Over fall break this year, I made some cookies with the kiddos. This is a really fun thing to do with kids because it doesn't take a lot of time, but they are still fun to make and enjoy together. I got this recipe for marbled sugar cookies, and they were quick and easy and came out perfectly.
Unfortunately, (or fortunately?) I couldn't get a picture of the finished product because they were all eaten before I got the chance! :)
You can get the effect by separating the dough into different bowls and dying it, then arranging colored bits close together before rolling them out. As you might guess, re-rolling the dough more than once diminishes the marbled look (oh well). To learn more about this fun activity, go to the Land O' Lakes post on marbled sugar cookies.
Let us know in the comments below: have you tried this recipe or something like it?
You know what I recommend? Trial runs for homemade Valentines Day treats! Ha ha...why not- right? We did that the other day with these heart-shaped granola bars as I wasn't sure how granola dough would work with cookie cutters. I'm happy to report that it works just fine (said through tasty granola crumbs).
I vote for making these above actual heart-shaped sugar cookies for the following reasons:
We don't garden to save money or to enjoy fresh, organic produce (actually, last year we lost money on our garden, and didn't get that much produce, but I'm still glad we did it). Our family gardens mainly for the pure joy of it. If you've ever had a garden then you know how miraculous it feels to see seeds you planted sprout and the thrill of eating food you planted and tended yourself.
Because we're in it mainly for the experience, I'm always on the look-out for things we can grow that will be especially fun for kids. I've written about the multi-colored carrots we've grown. When the kids dig up the greens, they don't know until they get there whether it will be a yellow, purple, or orange carrot dangling from the other end. This year we're growing purple snap beans that turn green when you cook them.
Today, I wanted to show you another fun thing we've got in our garden right now. For the past two years, we've had really good success growing chard. Unlike most things, it really flourishes in this dry, Texas heat, and the stuff is chock-full of vitamins. This year though, instead of regular green and white chard, we're growing Bright Lights, a kind of chard with multi-colored stems.
Rainbow Chard in the Kitchen
Chard can be chopped up and included in salads for a really pretty touch (especially the smaller leaves; once they get large they tend to be a little more bitter).
It's also delicious roasted with onions and feta cheese. When we prepare it this way, first, we chop the stems, toss them with olive oil and a chopped onion, and roast them at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes.
Then we add the chopped chard leaves; sprinkle them with feta cheese and return to the oven until the feta is a little melted. Really, really good.
Here's a fun way to make drinking milk more appealing to your kids- add Boba, that is, pearl tapioca. Boba tea (a sweet drink with tapioca balls at the bottom) is a popular drink in many Asian countries. I made my boba with rosewater for a unique taste and red food dye to make it even prettier.
To make the Boba:
1. Use a ratio of 8 to 1, water to tapioca pearls. Add a generous splashing of rose water and food dye (depending on taste)
2. Boil water
3. Add tapioca, and boil for 15 minutes with cover on the pot.
4. Turn the heat off and soak for another 15 minutes
5. Rinse the pearls and drain off the water
6. Store in sugar syrup until ready to use.
I added some silk flowers I happened to have around to the stem of a pretty cup to make it seem extra special. You might want to warn your kids ahead of time though that the Boba are not going to be as sweet as they might be hoping. I think mine were a little disappointed to find out they weren't candy!
I've never been a huge fan of marshmallows (I'd rather do a sink full of dishes than eat a Peep), but for some reason the idea of making them myself fascinated me from the first moment I heard it was possible.
Since so many imitations of processed foods are mediocre at best, and me not being the most careful of cooks, I half expected my marshmallows to turn out a puddle of white goo on the counter that I would reluctantly allow my girls to lick up and sicken themselves upon (so it wouldn't be a total waste).
I was definitely encouraged when several of you on facebook mentioned having good experiences with marshmallow recipes, and the girls and I promptly set off to make our own. Peppermint Marshmallows
(adapted from Martha Stewart) Ingredients
cooking spray
2 cups sugar
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
4 packages (1/4 ounce each) unflavored gelatin
1 teaspoon peppermint extract
2 large egg whites
2 teaspoons red food coloring
powdered sugar for dusting
Directions
Coat a cookie sheet with cooking spray; line bottom with parchment paper. Coat the parchment with cooking spray, dust with powdered sugar and set pan aside.
Put sugar, corn syrup, and 3/4 cup water in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring, until sugar is dissolved. Stop stirring; let mixture come to a boil. Raise heat to medium-high; cook until mixture registers 250 degrees on a candy thermometer.
Meanwhile, sprinkle gelatin over 3/4 cup water in a heatproof bowl; let stand 5 minutes to soften. Stir in extract and set aside.
Beat egg whites in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment until stiff (but not dry) peaks form. Whisk gelatin mixture into sugar mixture; with mixer running, gradually add to egg whites. Mix on high speed until
very thick, cool and glossy, 15 minutes or longer.
Pour mixture into lined pan. Working quickly, drop dots of red food coloring across surface of marshmallow. Using a toothpick, swirl food coloring into marshmallow to create a marbleized effect. Let marshmallow stand, uncovered, at room temperature until firm, at least 3 hours or overnight. Cut into squares, using a pizza cutter or sharp knife. Roll in powdered sugar.
Thoughts:
1. Definitely tasty. Lighter and creamier than storebought marshmallows.
2. The red marbling did not work out so well for me. You can see that rather than artistic red swirls, I ended up with what looked a bit like a snowy battlefield.
3. Very fun process! It was fun to watch the sugar mixture foam up when we added the gelatin, fun to watch the Kitchen Aid poof up the glossy white marshmallow fluff. The girls also enjoyed cutting and rolling the marshmallows at the end.
4. Ever since we made them my mind has been racing, thinking of useful variations of this recipe. I've heard that coconut flavored marshmallows are very delicious roasted over a campfire. Apparently, cookie cutters can also be used to make fun shapes. We gave out these marshmallows as a gift to some friends and family along with some homemade White Chocolate Peppermint Hot Cocoa.
I'm not sure what was the best part of our baked apples yesterday:
1. The wonderful, cozy autumn smell in our house as we baked them
2. The fun the girls had in making them
or
3. The delicious, crispy crust and warm, sweet gooeyness inside
All in all a great (and easy) fall project!
Materials:
apples
butter
cinnamon sugar
pie crust (I made my own because I'm cheap, but store-bought would be an easy alternative)
egg white (optional for making a shiny glaze on the outside)
What To Do:
1. Peel and core some apples.
2. Place each apple on a swatch of pie crust big enough to wrap the apple.
3. Let each child stuff their apple with bits of cold butter and cinnamon sugar.
4. Have them wrap their apples in the pie crust like a present. Make sure that the apple is completely covered and there are no holes.
5. Mix an egg white with a tablespoon of water and let your children brush on the glaze.
6. Bake on a greased, tin foiled baking sheet at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes.
Yum! Like tasty little apple pies! My husband loved them too!
Today as I sat on the computer during the girls' nap I was suddenly overcome by a craving for ice cream (not surprising given my seven-month-pregnant state) Sadly, there's not a spoonful of it left in the house (also not surprising, given my condition). So, instead I decided to whip up a batch of my mother's wonderful rice pudding.
It really is absolute comfort food deliciousness. I'm probably biased, but I've never had another recipe for rice pudding that I think even comes close. I think the difference is that this rice pudding is really custardy.
I hardly ever post recipes, but this one really is special- besides, it is dirt cheap to make, and you probably have all the ingredients already.
Custardy Rice Pudding
4 cups milk 1 cup sugar (actually I put in slightly less) 1/2 stick butter 1 1/4 cup long grain rice 2 eggs 2 1/2 teasp vanilla Cinnamon
1. Combine milk, 2 cups water, sugar, and butter in a large pan. Combine and heat to a boil.
2. Add rice, stir, and cook until thick and rice is tender.
3. Beat the 2 eggs with enough water to make 1 cup liquid.
4. Remove pudding from heat; add egg mixture, and heat to a boil.
5. Stir in vanilla. Pour into ungreased pan, cover liberally with cinnamon, and chill in refrigerator for several hours. (well, ok- you can have a little while it's still warm too)
You can also feel free to pour on a drizzle or two of half and half if you like that sort of thing.
For a little girls' teaparty complete with antique china what does one serve that is the epitome of femininity? Homemade rose flavored ice cream is a nice choice!
Here is the recipe we used (improvised from How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman):
2 Cups half-and-half
1/2 cup sugar 2 TB cornstarch 1 cup cream 1 quart strawberries, hulled, sliced and a little mashed 3 TB rosewater (found at most Indian grocery stores)
1. Combine the half-and-half and 1/4 cup sugar in saucepan. Heat, stirring occasionally, until steam rises from the half-and-half, 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat. 2. Mix cornstarch with the rosewater to make a slurry. 3. Whisk the slurry into the heated half-and-half, along with the remaining sugar. Heat, stirring constantly, until thick. 4. Cool completely, then stir in the cream and freeze in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer's directions. The strawberries and rosewater are nice complementary flavors, and the strawberries help add a little rosy color. (I posted a picture of the girls practicing for the tea party on our Facebook page)
A little late for Memorial Day but still a refreshing summer treat. I finely chopped a couple of slices of watermelon, spooned them into an icecube tray, and stuck in craft sticks. Two hours later, we had an easy and healthy snack! (it is definitely less sweet than your average popsicle, which is good in one way, but may be a little disappointing if you are looking for something different)
The other day at the grocery store when I encountered a 10 pound bag of organic bananas on clearance for 99 cents I felt that I had struck gold. There was no question of not buying it; for me, that much food for under a dollar is an automatic purchase. It wouldn't have mattered if they were pickled beets (which I hate).
But, back home with my counter overflowing with slightly over ripe bananas, I did begin to have a few doubts. What does one DO with that many bananas? I stuck about 8 bananas in the freezer to be used for banana bread at a later time but was still left with several bunches.
Thankfully, I remembered a recipe I had read a while back on moneysavingmom for peanut butter banana smoothies. I had never tried the recipe before but went ahead and peeled the bananas, sliced them into 1 inch pieces, and froze them on pieces of wax paper in my freezer. Once they were frozen I took them off the paper and condensed the pieces into a large freezer bag. (The banana pieces do not turn brown when frozen
this way)
I modified the smoothie recipe a little bit to fit our on-hand ingredients and to make it slightly more healthful. We LOVED it. It tastes very much like a banana ice cream, and it is so filling I've made it for a light lunch a couple of times.
Here is the recipe as we make it:
Banana Peanut Butter Smoothies
1 1/2 cups sliced frozen bananas
3/4 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup milk
2 Tablespoons peanut butter
1/8 cup wheat germ
Blend in the blender until smooth.
Any other ideas for the next time I strike gold in the banana department at HEB?
This is a recipe that my husband had found in a magazine a long time ago and mentioned that he would like me to try sometime. I was surprised at first because I didn't know he liked almond milk, but I'm glad he did because it turned out to be a fun project.
1. Soak raw almonds in water overnight so they'll be nice and soft when you process them. Use 3 cups of water for every one cup of almonds.
2. Use a blender or food processor to blend the almonds with all of the water. (I used a food processor, and itworked fine).
3. When the almonds are finely processed, place a dish towel over a large bowl and rubber-band it into place. Strain the almond milk through the towel. (I ended up having to strain the milk twice because I accidentally plopped some of the pulp into the milk at the end.)4. Once most of the liquid has strained through, gather up the corners of the towel and squeeze the rest out.5. Add a couple of pinches of salt, and some vanilla and honey to taste to make it extra delicious!
6. Don't throw away the almond pulp!! That stuff is useful! Spread it out on a cookie sheet and bake at 275 degrees until it is dried out and a little roasted. This almond meal can be used for all kinds of things; you can bake with it to make pie crusts or muffins, or use it like bread crumbs (maybe coat some kind of white fish in it for a tasty breading).
Homemade salt dough is a great alternative to the expensive craft store bakeable doughs like Sculpey or Fimo. The recipe is quick, and you likely already have everything you need to get started!
Salt Dough Recipe 1 cup salt 2 cups flour 1 cup warm water.
Combine salt and flour. Slowly mix in water and use hands to form into a ball. Place the ball on the counter and knead until dough is smooth and soft. Bake modeled creations at 250 degrees for 1 1/2 to 3 hours or allow to air dry over several days.
You can keep the dough in an airtight container almost indefinitely, but if you want to make precise modeling details you should use it immediately.
Make sure that the items are good and dry before you try to paint them or you will end up with cracks in the paint. Use either acrylics or tempera paint. The other day, M and I used salt dough to make a birthday gift for one of her friends. I got a little impatient with the process and tried to paint it too soon (you might be able to see a few cracks), and I wasn't very careful about making sure that the glue gun glue didn't show through, but all in all it was a fun process and M had a gift to give that she was proud of. (We used alphabet cookie cutters for the letters, and poked holes in the letters before they were baked so that we could string ribbon through them. The letters are glue- gunned onto a piece of wood to hold them together)
Shhhh! Don't tell, but for my parents' birthdays this month, I made them cookies. But not just any cookies- Pecan Shortbread Scrabble Cookies!
They were fun to make. I followed the following recipe for the dough, rolled it out and cut the cookies to be 2 X 2cm. After they were baked, I covered them with white royal icing, and used edible markers to print on the letters and numbers. It's a full set! :-) Pecan Shortbread Cookies:
1 cup pecans, toasted and finely chopped (I used the food processor) 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature 2/3 cup light brown sugar 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 2 cups all purpose flour 1/4 teaspoon salt
To Toast Pecans: Preheat oven to 350 degrees and place rack in center of oven. Bake the nuts 8-10 minutes or until browned and fragrant. Cool on wire rack and then coarsely chop the nuts. Set aside.
In a medium sized bowl place the flour and salt and whisk to combine. Set aside.
In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (2-3 minutes). Beat in the vanilla extract. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and then add the flour mixture, mixing only until incorporated. Stir in the chopped pecans.
Divide the dough in half and wrap each half in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm (at least one hour).
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
Remove one half of the dough from the refrigerator and, on a lightly floured surface, roll into a 1/4 inch large rectangle. Then, using a strip of cardboard 2cm wide as a guide, cut strips of dough in one direction, and then in the other direction to form squares.
Run powdered milk through a food processor until powdery (I should have done this but didn't- you can see that it made my dough a little grainy). Combine all ingredients. Mix well and knead with hands until workable.
Makes enough for about six kids to have a little to play with and plenty to eat for a snack!
Set out other little snacks to use for decorating (cheerios, raisins, nuts, marshmallows, coconut, pretzel sticks, etc) I also set out a couple of little pots of honey that the kids could use with the pretzel sticks as "glue."
A friend recently gave me this recipe for Resurrection Rolls, and I'll be making them for Easter breakfast this year. Each roll is baked with a marshmallow in the center so that, when it's broken open, one discovers that it's hollow inside-- just like the empty tomb. (The first comment below the recipe gives a couple of neat ideas for making the process of making the rolls meaningful, too)
I went in search of a Christmas treat that we could make that wouldn't be completely devoid of nutritional value. I came up with something kind of fun! Sugared cranberries are full of vitamin C, good for urinary tract health, have fewer calories per serving than most Christmas treats- AND they're tasty and festive!
The recipe is from Cooking Light, but I would add that whereas they say to remove the sugar syrup from heat before one adds the cranberries, I found that one should leave the cranberries on the heat for a couple minutes so that they will soften enough to absorb sugar.
Have you found any good, healthy holiday treats? I'd love to hear about them!
Are you like me in thinking that most store bought granola bars are much sweeter than they need to be? I found a recipe for homemade granola bars that came out tasting terrific when I made it the other day. I only added 2/3 of the amount of sugar that it called for, and I think next time I'm going to reduce the amount even more.
This is the recipe as I made it:
2 cups rolled oats 1/2 cup packed brown sugar 1/2 cup wheat germ 1 teasp ground cinnamon 1 cup all purpose flour 1/2 cup craisins 1/2 cup sliced almonds 1 teasp salt 1/2 cup honey 1 egg, beaten 1/2 cup vegetable oil 2 teasp vanilla extract.
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Generously grease a 9X13 pan.
2. In a large bowl, pour in the ingredients and mix well using your hands. Pat the mixture evenly into the prepared pan.
3. Bake for 17-18 minutes in the preheated oven, until the bars begin to turn golden at the edges. Cool for 5 minutes, then cut into bars while they are still warm.
M and I packaged them up into ziploc bags afterward for easy grabbing when we are on our way out the door for a morning full of errands.
Did you know that you can make delicious homemade yogurt in your crockpot- AND that it's EASY?
I didn't either until a couple of days ago when I found this site.
It really works! Here's what I did:
1. Put 3 cups of whole milk in my crock pot on the low setting for 2 1/2 hours.
2. Unplugged the crock pot. Let it sit with the lid on for 2 3/4 hours (ish)
3. Took 1 1/2 cups of the warm milk and mixed it with 1/3 cup Dannon plain yogurt.
4. Poured the yogurt back into the crock pot, put lid back on.
5. Wrapped crock pot in beach towel and left it unplugged and insulated overnight (or at least 8 hours- I left mine for 13 hours)
That's it! The next morning it thickened into a very nice yogurt. I like my yogurt extra thick though; so I let it drain for about forty minutes through a coffee filter-lined colander in the refrigerator. The whey that runs off is good for using in homemade bread (or so I hear- I'm going to try it in a couple days).
If my daughter were a little older, I would have had her help me and taught her a little bit about bacteria along the way. Here, by the way, is a site that gives a good overview of the science of yogurt.
Do you have any experiences with homemade yogurt? Any good recipes or things I should try?
Routines save time, and tempers. Like a mother managing a toddler’s mood swings, our family has built some reliable backstops for the times in our week when work-weary, low-blood-sugar blowouts are most likely. Friday nights are always pizza-movie nights. Friends or dates are welcome...We always keep the basic ingredients for pizza on hand- flour and yeast for the dough, mozzarella, and tomatoes (fresh, dried, or canned sauce, depending on the season). All other toppings vary with the garden and personal tastes. Picky children get to control the toppings on their own austere quadrant, while the adventurous may stake out another, piling on anything from smoked eggplant to caramelized onions, fresh herbs, and spinach.
Because it’s a routine, our pizzas come together without any fuss as we gather in the kitchen to decompress...and talk about everybody’s week. I never have to think about what’s for dinner on Fridays.
I like this idea, and have been toying with it for our family lately. It’s cheap (especially if you make your own dough), easy, and fun! Here is a recipe for basic pizza dough that I used the other night. (Turned out great)
Easy Pizza Dough
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
Combine flour, salt, sugar, and yeast in a large bowl. Mix in oil and warm water. Knead in bowl for about 5-10 minutes (until elastic consistency is reached) Sprinkle with flour when needed to keep from sticking to bowl or hands.
Allow to rise for 30 minutes to an hour. Knead again and roll out on oiled pizza pan.
Here are some additional tips:
-You can actually skip the kneading, rising step if you need a quick pizza
-For extra flavor, add 1 teaspoon dried basil, oregano, or garlic powder to the dough
-To keep the dough from bubbling, prick with fork
-Bake for 5-10 minutes without the toppings to allow the crust to rise a little
-At the very end, place pizza under the broiler for a couple minutes if you like the charred cheese effect
