Hummus with Roasted Red Bell Peppers

Garbanzo beans or chick peas are a great source of plant based iron. Bell peppers contain more vitamin c than an orange! The two make a great pair because the vitamin c helps your body to properly absorb the iron. This is a great recipe for tots or mommies who are iron deficient.

This recipe requires a food processor. If you're a mommy and don't have one yet, get one! It is an essential item in my kitchen. I use a basic Cuisinart and love it.

Ingredients:
2 cans of garbanzo beans (rinsed well and drained)
Tahini ( sesame seed paste)
Juice from one lemon or large lime
Olive oil
Salt, turmeric, paprika, pepper
One clove of garlic peeled (less is ok if you're not a fan)
One roasted red bell pepper (peeled and chopped)

Process beans, garlic, and bell pepper first. Use pulse method until all pieces are pretty small but not yet mush. You may need to scrape sides down with rubber spatula a couple times.

Pour tahini in a circle over the top. Should be about a 1/4-1/2 of a cup. You can use more or less depending on your taste. Follow with a circle of olive oil and add spices. When you begin to process, slowly poor lemon juice into the mixture. This is the part where it gets tricky. If you see the bottom getting mushy while the top clumps up-scrape the sides and pulse process. If the whole mixture seems dry and is lopsided while spinning- slowly pour more olive oil while processing. Your goal is an even smooth consistency that is not soupy. You want a dollop of hummus to hold its shape. Don't forget to stop and taste for adjustments. I recommend being very careful when adding salt because salty hummus can be overwhelming-yuck!

Serve with slightly toasted fresh pita or crudités. You can use pita chips too but why spoil a superbly healthy snack with fried chips! If you can't get your hands on some pita, use toasted whole wheat bread for a killer hummus sandwich.

Vera

Healthy Valentine's Day treats for toddlers!

"You're a 'BERRY' good friend!"

Materials Needed:

Fruit packs

Scrapbook paper (or red/pink construction paper)

Heart-shaped cookie cutter

Scissors

Marker

Tape

While candy seems to be the go-to treat to share with friends on Valentine's Day, giving pure sugar to a room full of toddlers just seems a little mean to do to the teachers.  My son loves these fruit packs!  I saw a classmate of his give these out last year!  So cute! 

I thought a dorky little note would be a fun addition.  The flavor of the fruit pack is strawberries and apples hence the note: "You're a BERRY good friend!"  I used a heart-shaped cookie cutter to outline each heart to cut out.  I used Valentine's Day themed scrapbook paper, but you could easily use red or pink construction paper (or ANY color for that matter!)  Then, I wrote the note on with permanent marker and taped each heart to a fruit pack!

I will be hiding these from my son until he brings them to daycare to share, or he'll want to eat them all!

Happy Valentines's Day, everyone!

Kami

Mickey Mouse Birthday Party!

My son turned 2 this fall, and I wasn't even sure if I wanted to have a party.  I thought I would just have the grandparents over, but then an aunt expressed interest in attending.  We decided to extend the invite to all of our brothers and sisters.  Since my husband and I collectively have 8 siblings (including their families), our quaint get-together turned into a party!  

I let my almost 2-year-old son choose the theme for his birthday.  We narrowed it down to Nemo, Elmo and Mickey Mouse.  It was a tough decision, but he eventually settled on Mickey Mouse!  

Let the planning begin!

I scoured Pinterest for ideas.  I decided to narrow my theme a little more and went with just yellow, red, black and white colors.  I felt like it made everything a bit more cohesive.  I came across this super cute wreath at Confessions of a Plate Addict.  While I would have loved to spend 4 hours making a wreath like this blogger, it just wasn't feasible.  I settled for a simpler version, yet using the same idea she had!  The yellow portion is just wrapped in ribbon.  I made a mini-banner that says "Welcome!"  I couldn't find my wreath hook, so I had to get a little creative with hanging it.  I definitely recommend the $5 wreath hook!!!

 Although it's not as important as a '1st Birthday Cake', cake is cake and I wanted something cute! Again, lack of time ruled my final decision on what to do, but I think it was still pretty awesome!  (My son loved it and that's what counts, right?!)  I pre-ordered the cupcakes and had them just do white frosting with red and yellow colors and sprinkles.  I  bought a piece of scrapbook paper for 99 cents at Michael's.  It had a bunch of square pictures of Mickey Mouse characters on it.  I cut out just the Mickey Mouse ones.  I taped each square to a tooth pick, stuck them in random cupcakes and voila!  

(Confession:  The morning of the party, i drove to four different stores because I forgot where I ordered it from.  Sad, right?  Hehe!)

My mantel was not even considered for being part of the decorating until I stumbled across this cute set up over at Kara's Party Ideas.  I bought more scrapbook paper that was actually Mickey Mouse themed!  I made a template for the triangle with a piece of cardboard, then I traced a bunch of triangles for the banners.  I used a paper hole punch to make two holes at the top of each triangle.  (Don't do one hole or the triangles won't hang flat).  Then, I just strung them up on a piece of yarn and taped to my mantel!  The "M" was $1 from Michael's that I painted yellow with my son's Tempura paint, and the mickey mouse stuffed animal is my son's.  ( I was very lucky that he didn't seem to mind his stuffed animal was out of reach all day!)  We also had a banner outside on tables and deck rails.  (Not pictured).

I had plates, napkins and plasticware set up in a little holder I bought from Target for half off at the end of summer.  It saved space as opposed to having all of that laying out on table.  This left room for more treats!

The idea for center pieces came from somewhere, but I don't remember where!  (That's what I get for blogging way after party!)  I bought these clay pots from Home Depot for $2 each.  I painted the top black, bottom red and glued on little white buttons to look like the classic pants Mickey wears.  I used scrapbook paper again to make the little signs.  I used a Sharpie marker and copied each letter to look like the classic Disney font.  (I just Googled "Disney font" under the 'Images' search).  I attached the little signs to wooden skewers.  I made two per skewer so I could just glue the little signs back to back over skewers.  This way, there wasn't a "back" to the signs.  I used candy to fill pot and placed skewers inside!

My husband made little labels for the water bottles.  They say "Happy 2nd Birthday!"  He printed on rectangular stickers.  You could also buy plain white name tags and write on them yourself.  If your kiddo is old enough, you can have THEM design and color the water bottle labels!

This picture is hard to see, but it reads, "Happy 2nd Birthday".  The red circles are from plain red construction paper.  The end circles have little black Mickey ears on them.  I drew that free-hand on black construction paper before cutting out.  (It took a few tries!)  I bought the polka-dot letter stickers from a scrap-booking store.  I hung this banner the same way I hung the banner on my mantel.  (Two hole per circle, yarn and tape).

I bought the Mickey Mouse shirt at Target!

I Googled "Mickey Mouse pumpkin carving template" to find a print out to carve this pumpkin for our front step.  My son LOVED his Mickey Mouse pumpkin!

Probably my favorite part was these adorable Mickey Mouse invitations I found over at Etsy!  They were so cheap, and the girl who made them sent them very quickly!  

Have fun planning your little one's party!  We had a blast!

Toddler Fruit Salad

Keeping picky eaters interested in food is a constant challenge. Anytime I come up with a recipe that my son actually likes, I feel like sharing it with all the struggling mommies out there! This one is definitely a winner in my house. Mothers of picky eaters unite! Ok, I'm a nerd.

It's an extremely basic fruit salad using ingredients we almost always keep stocked. You can substitute any component of this salad to suit your child's preferences. I've found that this combo makes for a fresh and crunchy treat that is not too sweet (pardon the rhyme).

Toddler Fruit Salad

1 cup green seedless grapes
1 cup Old Home vanilla yogurt
Banana
Fuji apple
1/4 cup Natures Path Hemp and Flax Granola

Preparation

Wash all your fruit thoroughly. I like to use a large bowl with cold water and a squirt of white vinegar.

Make sure to cut grapes horizontally and vertically with a sharp knife to prevent choking. I like to use the green seedless variety because they are not mushy and add a crisp tangy flavor. The grapes should comprise the bulk of your salad.

Next peel your apple (you can leave it on if your kids don't mind but I find the texture to be annoying) Stand it upright and slice all four sides off of the core. Lay the sides flat and cut very thin slices (1/4"). Keep together, turn sideways and cut to make tiny apple bits. The trick is to keep them small so your kids don't pick them out.

As for the banana, you don't want the chunks too small or they will just get squished in the yogurt. I cut the banana in half lengthwise, turn both pieces on their side and cut again following the curve of the fruit. Holding all four pieces together I then slice horizontally to get perfect little chunks.

Put all fruit in a bowl and fold yogurt in gently with a rubber spatula until coated. Sprinkle with granola (careful for any large chunks) and serve!

I'm pretty sure this would hold up at least a couple days in the fridge if you omit the granola until serving. Honestly, I have not been able to test this out because my kids eat the whole batch in one day!

Easy Homemade Chicken Broth

Bone Broth: my simple method to making and conserving homemade chicken broth

Good evening mommies!

The following is a basic bone broth recipe that is essential to so many of my dishes. I feel silly even calling it a recipe because it is so simple. Its more of a method I use to make broth in the most conservative and convenient way possible. If you're like me, and hate to throw any food away, you will appreciate this method. I must have been an Indian in my past life because I get such a kick from using every little scrap from any food I eat. I use this recipe mainly for chicken broth but you can make other kinds of broth if you prefer. 

What you will need:

• freezer safe containers (I like 2 cup size that are crack resistant and microwave safe)
• freezer safe ziplock bags
• a large crock pot
• water
• ice cube tray (optional)
• bones and/or carcass (whatever type of broth you want to make)

Preparation

Anytime you are cooking chicken (or any meat with bones) conserve the bones, cartilage, skin, or whatever other uneaten parts you may have. Place in a ziplock bag and store in your freezer until you are ready to make broth. If you only have a little, you might want to add to the bag until you acquire enough to fill your crockpot. You can even save the carcass from a store bought roasted chicken or even from your thanksgiving turkey! 

Instructions

When you are ready to make broth just throw all of the contents from your ziplock bag into your crockpot and fill the rest with water, being careful not to overfill. Set the heat to low and let cook for at least 8 hours. I usually throw mine in before bed and then turn it off in the morning. The longer it cooks, the more flavor you will get out of the bones. Ive even heard of people reusing bones but Ive never tried it. One batch of broth from a carcass is enough for me! 

Let your broth cool and then pour into your freezer containers. I like to to make note of the container size so I know about how much broth they hold. You can pre-measure the broth and then label your containers but its much easier to just do 2-3 cup sizes. They are also much quicker to defrost. You can also pour some broth into ice cube trays for recipes that only require a small amount of broth. Once frozen solid just transfer the cubes to a ziplock bag. They come in very handy!

To defrost you can set your microwave to a defrost setting and run for about 15minutes. The times will vary so experiment with your microwave. I usually defrost for 18 min and then hit it at regular power for another minute. You can also defrost the broth stovetop after popping it out of the container, I just find the microwave to be the quickest and easiest way. 

Well there you go! Now you can always have a freezer stocked with homemade chicken broth at your convenience. Soooo much better than spending money on store bought broth that contains who knows what topped with loads of sodium. 

Vera

Chicken Pot Pie Filling over Rosemary Cornbread

Chicken Pot Pie Filling over Rosemary Cornbread

Hello again mommies!

Here is my first mommy-friendly recipe submission. I am super pumped about this because I LOVE to cook. My recipes are very loose because I rarely measure (unless baking) so keep that in mind. I encourage any feedback or questions you may have. Happy cooking! 

What you will need:

• 6-8 bone in chicken thighs
• one onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1-2 cups frozen veggies (carrots, peas, and corn)
• 3 cups or more of homemade chicken broth (recipe to follow)
• ½ cup flour
• salt, pepper, turmeric, garlic salt, 2-3 bay leaves, dried or fresh rosemary
• white wine
• olive oil
• 3-4 tbsp butter
• one package of jiffy cornbread (one egg, ⅓ cup milk)
• large Pot with a lid (preferably cast iron enamel) and a wooden spoon or spatula

Heat up oil in pot. While oil is heating, salt and pepper both sides of the chicken generously.  Using tongs, add chicken to pot (3 or 4 at a time to maintain temp). Leave for 5 minutes on each side on high heat until browned. Remove to a dish and repeat with the rest of the chicken. Once all chicken is browned and removed from pot, add chopped onion to the same oil and cook until translucent (2-4 min)at medium heat. Add garlic and 1 tbsp turmeric and ½ tsp nutmeg at the very end for a minute or less. Add a cup of white wine to deglaze the pot. With the spoon, scrape loose all the brown bits into the wine. Return the chicken and add 2-3 cups of broth, bay leaves, and garlic salt. Lower the heat to simmer and let cook until the chicken is nearly falling off the bone (at least one hour), stirring occasionally. The liquid should almost cover the thighs completely, if not add more broth.

At this time start the cornbread. Follow the box instructions and then add the rosemary before pouring the batter into the pan.

Once chicken is cooked and the liquid is somewhat reduced, remove chicken to a large platter to cool. Add veggies to the broth and allow to cook about 2 minutes at low heat. Add butter and flour to the broth to thicken. Adjust so that you achieve a gravy-like consistency and then remove from heat. Make sure to add flour slowly while stirring constantly to avoid lumps. At this point season to desired taste with garlic salt and whatever other spices you like. I also add a tiny bit of brown sugar (optional)

When chicken is cool enough to touch, remove all the good meat. Shred or chop to desired size add add to the gravy. Freeze all bones, skin, etc. in a plastic ziplock bag to make broth later (read blog on bone broth for recipe).

Serve the chicken pot pie filling over a piece of cornbread in a bowl. Mmmm, the best comfort food!

Vera

DIY: Elf Hats

Happy Holidays Mommies! 

So as the obsessed repurposer (I'm officially making this a word!) that I am, I refused to buy props for our XMAS photo shoot. I needed to avoid walking through Target looking for elf hats and checking out with $100 worth of crap I saw on the way! Sound familiar? So I decided to work with what I have at home. 

To start with, I raided my husbands closet for beanies. I found a burgundy and an olive green beanie. He won't even notice they're missing. Then I started to hunt for any fabric item that might resemble an Elf ear. This is when I came across a stash of boobie pads in my bra drawer. Thank goodness for my hoarder tendencies. Most people throw away those obnoxious pads that come in bikinis, not me! I grabbed two ball ornaments for hat tips and some felt and pom poms for embellishments. The rest is history. 

You will need:

a beanie
2 boobie pads (you can use beige felt circles too)
plastic ball ornament (or what ever else you have for the hat tip)
2 red pom-poms for holly berries
green felt for holly leaves

Note: The pom-poms and felt I purchased at the dollar store. I am a big fan of dollar store craft supplies. You just have to know what to buy.

Instructions:

First you need to fold the pads so that they resemble ears. Then fold the beanie brim over and tuck the ear in place. Sew through the brim and ear until it is firmly in place. Repeat on other side.

Next take your ornament and sew it to the tip of the hat. Pinch the sides of the beanie around the base of the ornament hook and sew them close together. This way you only see the ornament and the hook part is folded up in the top of the hat.

At this point you can decorate your elf hat. Cut two holly leaves out of the green felt and tuck them into the brim. Place the pom-poms on the outside of the prim, over the holly leaf bases. Sew through the pom-poms, brim, and leaves. Once they are secure, your Elf hat is done. Voila! The resourceful mommy strikes again.

Vera