Bobby walked into the gym after school.
It was raining.
So Kids Central was inside today.
He wished they could go outside and play.
He also wished he had brought a snack.
He was hungry.
"You guys look tired today.
Maybe we need a snack to wake everyone up," Miss Shelly said.
"Yeah!" Bobby agreed.
"My mom makes coffee when she's tired," Nina said.
Miss Shelly laughed.
"We're going to make something better than coffee.
We're going to make our very own Kids Central energy bars.
Everyone, gather around this big bowl."
"Cool. We're making our own snack!" Bobby said.
"We'll make the mixture all together.
The instructions are on the board."
"Step 1: Empty one can of condensed milk and two tablespoons of oil into a bowl. Stir," Miss Shelly read.
Nina picked up an open can on the table.
"Here is the condensed milk."
"I've got the oil."
Jason measured two tablespoons of oil and poured them into the bowl. "Stir!"
"Step 2: Add two cups of toasted oats. Stir."
Nina picked up a bag of toasted oats.
"How much is two cups?"
Bobby handed her a measuring cup.
"Fill this up twice."
"One. Two. There!" Nina grinned. "This is fun."
"Step 3: Add one cup of puffed wheat. Stir."
Jason measured one cup and added it to the mixing bowl.
"Cool. That was easy."
"Step 4: Add half a cup of chopped nuts.
Where are the chopped nuts, Miss Shelly?" Izzie asked.
"Here are the chopped nuts.
We're using sliced almonds."
Miss Shelly handed her the bag of nuts.
Izzie added them to the mix.
"Step 5: Make it sweet.
Add chocolate chips and raisins," Nina read.
"Ooh, I love raisins."
"Don't forget step 6: Add one cup of sunflower seeds,"
Miss Shelly reminded them.
"And don't forget to stir, stir, stir!" Izzie said.
"I am stirring, stirring, stirring," Nina said.
"Spread onto a greased baking pan.
How do you grease the pan, Miss Shelly?" Bobby asked.
"Pour some oil onto a paper towel," she answered.
"Then rub it around the bottom of the pan.
Miss Shelly gave him a paper towel.
"Now we press the mixture down like this."
Miss Shelly pressed her palms firmly on top of the mixture.
"We're ready to bake!"
Miss Shelly lifted the pan into the toaster oven.
"Bake for 25 minutes at 175 degrees Celsius," Bobby said.
"What will we do for 25 minutes?" Jason asked.
"Let's play soccer.
Girls versus boys!" Bobby shouted.
"Yeah! Boys win!" Jason and Bobby slapped hands.
"Mmm . . . Something smells good!" Bobby cried.
"It's our snack!" Miss Shelly said.
"It's ready for the final step."
"Cut into bars and enjoy," Bobby read.
"That means eat!
Maybe staying inside isn't so bad after all."
Miss Shelly cut 12 bars.
Everyone took an energy bar.
"Wow. We made a really good snack!" Izzie said.
"Yeah. And now I have lots of energy," added Bobby.
"Let's go play more soccer!"
[caption_out@