Prep School Recipes and Extension

Fall 2026 - Mixing, Measuring, & Mastering Recipes

Week 1: Measuring Dry Ingredients & Understanding the Six Parts of Every Recipe

Thank you for sending your child to Prep School at Happy Place! We had a great first week! It was wonderful to meet all of our new students!

You may be wondering, what are we doing in class? We know kids don’t always share every detail. We want you to know what we’re up to so that your student can continue to work on these skills at home.

This week we set the foundation for the series by practicing the skill of measuring dry ingredients, both in a recipe and just on its own. We practiced how to level dry ingredients, such as flour, dry beans, spices, oats, and baking soda, with different spoons, cups, spice jars, and large bowls.

We also discussed how to read a recipe and how to follow a recipe. We emphasized that the most important part about following a recipe is to read the entire recipe before anything else.

Then, we made Apple Cinnamon Energy Bites to practice everything we learned. It was a very busy hour, but everyone was so eager to learn. 

  • Week 1 Recipe: Apple Cinnamon Energy Bites

  • Extension Practice ideas for home this week:

    • Make the energy bites at home! We also love our Everyday Energy Bite recipes, and kids can practice swapping ingredients to make it their own. Test it out, and see if they like it. These are great to make ahead on busy school nights.

    • Have your child go through some cookbooks at home or some recipe blogs (we love Broma Bakery, Pinch of Yum, Grossy Pelosi, Sally’s Baking Addiction, and Caro Chambers) and just read through some recipes start to finish. This is a great first step to inviting kids to help plan out family meals for the week or a special meal to make together on a weekend.

Week 2: Measuring Dry Ingredients & Understanding the Six Parts of Every Recipe [Review] + Week 3 Preview

This week we reviewed measuring dry ingredients, practiced scooping and leveling, read through the whole recipe first, and previewed measuring wet ingredients. We practiced these skills by making Apple Crisp for One and an Apple Cider Slushie. It was a busy, hands-on class, and the students really impressed us with their enthusiasm and focus.

We’re excited to keep building on these skills next week!

  • Week 2 Recipe: Apple Crisp for One

  • Week 2 Bonus Recipe: Apple Cider Slushies! To make these, we blended equal parts apple cider ice cubes (make in advance) and fresh apple cider. Then, you put this mixture in a cup and top with sparkling water. Mix it all together and you have a delicious treat!

  • Extension Practice ideas for home this week:

    • Make the recipes again from week 1 or 2! Challenge your child to show you something new they learned or remember from class.

    • [Still a great one! We are working hard on practicing reading recipes from start to finish before you make something. This is a wonderful way to practice!] Have your child go through some cookbooks at home or some recipe blogs (we love Broma Bakery, Pinch of Yum, Grossy Pelosi, Sally’s Baking Addiction, and Caro Chambers) and just read through some recipes start to finish. This is a great first step to inviting kids to help plan out family meals for the week or a special meal to make together on a weekend.

Week 3: Measuring Wet Ingredients [Part 1!]

This week in class, we focused on measuring wet ingredients. We learned lots of new measuring words like liters, milliliters, pints, and ounces! We practiced carefully pouring into liquid measuring cups. To put our new skills into action, we made Pumpkin Pie Overnight Oats and ended class with Pumpkin Juice. Students measured many wet ingredients such as water, juice, milk, vanilla, maple syrup, pumpkin puree, and yogurt. 

We continued to review measuring dry ingredients and reading recipes, giving everyone an opportunity to review and practice with scooping, leveling, and following a recipe. We had another busy, hands-on class!

  • Week 3 Recipe: Pumpkin Pie Overnight Oats & Pumpkin Juice

  • Extension Practice ideas for home this week:

    • Practice making the pumpkin juice again! The texture was unique and we wanted to test it again to blend the ingredients differently. This is a fun, seasonal recipe that is easy to practice once you have the ingredients.

    • Practicing measuring liquid ingredients can be near wrecking in real time, but is truly a great cooking and math skill. We highly recommend making a soup, salad dressing, a baked good (almost all have wet & dry ingredients) or a drink together - or asking your child to make for the family! It’s a great way to practice this in real time.

Week 4: Measuring Wet Ingredients [Review]

This week we reviewed measuring dry ingredients and wet ingredients. We discussed the different ways we can measure wet ingredients depending on the thickness and amount of the ingredient. We also got more practice chopping vegetables and following a recipe, making sure to read the recipe the entire way through before beginning anything. We practiced these skills by making Teeny Tiny Pasta Salad. We stayed busy and enjoyed experiencing working with new textures!

  • Week 3 Recipe: Teeny Tiny Pasta Salad

  • Extension Practice ideas for home this week:

    • Practice making the pumpkin juice again! The texture was unique and we wanted to test it again to blend the ingredients differently (hint: use a blender!!) This is a fun, seasonal recipe that is easy to practice once you have the ingredients. Other fun, seasonal recipe making a witches brew punch recipe. There are many online, but it’s also fun to invent! Think cranberry juice, grape juice, and something fizzy (sparkling water?) You could also add edible glitter! Plus, you’ll practice measuring liquid ingredients.

    • We [still!] highly recommend making a soup, salad dressing, a baked good (almost all have wet & dry ingredients) or a drink together - or asking your child to make for the family! It’s a great way to practice this in real time.