I have a little baker…

As long as I could remember my son would be right by my side every time I decided to bake something.

my little baker!

More than likely it was because he wanted to lick the spoon when I was done, which was okay by me..I just enjoyed the bonding time and I loved how curious he was. I distinctly remember this one time when I was baking cookies and went to put the dough into the oven; when I got back to the table, Carson had gotten a hold of my leftover cookie dough and he was using his chest to flatten the dough..keep in mind this was when he was three years old. I laughed and asked him what he was doing and he responded by saying that he was rolling out his dough..then it dawned on me that he must not see that I have a rolling pin in my hand when I roll out the cookie dough. It’s just funny what kids pick up on! Since then it’s been about 4 years and I’m thankful that Carson still loves to bake with me. About a month and a half ago I saw that there was a cake contest in our area and I asked Carson if he wanted to do it. I was happy when he got so excited and said YES! And so it began…the planning…what catagories were we going to enter and what were we going to make? Carson decided on entering 2 categories and was going to make a 3-D version of a rubix cube made out of cookies and he decided to also bake cinnamon oatmeal raisin cookies.

Our kitchen looked like a wreck the entire weekend. Friday after my husband came home from work..he said, THIS is NOT what I expected to come home too… Carson just looked at me and we kept plugging along.

rolling out the dough

getting ready

in the oven it goes

and the decorating begins!

We stayed up till midnight getting everything ready, and on the big day..we were ready and excited!! Never having entered a baking contest, we had no idea what to expect. We got to the venue and set up our entries and we were so amazed by the cakes!! Carson was carrying in my buttercream cake and when he saw the other entries, he said with such a serious face..” mommy, I don’t think we are going to win.”. I laughed.. and explained that there were different levels and different categories. We spent the whole day at the event, ooohing and aahhing over the amazing cakes and cookies, and buying the newest and coolest baking gadgets. Carson met the masterchef jr season 3 contestants and decorated cookies with them. He was in his own element. It made me happy. At the end of the day, Carson won first place for his rubix cube and third place for his cinnamon oatmeal raisin.

rubix cube

I won first place in everything I entered. It was a good day!

Winners!!

Carson can’t wait for next year’s contest…maybe he will be masterchef jr someday… one can always dream!! I have included the recipe that Carson entered for his cinnamon oatmeal cookies..it is VERY good. Give it a try! Leave me a comment and let me know what your favorite cookie flavor is!

CINNAMON OATMEAL RAISIN COOKIES

Mix and set aside:

2cups all-purpose flour

• 1teaspoon baking soda
• 1teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

• Mix wet ingredients

• 1cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1cup sugar
• 1cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed
• 2large eggs
• 3teaspoons vanilla

• Then stir in

• 3cups oats (not instant)
• 2 cups raisins
• 1.5 tablespoons of cinnamon
• 1. Preheat oven to 350°.
  2. Combine wet ingredients on low.
  3. To cream, increase speed to high and beat until fluffy and the color lightens. (do not overbeat- it will make the cookie tough)
  4. Stir the flour mixture into the creamed mixture until fully mixed together.
  5.  Now add the oats and raisins and cinnamon;
  6. Drop 2-inches apart onto baking sheet sprayed with nonstick spray.
  7. Bake 11-13 minutes (on center rack), until golden, but still moist beneath cracks on top.
  8. Remove from oven; let cookies sit on baking sheet for 2 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool.
  9. Sprinkle the cookies with cinnamon before serving.