I’m loving the story you’re creating and thought, hmm, what else could make this fun. Then in my pre-morning tea creative burst, I thought, a baking challenge. Now, for those of you new to the community, I’m a fan of reality cooking shows, in a former career, I taught Hotel/Restaurant management classes to college students and chef’s apprentices so shows like the Great British Baking Show (Bake-Off, to the rest of the world), fascinate me. Since time in the kitchen with kids is also the #1 reply on our survey, I thought we’d help our adventure trio have some fun in the kitchen. Argh! I’m super wordy today. Ok, your challenge, if you choose to except. Use your skills to bake a batch of cookies for Barnaby and crew. You have until Sunday to share your bake picture. Best bake as voted by the judges, will receive an all-access pass to the culinary sessions from the Unplug & Play summit. Let’s go! Welcome bakers, to your Technical Challenge! For this round, you are flying blind. You have been provided with the exact ingredients you need, but the instructions have been... edited. You will need to rely on your baking instincts. We are looking for an even bake, uniform size, and perfectly golden cookies. On your marks, get set... BAKE! The Ingredients: 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking soda ½ teaspoon baking powder 1 cup butter, softened 1 ½ cups white sugar 1 large egg 1 teaspoon vanilla extract The Instructions: 1. Prepare your oven and baking sheets. 2. Combine your dry ingredients. 3. Make the cookie dough. 4. Shape the dough into uniformly sized balls and place them on the sheets. 5. Bake until perfectly golden. 6. Leave to stand for a couple of minutes on the tray before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. To complete the challenge: Post a photo of your finished cookies in the comments below, along with a note telling us what oven temperature and bake time you ended up using!

Most Saturday’s you’ll find me over in @Henry Hunter’s community where he hosts a Saturday bake along. What we will be baking is posted early each week along with how-to’s and common questions. Then, on Saturday morning, bakers from around the world join together to bake. This week, the community was baking Banh Mi, but not me. I opted for a quick bake and made Blackberry scones. The recipe is in the Recipe Pantry or visit #Bread as Science with Chef Henry for ideas to bake with your kids and a link to the free recipe pantry. If bread isn’t your thing, @Elliott Robertson shared some creative ideas in his presentation on ways to make kitchen time a fun family time by setting aside one night a week as “date night” and experimenting with your food. You can get more ideas here #Playing in the Kitchen with Elliott

I’m writing this a little after 5:00 am on Saturday morning. The house is quiet, the tea is brewing, and while we are in different locales, I know @Sandy Chong and I are lining up ingredients and getting ready to bake. Today, @Henry Hunter has chosen Monkey Bread for our bake. I’m going classic sweet but he’s also provided four savory options. Have you ever had monkey bread? I used to make it for the kids- simple fast- yummy. A couple cans of biscuit dough, sugar, cinnamon, gooey yumminess. Today, I learn how to make it from scratch. The recipe looks pretty easy and is ideal for kids helping in the kitchen. I’m using this recipe: https://recipepantry.app/recipes/monkey-bread If you get adventurous and try it come on and share your results here. If you’re a curious baker, Henry is doing a recorded recipe session that you can use at home and then on Wednesday August 19, he’s doing a live session. Check the calendar for the time. Image from Pampered Chef. I can’t find my Bundt pan so I may use a cast iron skillet or loaf pan. Have you ever had monkey bread?

Technology gets blamed for a lot. I’m a firm believer in limiting screen time, especially for kids but I also believe it’s our responsibility to teach how to use tech productively. Let’s face it, as our kids age they will use tech. But there is a difference between watching what a screen gives you and using technology to create something that did not exist five minutes ago. Our three Tech presentations approach that idea from different directions. @Elizabeth Houston joins us Wednesday, August 19, from 2:00–2:45 PM CDT. with some coding stories that will leave you smiling. @Paula Artis presents My Robot Story Helper on Friday, August 21, from 3:00–4:00 PM CDT. This is a session you don’t want to miss. @Tosca Fasso and Christopher Ward present Play It Again, Claude! on Monday, August 17, from 9:00–10:00 AM CDT. Their family prompt kit turns Claude into a starting point for silly mysteries, snack-show challenges, original games, and choose-your-own-adventure stories. Three presentations. Three opportunities to explore what changes when families use technology to make, imagine, and play together. The goal is not more technology. It is doing something more interesting with the technology already around us. Which session spiked your curiosity?

One more trip to the fridge before we leave the kitchen and explore other themes in the summit. I am beyond thrilled that @Henry Hunter said yes to speaking at the summit. For those of you who have been here awhile, you've probably gotten used to my "On Saturday We Bake" posts, all due to the weekly bake along in his Crust and Crumb community. I'm honored that he is bringing us Bread as Science, a pre-recorded session that turns bread making into something families can explore together. Then, on Wednesday, August 19, from 12:00–12:45 PM CDT, he will join us live for an AMA. Bring your bread questions. Bring your science questions. Bring the story of the loaf that refused to rise. @Elliott Robertson will close our Culinary experiences with Playing in the Kitchen on Saturday, August 22, from 1:30–2:30 PM CDT. He also has the honor of being the final speaker of the event. Let's be sure to show up and cheer him on! I love that phrase: playing in the kitchen. It changes the goal. We aren’t chasing a perfect loaf, a flawless meal, or children who follow every direction. We’re experimenting, noticing, tasting, laughing, and figuring things out together. Elliott was one of the very first people to say, "Yes" when I posted about the summit several months ago. I have a feeling you're going to want to be there for his session on Saturday. Which of the six culinary sessions has you most intrigued?