Luck 'o the Irish--a Treat for St. Patrick's Day

My girls love any reason to celebrate ANYTHING, so in the spirit of fun, I recently tested out this new recipe for St. Patrick's Day.  I'd never done anything outside of green "leprauchaun" milk in their cereal on March 17th, so these little bites were a great find.  Plus, they were from one of my Allrecipes acquaintances--Elizabeth made these with her Irish grandmother.  Aren't they cute?

 

Here's how you make them.  Find the recipe here on Allrecipes:

 

Grandma Mottle's Blarney Stones

 

Ingredients:

2 cups confectioners' sugar 1/2 cup milk, or as needed 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups dry roasted salted peanuts, finely chopped 1 pound cake, cut into bize-size cubes

 

Directions:

1.	Pour confectioners' sugar in a bowl. Gradually add milk, whisking constantly, until mixture has a thin frosting consistency; whisk in vanilla extract.
2.	Place chopped peanuts in a bowl. Line a flat surface or a plate with waxed paper.
3.	Dip 1 pound cake cube in frosting and roll cube in peanuts; place on wax paper to dry. Repeat with remaining pound cake pieces. I used salted dry roasted peanuts, and the delicious combination of the cake, glaze, and saltiness might make your little leprechauns want to kiss you afterward!

 

After School Sweet & Salty Snack

When my oldest gets home from school at 4:30, she's normally starving.  I'm always looking for fun and wholesome snacks to tide her over until dinner.  This one is GREAT!  My youngest and I made it together and it took no time at all.  It's sweet, salty, and full of everything we snack on anyway!
Recipe from Allrecipes.com.

Popcorn & Pretzel Sweet Snack Mix

Ingredients:

Original recipe makes 6 servings       

Makes servings USMetricAdjust Recipe (Help)

• Reynolds® Parchment Paper                                                                     
• 1 (2.9 ounce) bag microwave low-fat popcorn                                                                     
• 2 cups mini pretzels                                                                     
• 1 cup coarsely chopped roasted almonds     
• 1 cup chopped sweetened dried cranberries                                                                     
• 1 (12 ounce) package premium white baking morsels (chips)                                                                     
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Directions

1. Line a 15 1/2x10x1-inch baking pan or large tray with a sheet of Reynolds® Parchment Paper; set aside.
2. Pop popcorn according to package directions; shake bag so that un-popped kernels fall to the bottom.
3. Pour popcorn, pretzels, almonds and dried cranberries into large bowl. Discard un-popped popcorn kernels.
4. Melt white morsels according to package directions. Stir in cinnamon; pour over popcorn and pretzels. Toss to evenly coat.
5. Spread evenly on parchment lined tray. Let set to harden, about 1 hour. Break apart large pieces. Store in airtight container.

 

 

Using Reynolds parchment paper makes cleanup a breeze!  It can also be used to serve it for parties or groups.  Cut it into squares and fold it into serving cups and you have an easy & portable hand-held container. I love parchment and keep it on hand at all times for baking cookies, roasting vegetables, and serving baked goods.

 

I can envision my middle-schooler and her friends devouring this recipe in 10 seconds flat! 

 

 

 

 

PINK Cereal Bars for Valentine's Day

These little beauties are a fun treat for Valentine's Day for the kids in your life!  They're easy to make, and can be made more nutritious by adjusting (or leaving out) the added candy and substituting nuts.  I used strawberry gelatin, but cherry would also work if you can't find the cranberry listed in the recipe.  My girls really enjoyed them.

Find the recipe here:  So PINK Cereal Bars

Have fun!



 

School Lunchbox--Beyond Chicken Nuggets

Both of my daughters get a packed lunch every day.  My oldest is 11 and likes to pack her own, using the ingredients we choose together.  I like having control of what my kiddos eat during the day, plus we like to stress healthy options.

My youngest is 4, and is MUCH more picky than her sister ever was!  She could live on chicken nuggets and strawberries so finding alternatives that she will eat warrants a victory dance! 

Recently, the folks at Johnsonville sausage sent me two of their newest products to test:  Frozen, ready to eat meatballs and sausage slices.  Find more about the different varieties here: http://www.johnsonville.com/meatball

One of the proteins my picky preschooler will readily eat is sausage.  We almost exclusively buy Johnsonville because of the quality of the ingredients, and it tastes so darn GOOD!  We've eaten the frozen meatballs (just heat them in the microwave or simmer on the stove) in typical spaghetti and meatballs, and meatball subs, but my favorite way to serve them is in my preschooler's lunchbox!  I'm so happy to have something that she loves besides chicken nuggets.  Above is a sample of one of her lunches, and I'm thrilled to report that she happily eats everything.

I encourage YOU to replace your kid's nuggets with these meatballs in their next lunch--I think they'll love them as much as we do!

In my next post, you'll get a recipe using Johnsonville's frozen sausage slices.  I can't say enough about how wonderful these newest offerings from Johnsonville are!

Summertime Comes to an End

I can't believe the Summer is almost over and school starts soon!  And, I'll have a Middle Schooler.  My sweet Avery has blossomed from my sweet tiny girl into a smart, witty, still adorable 11 year old.  We've had a fun Summer filled with acting camp, church camp, friend visits,

birthday parties (for both!), lazy days at home cooking and just being together

with her younger sister while Daddy's been at work.  

 

 

We were goofing off and I snapped this picture of us, which I just love. She's being silly and making "crazy big eyes" as she says, but I love it. I love us.   She's ready to start the next step in her life, and after the Summer with her little sister I think she's ready to be around kids her own age all the time. 

When you look at her little face, you'll immediately understand.  She's precious, but mischevous! 

Harper's 4th Birthday

 

 Avery's birthday party picture--she does not like this photo, she says it makes her look goofy too.  Welcome to the Middle School years!

Avery's 11th Sleepover-themed Birthday

This one, she likes.........

Homemade Treats for Boys & Ghouls

I think of the start of Fall as the beginning of baking and the season that revs up for more serious cooking.  Kind of like a when a race car driver starts his engine, my internal cooking clock's timer "dings" to let me know it's time to switch it into high gear.  Not only are you getting ready for Halloween, but you may have a few birthdays thrown in (we do), Thanksgiving is around the corner, and Christmas follows shortly after.  I was excited to learn that some of my activities this month with Allrecipes.com would include challenging me to do things I've never attempted before.  Our brand sponsors included Pillsbury Crescents and Karo Syrup.   In this post, I'll share the treats and tips I used to craft a fun and economical Halloween party for some of the kids in the neighborhood.

First, probably my favorite decorations were these spiders--made with a $1 pack of black pipe cleaners and a $1 pack of black pom poms.  Bend 4 pipe cleaners together to create legs and hot glue 2 pom poms on top for the body.  In my next post, you'll see how I used some of these.

 

 





They look great on my dollar store spider webs!

Next, for the table I used more dollar store black plates, orange napkins, and black plastic flatware.  Notice how the napkin was made to look like a ghost over the flatware.  This is a simple way to add a little extra pizzazz to each place setting.  The tablecloth is a piece of fabric I had in my sewing room, and I always like to print the menu to let my guests know what they'll be eating.  It just adds to the tablescape, and keeps folks from guessing what they're eating.  For my Halloween theme, each food was renamed something spooky (like Graveyard Cocoa).  You'll see more about the menu below.

A closer look at the floral arrangement shows that a spider has taken over the marigolds from our garden.  My oldest daughter made this from a $1 craft kit I found at the store.  It was her idea to place it on the flowers and I think it looks fantastic!

If you can't find a sign like this, print one yourself!  Target's dollar bin had this fun one for $2.50.  It would also be cute on a post outside the house.

Next come the recipes.  Remember how I mentioned that this was a month that challenged me?  I made caramel, marshmallows, pecan pie, and yeast rolls for the very first time.  For the party, here were the recipes I made that were extremely neat and pushed me out of my normal comfort zone--but it was worth it because they all turned out well (thankfully!).

Crescent Mummy Dogs
I made them mini sized by using small cocktail sausages and
cut the crescent roll strips smaller.  Like pigs in a blanket, only spookier.

Caramel Corn Treat Bags
This is delicious and addictive!  We could not stop sampling the
caramel corn.  Here are the steps to make it, and the recipe instructions
are spot on, so I recommend following them to a T.

Spooky Homemade Marshmallows
I cannot believe I made marshmallows!  They were so tasty, much
better than any storebought.  We used a bone cookie cutter to
make our Graveyard Cocoa. 

Individual Pumpkin Pies
My family also loved these.  I made them before our party and
they didn't last, but I wanted to mention them in case you'd like to try them.
I would recommend using foil baking cups because they made the
paper cups I used a bit sticky.  The pie is delicious.
 

Lastly, my husband took a few pictures of me as I was working, and I promised him I'd use one.  Most were fairly dark, but I was able to edit this one enough to be presentable. 
He liked my Halloween hat.

Next up, the party!  I hope there are some ideas here you can use for your own celebration, be it for 2 or 20.  There's always a way to make life a little more special, even if you're on a strict budget.

Double Digits are so in Fashion!

Table Setting

One of my favorite things to do is plan birthday parties!  When my daughter informed me that this was her "double digit" birthday, I knew we needed to make it extra-special.  I'm not cut from the cloth that believes in extravagant gifts or parties for children, but I do try to make my girls know that their birthdays matter.  After all, it's the day God chose to welcome them to the world!

The only real request my daughter had as a rising 10 year old was that she wanted to have a fondant cake.  I have never worked with it, and didn't care to have a crash course with no guarantee that the final cake would even be presentable.  Maybe one day I'll dive in to fondant, but now was not the time.
Luckily, I found a WONDERFUL local lady who had great reviews, and she truly impressed us beyond our expectations.  I gave her one of Avery's birthday plates to work with, and this was the final result.  I added the dress form on top since it was a "Fashion Extravaganza" party.

Not only was it beautiful, but it was out of this world delicious.  The top layer was a yellow cake filled with buttercream and peach, and the bottom layer was dark chocolate cake filled with raspberry.  Yum!

A light lunch of fresh fruits and vegetables, and small sandwiches was served to leave room for cake and ice cream.  My daughter chose baby BLTs, or LTs, and one guest just wanted a B.  I think they just found it funny to pare down the sandwich ingredients.  We also had cucumber sandwiches which I could have every day in the Summer!  Try them for yourself, they'd also be perfect for an afternoon snack or tea party with friends.

Small Cucumber Sandwiches

Jones Fufuberry Soda--a great girly drink!

Dressy treat bags--designed on paper by the birthday girl ; )

Avery's main gift-a wire dress form

If you're interested in throwing a fashion-themed party for your girl that doesn't involve zebra or cheetah print, here are some more tips.  Fill small vases with tiny buttons, then add your flowers.  I found some buttons on ebay in pale pinks and ivory tones for the table vases.  Flowers came from our garden and Trader Joe's ($12 total!).  A plain white tablecloth served as the backdrop for everything, and glittery pink fabric was used as a table runner for extra sparkle. 

To make the treat bags, purchase inexpensive solid or kraft paper bags and some coordinating ribbon, use your own glue sticks and white tissue paper (this would also be a sweet idea for a bridal shower).  Cut the tissue paper into rectangles, and glue it while scrunching (that's my technical term) to the back of your waistline ribbon.  This does not have to be perfect to look great!  On the wider ribbon, iron both ends for a cleaner look, and glue it to the bag first, then glue the skirt you made right at the waist.  The finishing touch is a crepe paper corsage, but you could also use a small silk flower.  Voila!  Custom treat bags.  I filled them with small bundles of fabric tied with twine and a glass button, and mini sewing kits so the party guests could create their own doll fashion at home.  Nestle this on pattern paper inside the bag.

Making the treat bags

The guests were invited to wear their favorite casual fashions to keep it comfortable.  Activites included a magazine scavenger hunt with prizes for the girl who found the fashion item first (silver bracelet, green shirt, etc...), a walk the runway photo shoot, a build the best Barbie outfit contest, and making feathered headbands.

Avery said this was her "best party ever!"  I can't believe she's 10.  My wonderful girl is growing up, and it's exciting, but it also makes me nostalgic for her sweet baby cheeks and grin. 

Silly party girls!

Happy 10th birthday!





Mother's Day Means Thank You

Me & My Girls

   

     I love Mother's Day.  Now that my husband and I have two adorable daughters, it's taken on a whole new meaning for me, and I do things a little differently because of it.  God has blessed us with the most wonderful girls (don't all Moms say that sometimes?) and I am thankful to have them in my life.  My oldest, Avery, has a lot of my characteristics:  Creative, a little shy around new friends, her brain is always working, and she looks most like me.  My youngest, Harper, has a lot of her Daddy's characteristics:  Loves to dance, is crazy funny, never stops moving, and looks just like her Dad, except for her huge blue eyes.

Sweet Sisters

Every Mother's Day, I take the opportunity to choose a card for each of my girls to thank them for making me a mother.  Some years it's a simple handwritten note, others it's a fancier store-bought card.  But the sentiment is always the same, and I think this is the perfect day to show how much I love them too, when they're showering me with hugs and kisses.

I started this when my oldest was very young, and just love the tradition.  I hope that my daughters will look back on this day with fond memories, and know just how special they were to me when I'm long gone.  It makes me sappy just thinking how much I love these girlies!

OK, now onto us mothers!  After all, it is our special day.  If you're looking for an idea to give your husband or kiddos to help you feel appreciated, breakfast in bed is a great place to start.  Here is a wonderful recipe that I tried recently, and what a treat they were.  If you've never made crepes, this recipe is what I would consider to be foolproof.

Cheesecake Crepes

The recipe calls for frozen berries, but fresh are in season now in most places, so that's what I recommend.  I also opted to leave the crepes whole instead of refrigerating and slicing.  These would be a special breakfast or even dessert for the wonderful Mother in your life!  And, they are easier than you might think.  Follow the directions, use a small to medium sized nonstick pan, and you won't have any trouble at all.  Add Mom's favorite coffee and you'll be her favorite, at least for the day!

Twirl!

I hope your Mother's day is full of frolic and mirth, and very special for you!