Week 4/28/25
+ Sourdough Bakery Orders are Live!
Good afternoon,
We hope that you had a wonderful weekend!
This week will be all about birds—we are enjoying identifying them, finding their nests, and considering how they use their beaks as tools. Two of the three bird houses constructed by our Tinkering class are now occupied, and we saw one bird carry a large scrap of red cloth into the house in the front yard on Friday. We’ve seen finches, robins, barn swallows, a woodpecker, and lots of hawks. We thank Olivia for heading up this week’s planning while completing her last accounting class!
We are excited to begin taking orders for our sourdough (“pain au levain naturel”)! After much recipe testing, the Castaneda “kids” have stamped their seal of approval on each bakery item on the first menu. The school children have also been eating our bread a couple of times each week with good reviews!
First, we are focusing on everyday items that we can produce well using our current household oven. We’ll continue adding more everyday items and a few treats each week. Next week we’ll bring you focaccia and Iris’ unbelievable bagels. In late June or early July, when we receive our *English* bread oven, we’ll be able to produce crusty boules and baguettes as Leslie did in Paris.
Our sourdough starter was born on February 19 of this year, comprised of whole wheat, honey, fresh pineapple juice, and water. One of Leslie’s chef’s at Le Cordon Bleu often had a bubbling starter hidden away that had chunks of pineapple peel in it, while in her class the starter “Michel Buble” was created with a bottle of delicious hard Normandy cider. We’ve fed and nurtured our Texas starter, and we are quite delighted with its performance. It requires two parts flour and one part water about four hours before mixing our doughs. Initially it has the consistency of a ball of stiff dough, but before long it rises and becomes stringy and full of air. Its favorite place to grow is atop the warm coffee maker. We retain just a couple hundred grams of starter in the refrigerator between bakes—it is unnecessary to retain huge volumes of starter, and we never discard anything.
So here goes, bread crafted with our heart and hands using French technique, but with Texas wild yeast and beneficial bacteria to keep it honest!
and our links to this week’s menus…
Thursday Orders -closes at 12pm Wednesday, pick-up or delivery 12:30-6:00pm Thursday.
Friday Orders-closes at 12pm Thursday, pick-up or delivery 12:30-6:00pm Friday.
Free delivery is available now on orders of $50 or more. We will deliver to Cedar Park, Leander, and Round Rock/Georgetown addresses west of I-35. Email if you need delivery instead of pick-up. We’ll be working to smooth out this process and to establish a delivery fee for orders under $50 as time goes on.
Want to read more about Leslie’s LCB chefs? Check them out…Olivier Boudot, Frederic Hoel, and Gregoire Bardet.
Watch for one more stand-alone email later this week…our Summer/Fall planner.
We hope you have a great week,
Leslie, Iris and Olivia
This Week
Afternoon Enrichment
Sign up for this week and future dates (click link)!
Tuesday
Afternoon Drop-in 12:30-2:30pm
Tinkering/The Way Things Work 2:30-5:30pm (arrive by 3:15pm)
Wednesday
Morning Drop-in 8:30am-12:30pm
Stay and Play Drop-in 9:30-11:30am
Afternoon Drop-in 12:30-2:30pm
Art and Handwork Studio 2:30-5:30pm (arrive by 3:15pm)
Thursday
Afternoon Drop-in 12:30-2:30pm
Cooking, Games, Cursive/Form Drawing 2:30-5:30pm (arrive by 3:15pm)
Friday
Morning Drop-in 8:30am-12:30pm
Summer Camp 2025 Registration
Registration Links:
Week 1 W 5/28 + F 5/30/24 single days W & F available
NOTE: 5/27 Tuesday-5/29 Thursday LISD is closed but HHFC still in session w/ regular offerings, thus we only have limited space for campers on Wednesday and Friday.
+ Friday 6/6 8:30-12:30 Freestyle Sports Camp at HHFC
+ Friday 6/27 8:30-12:30 Freestyle Sports Camp at HHFC
6/30-7/3 M-Th, Fourth of July Friday NO HHFC CAMP
+ Friday 7/11 8:30-12:30 Freestyle Sports Camp at HHFC
+ Friday 7/18 8:30-12:30 Freestyle Sports Camp at HHFC
7/28-7/31 M-Th NO HHFC CAMP
8/13 Wed LISD starts
8/18-8/31 drop-in care opportunities will be available
REGULAR WEEKLY OFFERINGS
Morning Drop-Off Class 8:30am-12:30pm
1 day $200/month, 2 days $375/month, 3 days $575/month
Reserve a permanent space here!! Wednesdays and Fridays available
Drop-ins W/F, $45/child Drop in here!
Afternoon Drop-in Care 12:30-2:30pm
T/W/Th $25/child
pair with our Drop-off Class T/W/Th/F for children 1-5 years to create an 8:30am-2:30pm day
pair with our afternoon enrichment classes for children 4-11 years to create a 12:30-5:30pm day—great for homeschoolers and older preschoolers. This could be a time to work on outside assignments besides play in all of our great centers.
Afternoon Enrichment Classes 2:30 (arrive by 3:15)-5:30pm T/W/Th
Tuesdays Tinkering/The Way Things Work 1/7-5/27/25 2:30-5:30pm (arrive by 3:15pm)
Wednesdays Weekly Art and Handwork Studio 1/8-5/28/25 2:30-5:30pm (arrive by 3:15pm)
Thursday Cooking, Writing, and Games! 1/9-5/29/25 2:30-5:30pm (arrive by 3:15pm)
UNIQUE MONTHLY OFFERINGS
Nights Out
5-8:30pm $45/child Dinner, dessert, fun!
Next: 4/12 Sign up here!
HHFC Outcalls
Contact us if you have any dates in mind!
Friday evenings 5-9pm
Saturdays mornings 8:30am-12:30pm
$100 for 1-3 children
$125 for 4 children
Children can be from more than one family, so parents can share costs (one family will be invoiced). Payments are non-refundable, but credit toward another offering is possible with a cancellation 24 hours in advance. Olivia will bring an HHFC suitcase with some play starters! No transport of children by vehicle is possible.
Cook~Play~Create Camps on Leander ISD Staff Development Days
Cook~Play~Create One Day Camps sign up here!
8:30am-3:30pm Includes morning snack, lunch, afternoon snack. $75/child
Ages 3-11 years
Next: September 2025!
Make and Take Classes
We will have fun in the studio kitchen together learning a variety of cooking skills. Children will sample and take home what is made in the class as well as a recipe and where applicable, cooking, warming, and freezing instructions. As with all of our offerings, there will also be play indoors and outdoors.
9:00am-12:30pm or 1:00pm-4:30pm. Class time is noted in each sign-up. $75/child
Ages 4-11 years
Next: tbd
Program Recommendations
Freestyle Sports (Liberty Hill/29)
basketball camps on holidays/staff development days
private lessons
group classes for ages 2-high school!
LearnLee (near Leander High School) FAQ
