Favorite Thanksgiving Recipe~priddymomma

Hey guys!  I know this is a little strange, since today is Halloween and all, but this week, we’ll be sharing our favorite Thanksgiving recipes.  Hey.  If the stores can have Christmas stuff out now, then we can talk about Turkey Day, right?!  

I love Thanksgiving, and I make several dishes.  My favorite thing to make, smell, and devour though is cranberry sauce.  Before you roll your eyes, hear me out!  I make cranberry sauce with tasty honey crisp apples cooked up in it.  SO much better than the tart sauce with orange peel most households eat.  A million times better than jellied cranberries!  The kids love it, and leftovers are fantastic on pancakes!  It’s super simple to make, cranberries keep practically indefinitely before cooked, and you get to impress your relatives with your amazing culinary skills.  What’s not to love?  Leftover cranberries are beautiful and can be used in a centerpiece.  Lucky you!  I even have some pictures on hand from a few Thanksgivings ago! 

Cranberry Applesauce (as seen in Parenting magazine November 2008) {photos by me!}

 

Okay...so maybe it looks like gore.  But it is delicious!

Prep:  15 minutes

Cook: 15 minutes

Yield:  6 servings

3 cups (or 12 oz.) cranberries

2 apples {I recommend honey crisp.  I’ve tried others, but these give the best flavor.}

2 cups sugar {white sugar.  Brown sugar can be used if you want a more syrupy sauce}

¾ cup water

¾ cup apple juice

1. Place cranberries in a strainer; rinse and pick them over, removing any stems or blemished berries.  {Kids can help!  It takes forever and it’s BORING, so I def recruit help.  Look out for soft berries and pitch them as well.}
2. Peel, core, and dice the apples. {I make hubby do this while my son helps me sort the berries.}
3. In a large saucepan, bring sugar, water, and apple juice to a boil.  Add berries and diced apples.  Boil, stirring continuously, for 10 minutes, or until berries pop. {When the berries start to pop, don’t be alarmed.  Also, be warned that it is going to begin to smell amazing very soon.}
   
4. Cover and refrigerate for 3 hours, or until chilled.  Serve cold. {This is amazing to make up the day before Thanksgiving.}

How Kids Can Help:  Measure ingredients; check the berries; dice apples with a small plastic knife {stay out of the way, sleep, clean the bathroom…}

Per serving:  328 calories, 0 g fat (0 g saturated), 2 mg sodium, 0 mg cholesterol.

Happy trails!

Homemade Products vs. Store Bought Products ~ Tori

 

 

 

This week we're going to be discussing homemade VS store bought products. To figure out which is the right one for you, you need to factor out quality and cost. Asking yourself these questions can help:

 

• Is the quality the same?
• Will I be saving money?
• Which is healthier for my family?
• Do I have all the ingredients and time needed to get into homemade products?

Those are just a few questions you can ponder. To be honest I do dabble in a lot of homemade items. Going to the store for certain things can be so pricey, and such a waste of time if you can make something just as good at home.

One of my favorite things to make is homemade febreeze which calls for some fabric softener, baking soda, and water.

You can also make your own fabric softener (which I haven't tried yet but would like to).

Most generally when making something homemade you get a lot more of it than you would if you go to the store and purchase it. Your also going to save money in the long run even if you do seem to be spending more at first on certain ingredients. Mainly because the ingredients you buy, you will be able to use over and over, as well as use them for other products.

 

Personally I think a lot of homemade products are much better than store bought. The quality is better, and you get a lot more bang for your buck. Problem is the time it takes to make them. For instance, cake mixes. I love making cakes from scratch, but sometimes I'm short on time or energy and find myself using boxed mixes more than anything. I would like to get into making more homemade products for my family and household. There's everything out there right at your fingertips.

Most homemade household cleaners for instance are much better than store bought. Homemade baby food can be much healthier and safer for your child to eat.

 

We all have the ability to go completely homemade, and to be honest I prefer homemade objects. But I still need store bought as well. I need store bought sunscreen, mosquito repellent, etc. But when you take a look around you can find easy to make things that are just as good as store bought (even if they take a bit of time to make) that will save you money.

 

Do you make anything homemade? Which one do you prefer? Homemade or store bought?

Chocolate Peanut Butter Mug Cake with Peanut Butter Pie Mousse~priddymomma

Hey guys!  Glad you could join us this week.  We're testing out pinterest recipes.  Will they live up to our expectations?  Or will they be horrific pin-tastrophes?  Only one way to find out!  

Chocolate Peanut Butter Mug Cake with Peanut Butter Pie Mousse

I thought this recipe would be a perfect thing to try out on a date night in.  It only takes two minutes in the microwave to make a mug cake.  It would be super nice to share with your love.  

http://www.yammiesnoshery.com/2012/03/chocolate-peanut-butter-mug-cake.html

Cake:
2 Tablespoons butter
2 Tablespoons peanut butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
2 Tablespoons sugar
2 Tablespoons flour
3 Tablespoons cocoa powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon baking powder
3 Tablespoons chocolate chips

Mousse:
1 Tablespoon softened cream cheese
1 Tablespoon peanut butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 Tablespoons whipped cream or cool whip
1 Tablespoon powdered sugar


The Process

Melt butter in a small dish.  Add peanut butter and mix well.  It looks like really oily peanut butter now.

In a mug, mix vanilla, egg, and sugar.  A fork worked well for me.

Combine flour, cocoa, salt, and baking powder.  

Add to mug.

Pour in peanut butter/butter mixture and mix together.  

At this point, it smells a bit like brownie mix.

Stir in chocolate chips.  More ended up in my mouth than in the mug, sadly.

Time for mousse!  Mix together cream cheese, peanut butter, and vanilla.  This was a pain.

Fold in whipped cream.  Sift in powdered sugar and fold that in too, trying not to over stir.  So fussy.

Microwave your mug of cake mix.  1-2 minutes or until done. 

Fairly certain I ultimately overcooked mine, as it turned out a little dry.

Top that cake!  Mousse and hot fudge.  I'm not winning any awards for presentation, but hey!

Oh yeah...the hot fudge is messy.  I ultimately got it on the counter, on my finger, on my shorts, and on the button for the microwave.  I don't even know...

I made a double batch of the mousse and added it to ice cream to share with the hubby along with the cake.

It was a bit dry, so we added it to the ice cream.

I would try this again, so I could avoid overcooking it the second time around.  Overall though, it was only okay.  I wasn't blown out of the water or anything.  It was very dense, which I'm not used to in a cake.  Without the mousse, it would have been very boring.  The mousse makes the cake though.  It tastes just like a Butterfinger candy bar.  Also, unless you are a cake fiend, I don't see you finishing it.  Hubby and I split ice cream and mug cake, and there was still enough for a third person to eat off our leftovers.  Also, the cook time might only be two minutes, but it took 25 minutes to assemble and take pics along the way.  I would prefer just to buy a cake mix.  I might try out one that uses Nutella though.  I love me some Nutella.

I think it would be pretty special to make up for the kiddos' birthdays, especially since they are only a few days apart.  That way, we don't have to bake an entire cake each birthday AND have cake for the party.  That's too much friggin' cake!

 Have you guys tried any pinterest recipes?  How did they turn out?  Which are your favorites?  Don't forget to check back next week for another topic, and until then keep love in your hearts and food in the kitchen, you kinks.  Sheesh.

Pinterest Recipes step by step ~ Tori

This week we are going to be discussing Pinterest recipes! Or rather each of us picking something from Pinterest to make and photograph the process and result.
This post is going up a bit late for me, but let's just pretend it's Tuesday okay? Yesterday turned out to be a tad insane around my house. You moms know those kind of days right? Where nothing seems to go right, your losing your mind and forgetting everything, etc. That was pretty much my day in a nutshell (which seems to be my brain).
Anyway I decided to re-visit an old favorite of mine. Jello Poke Cake! Since we are more of a cupcake family though I was looking at the cupcake versions. Problem is I could not find one recipe that included any of the ingredients I had on hand, and I had already done my grocery shopping for the week. So, I tweaked the recipe below a bit::

Here's what I came up with::

Funfetti Jello Poke Cupcakes

::Ingredients::
1 Box Funfetti Cake Mix
(ingredients required to make the cake - usually eggs, vegetable oil, and water)
1 3oz. box of Jello gelatin (I used berry blue but you can choose your flavor or use multiple ones)
1 cup boiled water
1 container of Funfetti icing (you can also use whipped frosting or cool whip)

 

 

::Directions::
1) Mix cupcakes according the instructions on the back of the box.

 

 

2) Spoon cake mix into cupcake pan, and bake as directed...

 

 

 

3) Allow cupcakes to cool completely...

 

 

4) Poke holes into the cupcakes using a toothpick or fork. (I just used a fork). Poke plenty of holes in the cupcakes. Make sure you go a little deep so the jello mix can really seep down in there.

 

 

5) Boil 1 cup water, add entire 3oz box of jello mix, stir until completely dissolved.

 

 

6) Using a spoon, pour the gelatin over the cupcakes slowly, making sure it seeps into the holes.

 

7) Once the jello mix is poured over all the cupcakes, it's time to slide them into the fridge. They will need to be refrigerated like this for about 3 hours so the jello can set.

 

8) After sitting in the fridge for about 3 hours you are safe to pull out your cupcakes and begin icing them, and adding your toppings.

 

9) If you like your frosting cold you can refrigerate them again if need be, but however you want to do it these cupcakes are now ready to eat and enjoy. :)

 

 

These are fun, festive, and really easy to make. They are a fast treat for any sweet tooth. They require few ingredients, and there are so many ways you can tweak Jello Poke Cupcakes (or jello poke cake) to your own liking. Either way just have fun with it, and ENJOY!  :) 

 

Kid-Loved Recipes~priddymomma

I laughed myself stupid when I saw this week’s topic.  Cheerio Champ isn’t in love with too many recipes.  He’s kind of picky.  Long gone are the days when I could put a few sprinkles on top of a new food and watch him devour it with relish (oddest thing?  Lasagna).  I also haven’t had the chance to experiment with recipes like I would like to, because I have an eleven month old daughter as well.  Finding time to cook can be a challenge.  Alas!  I do, however, have some recipes and some mom-in-the-trenches advice to share.  Be sure to check back Saturday for Leslie’s post (I know I will be!  She’s a master cook.)

Blueberry Muffins

These are adapted from a recipe hyped by Gwyneth Paltrow, which you can view here: http://www.self.com/healthystars/2011/05/gwyneth-paltrows-favorite-recipes-slideshow?slide=3   My version is healthier, in that it uses 1% milk instead of whole milk, and whole wheat flour instead of white.

½ cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly

2 eggs

½ cup 1% milk

2 cups whole wheat flour

¾ cup sugar, plus 1 tsp. to top muffins

2 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

2 ½ cups fresh or frozen blueberries (fresh are best, but either is good)

Heat oven to 375 degrees.  Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners.  Whisk butter, eggs, and milk in a bowl.  Combine flour, ¾ cup sugar, baking powder, and salt in another bowl.  Stir wet ingredients into dry ingredients (add slightly more milk if batter is too dry.  Whole wheat flour tends to drink it in); fold in blueberries.  Divide batter evenly among muffin cups.  Sprinkle with remaining 1 tsp. sugar.  Bake until muffins are golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean.  25-30 minutes.  Serve warm.  (I actually like mine refrigerated too, but I’m weird like that.)

Hawaiian Pizza Quesadillas

My husband and I thought up these after seeing a recipe for pizza quesadillas.  Best of all, they are quick and easy to make.

Barbecue sauce (your favorite.  Ours is Sweet Baby Ray’s)

Smoked ham or Canadian bacon

1 small can pineapple tidbits (you can use fresh, but unless it is already in tidbit size, it

won’t be very quick)

Mozzarella cheese

Whole wheat tortillas

You decide amounts.  Less cheese = less calories.  We make them in a skillet, but you can also bake them on a cookie sheet for 6-10 minutes at 400 degrees.  In a skillet, the easiest way is to cover half a tortilla and fold it over on itself to cook.  These can be quite sweet, depending on the barbecue sauce you like best.

Tropical Fruit Salad (feeds four)

1 mango

2 bananas

2 kiwis

Juice from ½ of a lime

Peal fruits, cut into pieces, combine, and squeeze juice over top.  BEST FRUIT SALAD EVER!  It is also surprisingly filling.  I think it would also be awesome with some fresh pineapple, though I have yet to try that.

Cheerio Champ isn’t willing to try new foods 75% of the time, but he eats some surprising foods on a regular basis.  Cheerio Champ will eat marinated chicken breast of any sort, provided that you give him ketchup to dip it in.  He likes fish (again with the ketchup).  He loves sweet potato fries.  His favorite lunch is a peanut butter, nutella, and banana sandwich on 100% whole wheat bread, served with carrots and grapes.  He loves having yogurt, granola, and fruit for breakfast.  And he practically begs for cottage cheese (Princess Cheerio also inhales cottage cheese).

Other tips:

Here are some tips on how to get your picky eater to sample new foods.

• Presentation.  Try making a design on a plate that is appealing to the eye.  Funny faces are a hit here.
• Steam it.  The whole family adores steamed veggies.  Steamed broccoli is more kid-friendly, as steaming it takes out the offensive sulfur-like flavor that most people don’t care for.  Also, try squeezing some fresh lemon juice on it.  There are some amazing microwave steam bags on the market.  You can do fish too!
• If they’re little, trick them into it.  Add veggie purees to dishes to get the veggies in (it makes brownies moister, btw).  Add some cheese to the top, or goldfish crackers (or again, sprinkles if they are into that). 
• Introduce literature and movies or shows that demonstrate healthy eating is cool.  Sid the Science Kid is a great place to start.
• Give the foods funky names.  Broccoli can be called “trees”, for instance. 
• Try, try again.  Kids need to be exposed to foods a countless number of times before they can become accustomed to them.  They will never like carrots if you try them once and give up.
• Serve them several ways.  Not into veggies raw?  Steam them, bake them!  Try a stir-fry!  Vegetable soup!  Give them something to dip veggies in (hummus is a great option).
• Get your kids involved in the shopping.  They’ll be more likely to try turnips if they picked the freshest ones themselves.
• Don’t make it a big deal.  Trying to force your child to eat anything is only going to lead to a power struggle you don’t want to have and possibly a life-long issue with trying new things.  And don’t be a short-order cook!  If your kid doesn’t want to eat what is on his plate for dinner, too bad.  He’ll be plenty hungry for breakfast, and it won’t hurt him to miss one meal.  If you are really worried about it, serve a side that you know he’ll love.

Kid Loved Recipes ~ Tori

This week we are going to be sharing some recipes that our kiddos love. Every kid has different tastes, likes, dislikes, etc. But maybe you will rediscover an old favorite, or find a new one! :)

Homemade Pizza

My kids love homemade pizza. And it is actually inexpensive. You don't have to spend a fortune, and you can tweak it how you like it. Your creating your own masterpiece. My kids are big into cheese so they love sharp cheddar, colby, and mozzarella. It doesn't take long to bake, and it's much healthier than the stuff you buy frozen or out, and so much cheaper. You control the amount of cheese and sauce.

Healthy Baked Chicken Nuggets from Skinnytaste

Credit for this recipe: skinnytaste.com

I found this recipe on a blog almost a year ago. I made it and the kids went crazy over it. It's now one of their favorites. You only need some boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into bites, parmesan cheese, seasoned breading, and a few other items. The complete recipe is here. I've tweaked the breading a few times to mix it up a bit, but they always love it.

Mac & Cheese & Corn Casserole

Because my kids are fanatics of cheese and corn I decided to mix the two. 

• 1 (8-oz.) package elbow macaroni
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups milk
• 1 can of corn (depending on how much you want to add)
• 1 (8-oz.) block sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded and divided 

Directions::

1. Prepare pasta according to package directions. Keep warm.
2. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium-low heat; whisk in flour until smooth. Cook, whisking constantly, 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in milk, and cook, whisking constantly, 5 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat. Stir in cooked pasta, 1 cup shredded cheese, and corn.
3. Spoon pasta mixture into a lightly greased 2-qt. baking dish; top with remaining 1 cup cheese.
4. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes or until bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Tilapia baked with Roasted Veggies

As simple as the title. Gorton's has some of the best tilapia, but it's something that my kids really love. Plus it's healthy so it's a win win.