Cooking class and friends

This morning Maisie and I participated in our third kids cooking class at a local restaurant.  Just like the first and second times we did the class it began with Maisie decorating her chef’s hat.

After three kids cooking classes and her recent dumpling making day with the big sisters Maisie has quite a collection of decorated chef hats.

Maisie watching Chef Leo Walsh prepare dough for calzones.

Maisie and I met Kelley, Kevin and Mom Jenny at our last cooking class and were surprised and delighted when they arrived for class today.

Maisie working on sealing the edge of her calzone.

Maisie and Mama with Maisie’s ready for the oven calzone.

After the calzones were off being baked we realized that one of Maisie’s new gymnastics teammates was also at the cooking class.  Once Maisie and Alyssa realized that they were both there, they were pretty much inseparable.

Maisie with our finished calzones.  Hers is the beautiful, full one in the back and mine is the less gorgeous bumpy one up front.  Maisie’s is filled with ricotta, mozzarella, fontina, parmesan, roasted garlic, spinach, roasted mushrooms, sundried tomatoes, zucchini, sausage, pepperoni and meatball slices.  Mine on the other hand contains ricotta, mozzarella, fontina, parmesan, roasted garlic and spinach.   Maisie and I actually made mine for the two of us to eat and the one Maisie made with all the meats was to bring home for Eammon.  In addition to the full calzone that we brought home for Eammon we also brought home 3/4 of the other one along with some sauce and 90% of our dessert.  There was so much food and everything was huge.

After everyone enjoyed salads and their calzones the children were called to the chef’s table again to see how to make dessert pizza cookies.  

Alyssa & Maisie are paying close attention.

Dessert was a huge sugar cookie spread with strawberry jam “red sauce” and then topped with a choice of sliced strawberries, jimmies, chocolate bits and slices of white chocolate.  Maisie took about two bites and then wanted her cookie packaged up to bring home.  She then asked for and feasted on a plate full of the thinly sliced white chocolate.  We again had a blast at the class and are looking forward to attending more.

After our busy morning and early afternoon our late afternoon and evening was a play date and dinner with April and her parents Ilene & Michael.  I brought home two extra chef hats from the cooking class so the girls had fun decorating them.

April and Maisie always enjoy being together and are both very spunky.

The girls enjoyed a dinner of pan fried dumplings, homemade Yaki Onigiri and roasted broccoli.  The adults enjoyed all that along with coriander roasted salmon with cilantro yogurt sauce. 

Considering that I’ve been very run-down lately and most nights this past week I ended up crawling into bed with Maisie and going to sleep at the same time as she did, I just didn’t have the time or energy to make a dessert.  So I totally cheated and picked up a caramel apple pie from The Pie Hole but no one minded that I didn’t bake as the pie was delish!

No play date is complete without princess wear and fairy wings.

Fairy girls at play.  Maisie and April had a fun afternoon and evening together and played until well after Maisie’s bedtime.  After lots of hugs goodbye the girls finally let go of one another and are both looking forward to their next time together.  It was a fun filled and busy day and I’m looking forward to a hopefully very quiet and nothing on the schedule Sunday.