When it was forecasted that Huracán Sandy, was eminently going to strike our area, the first thing we did was go out and collect the beautiful fall leaves that colored our barrio. I knew that after the storm, we would be left with few vibrant reminders of fall.  Even so, I felt like we needed to add a little more color of fall into our lives.  So I reverted to a favorite childhood activity that my sister and I used to always enjoy.  As it turns out, this is a great activity to teach science concepts of solid and liquid changes of state through temperature.

What you will need:

• Cardstock, white
• PDF print out of letters O-T-O-Ñ-O
• Wax paper
• Red, orange, brown, and yellow crayolas
• Scissors
• Hot glue or tape
• Sticks
• Ribbon
• Iron
• Scrap cardboard

First print the OTOÑO PDF on white cardstock.  Carefully scrape the crayolas with scissors and let the shavings lightly speckle a piece of wax paper and the cardstock, leaving space between shavings.  Since you will be melting the crayolas, less is best.  Cover each with another piece of wax paper.

For Sofía, I made the shavings ahead of time and allowed her to sprinkle them on the wax paper and cardstock.

Using an iron on the lowest setting, carefully hold down the wax paper and cardstock, and pass the iron over the top wax paper to JUST melt the crayola shavings.  Sofía had to just watch this, but older niños could assist the adult. (I also placed all of the above on top of scrap cardboard for easier clean up.)

For the leaves, trace your niño’s hand and make a pattern out of cardboard.  Then trace the pattern 5 times on the wax paper with melted crayolas.  Be sure to cut out the hands/leaves only once the shavings are very cool.  The letters to spell out OTOÑO can be easily cut out by evenly folding the cardstock into fourths first.

Using tape and/or a hot glue gun, connect the letters and hands/leaves with small sticks or real stems of leaves.  String each letter (now connected to the hand/leaf) with ribbon or twine and use tape or hot glue to hold together.

Want to change up the activity a little bit?  Just use the hand/leaves to decorate your windows or mantel.   Instead of O-t-o-ñ-o, use the letters to spell Gracias!  Trace the hand pattern 5 times on cardstock also and use them as the feathers to make a turkey, using a traced foot as the body.  Maybe you want to make your own family or Thankful tree out of brown paper and use the wax paper hands/leaves to write names or things for which you are thankful.

Even if your barrio is left without those vibrant orange and red hues, this art and science activity will be sure to brighten your casa and hopefully spread a little bit of fall warmth.

Even though the days are now prone to get shorter and colder, November is a month of big celebrations. Thanksgiving, of course, is the first thing that comes to mind when using the “c” word, but there are some other, less traditional reasons that make this month special. For example, November is Good Nutrition Month. Now this is the kind of celebration I really like. Even though I love a good pig-out every now and then, and however much I eat on these occasions there will always –ALWAYS- be space left for dessert, good nutrition is the motto I generally live by, and it’s nice to celebrate it and remind others of the importance of eating well.

“You are what you eat.”

“Let your food be your medicine.”

These wise ideas were shared by visionary men centuries ago, and remain as prevalent as ever in these times of sugar addiction, TV dinners, and the likes.

To celebrate this important month, I decided to try yet another recipe using my favorite nutritious ingredient in the world: quinoa. For those of you who don’t know, quinoa is an Andean super seed that has been used since the times of the Incas for its amazing taste, and health properties. I eat quinoa every morning for breakfast (instead of oatmeal, but cooked the same way), and I love to try new ways of making it whenever I get the chance.

Scrawling through the internet in search of inspiration, I found a delicious mushroom and Marsala soup that I decided would go incredibly well (and could be turned into a very filling meal) with the addition of some quinoa. Autumn is when I start craving hearty soups that keep me warm throughout the day, so this recipe sounded like the perfect candidate.

I’m also a big fan of any dish that uses a good wine in its preparation, and many times I add it at random to any recipe. I just love what a good cooking wine does for food! I really have come to consider them an important staple ingredient in my kitchen. For this soup I used the wonderful Holland House Marsala Cooking Wine, and the depth of flavor it gave to the mushroom and quinoa combo was a total delight. Why don’t you go and try it yourself?

And don’t forget to celebrate this Good Nutrition Month with the ones you love!

Hearty Mushroom, Marsala and Quinoa Autumn Soup Recipe

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1/2 cup quinoa

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 pack (about 500 gr) mushrooms of your choice, sliced

1 diced white onion

2 diced carrots

2 finely chopped garlic cloves

1.5 lts vegetable stock

1/4-1/2 cup Holland House Marsala Cooking Wine

1 teaspoon dried rosemary

2 tablespoons tomato purée

Grated fresh Parmesan cheese to serve (optional)

Salt and pepper, to taste

Preparation:

1. To make the quinoa, put in a pan with twice the amount of water. Bring to a boil and cook for 15-20 minutes at medium-high heat. Drain any remaining water and reserve.

2. Slice and dice all the veggies. Heat the oil in a pan over medium-high heat, and sauté the garlic, onion, carrot and rosemary for about 5 minutes, until softened. Stir constantly. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Add the mushrooms and fry for another 5 minutes, stirring. Then add the Holland House Marsala Cooking Wine, stock, and tomato puree.

4. Cook for 30 minutes, adding more liquid (either water or stock) if it becomes too thick. Season with salt and pepper, and add the quinoa.

5. Serve in soup bowls, and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese if desired.

Disclosure: As Mizkan Advocates, SpanglishBaby receives compensation for creating and sharing these recipes with you. All opinions are our own.

The season of pumpkins, beautiful leaves and cooler weather has arrived again. Natural changes are a great opportunity to teach our kids about cultural traditions and holidays, as well as the science of the season. As per usual, we think these discussions should take place in Spanish! If you need some encouragement and a way to show your children what el otoño is all about, consider adding some of the following books to your home library.

Click on the individual links or browse them all in La Tiendita.

El Otoño by Núria Roca — A great choice for pre-K or Kindergarten kids because of the beautiful illustrations and simple text. Includes reading activities at the end!

Veamos el otoño/Let’s look at fall by Schuette and Sarah L. — A large, comprehensive elementary science book. Learn what happens to animals, plants, and weather with the change of seasons.

El Primer Otoño de Clifford by Norman Bridwell — Explore fall with the classic Big Red Dog. This is a nice way to talk about fall through a narrative, rather than an informational book.

Autumn/Otoño by JoAnn Early Macken — Easy photographs and a visual glossary make this a good basic book to have around.

El Otoño by Sian Smith — Read about what happens in the fall and enjoy gorgeous photos of the changing leaves.

La cosecha de calabazas/Pumpkin Harvest by Calvin Harris and Martin Luis Guzman Ferrer — Ever wondered how all those pumpkins arrive in the pumpkin patch every October? Read this and talk to your kids about how they are grown and harvested.

Otoño (Veo, Veo!) by Karen Bryant-Mole and Elizabeth de La Ossa — Discover all the traditional fall activities, plus answer the questions included in this summary of the season.

Soy una hoja by Jean Marzollo — Instead of looking at photos of millions of leaves, learn about the life of each individual one! 

El conteo regresivo del otoño by Fran Hawk — Read about all the different kinds of trees that drop those beautiful leaves.

Experimentos para cada día del otoño by Dorothea Tust — A great home or classroom book for bilingual science lovers.