Young Friends
Catherine Henderson suggests some seasonal activities
Looking closely
When did you last go for a walk – not to get anywhere in particular, not to go from A to B, but just to linger and look? Most of the time we are in too much of a hurry; late for school perhaps, or rushing to a rehearsal or a football match. The Welsh poet WH Davies, in his poem ‘Leisure’, asks what life is all about if we can’t find time occasionally to ‘stand and stare’? If we look we may see ‘streams full of stars’, perhaps in a canal or even a puddle.
Very small children notice such things, stopping to point out grass growing between cracks in the pavement or to touch the rough surface of a log.
It probably helps being close to the ground and the Christmas break is an opportunity to go on that sort of walk – to take time to stop and look. Taking photos is a good way to ‘zoom in’ on the textures and patterns you may pass every day, to notice details you haven’t seen before. You can make a montage from your photos, either on the computer screen or by printing them out, cropping and cutting them and arranging the pieces on a sheet of paper – A3 is a good size
When you are happy with how the pieces look, glue them down with a glue stick, working from one side of the paper to the other if you want to avoid any gaps.
Making chocolate leaves
At this time of year most leaves have fallen. Some rose leaves may still be clinging on. I have a small bay tree in a pot outside my door, and a little lemon tree grown from a pip: both of these still have their leaves. What do these plants have in common? All are suitable for making chocolate leaves!
To make chocolate leaves you will need some ‘safe’ leaves – avoid ivy and other poisonous plants. Firm fresh leaves are best. You could use the shiny leaves you sometimes find with clementines or buy fresh bay leaves. Wash and dry them carefully. Melt some cooking chocolate in a heatproof bowl, either in a microwave or over a pan of hot water. You want it a thick consistency: let it cool a little if it’s too runny.
Line a small tray or plate with greaseproof paper, holding the leaf at the stem end. Then paint a thick layer of melted chocolate on the underside using a clean brush, such as a pastry brush. Take care not to get chocolate on the top side of the leaf. Lay the leaf chocolate-side-up on the grease-proof paper.
Repeat this until you have a plate of leaves, none of them touching the others. Pop the tray or plate in the fridge for about twenty minutes. When the chocolate is set hard you can peel off the leaves, leaving the imprint of the veins on the chocolate. (There will probably be a lot of ‘casualties’, but you can just eat those.)
If you like, you can make marzipan ‘flowers’ to go with your leaves.
Chocolate puzzle
Quakers have been involved in the chocolate trade for over 200 years. In the eighteenth century Quaker merchants began dealing in cocoa, which was thought to have medicinal properties. Their cocoa was popular because it was fairly priced and didn’t contain brick dust, which was sometimes added to chocolate to make it go further!
Quakers were also good employers, and by the early twentieth century they were famous not only for their chocolate but for the way they treated the workers in their factories. The Cadbury brothers set up a factory in the countryside near the River Bourn and built a village for their workers, calling it Bournville. The houses were well-designed and each had a garden with fruit trees, as the brothers said there should be ‘no dwelling where a rose cannot grow’. People living in Bournville were far healthier than other working families in nearby Birmingham, and the company provided education for children and adults, healthcare and parks.
Nowadays Quaker families no longer run the big chocolate companies, but you will recognise the brand names. See how many words connected with chocolate and/or Quaker companies you can find in this word search puzzle – I’ve already given you the first clue.
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