Taking a breath!

Well, December certainly was a busy month! Now I need a good long break from the hustle and bustle. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas with your families. Sorry I haven't posted recently. I haven't had time for much since before Halloween! I made handmade gifts for all the adults in my family, but I didn't get a chance to take pictures of all of them. I always forget that part. Here are some of the things I did get pics of...

I made "scarves for my sisters", using my precious leftovers of Anna Maria Horner flannels and voiles from my giant log cabin quilt. These went to my sister, my two step-sisters, and my two sisters-in-law. 

I made remote caddy pillows for 3 of my brothers-in-law. Just pillows with pockets, handy for remotes, iPhones, or snacks. ;) Sorry, no pics. 

I finished this crossword quilt for my brother-in-law, who was requesting a quilt. Really, my sister was requesting a quilt for him, since he kept stealing the one I made for her. :) For the "answers" I used his name, and names of his family, as well as some other things. I embroidered all of the letters, and I also embroidered a couple of pharmacy related items (mortar and pestle, and pill bottle), since he's a pharmacist. I used a couple of charm packs of Kona Cotton in the Silent Film palette, as well as some white and red. Some of my favorite colors together. 

I used some Kona Cotton in Ash for the back, as well as some leftovers of charm squares from the front. 

Here's a close-up of the pill bottle. 

I also made a bike lunch bag for my step-dad, and some heart quilted coasters and hot pads for my mom. Again, no pics of these. Don't know what I was thinking... 

The hubs surprised me with an old Singer sewing machine. I think it's from the 1920's or something. Supposedly, it runs, but I haven't tried it yet. Right now, it's just a gorgeous decoration for my dining sewing room. :) We also just celebrated our 10th Anniversary this month! Told ya it was busy... 

Of course, I've also been busy keeping the kids occupied. I love when my son is out of school! I usually get an extra half hour to sleep in, and we get lots more time to play. We had to make some cookies for Santa, and my son had his heart set on gingerbread cookies. It was my first time making them, and they turned out pretty good. Really soft too! Of course, we loaded them up with sugar so Santa could go into a diabetic coma! 

Here's the recipe I used, in case you want to try it:

Ingredients:

2/3 cup light brown sugar, packed

2/3 cup molasses

2 tsp ground cinnamon

2 tsp ground ginger

2 tsp baking soda

1 cup unsalted butter, room temp

1 large egg, beaten

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp salt

4 cups flour, plus extra for dusting

Preheat oven to 325F. 

Place brown sugar, molasses, cinnamon, and ginger in a large saucepan over medium low heat. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and stir in baking soda.

Stir in butter gradually, stirring well between additions to combine. Add egg, vanilla, and salt to sugar mixtrure, stirring to combine. Pour into a large bowl and add flour gradually, stirring to combine.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead until dough comes together and is no longer sticky, adding flour by the tablespoon if necessary.

Roll out half the dough on a floured work surface to 1/8-inch thick. Cut dough into desired shapes. Place on prepared baking sheet and bake until edges are slightly browned, about 10 minutes. Remove from oven. Let cookies cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before decorating. 

*Note: I halved the recipe, and I made my cookies a little thicker, probably closer to 1/4" thick. They were great! 

Hope you all have a wonderfully Happy New Year! Wow... 2014! Time flies!

Taking a breath!

Patriotic Trifle Repost

Happy Memorial Day, everyone! 

Today I'll be making one of these. Here is my recipe from an old post. :) Great for 4th of July too!

Enjoy and have a fun and safe day! :)

Patriotic Trifle Repost

Wall-E Birthday Party

Yesterday was my son's 3rd birthday! He has been majorly into Wall-E these last few months, so we decided to do a Wall-E themed party for him. When I looked in stores and online for Wall-E party supplies, I didn't have very much luck. It looks like most stores are discontinuing their Wall-E supplies. Fortunately, I was able to find some plates, napkins, and party favors at Birthday Mania. I ordered them in September, just in case they ran out before his birthday. They were all marked down too! Bonus! :)

I always like to make something a little special for the kids, and also plan a couple of activities. I found some cute printable Wall-E and Eve masks at this website, as well as some printable coloring pages for the kids.

For another activity, I had the kids create their own robots. I wrapped mini cereal boxes in aluminum foil, then had the kids use pipe cleaners for the arms and legs. They could use bottle caps for the eyes, or use some of these cute eyeball stickers (or both). I also had lots of extra stickers and markers (Sharpies are best for the foil) they could use for more buttons or just for decoration. They had a blast! :)

I also made a mini felt robot for each of the kids. I'm thinking of adding these new creations to my Etsy shop. ;)

Of course, I had to have something special for the birthday boy to wear. So, I made him a robot tie shirt, with a number 3 on the back. :)

He looked super cute, if I do say so myself!

My awesome sister helped me with this cake. I'm thinking she needs to hurry up and open her own bakery! It was chocolate cake with a banana pudding filling. We used graham cracker crumbs for the dirt and Tootsie Rolls for the rocks and blocks of trash. And, of course, my son's Wall-E and Eve toys were the perfect cake decorations!

Overall, I think it was a success, and a super fun day at the park! :)

Wall-E Birthday Party

Tropical Popsicles and My New Cute Bag!

I made these for my son the other day! Yes... it is still popsicle weather here, although 102 is much cooler than 115! When you have fresh fruit on hand, popsicles are very easy to make and are still a healthy choice for a cool treat! We all loved these. They were the perfect amount of sweetness without any added sugars. Enjoy! :)

Ingredients:

1 peach, peeled, pitted and sliced

1/2 cup pineapple, cubed

1 banana, sliced

1/4 cup orange juice

Place all ingredients in a food processor and puree until smooth and liquid. Pour into popsicle molds or ice cube trays with popsicle sticks. Freeze for at least 4 hours or overnight. Serve and enjoy! :)

Oh... I also wanted to show off my new bag I won from Gabrielle's giveaway:

Isn't it super cute?! I love the yellow! It reminds me of sunflowers (my favorite)! :) Gabrielle makes lots of different bags. This one is a reusable grocery bag. I think it is so pretty! Almost too pretty to use as a grocery bag! I am planning on using it to tote around things in my house up and down the stairs. Check out Gabrielle's site if you are interested in purchasing some of these lovely bags! :)

Tropical Popsicles and My New Cute Bag!

Muffin Tin Monday--Circus Theme

For more information on Muffin Tin Monday, click on the button above, or visit Michelle's blog at Her Cup Overfloweth.

Here's what I made my son this week for Muffin Tin Monday: 

The theme this week was Circus! He ate this muffin tin meal for lunch on Sunday.  All I could think of were unhealthy foods... From top left to bottom right-- I made a lion-shaped peanut butter and jelly sandwich, circus peanut candies, elephant-shaped grilled cheese sandwich, circus animal cookies, yogurt with clown face, animal crackers. My son didn't eat much of this meal... apparently he wasn't very hungry today. He wouldn't touch the sandwiches, but he loved the yogurt and the circus animal cookies. I was actually surprised he didn't like the circus peanut candies. They are sooo sweet! He enjoyed dipping the cookies and animal crackers in the yogurt. :)

Since he wouldn't eat his sandwiches, I made some popcorn. But, he wouldn't eat that either... Oh well! My hubby and I enjoyed the sandwiches, and it was fun to set this up for him! :) 

Muffin Tin Monday--Circus Theme

Strawberry-Pineapple Popsicles

Yum! There's nothing like a cool treat on a hot summer day! :) These popsicles were super easy to make. Only 3 ingredients and no sugar added! They were naturally sweet! :) My son and I loved them! 

Ingredients:

1/2 cup strawberries

1/2 cup pineapple

Splash of apple juice

In a blender or food processor, combine all ingredients and puree. Pour into popsicle molds, and freeze for at least 4 hours. Enjoy! 

Strawberry-Pineapple Popsicles

Chocolate Overload Cookies

Oh, my goodness! These are so yummy! I've been dying to make some cookies for my husband and I, as a very belated birthday "sweet" (we didn't have cake this year). We've been putting it off, and finally today I decided to start some cookies. So last year for Christmas, I found this recipe from Food Network's website by Ellie Krieger for Triple Chocolate Cookies. Well, triple wasn't good enough for me, so I made some quadruple chocolate chip cookies for Christmas gifts. This time, I wanted to try something a little different. Yeah... quadruple wasn't good enough either. So, I added more chocolate! What is it called when you have five types of chocolate? Quintuple chocolate chip cookies? That just doesn't sound as good as Chocolate Overload! ;) If you think of a better name, let me know! Anyways, I guess white chocolate isn't technically chocolate, but since everyone calls it "chocolate", I count it as another type of chocolate in this recipe. I wasn't sure how these would taste since I had sooo much chocolate, but my husband and I tried them fresh from the oven yesterday and they were heavenly! Let me just say, you will definitely need a glass of milk along with these cookies! They are super rich! A great cookie for a Chocoholic! :) The recipe makes about 2 dozen cookies, but I didn't feel like having a big tin of cookies lying around, so...

later last night, I made pizookies. I just put the rest of the cookie dough in these mini-springform pans I have, and baked them a little longer than the smaller sized cookies (since they had been in the fridge for half the day, and they were also much bigger and thicker). Yes, they were absolutely delicious! I think it needs some chocolate sauce on top, though... ;)

So, here's the recipe, if you want to try it sometime. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup dark brown sugar

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup canola oil

1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch processed)*

1/4 tsp salt

1/3 cup coarsely chopped dark chocolate*

1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips*

1/3 cup white chocolate chips*

1/3 cup 60% bittersweet chocolate chips*

Preheat oven to 350 F. 

In a stand mixer, beat together the butter and sugars until combined. Add the oil and egg and beat until creamy. Mix in the vanilla.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flours, cocoa powder and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients (gradually), and mix well. With a spoon or spatula, stir in the chocolate chips and mix well. Using a tablespoon, scoop the batter onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 12 minutes*. Transfer cookies to a rack to cool, or risk a mouth burn and eat them fresh from the oven! :)

*Note: I prefer the Ghirardelli Chocolate Chips (Semi-sweet, 60% bittersweet, and white). You could substitute milk chocolate chips for the semi-sweet if you want more sweetness. For the chopped dark chocolate, I used the Endangered Species 72% Dark Chocolate bar with Espresso Beans (the one with the Tiger on the front). To bake the pizookies, press cookie dough evenly into the bottom of a mini-springform pan or other small, round baking pan, and bake for 15 to 20 minutes. It should be crispy on the outside, but still gooey in the middle. Then, top with some yummy vanilla ice cream! 

Chocolate Overload Cookies

Mini Cranberry Corn Muffins

Can you tell I'm getting excited for fall already?! I LOVE cranberries! I usually get a lot of them when Thanksgiving rolls around, but frozen are usually available all year. I hadn't made any muffins in a while, so I thought I'd make some corn muffins this time. And instead of blueberries and lemon, I used cranberries and orange. I love those flavors together! I recently got a mini-muffin tray for my birthday, and I was so excited to use it. As much as my son loves any form of bread... especially muffins, I thought it would be great to make him some "easy to eat" muffins. I normally have to break pieces of muffin apart for him, otherwise he tends to try to cram the whole regular-sized muffin in his mouth, and nearly chokes! These mini muffins are perfectly sized for little hands, and little mouths! :) This recipe is not very sweet. Cranberries are very tart, so if you want them a little sweeter, you could either coat them with some extra sugar before adding them to the mix, or use dried sweetened cranberries. I think these taste great as is, and my son agrees! :)

Ingredients:

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

3/4 cup yellow corn meal

1/4 cup sugar

1-1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 large egg

3/4 cup milk

2 tbsp orange juice

1 tbsp orange zest

1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries, chopped, and rinsed and drained if frozen

Preheat oven to 425 F. Spray a mini muffin tray* with nonstick spray. Set aside.

In a large bowl, mix all dry ingredients together. Set aside 1/4 cup of the dry ingredients in a small bowl. In a separate medium bowl, combine all wet ingredients except cranberries, making sure the melted butter has cooled. Add wet ingredients to dry, and stir until just combined, don't over-mix. Coat the cranberries with the remaining 1/4 dry ingredients before adding to the batter. Gently fold the cranberries into the batter.

Scoop the batter into the muffin cups until about 2/3 full. Bake at 425 F for 12 to 14 minutes (*or 20 to 25 minutes for a regular 12-cup muffin tray). Cool tray on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Remove muffins from tray, and cool completely on a wire rack. Serve and enjoy! 

Makes about 24 mini-muffins, or 12 regular sized muffins. 

Mini Cranberry Corn Muffins

Red, White, and Blue Trifle

Happy 4th of July, everyone! Well, I suppose this is almost exactly the same as my Berry Trifle recipe, except that I used raspberries instead of blackberries, and I remembered to add bananas this time! I also did my "fruit sauce drizzle" a little differently. I love making this trifle for the 4th of July since it looks very patriotic, and the berries are usually at their best this time of year! It is so delicious! :) 

Enjoy, and have a great day!

Here's the recipe, in case you missed my Berry Trifle post:

Ingredients:

1 pound cake, cubed

1 package (3.4 oz) banana pudding mix

2 cups cold milk

1 tub whipped cream (8 oz; or make your own)

1 pound (16 oz) fresh strawberries, sliced and/or chopped

about 6 oz fresh blueberries 

about 6 oz fresh raspberries

1 to 2 medium bananas, sliced and/or chopped

3 tbsp raspberry preserves (preferably seedless)

1 lemon, zest and juice

1/2 juice of an orange (or about 2 tbsp)

To make "fruit sauce drizzle": Mix raspberry preserves with zest and juice of 1 lemon, and the juice of 1/2 an orange. I use a mini whisk, but you can use a fork too. Mix until the sauce is relatively smooth. 

To make banana pudding: Mix milk with banana pudding mix. Stir with a wire whisk for a couple of minutes. Let the pudding mixture set while you're preparing fruit. 

Putting it all together: Place half of the pound cake cubes on the bottom of your trifle bowl. Drizzle with half of the "fruit sauce". Pour about 1/2 of the pudding over the cake, and spread evenly. Arrange about 1/3 of the fruit pieces evenly over the pudding. I like to make a little pattern of fruit around the bowl, so some fruit pieces are peeking through. It makes it look really pretty! Spread about 1/2 of the whipped cream over the fruit evenly. Repeat layers once. On the top layer of whipped cream, arrange some pieces of fruit in a pretty pattern, or just arrange pieces evenly over the top. This dessert tastes great when it is left in the fridge for a few hours before serving. It allows all the flavors of the fruits to soak into the cake... Mmmm! 

Red, White, and Blue Trifle

Red, White, and Blue Popsicles

This is my attempt to be patriotic this July 4th... I pictured these turning out a little differently than they actually did... They look more like "pink, yellow and purple" popsicles! Oh, well! It's close enough, right? 

Anyways, I thought it would be easy to make these popsicles... Boy, was I wrong! My thought was that I could just freeze strawberry, banana and blueberry purees in my popsicle molds. But then I knew I had to do each one separately so the colors wouldn't mix. So, that's what I started to do. I started with the "red" because I knew it had to be on the bottom of the mold so that it would be on top once it was frozen. I figured strawberry puree would be red enough, but it wasn't. That was my first disappointment. Maybe next time I'll add some beets... Then I was thinking, what do I need to do to make the white "whiter"? I used bananas, but then figured they would probably brown a little bit, so I added some lemon juice. But it still wasn't the exact color I was going for, so I added some vanilla yogurt. That looked better. Once the "red" was frozen, I added the "white" (banana mix) on top, then put them back in the freezer. Well, then I get to the blueberries, and I should have known that they aren't actually a true "blue" color! Hmmm... purple... How do I fix that?! Well, there was no fixing it, so that was disappointment number two... So, once the "white" was frozen, I proceeded to get the molds out of the freezer and add the "blue" on top. Ok, good... Yay! I'm almost done! So, I go to put the "stick" part of the popsicle molds in... Well, aren't I a big dork?! Duh! Since the bananas and strawberries underneath the blueberries are already frozen, the stick won't go in!! Well, my bright idea was shot! So here's how the picture above ended up working... I have two different sets of popsicle molds, and let's just say that one is "cheaper" than the other. So, those sticks would only enter the frozen fruit over their dead (broken) bodies! Luckily, I found this other set of popsicle molds with stronger sticks! They pushed their way through the frozen fruit with no problem! I'm hoping they stay attached to the frozen fruit once people start eating them... 

So, long story short... instead of 8 beautiful red, white and blue popsicles... I have 4 beautiful pink, yellow and purple ones! Happy 4th of July! Enjoy! :)

Ingredients:

1 cup strawberries, pureed

2 bananas, pureed

1 cup blueberries, pureed

1/4 cup vanilla yogurt

Follow my silly "directions" above, or find an easier way to make these... Then let me know how you did it! :) Good luck! 

*Note: If you want to make this a little sweeter, you can either add a little agave nectar (maybe 1/2 to 1 tsp per puree), or mix each puree with vanilla yogurt... this will make the colors lighter, but since it's already pink, yellow and purple, it probably won't matter. ;)

Red, White, and Blue Popsicles

Coffee Chocolate Chip Pancakes

Don't you just love dessert for breakfast?! This has got to be my favorite pancake mix ever... so far...! I obviously don't give these pancakes to my son since they have coffee in them, but my husband and I LOVE these pancakes! We don't have them very often, so they are a special treat, and let me tell you they are so delicious! The first time I had these, my sister-in-law had gotten us a canister of mix, and I immediately thought, "Coffee and chocolate for breakfast?! Sounds perfect!"... then we tried them, and they were! Since I'm not a maple syrup fan, I drizzled mine with caramel sauce (you know, the kind you put on ice cream..?)! It was the perfect topping to this already decadent dessert... I mean breakfast... And it paired so well with my big mug of coffee (yes, more coffee...)! Try it sometime! :) I have found this at Cost Plus World Market, but you can also order it online at Mezzetta's website. Look under Kona Coast products. I am thinking of creating my own recipe for these sometime... Maybe I'll make them healthier... yeah, right! 

Coffee Chocolate Chip Pancakes

Apple-Cherry Amaranth Muffins

After I made my quinoa muffins, I thought to myself, "I bet I could make these muffins with amaranth too!". I had a bag of amaranth in my pantry, and some dried cherries and thought they would make some great healthy muffins! Amaranth is a seed which is similar to quinoa, but much smaller. Both are treated like grains, but are actually seeds that are packed with protein! Usually I cook up some quinoa or amaranth and mix them up with some fruits or veggies for one of my son's meals. Of course, he never turns down a muffin, and they make such a great traveling snack! As I was making this recipe, I started mixing up the wet ingredients with the dry, and then realized I had no eggs! Luckily, applesauce and mashed bananas make a great substitute for eggs in muffin recipes, and I almost always have both of those on hand at all times. So, it turns out, these muffins are also vegan! As you probably know from my previous recipes, I'm definitely no vegan. But if you are, these are a great muffin for you! They taste pretty good even if you're a carnivore like me. :) My son says, "Mmm Mmm!"

Ingredients: 

1 cup amaranth

1/4 cup canola oil

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1-1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1/2 cup dried cherries, chopped*

3/4 cup whole milk

1/4 cup applesauce (or 1 large egg)*

1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 F. In a medium saucepan, bring amaranth and 3 cups water to a boil. Reduce to low heat; cover, and cook until water has been absorbed and amaranth is tender, about 20 to 25 minutes. 

Meanwhile, brush a 12-cup muffin pan with oil, and dust with flour, tapping out excess. In a medium bowl, whisk together flours, sugar, baking powder, salt, cherries, and 2 cups cooked amaranth. Reserve any leftover amaranth for another use. 

In a small bowl, whisk together oil, milk, applesauce (or egg), and vanilla. Add milk mixture to flour mixture and stir just until combined. Divide batter among prepared muffin cups. 

Bake until a toothpick inserted in center of muffin comes out clean 25 to 30 minutes.* Cool muffins in pan for 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Makes 12 muffins. Enjoy!

*Note: It is not necessary to chop your dried cherries. I did only because I knew I would be serving these muffins to my son, and I wasn't sure if he could handle a larger-sized dried fruit. To substitute eggs in future muffin recipes, use either 1/4 cup applesauce or 1/4 cup mashed banana for each egg in the recipe. My muffins took a little longer in the oven, about 40 minutes. I'm not sure if it's because of the amaranth, or if the applesauce made the batter too moist. They still turned out good, just took a little longer. :)

Apple-Cherry Amaranth Muffins

Snickerdoodles

I LOVE this recipe for Snickerdoodles! I have to admit, I had never had snickerdoodles until I was in my twenties, and even then I was still never a huge fan of them. But, let me tell you, these are delicious! They are the perfect combination of crunchy and soft! Sadly, it is not my recipe, but I think it is such a good one, that I decided to post it on here. I made some of these for Christmas gifts last year, and I also made some for my sister's birthday party. She loved them! Actually, everyone that ate one loved them... including my son! This recipe comes from Emeril Lagasse off of the Food Network website, which I also love! I picked this recipe for snickerdoodles because it had a 5 star rating, so I figured it must be a good one! Unfortunately, these are probably not very figure-friendly cookies, but it's okay to splurge every once in a while! :) However, I did substitute some of the flour for whole wheat flour. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1-1/4 cups whole wheat flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup shortening

8 tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

1-1/2 cups sugar, plus 3 tbsp

2 large eggs

1 tbsp ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt into a bowl. 

With a handheld or standing mixer, beat together the shortening and butter. Add the 1-1/2 cups sugar and continue beating until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the flour mixture and blend until smooth. 

Mix the 3 tbsp sugar with the cinnamon in a small bowl. Roll the dough, by hand, into 1-1/2-inch balls. Roll the balls in the cinnamon sugar. Flatten the balls into 1/2-inch thick disks, spacing them evenly on unlined cookie sheets. Bake until light brown, but still moist in the center, about 12 minutes. Cool on a rack. Serve and enjoy!

Snickerdoodles

Protein Smoothie

I was feeling like making another smoothie for my son (and me), but I wanted to add some extra protein to it. Tofu is great for smoothies since it has a smooth texture, and blends very easily with the other ingredients. And for anyone who is not a tofu fan, you can't really taste it when it is mixed up with delicious fruits! I like to use the firm tofu, since it has more protein than the soft or silken versions, but any tofu is fine. I also use whole milk and whole milk yogurt since this is for my son. But you can certainly use low-fat or skim to make this lighter. This smoothie is packed with nutritious ingredients! Protein from the tofu, flaxseed meal, and wheat germ, as well as the milk and yogurt... Vitamin C from the mangoes and pineapple... Potassium from the banana and sweet potatoes... and many more vitamins! To put it another way, this smoothie is a meal in itself! :) Oh, and by the way, it is delicious too! Enjoy! :)

Ingredients:

1/2 cup tofu

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup vanilla yogurt

1/4 cup pineapple chunks

1/4 cup mango chunks

1/4 cup sweet potato puree

1 medium banana, sliced

1 tbsp flaxseed meal

2 tbsp wheat germ

Combine all ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth and creamy! This smoothie came out a little bit thick, so if you like yours thinner, you can add more milk. 

Protein Smoothie

Good For You Muffins

I think I seriously need to open a bakery or something. I make waaaay too many baked goodies! I made up my own muffin recipe this time, and it turned out delicious! I was pleasantly surprised! The best part is, they are good for you too! I didn't know what to call these muffins, since they have so many delicious ingredients in them, so I decided to just call them "Good For You Muffins". It works! I recently bought this hot cereal for my son to try that is 7-grain hot cereal. I thought, seven grains is way better than just one or two, right? The mix (I got the Arrowhead Mills version) has wheat, oats, barley, soybeans, buckwheat, corn, and millet in it! Super hearty! I made some for him, mixed it with some fruit, and he loved it! Well, on the back of the package there are a couple of recipes for muffins/bread. I think my husband noticed the big lightbulb above my head... I got so excited to experiment with a new muffin recipe, that I made some later that night after my son went to bed! I didn't use the recipe on the back of the box because I wanted to put different ingredients in it, so I just made one up based on a bunch of different ideas I had in my head (and also what I had in my kitchen)! I think they turned out great, and when my son does his usual, "Mmmm, mmm!" I know they must be good! Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 pkg. (8 oz) Neufchatel Cheese, softened

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened

2 mashed ripe bananas

1/4 cup applesauce (homemade or no sugar added)

1/2 cup carrots, grated

Zest and juice of 1 lemon*

1 egg

1 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup whole-wheat flour

1/2 cup Arrowhead Mills Organic 7-Grain Hot Cereal

1-1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp cinnamon

pinch of salt

1/2 cup dried cranberries

Preheat oven to 350 F. Using a handheld or standing mixer, beat neufchatel cheese, sugar, and butter on medium speed until well blended. Add banana, egg, applesauce, lemon zest and juice, and carrots. Mix well. 

In a separate bowl, mix all dry ingredients (except cranberries) together until combined. Add combined dry ingredients gradually to the wet ingredients and mix until moistened. Leave about 1 tbsp of the dry ingredients in the bowl to coat the cranberries. After coating the cranberries with the flour mixture, add to the batter, and fold in with a spoon until evenly distributed. Pour batter into greased and floured, or paper cup-lined muffin tray. 

Bake 30 to 40 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 5 minutes; remove from muffin tray. Cool completely on wire rack. Serve and enjoy! Make 12 "puffy" muffins, or up to 18 normal-sized muffins. 

*Note: I had a "Momnesia" moment and thought that I had some oranges on hand, which would have tasted delicious with the cranberries and carrot! However, when I went to grab one, I noticed that the only citrus I had was lemons... Oops! So, I used lemon and it turned out fine. If you decide to use orange, you could use half or all of the zest of one orange, and about 2-3 tbsp of the juice. :)

Good For You Muffins

Strawberry-Watermelon Popsicles

Sorry, not a very good picture. It was hard to control a heavy camera with one hand while holding a popsicle in the other, and also trying to balance while my son was playing "Mama bridge" under my legs! Talk about multi-tasking! Anyways, I was shopping the other day when I saw these plastic popsicle molds, and thought, "Oh my goodness! I can make POPSICLES!". I double checked to make sure the plastic was okay (BPA free), then put the popsicle mold in my basket. I was so excited to make them! I had a small seedless watermelon that I hadn't used yet, and some other fruits I had just gotten at the store. I've never made my own popsicles before, but it didn't seem too hard, so I just made up my own super easy recipe, and they tasted pretty yummy! The best part was, they weren't as sugary as the store-bought versions, and I feel better giving these to my son knowing these are made from real fruit, instead of artificial flavors. This was my son's first popsicle, and although he wasn't used to the cold in his mouth, he LOVED it! I only bought one mold, which makes 4 popsicles, but I think I will buy more, so I can make more at a time! I can't wait to experiment with more popsicle recipes! These make a great, healthy summertime treat for everyone in the family! Enjoy! :)

Ingredients:

1 small seedless watermelon

1 cup fresh or thawed frozen strawberries

1 tbsp agave nectar

Cut watermelon in half and scoop out flesh into a food processor. Puree until liquid. There will still be small white seeds, even with seedless watermelon. So, pour watermelon liquid through a fine mesh strainer over a bowl. Push liquid through strainer. All that will remain in the strainer when done is a small amount of pulp and seeds. Next, puree strawberries in food processor until smooth. Add strawberry puree and agave nectar to watermelon liquid. Stir well to combine. Pour fruit mixture into popsicle molds and place sticks on top. Freeze for at least 4 hours, or until set. This should make about 8 to 10 popsicles. I only had a popsicle mold for 4, so I gave the remaining "juice" to my son... He loved that too! :)

Strawberry-Watermelon Popsicles

Fruit and Ricotta Parfait

This is a super easy and delicious recipe that my son LOVES! It is simple to put together in no time when I can't think of what to make him for a snack, but I know that I don't have a ton of time to think about it... This particular recipe only uses a few ingredients. You can make it as simple or complex as you want by only using a couple of ingredients, or adding things to make it more interesting. :) I am not a big fan of cottage cheese, which is often times paired with fruit. But, I LOVE ricotta cheese and fruit. It seems so decadent, like eating ice cream! I had mangoes and strawberries (and of course bananas) on hand, so this has a wonderful amount of vitamin C, plus potassium from the bananas, calcium and protein from the ricotta. I used whole milk ricotta for my son, but you can use low fat (skim or part skim) if you are making this for older kids or adults. If you are making this for babies who aren't eating bigger chunks yet, you can use pureed fruits. You can add a little more flavor to this by using a little bit of cinnamon or nutmeg mixed in with the ricotta. It will be yummy either way! Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Ricotta cheese

1/4 cup strawberries, chopped (or pureed)

1/4 cup mangoes, diced (or pureed)

1 medium banana, chopped (or pureed)

1/8 tsp nutmeg (optional)

1/8 tsp cinnamon (optional)

If using spices, stir together with ricotta in a small bowl. In a fancy glass or dish, alternate layers of ricotta mixture and fruits/fruit purees. You could also just mix everything together if you don't have time to make it "pretty" ;). It will still taste pretty! You could also add a little wheat germ for some extra folic acid and protein! Makes about 1-1/2 cups. 

Fruit and Ricotta Parfait

Fruity Couscous

I got the idea for this recipe from my Cooking For Baby cookbook (see April 2nd post), but changed it up a little bit, as usual. My son LOVED it and kept saying, "Mmmm Mmm!". I figured he would since it has fruit in it, and that is always a hit with him! He has had couscous before, but I wasn't sure how he would like the texture of Israeli couscous, since it is a little bigger than regular couscous. I guess I had nothing to worry about! If you haven't tried couscous before, it is a great substitute for rice with your meals. It isn't a grain, but a pasta made from semolina wheat. I think it is delicious mixed with almost anything! Here, I mixed it with Golden Raisins and Pear puree. You can use any fruit you like. I thought about using some of my dried peaches or dried cranberries too... maybe next time! :) Enjoy! 

Ingredients:

1/4 cup golden raisins (any dried fruit would be fine)

1/4 cup pear puree (any fruit would be fine)

1 tbsp unsalted butter

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp cumin

1 tbsp agave nectar

1 cup Israeli couscous (regular couscous would be fine too, just not as creamy)

In a saucepan over medium-high heat, combine 1-1/4 cups water with raisins, butter, salt, cinnamon and cumin, and bring to a boil. Stir in couscous, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 3 minutes. Add pear puree and stir to combine. Remove from heat, cover and let stand 5 minutes. Give a final stir, then serve. Makes about 4 cups. 

Fruity Couscous

Sunflower/Daisy Carrot Cake

I have a sunflower bundt cake pan that I have rarely used, but I had the perfect occasion... My mom's birthday! :) I decided to make her favorite... Carrot cake! I even made my own frosting (I like to call it "Cheesy Frosting")! And I decorated the cake to look more like a daisy, since they are her favorite flowers. As usual, I found a recipe online, then adjusted it based on what I had available and what I wanted to add/take away from it. Some carrot cakes call for nuts and raisins, and I didn't want to add those to this cake. Also, I wanted to add pineapple since I had some on hand, and I wanted to substitute some of the flour with whole wheat flour. So, here's what I came up with... It turned out very moist and delicious! My mom (and my son) LOVED it! :)

Ingredients:

for the cake--

2 cups granulated sugar

2/3 cup canola oil

3 eggs, room temperature

1 tsp vanilla extract

2/3 cup applesauce*

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

2 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp baking soda

1-1/2 tsp salt

1 pound carrots, grated

1/2 cup pineapple, crushed or chopped

Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease and flour sunflower cake pan, or 2 (8-inch) round cake pans. 

Beat sugar, oil, eggs, and applesauce together until combined using an electric mixer with paddle attachment. Add the vanilla. 

In a separate bowl, sift together flour, cinnamon, baking soda and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Fold in the carrots and pineapple, mix well. 

Pour batter in sunflower cake pan, or divide equally between 2 (8-inch) round cake pans. Bake for 55 to 60 minutes*, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Decorate as desired with frosting (see recipe below).

*Note: The use of the applesauce cuts the amount of oil in the recipe in half. I used my stash of homemade applesauce. If you use store-bought applesauce, it might have added sugar, so you may need to decrease the amount of sugar in your recipe. My sunflower cake pan is a darker color, and per the Nordicware website, I was told to decrease the temperature by 25 degrees. I ended up baking it for 1 hour and 25 minutes! This might have also been because it was one big 10-cup capacity cake pan.. so it may take less time if you have the temp at 350 F and use 2 smaller cake pans... :)

Ingredients:

for the Cheesy Frosting--

15 oz ricotta cheese (you can use part-skim)

1/2 cup cheesecake flavor cream cheese* (regular or neufchatel should be fine too)

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened

1/3 cup plus 2 tbsp powdered sugar

1 tbsp honey

1 tbsp milk

1/2 tsp orange zest

1/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice

1/2 tsp vanilla

Blend cheeses and butter together until smooth. Add sugar, honey, milk, orange juice and vanilla until combined. Fold in orange zest. After I piped the white frosting, I used a little yellow food coloring to make the inside of the "daisy" yellow. I piped the petal frosting using a #16 tip, and the inside "dots" using a #2 tip. I also had some extra orange zest that I added to the inside of the "daisy"... It kind of looks like pollen... :)

*Note: I LOVE cheesecake flavor cream cheese! It also makes a great snack spread on graham crackers... tastes just like cheesecake! So far, I have only been able to find it at Walmart, but check your local grocery store... You may have better luck than me. :)

Sunflower/Daisy Carrot Cake

Tofu Bites

Okay, these are one of my super-easy go-to snacks for my son. They are delicious, somewhat nutritious, and a great finger food for toddlers! I use a firm tofu because it has more protein than medium or soft ("silken") tofu. But, you can use any tofu you like. Most tofu slices really easily and you should be able to make little cubes with any of them. Tofu is high in protein, calcium, iron and magnesium. When I can't get my son to eat his meat, I reach for the tofu! :)

Ingredients:

1 block firm tofu, cut into cubes

2 graham crackers, crushed into crumbs

2 tbsp wheat germ

I usually grind the graham crackers and wheat germ together in the food processor. Then I pour the crumb mixture onto a plate and roll the tofu cubes around in it to coat. Or, you could pour the crumb mixture into a plastic sandwich bag with the cubes, then shake them around to coat with the crumbs. You could also add some spices... cinnamon or nutmeg would be great added to the crumb mixture! Enjoy! :)

Tofu Bites