‘Lil miss muffins’ share yummy sweets

When Foundation Academy asked students for suggestions on how to be creative and have fun during the COVID-19 quarantine, Molly and Ava Stephens were eager to share their tasty idea.

The twins, who are in third grade, have created several videos for their baking show, “Twin Treats.”

So far, the girls have given directions for making Whole Wheat Banana Muffins, Homemade Brownies, Carrot Applesauce Bites and, just in time for Easter, Carrot Cake Cookies. Their shows “air” on their mother’s Facebook page.

“We’ve been watching a show called ‘Just Add Magic,’ and it’s about these kids that are bakers,” mom Ashley Stephens said. “Ava and Molly love to help me bake and put our ideas together, and we decided to do our own.”

“They make magical recipes to make magical food,” Ava said.

For their baking shows, the girls put on their bright floral aprons, step up onto stools and give step-by-step instructions from their kitchen. There are occasional giggles when the butter sticks to the wrapper or if their spoons clink when they both are stirring.

In Molly and Ava’s first episode, they created Whole Wheat Banana Muffins.

“We have already pre-prepped some of the ingredients we are going to use, and our mom had made the link below in case you want to make the recipe for yourself,” Ava told viewers.

“Bon apetit; enjoy,” they said in unison at the end of their episode.

After the muffins were baked and cooled, the bakers had to test their creation, and both said they were good with just the right amount of banana.

They wanted to make brownies, but since there’s a quarantine in place and they can’t go buy a brownie mix, they showed in Episode 2 how to make them from scratch.

“Before you get started, be sure to ask an adult to preheat the oven to 350 degrees,” Molly told viewers.

The consensus? Their brownies were “very chocolately and yummy.”

For their third episode, the sisters made Carrot Applesauce Bites using a recipe from a new cookbook they received from their mother. When tasting them after baking, both said they were delicious.

While making the Carrot Cake Cookies in their Easter Day video, the girls took turns adding pre-measured ingredients and folded, whisked and mixed them all together. When the bakers had to continue giving instructions while running the mixer — which was several times — they hollered, “Mix it really well!” No one should miss this important step, they reasoned.

When the cookies were out of the oven and iced, the girls performed a taste test and agreed they were delicious.

More shows are in the works, and the girls, who are almost 9, are deciding what sweet treats they want to make next.

“I was kind of thinking of making apple crisps sometime,” Ava said. “Or braided bread.”

Both girls like to bake, and their mother said they make a great team in the kitchen. They aren’t sure, however, if they want to pursue baking as a full-time career.

“I want to be a doctor, but maybe I could do that on the side,” Molly said.

“I want to be a president, so …,” Ava said, indicating a baking career is not an option.

When the sisters aren’t baking, they are writing.

“I’ve been starting a book,” Ava said. “I’ve already done the prologue so far. (It’s about) this one day that changed a girl’s life and now she has magical powers. A library book called ‘Savvy’ is what inspired me.”

She is titling her book “That One Day.”

“I’m also starting a book but with my friends,” Molly said. “Me and my friends, and most of the third grade, like these things called Cutetitos.”

Cutetitos are stuffed animals wrapped in a plush burrito blanket. There are Puppitos, Cattitos, Slothitos, Piggitos, Bunnitos, Bearitos and Monkitos.

“I’m writing a whole ‘Zebrito the Awesome,’” she said.

The innovative and creative girls are the daughters of Dan and Ashley Stephens, of Winter Garden.