What did you do?
Me and my daughter, Flea, have been watching TikTok and trying recipes as something to do together. I find Flea (its her nickname) is so much more enthusiastic about things she’s seen on TikTok compared to anywhere else. Over the bank holiday weekend we made chocolate fudge brownies.
What you will need:
- large bowl
- baking tray
- 150g melted butter
- 200g caster sugar
- 70g brown sugar
- 90g cocoa powder
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp vanilla essence
- 2 eggs plus 1 yolk
- 225g milk chocolate (for the topping)
- ½ cup double cream (for the topping)
Instructions:
- mix all ingredients in the bowl
- spread into baking tray
- bake at 160/180 degrees for 20-25 minutes
- after cooking time has completed, take out and let it cool to room temperature
- For the topping, take the chocolate and melt in microwave or hob
- mix chocolate with double cream
- spread over brownies
- place the brownies in fridge for 2 hours
Tell us a bit about yourself
I’m Sally, I’m a happily single parent living in Lancashire with my 14 yo daughter, Flea (it’s a nickname). We have a passion for travel, bad TV and adventures of all sorts.
How are you finding life being housebound?
It’s weird. I work from home quite a bit so in some ways, it’s “same old” but just knowing you can’t leave the house and pop for coffee with a friend or go for a swim, it’s really frustrating. In terms of parenting, there’s a lot of hormones in the house so there’s been a bit of bickering, but for the most part my teen is sleeping or gaming, so my issue is feeling bored and lonely. And super sad about cancelling all our summer travel plans.
Do you have any tips for other parents?
I think happiness lies in just letting go of expectations tied to what that imaginary child in your head is doing. My imaginary child is using this time to prepare for her GCSEs and get a head start on her revision while also doing daily yoga sessions to help with her emotional wellbeing. My real teenager is killing people in Grand Theft Auto and existing on a diet of noodles and energy drinks.
Do you have any supportive messages to share with the housebound with kids community?
If you look closely, our older kids are just doing an amazing job of lockdown. My daughter is walking the dog, making me laugh and doing enough homework to keep at least 50% of her teachers happy. Considering everything that’s going on, I think she’s doing a great job.
For parents with older children, this time is such an unexpected bonus. All this time to spend connecting with our kids before they grow up and move away from us (emotionally, if not physically).
What’s your next project idea?
My next project I hope is to go out to the beach at night where it’s really dark and try some light painting with our camera and some coloured lights.
