The Teenage Taste

Sometimes I feel like every little girl’s dream is to be a babysitter. When I was 10 years old I dreamed of the day when I would be a teenager. I pictured myself as the perfect babysitter. I’d play hide-and-seek, and play games, and bake cookies. I’d be responsible yet fun and be the babysitter that all the parents wanted to babysit their children. My 10-year old self had quite an imagination.

When I turned 13 my friend, Elise, and I attended a 2 day Safe Sitter training class and became certified babysitters. We felt so grown-up and immediately started advertising. After a few weeks we both started getting phone calls from inquiring parents and later started getting babysitting jobs. At first we loved it and had lots of fun. But then the novelty wore off.

A few days ago Elise and I were talking about how, two years later, our view of babysitting drastically changed. We’ve realized that it isn’t all fun and games and that we would rather spend our free time shopping or going to the movies. That being said, we still babysit for a select few families but we’ve discovered another way to make money: dog-sitting!

One of the select few families I will still babysit for are my cousins. Last week I babysat my little cousins Mikey and Matthew. We played hide-and-seek, went for walks, and made a homemade crumble with fresh peaches and juicy pineapple! After all, my little cousins have been helping me bake for so long that chocolate chip cookies are too easy for them.

Peach Pineapple Crumble

“This crumble is delicious, healthy, and super easy to make. The peach and pineapple flavors combine beautifully, but you should also feel free to experiment with other combinations of fruits. Serve with a dollop of whipped topping or a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream. Enjoy!”

Ingredients:

• 4-5 medium ripe peaches
• 1 cup pineapple, diced
• 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 3 teaspoons cornstarch
• ¾ cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed
• 1 ¼ cups old-fashioned oatmeal
• 1/4 cup brown sugar, packed

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Toss diced fruit together in an 8-inch square baking dish. In a small dish, whisk together 3 tablespoons sugar, cornstarch,  and ¼ cup of flour. Toss the mixture with the diced fruit. Set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together remaining flour, baking powder, salt and brown sugar. Add the cold butter cubes. Use your fingers to break up the cold butter cubes into the flour mixture. Add the oatmeal and toss together.
4. Pour the oatmeal mixture over the prepared fruit. Place in the oven and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until juices from the fruit bubble up around the sides of the pan.
5. Remove the crumble from the oven and allow to cool for at least 15 minutes before serving.

Yield:  6-8 servings

So tell me: Were you a babysitting queen as teenager or a wannabee like me? Any crazy babysitting stories?