food

Nate’s first day of Pre-K was just wonderful, and he is no doubt enjoying the second day as we speak. I only teared up for about 5 seconds before we told him goodbye…I was talking so much that I didn’t have time to cry! We love his teacher Mrs. Brown, and we can’t wait to see what the year has in store for him. Here’s his picture from yesterday morning, all ready to go:

My sugar pie, all grown up.

And of course, I had a ball making his lunch….I’ll post it all on Monday for my Bento Monday series! He actually ate the majority of it, which was very surprising. I wasn’t sure he’d have enough time to eat/talk. He is my child, you know…we can talk all day long! But Ms. Ashley, the student intern from UALR who will be in his class this year, told me that he was asking for lunch at 10:00 yesterday, so he must have been hungry!

Last Friday I showed you guys the Zuckertute I made for his first day of school and gave you easy steps on how to make one. We let him open the Wednesday night, and let’s just say he loved it!

Happy, happy, happy!

When as old you are, look at cool you will not.

All the captain's spoils

Zuckertute head!

It was such fun! Keep a Zuckertute in mind for your child’s first day of school, or for any other very special occasion.

Now your marching orders for the weekend….something new to eat, and a craft for you and the kids.

Mmmmm...breakfast!

From one of my fave food blogs, Framed, here’s something new to add to your weekend breakfast repertoire….Bacon and Egg Muffins! Delish! Click on the photo for the yummy instructions.

Wearable artsy goodness

And from another fav, Filth Wizardry, here’s an artsy craft for the painter child in the family. She made this skirt from 2 flour sack dishtowels from the Dollar Tree, using Sharpie markers and watered down acrylic paint. For those of you who don’t have an immediate need for a skirt, sew 3 sides of the towels together, stuff and handstich the top closed to make a pillow! Click on the photo for the tutorial.

That’s it guys! I hope you have a wonderful weekend.

I had a craving for the corndog version, so the other night I decided to whip up a batch of them, plus try out the pizza version. This is so easy, I’ll let the photos do the talking:

Mix up one package of Jiffy mix per batch

For the corndog muffins, cut up a couple of hot dogs into quarters.

Add to one of the cornbread mixes, along with a good handful of cheddar cheese.

Mix it well!

For the pizza muffins, grab a couple of handfuls of pepperoni and quarter.

Add the pepperoni pieces to the other bowl of cornbread mix, and throw in a handful of shredded mozzarella.

Mix it all up!

Spoon the mixture into into greased muffin tins; the corndog ones are in the back and the pizza ones are in the front.

I didn't add the sauce to the pizza ones, so I decided to spoon a bit on top of a couple of them before baking.

Follow package directions for baking time and temp. Here's the finished product!

Here's the pizza one, piping hot and yummy straight from the oven. I liked the sauce on top, but Aaron thought it was kinda messy.

And here's the corndog one...with some mustard on the side, lord have mercy, it is so good!!

Since we are on the other side of the 4th of July, and since the stores are putting out their back to schools displays, I guess it’s fair to say summer is drawing to a close. Sad, I know, but inevitable.

I think this year Nate might have his first lemonade stand. I was about his age when we started having stands in our neighborhood. And being me, I decided to research tips on the web for having the best lemonade stand. The number one priority is to have fun, but I’m all about tips and best practices!

The Lemonade Stand Guide on JuniorBiz  tells you step by step what you need for a successful stand. If your kids are older, let them read it themselves…it’s an easy to understand and practical guide to help them develop good business sense.

Use social networking to your child’s lemonade stand advantage! Post the date of your lemonade stand on Facebook or Twitter and ask your friends and family to stop by. If your child would like to use their lemonade stand to raise money for a favorite charity, be sure to mention it in your post to boost your donations. Consider raising funds for your child’s school or animal shelter,  or a national organization like Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, founded by Alexandra Scott, which has raised more than $30 million dollars for pediatric cancer since 2004.

I’m sure if you did not see Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution this past spring, that you heard about it. Honestly, I did not see it, but I totally support Jamie’s campaign to save the health of Americans through food. From the Food Revolution website:

This food revolution is about saving America’s health by changing the way you eat. It’s not just a TV show, it’s a movement for you, your family and your community. If you care about your kids and their future take this revolution and make it your own. Educate yourself about food and cooking. Find out what your child is eating at school. Make only a few small changes and magical things will happen. Switching from processed to fresh food will not only make you feel better but it will add years to your life.

On the website, they have Tool kits you can use to help you bring better nutrition into your home and schools. One toolkit is a .pdf with simple meals to make with your kids.  I thought, what a great project for the summer! Cooking with your kids, for any meal, at least one day each week. Make real food with real ingredients, and help them to appreciate what their hands can make.

My four year old might not be ready to wield a knife, but he does stir eggs and pancake batter, and LOVES to make banana bread with me. He is a huge fan of meatballs….I think he would love to help me make Jamie’s meatballs and pasta. I’ll let you know how it turns out, and you do the same! Happy cooking…

Jordan of Oh Happy Day!, guest contributor at Alphamom, shares how to create the perfect gift for the super-hero in your life for Father’s Day…a snack box from the “Super Hero Supply Company”! The best part is you really only need to make a trip to the grocery store for the goodies! Click on the photo for the tutorial and free downloads of the hero labels.

UPDATE:
My friend Angie and her son loved the idea of a super hero snack gift, so they decided to make dad some munchies  for Father’s Day. They used scrapbook paper and supplies, and her son’s artistic talent and sense of humor, to make labels for some of her husband’s favorite foods.  I just cracked up when she sent me the picture….it was PERFECT! Thanks for sharing, Angie!

My friend told me how her mom always made her and her brother bunny biscuits for breakfast Easter morning when they were kids. I made a few for Nate a few years ago, and I would show you the picture I took…but I’m still looking for the cord to my external hard drive.

Anyway, as you can tell by the photo they are pretty simple to make: take 2 refrigerated biscuits, cut one in half and pinch onto the top of the whole biscuit to make ears. Add raisin ears and nose, and some almonds for whiskers. Bake according to the directions on the biscuit package, and voila! Bunnies for breakfast!

Photo from Bakerella.com

I’ve let Easter kinda fly by me this year. I did remember to pick up some eggs to color when I was in the grocery store on Saturday, which was surprising to me. As I was walking by Silvek’s, a tray of little cake easter baskets caught my eye. They were adorable!

So I looked around the net for more inspiration and found these cutie basket cakes on Bakerella. She made her cupcakes from scratch, so to save a bit of time you can make yours from a mix. But the result….PRECIOUS! The kids will love them.

Photo from Food Network

Last year on St Patrick’s Day I made my first Corned Beef, and I have to admit it was pretty darn tasty! I decided to continue the tradition this year.

Food Network has come up with five different recipes for corned beef….their slower-cooker version sounds wonderful, as does the hash you can make with the leftovers.

I’ve also read a lot about people and their green meals….imagine a green buffet of salad, broccoli, asparagus, apples, and avocado to name a few. Maybe some green eggs and ham would be in order?

So what’s on your plate for St. Patty’s this year?

A rhapsody of beautiful colors...and CHOCOLATE!

I made the best “O” face when I saw these. I mean, really, where were these this past Christmas when I was searching the web for chocolate spoon ideas! They are so wonderful, I am filled with giddiness just looking at their candied beauty.

And who do we have to thank for this sweet whimsy? Mr. P of Delicious, Delicious, Deliciousis who. If you are a baker, you just hit the motherload. He is in the U.K., and has a fondness for a dessert called a Lamington. He also takes stunning photos of his creations. Be sure to have your metric conversion chart close at hand…all of the recipes are measured the British way. I think the extra effort will prove to be worth it.

Photo from Kaboose.com

Sunday is Valentine’s Day, but it is also the beginning of the Chinese New Year. So if you are ready to move on from the pink and red invasion that is Valentine’s, celebrate the year of the Tiger with these simple and fun crafts from Kaboose. My favorites are the paper lanterns and the red firecrackers (TP rolls!) 

Before getting started, you can go here to read how the Chinese celebrate the New Year, why they use the lunar calendar, and other facts and information. Talk about the culture and traditions with your kids as you create your New Year’s crafts.

If you feel really festive, you could plan a typical Chinese New Year meal. If not the whole meal, maybe serve some dumplings (they look like golden nuggets,) oranges (perfectly round, symbolizing completeness and wholeness,) or long noodles (served to symbolize long life) at some point this weekend.