add some food coloring. Pour solution into the jar and in just a few hours, a hard, crusty crystal will form on the outside of the pipe cleaner.

Rock Garden

Materials:
Small, smooth rocks
2 oz. Alum (found in the spice section of grocery stores)
1/2 cup boiling water
Clear glass bowl

Wash the rocks and place them in the bowl. Mix alum and water together in a small measuring cup until completely dissolved. Pour over the rocks and in a few hours you will see alum crystals forming as glass-like squares.

Pass the Salt…

Materials:
Hot tap water
Cup
Salt
Aluminum pie plate or plate covered with foil.

Pour hot tap water into the cup until it is about half full. Add two teaspoons of salt and stir until dissolved. Repeat until no more salt will dissolve. Pour  enough liquid into the pan until just the bottom is covered. Let it sit undisturbed and check occasionally over the next few days. The longer you let the crystals grow, the larger they become.

Pass the Epsom Salt

This experiment is particularly effective when performed with the one above. It illustrates the different types of crystals that form when using different types of salt. Repeat the steps as in the above replacing the table salt with Epsom salt. Be sure to pour any leftover liquid down the drain. One difference you will notice is the Epsom salts are made of the mineral magnesium sulfate. As the water evaporates, the molecules in the Epsom salts join to form long, overlapping crystals. Regular table salt is made of the mineral halite and when halite molecules are joined again they form in a cubelike pattern.

Crystal Hunt

Crystals are all around us.  They are in the ground and on jewelry. You have probably eaten crystals at meals. Sugar and salt are both made of crystals. Have your children hunt for crystals and hold them up to the light or under a magnifying glass to determine if they are indeed crystals. Take a trip to the library and read up on the many different types of crystals and the minerals that crystallize in them.

You won’t need a special heart-shaped muffin tin to make these muffins.

Materials:
Your favorite muffin recipe
Muffin tins
Muffin or cupcake liners
Marbles or marble-sized rolled up balls of foil.

Line the muffin tins with the liners and prepare your favorite muffin or cupcake recipe. Fill the liners with the batters.  Place the marble or foil between the liner and the edge of the muffin tin. Bake as usual. As the muffin bakes the batter will pull away from the sides and form a heart shape.

Pretzels are fun snack to make with your children. Why not fashion them into heart shapes as a healthy alternative to the traditional Valentine chocolates?

Ingredients:
1 cup warm water
2 T sugar
2 pkgs. fast acting yeast
1 egg
3 1/2 to 4 cups flour
Kosher salt

Stir the yeast, water and sugar together in a large bowl until the yeast is dissolved. Set aside for about 15 minutes or until the yeast gets foamy. This is called “proofing”. Afterward, stir in the flour a little at a time until the dough is stiff.  Remove dough from bowl and knead on a floured surface for five minutes. Shape dough into a large ball and place in a buttered bowl. Cover with a dish towel and set in a warm place to rise until it is doubled in size. Once the dough has risen, punch it down. On a lightly floured surface, roll it out into a rectangle. Cut fat strips and shape into heart shaped pretzels and place on a baking sheet. Beat the egg with a fork and brush onto the pretzels. Sprinkle on some kosher salt and bake at 400 degrees for 10 to 15 minutes or until golden brown.

cookies before they go into the oven

I made a lot of labor intensive elaborate cookies over the holidays that were almost too pretty to eat. This one was by far the easiest to make and the kids’ favorite. Make a double batch. They won’t last long. The recipe comes from my late mother-in-law who had a real sweet tooth. By the way, there are no actual peanuts in this recipe since it calls for walnuts, but I suppose you could use peanuts.

Ingredients:
unsalted Saltine crackers
1/2 cup of sugar
1/2 cup of brown sugar
1 cup of melted butter
12 oz bag of mini chocolate chips
1 cup of finely chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line bottom of 11 x 13 cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Layer the crackers side by side to cover the cookie sheet. Mix sugar, brown sugar and butter and pour over the top of the crackers. Spread evenly using the back of a spoon. Bake for 15 minutes. While still hot and bubbly sprinkle on the chocolate chips and nuts. When cooled off, separate from foil and break into “brittle” pieces.

This is super easy, and  fun homemade fudge that your kids will love to make and eat.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups sugar
2/3 cup evaporated milk
2 T butter
1/4 tsp. salt
2 cups mini marshmallows (a must)
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Line 8-inch square baking pan with foil. Combine sugar, evaporated milk, butter and salt in medium heavy sauce pan. Bring to full rolling boil over medium heat, stirring constantly for 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in marshmallows, chips, nuts and vanilla extract. Stir vigorously for one minute or until marshmallows are melted. Pour into prepared baking pan and refrigerate for 2 hours or until firm. Lift from pan, remove foil and cut into pieces.

As ubiquitous as they may seem to some in their quaint, kitschy way, who  can’t resist  homemade cookies? And if you can make the planning and preparation that much easier, you’ve got the perfect gift. Here are some suggestions for those layered cookies in a jar you can pass out to all your friends, relatives and kid’s teachers. Put all ingredients in a Mason jar decorated with some nice fabric, ribbon and a tag with recipe and baking instructions.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix Read the rest of this entry »

Ingredients:
1 pint cranberry juice cocktail
1 quart apple juice
1 cup water
6 whole cloves
2 cinnamon sticks
1 lemon, thinly sliced

Mix all the ingredients together in a large saucepan. Let simmer over low heat for 10 minutes. Strain and serve.

Ingredients:
1 cup plain canned pumpkin
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ginger
1 quart vanilla ice cream
1 store bought graham cracker pie crust

In a medium sized bowl, mix the pumpkin, sugar and spices together. In a large bowl, soften the ice-cream. Add the pumpkin mixture and stir until well blended. Use a mixer if necessary. Spoon the mixture into the pie crust, smoothing the top. Place in a freezer for several hours, until firm.

You will need:
2 lbs. firm apples cut into quarters
1/2 cup apple cider
1 1/2 cups packed dark brown sugar
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground cloves
1 tsp. ground allspice
Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon

Place the apples, cider and 1/2 cup water in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until apples are soft, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat and pass through a food mill. Return to saucepan and add the brown sugar, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, lemon zest and lemon juice. Cook over low heat and stir occasionally, until very thick and dark brown, about 2 to 3 hours. Cool completely. Store in an airtight container and refrigerate up to 2 weeks.

You will need:
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1 bag (10 oz) mini marshmallows
Yellow food coloring
8 cups combined peanut butter and chocolate puffed corn cereal
1 cup candy-coated chocolate pieces like peanut or plain M & M’s.
Spray oil
10 lollipop sticks
Tan and green raffia

Line a large baking sheet with waxed paper and set aside. Melt butter or margarine in a large saucepan over low heat. Add the marshmallows and stir until melted and smooth. Tint with food coloring until you reach desired color. Add cereal and 1/2 cup chocolate pieces. Stir to evenly coated. Remove from heat.

Spray hands with oil and quickly divide mixture into 10 oblong pieces. Push lollipop sticks halfway into each oblong piece and shape to look like an ear of corn. Place on cookie sheet covered with waxed paper and press remaining 1/2 cup chocolate pieces into each “ear”. Let treats set. Tie or tape raffia to lollipop sticks to resemble corn husks.