The book Let’s Go Home by Cynthia Rylant is hard to categorize and a little difficult to explain. While the book is not a story in the traditional sense, it is a lovingly captured portrait of a warm, cheerful home and the multi-generational family who lives there. Rylant’s richly detailed descriptions are paired with equally detailed illustrations by Wendy Anderson Halperin, and the collaboration creates an enchanting picture book about all the little things that make a house a home. While this might not sound as exciting as an action packed story, there is something that draws readers into this book, whether they are children or adults. I have yet to read this book to any child who wasn’t fascinated by each page. Maybe this is because the theme is so easy to relate to. After all, we all live in some type of home every day and are familiar with each room and all the details that make it unique. This book is a good discussion starter about what makes your own home and family unique and what you can do to make your home a welcoming place. I especially love how Let’s Go Home shows a house that isn’t too neat or perfect. There are toys strewn around in the living room and kids rooms, dishes in the kitchen sink, and a general sense of casual clutter that will be familiar to anyone living in a home with young children.
Buy the book here:
Let’s Go Home: The Wonderful Things About a House by Cynthia Rylant
Discussion questions for Let’s Go Home:
- On each page, what are 2 things about that room that are different from the same room in your house? Two things that are the same?
- What is your favorite room in your home? What do you like about that room?
- What are three words you would use to describe your home?
One of my favorite pages of Let’s Go Home shows the cozy living room of the house with kids playing board games or reading and two moms chatting and sewing together. It’s a perfectly captured vignette of two neighbor families catching up over mugs of tea and cocoa, kids playing and parents talking. Of the coffee table, Rylant writes, “In front of the sofa there is a coffee table, and it certainly has its name right, for coffee is often served here. But that isn’t all. Some people love a big bowl of nuts and some lemonade, and others love cold mugs of milk with strawberry muffins. . . “. This reference to strawberry muffins has always been appealing to me so I decided to try out some strawberry muffins of my own. I found that roasting the strawberries first, with a little maple syrup, created the best results. Roasting the strawberries before adding them to the batter allows some of the liquid from the berries to evaporate so that they don’t make the batter gummy or chewy as it bakes. I also think roasting concentrates the berries flavor and sweetness. I almost always use buttermilk in muffins as it makes a more tender, rich batter than using regular milk. I think almost any berries would work in this batter, although not all berries need to be roasted beforehand; blueberries for example, are drier and don’t give off as much juice as they bake.
Roasted Strawberry Buttermilk Muffins
Roast the strawberries: Preheat the oven to 425ºF. While the oven is preheating, hull the strawberries and slice them. On a large cookie sheet or half-sheet pan, toss the strawberries with the 2 Tablespoons of maple syrup until they're coated. Roast in the preheated oven until the strawberries have rendered their juice and turned thick and sticky. This will take about 20 minutes, but watch closely to prevent the juice from burning. Remove the strawberries from the oven and set aside to cool. Turn oven down to 350º.
In a large batter bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the cooled butter, buttermilk, vanilla, and eggs. Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and fold together with a spatula until just combined. Do not overmix or the muffins could be a bit tough.
Fold the roasted, cooled strawberries into the batter mixture gently, just until they are mixed in evenly. Spoon the batter into 12 lined muffin cups, filling each muffin cup about 2/3 full. Bake in the 350º oven until the muffins are rounded on top, lightly browned, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 20-25 minutes. Serve warm with butter.
Ingredients
Directions
Roast the strawberries: Preheat the oven to 425ºF. While the oven is preheating, hull the strawberries and slice them. On a large cookie sheet or half-sheet pan, toss the strawberries with the 2 Tablespoons of maple syrup until they're coated. Roast in the preheated oven until the strawberries have rendered their juice and turned thick and sticky. This will take about 20 minutes, but watch closely to prevent the juice from burning. Remove the strawberries from the oven and set aside to cool. Turn oven down to 350º.
In a large batter bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the cooled butter, buttermilk, vanilla, and eggs. Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and fold together with a spatula until just combined. Do not overmix or the muffins could be a bit tough.
Fold the roasted, cooled strawberries into the batter mixture gently, just until they are mixed in evenly. Spoon the batter into 12 lined muffin cups, filling each muffin cup about 2/3 full. Bake in the 350º oven until the muffins are rounded on top, lightly browned, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 20-25 minutes. Serve warm with butter.
