At the end of August I was inspired by the back to school buzz, and dove into a rubbermaid in my mom’s basement searching for the set of Disney Small World Library books she’d lovingly ordered two at a time back when I was small. Then, I got to work browsing Pinterest (okay, it’s more fun than work, but I digress). The result? For the past five weeks we’ve been going around the world to “visit” a new country every Wednesday!
I’ve pretty much been waiting my whole life to have a child old enough to do things like this with, and it makes my dorky teacher heart so happy now that Henry’s fully engaged and interested! Each week we find the country on a globe, listen to the national anthem, read our Disney Small World Library book, do a craft, and cook up something special for supper. I’ve also been requesting additional books from the library about each place, but with all of the Covid rules, they take a while if coming from other locations, so I’m trying to get on top of ordering them far enough in advance.
Around the World Wednesday’s been so much fun so far, I plan to continue it indefinitely! The recipes push me to try new ingredients, and we’ve even had fun trying wine from our chosen country after Henry’s gone to bed. I’ve had a few people ask about where to find the recipes and resources we’ve been using, thus this seemed like a good topic for a blog post. So without further ado, my resources:
Week 1: Spain
- Craft: Cardboard Tube Bull By Crayola
- Recipe: Authentic Spanish Paella from Spain on a Fork (This was my first time cooking with squid! I also learned you can make your own fish stock by combining 1 tsp. of fish sauce with 1 cup of chicken broth) .
Week 2: The Netherlands
- Craft: Windmill Toilet Paper Roll By DLTK Kids
- Recipe: Stampot (Vegetable Mash) from All Thats Jas (This was my first time cooking with actual leeks! I used brown sugar sausages here too).
- Dessert: Boterkoek (Dutch Butter Cake) from Cakies By Rachel (Oh, a cake that tastes like a giant sugar cookie? Yes, please!)
Week 3: Norway
- Craft: Viking Mask By Mask Spot (this was a big hit!)
- Recipe: Brun Lapskaus (Beef and Vegetable Stew) from Northwild Kitchen
- Field Trip: we threw in a little excursion to Valhalla for lunch & to visit the troll garden
Week 4: Russia
- Craft: Matryoshka Dolls By Making Learning Fun
- Recipe: Shchi (Restorative Beef and Cabbage Soup) from Vikalinka
- I also bought rye flour to attempt rye bread, but it wouldn’t rise and was as hard as a rock, so it went in the garbage. (Definitely not sharing that recipe). Can’t win ’em all!
Week 5: Peru
- Craft: Colourful Llama By I Heart Crafty Things
- Recipe: Chupe de Camarones (Peruvian Shrimp Chowder) from Curious Cusiniere (In the last few minutes of cooking, you add in eggs to poach in the broth. So good!)
- Additional Book: Festival of the Sun By Jo Jong-Soon
