Join me for Eye Raising Fun this weekend....

Friday, October 30

4-7pm

Middletown Price Chopper

511 Schutt Rd. Ext.

Middletown, NY

October 31st 10:30 to 2:30

The Children's Guide Halloween Bash

Siena College- Marcel Athletic Complex

Visit www.thechildrensguide.com for more info.

Saratoga Springs Fall Festival Weekend

Sunday, November 1st

Noon-3PM

Global Fitness

165 High Rock Avenue

Saratoga Springs, NY

I will be cooking up "kid-tested" recipes that kids love.
Stop by; we will be stirring up some Halloween fun.

Eye Raising Treat...

This is certain to be an eye raising treat for Halloween!  And, better yet....IT's SO SIMPLE!!!

1.  The Base:

Simply grab either sugar cookies or muffins from your local grocery store and frost with vanilla frosting.

2.  The Eyeball:

Cut powdered donut holes in half and place them on top of your frosted base.

3.  The Final Touches:

Purchase red, blue or green & black gel frosting tubes and add the remaining eye elements with a circle of green or blue, filled in with a black pupil and of course extra lines for bloodshot spooky Halloween eyes.

I love this for a classroom or after school treat.  You can create it on a cookie base, cupcake base or muffin base that you can make or simply just purchase, which keeps in with the time saving we all need now and again....

Can't Take Credit for the Mummy Dogs...

Our mummy dogs were made with turkey dogs and crescent rolls. The kids had a lot of fun making and baking and eating these treats. We simply cut the crescent dough into thin strips and wrapped them around the hot dogs and baked for only 13 minutes at 350 degrees. They were a perfect addition to our ongoing fall fun this week!

Lunch Time Fun...

I have to admit, I love the holidays!  They really just bring out the inner child in me and I can't help but to play with food to bring out the smile in my kids.  So, this morning I pulled out the pumpkin cookie cutter to make a sandwich for my youngest.  Once I had cut the bread I looked at the sandwich with disappointment, a pumpkin is lonely without expression, I thought.  So, into the pantry I went and out came the raisins to create a double sided sandwich for my daughter to show off at the lunch table.  She was very excited and yes, so was I.

When she came home from school later that day I couldn't wait to hear how the 'double sided, best pumpkin sandwich ever' had gone over at lunch time.  Her response, "Mom, don't ever do that again."  I was shocked; what six year old wouldn't love this sandwich?  She proceeded to explain, "When I pulled the raisins off it left yellow indents in my bread and really creeped me out!"  Oh, well that of course explains it all.  So, I asked, "What if I use chocolate chips next time?"  "Now that's what I'm talking about," was her response.

You just really never know...

A Cookie Cutter Tip: I will say, however, that when my youngest decided that sandwiches were boring, I did turn to cookie cutters and it has made a difference on her perspective about sandwiches at lunch.  Although I get creative with mixing up the lunch time options, it's still nice to have sandwiches to rely on; without creepy indent raisins of course.

Quick and Easy Treat....

Halloween! What a great time to play with food, but with everyone’s busy schedule it’s time to keep it simple and fun for everyone. Here is a quick Halloween treats to make with your kids to enjoy at home or for a special classroom treat.

http://www.pricechopper.com/Recipes/Detail/6772/Candy_Corn_Cupcakes/

Mini Yogurt Flower Pot revealed...

I finally took a quick second to take a picture of a Mini Yogurt Flower Pot that was made by one of the kids at the snack table hosted by the Price Chopper Kids Cooking Club this weekend.  I was in the Kids Zone at the Start! Walk for the American Heart Association in Saratoga, NY.  Despite the rain, it was a fun event with approximately 100 visitors at my table.  This simple treat is always a crowd pleaser for kids ages, 2 to 92!

You just don't know until you try....

Last week when I was at an event there was a boy, maybe 12, who kept passing by my table and he would look over with curiosity, but not stop. Every time he would pass and look at me I would say, "Hi there...would you like to come over and make one?" And, he would shake his head no. After the 5th or 6th time I finally said, "Okay, you have been passing by here to many times...now you have to stop and try one." He shrugged his shoulders, walked over to the table and asked, "So what are these anyway?" I of course said, "Mini yogurt flower pots." He looked at me rather oddly and simply proceeded to instruct him on how to put his together. He reluctantly followed along and then popped it into his mouth uncertain if he would like the mini yogurt flower pot or not. Thankfully, his eyes lit up with amazement that he actually liked it. In the end, he continued to pass by my table five or six more times, but this time he kept stopping back, made a snack, ate it and went on his way until he found another reason to come back to the table for more. As I always say, "some recipes are thumbs up, some are thumbs down, but you never know unless you try..." It's just one more reason to keep the kids mixing, stirring and trying new tastes.

Off and Cooking Again...

I'm off and cooking with kids this weekend.  I will be a part of the Kids Zone at the Start! Walk for the American Heart Association and we will be making the mini yogurt flower pots; always a crowd pleaser even for the non-yogurt lovers. 

Saturday, October 24

9 AM - Noon

American Heart Association Heart Walk-Kid Zone

Saratoga Race Course

267 Union Ave.

Saratoga Springs, NY

OH BOY...hold on a minute!

My middle guy watched a movie with a chef cutting onions in a class at school today. So, as I pulled out the onion when we were cooking at dinner time he got excited about what he had thought he had learned and wanted to demonstrate his new skills. I was completely amazed at how his mind was working; he watched a movie and now he was a master onion cutting chef and completely believing it. I reluctantly handed over the knife with a few words of safety advice so that he could begin his demonstration. He looked at the onion, which was whole, and then back at the knife. My immediate thought; uh-oh... First, he thought he would put the onion on its pointed end and cut it vertically; I quickly corrected and like any mother my neck tightened up as I cringed with the potential hazard this stance was posing. Then he put his fingers in the wrong place as he tried to cut the onion horizontally, but not in a safe way. So, I interjected and corrected again. So, when he started to take his cutting position for his third attempt I found myself so nervous that I took the "three strikes and you are out approach," nicely confiscated the knife, showed him how to cut the onion in half while cooking at home vs. the cartoon setting, how to peel the onion skin and then once I had created several slices and knew we were in a much more age appropriate, self-sufficient setting, let him dice the onions for me. In the end he learned a valuable lesson and still felt accomplished and proud of his onion chopping and I now feel relieved with all of my son’s fingers intact.  Tonight was another reminder why cooking with your kids is so important.  All of these little moments add up with big lessons at the end sometimes...

There's More Cooking than just the World Series this Month...

Everything and anything is a reason for cooking up some fun in the kitchen and the World Series coming up is no exception.  So, in the spirit of the game we created what we call the Homerun Quesadilla that is a crunchy combination of tastes that keeps up with the quick, easy, but tasty design I love!  Not only does this recipe taste great, but it eliminates frying and even gives you a chance to hide some vegetables for the finicky eaters.  Take a peek at the Price Chopper Kids Cooking Club link;

http://www.pricechopper.com/Recipes/Detail/6773/Home_Run_Quesadillas/

This recipe has been kid tested and got the 'thumbs up' approval we are always looking for....

Mini Yogurt Flower Pots

Mini Yogurt Flower Pots, as I like to refer to them, are a simple, but delicious little treat.  I often bring them with me when I am off and promoting the Price Chopper Kids Cooking Club because they can be created quickly and are always a crowd pleaser.  Even people who don't like yogurt tend to really like this sweet tasting mixture.  It's funny, when people ask me how to make the Mini Yogurt Flower Pots, I almost always say, "You won't believe how easy it is!" And, I mean it.  I love when you can create something in the kitchen that doesn't take hours, but everyone loves...I'm all about the quick and easy and as a busy mother or three, I don't always have any other choice!

Mini Yogurt Flower Pots can be a healthy dessert alternative, a fun after school snack, the perfect treat for tea parties for all ages and of course they make a super birthday party addition.  I've actually blogged about this recipe in the past, but realized I typically make them in bulk, so I'm re-including the recipe again, but this time I've downsized it!


Mini fillo cups, thawed
3 oz. strawberry yogurt
3 oz. blueberry yogurt
2.5 oz. whipped topping
Strawberries
Blueberries

1. Wash, rinse, remove the greens and slice the strawberries. Set aside.
2. Wash the blueberries and set aside.
3. Mix the yogurts and whipped topping together.
4. Fill the fillo cups with the yogurt mixture.
5. Arrange 3 - 4 strawberry slices on top of each yogurt filled cup to serve as your flower pedals. Place a blueberry in the center to finish off your flower.

Off and Cooking....

It's a busy weekend of cooking with kids!  You can join me for Apple Fun in Vermont or the Yogurt Flower Pots in Albany!

Friday, October 16

3 am-6 pm

Shelburne Rd. Price Chopper

595 Shelburne Rd.

Burlington, VT

Saturday, October 17

American Heart Association's Heart Walk-Kid Zone

The Crossings Park

580 Albany Shaker Rd.

Loudonville, NY

That Did Not Just Happen!!!

Okay, so I'm big enough to admit that my alert system is a little higher than the typical cold season. And, how can it not be with every news report on TV, in print & online updating me on the spread of the SWINE FLU. Not to mention, I've had one home sick this week and one of our local schools has announced that over 200 students were out sick for several consecutive days. As a busy, working mom of three, like any other parent, I have spent the week popping vitamin C, giving vitamin C to my kids, saline spraying myself, convincing and pleading with my kids that using saline spray really will prevent them from getting sick, drinking airborne and making airborne for my kids, popping multi-vitamins and serving multi-vitamins to my kids, walking around the house spraying Lysol where my 'sick one' visited and opening windows for a fresh air renewal in the house; oh, and yes...washing sheets in hot water! A little exhausting to say the least, but definitely doing my part to keep us all as healthy as possible. Did I mention the countless times I've said, "Honey, remember...sneeze/cough into your elbow. Now, go wash your hands!"

So, I'm standing in the apple section of the produce aisle selecting my apples for the Baked Apple Ring we are making for the November Webisode and what happens? A grown adult walks up to a section of apples, starts the selection process as I am and then SNEEZES all over the apples. Imagine me standing there watching this after what I've just written about my week! Yes, eyes bulging and mouth open, I'm in shock!

Moral of this story; WASH your PRODUCE as soon as you get home! Water is a powerful tool along with a little veggie/fruit spray....

Cook now and watch what happens later....

Yesterday was CRAZY to say the least and my afternoon ended up spinning out of control with an unexpected trip to the doctors and an even longer trip to the pharmacy.  Thankfully, I had planned a relatively easy dinner and my oldest guy was at home and completely ready and capable to answer the call, "Hey, can you start dinner?"  Although I knew he could do it, I still walked in completely impressed as he took his own liberty and added his own touch to the recipe.  It was delicious! 

So, the lesson in this story; get your kids in the kitchen, spend some time and have some fun.  They really do walk away with a life skill they don't even realize they are learning as you stir things up when they are young.  When my kids were little, I had no idea how I'd benefit as they grew older.

Taco Pizza
Pizza dough
8 oz. Colby Jack cheese, shredded
8 oz. sharp cheese, shredded
1 pound ground turkey, cooked
Taco seasoning
Romaine lettuce
Grape tomatoes

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees.
Wash, rinse and slice the tomatoes; set aside.  Wash, rinse and chop the lettuce; set aside.  Season the meat with the taco seasoning as directed on the package.  In a bowl, mix the shredded cheeses together.  Roll out the pizza dough onto a lightly floured surface. 

Start by covering the dough with a layer of seasoned ground turkey that has been pre-cooked.  Top generously with the cheese and bake until the dough is golden brown.

As soon as you remove the pizza from the oven, cover it with the lettuce and tomatoes and let cool just long enough so that the cheese won't pull off as you cut the pizza, but it's still warm.  It's an incredibly tasty combination.

Counter Conversations

So, yesterday while we were setting up for one of the shoots for the filming of the November segment a funny little conversation happened that just cracked me up. It went kind of like this;


CHILD: "Did you make all of the recipes we are going to cook?"
ME: "Yes, I did. Do you like to cook?"
CHILD: "Yes, I make up recipes too."
ME: "You do, that's great. What recipe did you create?"
CHILD: "I made up a dip."
ME: "That's awesome. What kind of dip did you make?"
CHILD: "Well, you take gold fish (crackers), crush them up & add water."
ME: "What do you dip into your dip?"
CHILD: Shrugs shoulders

We all enjoyed the conversation and you know what? I LOVE that this little one just wanted to create in the kitchen. It's great how kids will make concoctions out of anything & everything. It's that kind of spirit that played a part in my interest in cooking with kids. When my boys were young, all of my cooking gave them free license in the kitchen; which was sometimes good & sometimes not so good. I would never know what the kitchen would look like when I would come home after a babysitter had been with my kids. It was like their inner cook had come out and they wanted to impress them with their kitchen skills; it was always definitely a sticky state of affairs. So, here's to all of the gold fish dip that has been and will be created by kids here, there and everywhere....it's the imagination that's the beginning of it all.

Highlights from todays filming....

Thanks to my friend Jeanne, I was able to have highlights from today's filming for next month's release.  It was a ton of fun, but I'm still on the learning curve and every month there is something new.  This month, I felt the most organized.  Last month the crew arrived over an hour early; I WAS NOT READY...truth be told; my hair was still wet!  This month I was ready an hour early and they were an hour late...oh well!  Going with the flow and loving every minute of it.  Watch for next month's links to Apple Rings, Apricot Honey Cornbread and Gobble Ups! 

Hands Together & let the water run....

As my son sits next to me coughing from a recent cold he's fighting and I hear myself reminding him to cough into his elbow and not his hand; I'm reminded of how important it is to encourage kids to wash their hands before they help in the kitchen. It's important to always wash your hands before you cook all of the time, but this year seems to have us all on high alert. I don't know about where you live, but flu season has already hit our community and there is rumor that H1N1 is lurking along with a whole host of other viruses and germs to avoid. We have made washing hands a number one priority in our household with all of the concerns in the news and the alerts being sent home from school. Don't forget to remind your children to;

1. Wash their hands as soon as they get home from school.
2. Wash their hands before snacks and meals.
3. Wash their hands when they return from any public places.
4. And, always wash your hands before helping with any cooking in the kitchen.

Apple Pin Wheels

Apple Pin Wheels are another great snack for after school or for lunch on a fall day that incorporates fruit!

1 whole wheat pita
1 medium Apple
4 oz. Monterey Jack Cheese, shredded
1 tsp. cinnamon
Honey

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Cut the pita in half separating the top from the bottom so that you have two large circles. In a separate bowl mix the cheese and cinnamon together; set aside. Wash, core and thinly slice the apple into wedges.

Take the two pita circles and lay them flat (smooth side down) onto a non stick baking sheet.   Drizzle a very small amount of honey onto the bottom. Evenly sprinkle the cheese and cinnamon mixture over the honey and then add the apple slices around the pita in the direction of a pin wheel. Bake in the oven for 5-7 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the pita is crunchy.

Note: Even if you do most of the prep work, children feel like they are very much a part of the process by doing the final layering.

Pictures coming soon...

Thumbs up for apples too....

Okay, It's apple season and how can you not play with this delicious fruit? And, if you aren't, we are! So, we are happy to share our apple findings this fall. The other day I pulled out the Strawberried Muffin recipe that I had posted previously and with a little tweaking found it to be a very delicious breakfast that got the 'thumbs up' approval at our home.

1 whole wheat English muffin
1 T. vanilla yogurt
1 T. cream cheese
1/8 tsp. vanilla extract
1 medium apple
1/4 tsp. cinnamon

Wash, peel, core and slice the apple. In a mini food processor, chop the apple. Stir in the cinnamon and set aside. If you do not have a mini food processor, simply chop the apple into small pieces and if the kids are young & want to help, let them cut the apple slices into small pieces with a plastic butter knife.

In a bowl mix together the yogurt, cream cheese and extract until smooth using a metal spoon or mini whisk.

Toast the English muffin as desired.

Spread a layer of the cream cheese mixture onto the toasted muffin and top with the apple/cinnamon mixture and enjoy this great breakfast treat.

Does this recipe work with all fruit? I have to say the answer is NO! We have tried this simple concoction with many fruits and so far everything else has gotten a 'thumbs down.'   However, since these two mixtures have passed the test, we'll keep you posted with other findings.

Watch tomorrow for Apple Pin Wheels...

Upcoming Events this month....

Friday, October 16
3 am-6 pm
Shelburne Rd. Price Chopper
595 Shelburne Rd.
Burlington, VT

Saturday, October 17
American Heart Association's Heart Walk-Kid Zone
The Crossings Park
580 Albany Shaker Rd.
Loudonville, NY

Saturday, October 24
American Heart Association Heart Walk-Kid Zone
Saratoga Race Course
267 Union Ave.
Saratoga Springs, NY

Friday, October 30
4-7pm
Middletown Price Chopper
511 Schutt Rd. Ext.
Middletown, NY

Magic Apples

Yes, we are all about naming our foods in a fun way & it makes experimenting all the more tasty. My son and his friend had a lot of creative input and taste testing on this project. Again, we made this creation in three different versions, putting a new twist on an old recipe and this was our favorite creation;

Magic Apples

Medium apple
1 T. peanut butter
1 T. honey
½ tsp. cinnamon
1 marshmallow
Optional: 1 T. chocolate morsels (highly recommended by kids!)
Aluminum foil

Pull out a piece of foil large enough to wrap around your entire apple; set aside. Heat the oven to 375 degrees.

Wash, peel and core the apple. Using an apple slicer, slice down the apple almost all the way to the bottom, but not quite all of the way. The goal is to begin to make apple wedges, but keep the apple connected for baking. If you go all of the way to bottom, no worries, simply hold the apple together and follow the rest of the directions. It’s still usable.

Place the apple in the center of the foil and begin to wrap the apple, leaving the top exposed so that you can fill the center of your cored apple.

Mix the peanut butter, honey and cinnamon together with a spoon. Stir in the chocolate morsels if desired. Fill the apple with the peanut butter mixture. Place the marshmallow into the center of the apple, pushing it down so that it is fully into the center on top of the peanut butter mixture.

Wrap the foil up around the top of the apple. Place the wrapped apple onto a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes.

White Acorn Squash put to the test...

Well, the White Acorn Squash finally got put to the test. It took us almost an entire week before we got a chance to bake it. We bought three white acorn squash and prepped them three different ways to see if the kids found a way they would eat it.


Squash one was seasoned with 1 Tablespoon of melted butter mixed with 1 teaspoon of paprika and ½ teaspoon of salt. The second squash was seasoned with 1 Tablespoon of melted butter and 1 Tablespoon of parmesan cheese. The third squash was seasoned with 2 Tablespoons of melted butter, 2 Tablespoons of Italian season bread crumbs and 2 teaspoons of parmesan cheese.

The winner was……Squash Number Two seasoned with melted butter and parmesan cheese! Here is the complete recipe;

Cut one squash in half and removed the seeded center with a spoon. Melt 1 Tablespoon of butter and add 1 Tablespoon of parmesan cheese, stir. Using a basting brush, or spoon, spread the mixture onto both halves of the squash. Place ¼ inch of water in a 13 x 9 pan and put the acorn squash in the pan with the open side face up, cover and bake on 400 degrees for 40 minutes.

Charts Away!

Yes, it's charts away at my house. I have been finding that with the back to school craze we are not necessarily fitting in the '5 A Day' all of the time. As the kids are helping with making their lunches, it's the easy grab they're reaching for instead of the fruit that needs to be washed or the vegetables that need to be sliced and bagged. So, I've instituted a chart system for my younger two, making it their choice and their responsibility to fit in five fruits and vegetables every day so that I don't have to be the constant alarm system. There are minor rules, like they do have to take at least one fruit or vegetable for snack and lunch as part of their day.

I've also added water to the chart to make sure that they have been drinking enough. Everyone has fallen into a pretty good pattern taking a water bottle to school and making it the first drink when they get home. The charts have just gone into effect and with a little incentive nugget waiting at the end of the week; I'm hopeful that they will be adding more fruits and vegetables throughout the day. I want them to be involved in the process so that the habit becomes theirs and not mine alone; after all parenting is ultimately about launching and letting go....I think!

Another quick breakfast idea to incorporate fruit that I learned from my friend;

1 Banana
2T. Peanut butter
Honey
Cinnamon
Grape nut Cereal

Peel the banana and on one side spread 1 T. of peanut butter. Drizzle just a little bit of honey, sprinkle cinnamon and grape nuts on top. Turn the banana over and repeat the layers on the other side. Slice and serve with a fork. Two of my three kids love this concoction and it makes for an easy way to fit in two servings of fruit for a simple breakfast.