Edible Arrangements for Birthdays, Holidays, Any Days!

November 5, 2014 by 7 Comments

Birthdays can be great fun for everyone involved especially the birthday boy or girl, but what to do if a birthday falls during a vacation? November is a big birthday month, and often times vacations are also scheduled in November with all the holidays. There are a few tips and tricks for special birthday fun while on vacation, to make your next vacation memorable but also your holiday or birthday as well.

pic6

  • Make the celebration fit the destination. Theme the birthday party to the locale. This can be done with a special meal or dinner or just a fun packed special day chosen by your little one. Going camping? Have a camping party. With cupcakes and neighboring tents joining in for singing. Visiting the desert? Why not have a Western Cowboy themed party along with horseback riding? In regard to planning a day, your best bet is to give your little one a few options for the day like, paintballing or a day at the beach. Sleeping in or watching the sun come up over the mountains? With a little creativity and planning a wonderful birthday is a few steps away.

    • [Read more…]

Filed Under: evergreen, food, review Tagged With: ,

Krusteaz Flat Bread Mixes

October 20, 2014 by 1 Comment

Sometimes homemade is nearly impossible in the average home. With school, work, friends, after school activities, and of course extended family, life often gets in the way of nice homemade baked goods. There is a way to get around this, and that is with Krusteaz baking mixes. With just a few additional ingredients you can be a hop, skip, and a mixing bowl away from some delicious baked goods ranging from desserts to dinners to breads. Today we are looking at their new flat bread line, which brings diverse, fun flat bread to the dinner table. Also there is a mini-recipe for flat bread pizza which turned out awesome.

pic4Recipe:
1 box Krusteaz flat bread mix. Made as directed right up until just shy of being browned to perfection. (make it a little bit underdone, but not doughy)
[Read more…]

Filed Under: food, review Tagged With: ,

Nut Free Halloween Classroom Treats (for the not-so-crafty)

October 14, 2014 by 3 Comments

Read the full article on Kitchology.com

We all know “that mom” who always has the perfect, handmade, beautiful treat in hand for every occasion.  She is usually perfectly put together, in this season’s latest, not a hair of of place.  I am not that mom.  I am not crafty, and I don’t have 4 hours to spend hand-dipping things into other things that I spent 4 hours “whipping up from scratch” – nor do I have the desire.  Sorry, not sorry.  So what’s a not-so-crafty mom to do?  Do we fail our kids, are we horrible moms?  Nope, we have our skills in other places.  And it’s all good, ladies- here’s some really cute, really easy Halloween treats to make that won’t break the bank OR make you late for your meeting, your deadline, or car line.  (Hey, we all have a boss in one form or another.)

10 12 14 halloweensnacks 015

It’s a Boo-tiful Thing

And it is!  Because it’s easy to make and not only nut free, but easy to make gluten free as well.  Boom.

Totally simple- ready?  Go to the store, and buy a mess of the tiny marshmallows- most are nut free, and many are gluten free as well. (Check the labels to make sure).  Hint- the average bag makes 3 ghosts in a sandwich sized bag, so buy accordingly (either smaller bag or as many marshmallows as you will need for your class). Get bags to the size you desire- we used sandwich bags, not ziplock- the kind that fold over so there were no other “colors” involved.  Last- get some festive fall ribbon.  We spent less then $10 on all of this.
[Read more…]

Filed Under: food, recipes Tagged With: ,

Cooking with Arla Dofino Cheeses

September 29, 2014 by 6 Comments

Disclosure- “I participated in an Influencer Activation on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Arla Dofino. I received product samples to facilitate my review as well as a promotional item to thank me for my participation.”

pic2
There are many snack options on the market for kids after school, some of which are quite un-healthy and some of which are quite the opposite. One such option is cheese. In moderation cheese is a delightful change of pace and makes for a quick easy snack for kids and parents alike. Today we will be looking at a few of the cheeses available from Arla Dofino.
Arla Dofino has been making cheese for over 100 years in the heart land of the USA and one of the cheese making capitals of the country- Wisconsin. By using all natural ingredients and hormone free, the environmentally friendly way to make cheese. There are several varieties of cheeses available by Arla Dofino which include Havarti, Gouda, Fontina, Edam and Muenster in a variety of flavors ranging from Creamy, Light, Dill, Caraway, Jalapeno, Smoked, Chipotle, Pesto, Chili Lime, and Cracked Peppercorn there is destined to be a favorite for those with distinguished palettes or just those picky eaters among us.

pic5
We had the pleasure of trying a few of the cheeses available and tried the Havarti line, since that what our local stores carried. For those of you like us who aren’t very familiar with Havarti, it is creamy and buttery in flavor and is perfect for crackers and sandwiches as well as cubed as a light snack. We tried the Dill flavor and the regular flavor of the cheeses the Dill was a favorite of the adults and the plain was a favorite of the little guy. He enjoyed the dill but loved the regular. He enjoyed it so much not only was it an after school snack but also a requested addition to the next day’s lunch box which is always a rare event. Below is a quick recipe for a light nutritious lunch addition for kid or adults:
[Read more…]

Filed Under: food, review Tagged With: , ,

Peeps Minis – New and Available Now

August 17, 2014 by 3 Comments

How is it possible to spread holiday cheer every day of the year without looking like you forgot to take down your decorations for said holiday? How can you scratch the Peeps itch in the middle of the summer? Both of these questions can be answered with the same item, new Peeps Minis.

pic3Peeps have been around for 61 years and have constantly been evolving and updating their colorful treats for many holidays not just Easter. But with a full on addiction to Peeps now possible what is the Peeps fiend to do to scratch that itch in the middle of the Summer with all holidays either a distant memory or a long distance away.

These new bite size marshmallow treats are the newest Peeps to hit the scene. The biggest difference is they are available year round so you can get your chicken shaped marshmallow fix any time of year. Each new Peep Mini is 40% the size of a regular Peep and are each 14 calories, gluten free and fat free. These minis are not only bite size but they also come in new flavors including chocolate crème, sour watermelon and strawberry crème. All of which are delicious with the watermelon variety being Little Man’s favorite. He loves the flavor and the fact that the peep is actually two toned with the inside a different color then the outside just like a real watermelon.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: review Tagged With:

Grilled Bleu Cheese Burger on Multi-Grain Flatbread

August 13, 2014 by 3 Comments

pic5

Grilled Bleu Cheese Burger on Multi-Grain Flatbread

Kontos Multi-Grain Flatbread
1 lb. chopped meat for four burgers (80-85% lean)
6 oz. mushrooms, sliced
1 small onion
Salt & pepper
6-8 slices of Bleu cheese (or other favorite cheese)
Chilled lettuce or tomato for topping

  1. Using a cast-iron grill-safe skillet, sauté mushrooms and onion in olive oil on hot grill.
  2. Grill ¼ lb. chopped meat, per person, to taste.
  3. As burgers are getting close to ready, place a few slices of Bleu cheese – or another favorite cheese – on your burgers to melt.
  4. At the same time, preheat 1 slice Kontos Multi-Grain Flatbread (or other favored Kontos flatbread or pita) for 15-20 seconds on each side. Cut bread into two halves.

    5. [Read more…]

Filed Under: food, recipes Tagged With: ,

Hundred Foot Gratin recipe

August 3, 2014 by Leave a Comment

hundred foot

In honor of DreamWorks Pictures’ charming new movie THE HUNDRED-FOOT JOURNEY starring Helen Mirren, attached please find our latest #FoodieFriday recipe to help get you excited for the film!

In “The Hundred-Foot Journey,” Hassan Kadam (Manish Dayal) is a culinary ingénue with the gastronomic equivalent of perfect pitch. Displaced from their native India, the Kadam family, led by Papa (Om Puri), settles in the quaint village of Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val in the south of France. Filled with charm, it is both picturesque and elegant – the ideal place to settle down and open an Indian restaurant, the Maison Mumbai. That is, until the chilly chef proprietress of Le Saule Pleureur, a Michelin starred, classical French restaurant run by Madame Mallory (Academy Award®-winner Helen Mirren), gets wind of it. Her icy protests against the new Indian restaurant a hundred feet from her own, escalate to all out war between the two establishments – until Hassan’s passion for French haute cuisine and for Mme. Mallory’s enchanting sous chef, Marguerite (Charlotte Le Bon), combine with his mysteriously delicious talent to weave magic between their two cultures and imbue Saint-Antonin with the flavors of life that even Mme. Mallory cannot ignore. At first Mme. Mallory’s culinary rival, she eventually recognizes Hassan’s gift as a chef and takes him under her wing.
[Read more…]

Filed Under: disney, entertainment Tagged With: ,

Uniquely Greek Kalamata Olive Feta Spread

July 2, 2014 by 3 Comments

Uniquely Greek Summer Recipe:
Greek-Style Six- Layer Party Dip
Prep Time: 10 minutes Servings: 8

olive feta spread

Ingredients
8 oz container Uniquely Greek Kalamata Olive Feta Spread
2 plum tomatoes, diced
1/2 red onion, diced
1/2 lb feta cheese, crumpled
8 Kalamata olives, pitted and roughly chopped (To save time, buy pitted olives)
Dried or fresh oregano
For a spicy experience, add 1/4 cup of roughly chopped jalapeño or pepperoncini peppers
[Read more…]

Filed Under: evergreen, recipes Tagged With: ,