French Toast by Jaimie

Jaimie:   Me with my brother, David, who, when told I might not be able to do things very good, said nobody should worry, because I had a big brother to help me.  He says I can do anything.

With Down’s Syndrome, Things Just Take Longer

Jaimie is my daughter.  Born with Down’s syndrome, she has proven the world is not too big for her; nothing is too hard for her…it just may take a little longer.  She wanted to share her cooking experiences with everyone so they would not be afraid when they had a terrific person like her born into their lives.

Jaimie’s View:

Hello, everybody.  I know how to cook and I cook real good stuff.  I started cooking when I was a baby.  My mama says everybody should cook, then they won’t be hungry.  The first time I cooked I made a mess.  I thought Mama would be mad, but she just laughed.  Then we made a mess together!

My First Cake

“Jaimie, you want to help me bake a cake?” My mama asked me.

“Sure!” I said.  That was one of my best words.  I wasn’t even three years old yet.  Mama stood me in the chair.  She gave me a bowl with yucky eggs in it and a big spoon.  She showed me how to stir it, but it wouldn’t mix up.  The eggs just kept running around the bowl.

Mama said, “Well, that’s a little too much for the first time.  How about shifting (sifting) flour?”

I used my favorite word again and said, “Sure!”

Sifting Flour

Mama had a big metal cup with a handle and she gave me a little metal cup with a handle.  She put flour into the cups.  When we turned the handles, the flour fell into the bowls we had.  My cup would shake sometimes and I missed the bowl.  Flour fell on the counter and on me.  I didn’t like that.  I just had a bath.

My mama missed her bowl, too and got flour on her shirt.  She laughed and I did, too.  I didn’t care any more if I had flour on me.

Measuring Ingredients, Pouring Stuff and Meeting the Mixer

Mama would put stuff in little spoons and let me pour it in the bowl.  She stirred those yucky eggs and I poured them in the bowl, too.  She put a white thing with long legs in the bowl and it made a terrible noise.  It scared me!  I thought it would hurt Mama and me.  I screamed loud.

Whew! Mama turned that mean thing off and hugged me tight.

“It’s okay, Sweetie.  It’s a mixer.  It makes a lot of noise, but it also makes yummy cakes and pies by mixing everything together.  I’m going to turn it on again, okay?”

I looked at the mixer thing setting on the counter with its legs sticking out over the bowl.  It didn’t look very big.  Maybe it was just mad, so it made a lot of noise.  I nodded okay to Mama.

After she turned the mixer off, I got to pour some stuff in the bottom of a pan and spill some flour on it.  Then I got a big spoon to help Mama put the cake stuff in the pan.

Important Rules

Mama put the pan in the stove.  Then we had a lesson in being safe.  Mama talked to me about the stove. She wrote some words on a paper.  She read the words to me every day until I knew the words myself.

• Do Not Turn The Stove On When Mama Is Not In The Room.
• Do Not Touch the Stove.
• The Stove Is Hot. It Will Burn You.
• Only Cook When Mama is With You

Now since I am a lot older, I cook breakfast by myself sometimes.  But if YOU are little, read my Mama’s rules.  They are important.

A Favorite Recipe

Here is one of my favorite breakfast recipes.  Mama is writing it for me.

French Toast by Jaimie

1 loaf of Texas Toast Bread – I like it because it has nice, thick slices

1 tsp. Real Vanilla Flavoring

1 tsp. Pumpkin Spice Mix

1 packet Splenda

1/4 tsp. Salt

3 large Eggs

1 c. Almond Milk

Mix last six items together and use a mixing stick so the pumpkin spice doesn’t just sit on top.  (It’s called an immersion blender.)  Heat real butter in a cast iron skillet, covering the bottom of the pan lightly.

Dip a slice of Texas toast bread in the mix, hold it down for a couple of seconds so it gets loaded with the mixture.  The pan should sizzle when the toast is added.  Press down on the toast with a spatula.  Because it is Texas toast bread, it won’t go flat, but it will ensure the egg mixture is spread throughout the insides of each slice.  Check the underside of the toast and when it is browned, flip it to the other side.

Sometimes we use a long griddle that fits over the center eye of the stove, if we have company.  I like to use sugar-free syrup, but any kind is fine.

The End and One More Special Rule

• (Jaimie keeps herself on a diet and for that reason, she uses Splenda and Almond Milk, unsweetened, in her egg mixture.  She also insists on a very thin layer of butter for cooking the toast, if butter is used.  In most cases, she uses sprays such as Pam.  However, I am always with her when she resprays the pans.  We move them from the eyes of the stove before spraying, because the spray could catch fire, especially on our gas stove and pull the flames back into the can, which would then explode.)

 

 

 Jaimie is a young woman today and an excellent cook.