Easter Holidays

4 Apr

I have three daughters, and if you follow my instagram @5oclockapron you’ll see this week I have been preoccupied with the task of what food to make and feed teenagers through the academic onslaught that is the next few months ahead of them. In fact, it is the final few months of school for my eldest Grace, who will be sitting her A Levels next month. With this in mind, this Easter Holidays are slightly unusual, in that we have nothing planned for the whole two weeks because I know my daughter will largely be stuck at her desk, surrounded by her books and revision flash cards that she has been making for months on end. My middle daughter Ivy, will also be revising for her mock exams which take place after the Easter holidays. This leaves our youngest daughter, Dot ( plus Matt and I, give or take juggling WFH), with some time to fill. Yesterday I asked the question on my instagram did anyone have any suggestions for wildly fun and adventurous things to do for kids who weren’t in revision mode to do in Bristol and beyond? I had so many comments and DMs I thought it might be good to share them here for all to see. It also gives me the opportunity to throw a spotlight on some quirky and frankly marvellous suggestions, some free, some not, some small scale and some not. And whilst my tone was slightly tongue-in-cheek, I realise not every single minute of childhood has to be wall-to-wall excitement, creativity lurks in the murky waters of boredom after all (a mantra extolled often here at home, cue eyeball rolls all round), the positivity and wisdom from so many of your comments made me appreciate what a great thing this community on instagram really is. I have a new website, so why not put it to good use. I’ve compiled a hit list, I hope some of you find it helpful, and thank you all for such brilliant suggestions.

And in the meantime, because cookery and writing about food, often filming the things I cook, is what I do for my job, I thought I could share some reels from my #cookingwithkids archive on @5oclockapron for you to recreate at home this holidays with your kids in tow. There are lots and lots if you scroll, but here’s a few to get you going. People often ask me how I have produced kids who are such great eaters, who have such an engaged appetite for different food and ingredients, the answer is a simple one, and has been since my three were tiny.

I am a chef by trade, who now writes about food and cookery, as a result I have always cooked alongside my kids (my life’s work in both senses) in the kitchen, sweet and savoury cooking, from picking herbs and kneading dough when they were toddlers to boiling bagels, frying fritters to assembling big, hearty family dishes, together, side by side. I love cooking alongside my kids, and I have tried to install in them that cookery is not some exclusive one off activity (mostly involving sugary bakes, though sometimes this is also fine), rather, cooking and the making of food from scratch is something to get involved with every single day, and that includes the washing up. And with Grace now on the home stretch for leaving home, I think she’ll be able to cook a half decent meal somewhere in a university halls kitchen far, far away from home, likely involving some beans or lentils, plus vegetables. My work is done. I’m not crying, there’s something in my eye!

This photo was taken last weekend in Shropshire when Dot and I went to stay with my mum to cook her a Mother’s Day breakfast. We live in a busy city, but bombing along on a bike too big for you on a country lane will always remind me of my own childhood. Such fun.

cooking with kids @5oclockapron archive (there’s loads more if you scroll….)

It’s that time after all, Easter Chocolate Nests

Likewise, Hot Cross Buns

Courgette but make it Cake!

Blackberry Brownies (best ever?)

Blueberry Bagels, the bagel love is very strong here at home

Courgette and Feta Fritters, fritters for the win

activities for kids (THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR SUGGESTIONS)

Roller Bump, Dot lives on wheels, a great suggestion from @mandysutcliffeart

Walks, so many in the area, and we love a good long walk, Canal Walk at Frampton, the Mendips, The Cotswolds, Chew Valley Lake, tow path to Bath, Churchill for picking wild garlic (and the pub does a mean ploughman’s after a long walk up the very steep hill!)

Bike to Keynsham or Bath, and train it back to Temple Meads

The Wave, a treat, but what a treat @thewave (there is also Rest Bay in Wales, not all that far from M32 for sea surf on a lifeguarded beach)

Young Person Silver Making Workshop @makeitwithkim

Screen Printing Workshop @marrowannat

Wake the Tiger, never been, but hear great things @wakethetiger

Free Drop in Sessions at The Arnolfini with the fab @letsmakeartuk

Climbing, lots of climbing centres here in the city, some less pricey than others

Yeo Valley Garden, for their organic gardens, they also have a great cafe you can eat in, and stock up on yogurt at reduced price @yeovalley

SS Great Britain @ssgreatbritain (many a school trip been!)

Giffords Circus, a family favourite @officialgiffordscircus

Metal and Welding Workshops for kids! @wtfworkshops taught by women

We The Curious, again, many a school trip been @wethecurious_