Recipes
Recipe: Root Beer Pulled Pork Sandwich
Jan 18th
I tried this great crock pot recipe from the Recipe Shoebox today for Root Beer Pulled Pork Sandwiches, and it was delicious! I love meals that I can throw in the crock pot and still go about our day, and not have to stress out at dinner time.
This recipe is so simple and it is fun since you get to cook with Root Beer!
Ingredients:
- 2 1/2 to 3 -pound pork sirloin roast
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. black pepper
- 1 Tbs. vegetable oil
- 2 medium onions, cut into thin wedges
- 4 cups root beer, divided (DON’T use diet root beer)
- 2 Tbs. minced garlic
- 1 bottle (12-ounces) chili sauce
- Several dashes bottled hot pepper sauce, to taste (optional)
- 8-10 hamburger buns, toasted
Directions: Trim fat from pork if necessary. Add salt and pepper to meat, in a large skillet brown meat on all sides in hot oil. Drain off fat. Transfer meat to slow cooker. Add onions, only ONE CUP of the root beer, and garlic.
Cover and cook on LOW for 8-10 hours or on HIGH for 4-5 hours.
For Sauce: in medium saucepan combine the remaining root beer (3 cups) and the jar of chili sauce. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Boil gently, uncovered, stirring occasionally , about 30 minutes or until mixture has reduced to 2 cups. If desired, add hot pepper sauce to taste.
Discard cooking juices from crock pot, remove onions with an open ladle.
Add sauce to the meat to desired taste, add onions and EAT!
I even topped my sandwich with cole slaw!
Check out Recipe Shoebox for other great recipes!
Thanksgiving Craft: Make an Apple Turkey
Nov 22nd
I love education.com for great craft ideas, especially around the holidays. I saw this idea for apple turkeys the other day on their website, and thought it was very cute. A great festive fun food! My preschooler would enjoy threading the toothpicks with marshmallows and raisins. It is a great activity to get your little one involved in the holiday festivities.
What You Need:
- A large red apple
- Large and mini sized marshmallows (one large, at least 20 small)
- Toothpicks (seven per apple should be enough, but have extras on hand in case they break!)
- Raisins (15 – 30)
- Candy corn (one)
What You Do:
- Place the apple on a flat surface and remove the stem as close to the apple as possible.
- Carefully poke a toothpick into the apple on the outer rim behind where the stem was.
- Keep placing the toothpicks in this fashion until you have six of them fanning out behind the stem to represent the tail feathers (three clustered on one side and three on the other.)
- Once the toothpicks are in place, slide a raisin onto the first one, then a mini marshmallow, then another raisin, in a pattern. Talk to the kids about patterns and see if they want to create a different one (raisin, raisin, marshmallow, etc.) Repeat it on all six toothpicks. Be sure the pattern ends with the mini marshmallow at the top so the tip of the toothpick is no longer exposed.
- Now, on to the face of the turkey! Place another toothpick in front of the six toothpicks on the opposite side of the stem. Gently press the large marshmallow onto the toothpick.
- Using scissors, snip tiny slits into the spots where the eyes will go. Press a raisin into each eye hole. (Parents may want to help the kids with the scissors, since you’ll want to make a very small slit.)
- Using the pointy end of the candy corn, poke it into where the nose goes and you’ve got your turkey!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Thanksgiving Recipe: Turkey Rice Krispie Treat Pops
Nov 11th
I came across this adorable recipe on the Rice Krispie website, while looking for fun things to make for Thanksgiving. My preschooler loves to help in the kitchen, and if it is sweet that is even better! I happen to have left over Halloween candy corns so we will give this a try.
(Image from the website)
Dip into melted chocolate, add a few candy corn “feathers,” and pop these tasty turkeys on top of lollipop sticks for a cute and creative Thanksgiving dessert.
Ingredients:
- 3 tablespoons butter or margarine
- 1 package (10 oz., about 40) regular marshmallows
- - OR -
- 4 cups miniature marshmallows
- 6 cups Kellogg’s® Rice Krispies® cereal
- 1 package (12 oz., 2 cups) semi-sweet chocolate morsels
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 1/3 cups candy corn
- 48 small white candies
- 24 lollipop sticks or wooden ice cream sticks.
DIRECTIONS:
1. In large saucepan melt butter over low heat. Add marshmallows and stir until completely melted. Remove from heat.2. Add KELLOGG’S RICE KRISPIES cereal. Stir until well coated.3. Using 1/4-cup measuring cup coated with cooking spray divide warm cereal mixture into 24 portions. Using buttered hands shape each portion into ball. Cool.4. In microwave-safe bowl combine chocolate morsels and oil. Microwave on high for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes or until smooth, stirring every 30 seconds. Dip each ball into chocolate, allowing excess to drip off. Decorate with candy corn for tail feathers and beak. Add candies for eyes. Let stand until firm. Insert lollipop stick into each. Best if served the same day.
MICROWAVE DIRECTIONS: In microwave-safe bowl heat butter and marshmallows on HIGH for 3 minutes, stirring after 2 minutes. Stir until smooth. Follow steps 2 through 4 above. Microwave cooking times may vary.
To see the recipe directly on the website, click HERE!
Avocado Chicken Salad
Jun 21st
This fun little recipe was easy, and great for summer! I got this recipe from the Recipe Shoebox, be sure to hop on over and see what else she is cooking.
The ingredients:
1 medium ripe avocado, peeled and cubed
2 Tbs. lemon juice, divided
2 cups cubed cooked chicken ( I grilled mine)
2 cups seedless red grapes, halved
1 medium tart apple, chopped
1 cup chopped celery
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup chopped walnuts, toasted
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
Lettuce leaves, optional
Pita bread, optional
Directions:
In a small bowl, toss avocado with 1 tablespoon lemon juice; set aside. In a large bowl, combine the chicken, grapes, apple, celery, mayonnaise, walnuts, ginger, and remaining lemon juice. Stir in avocado. Serve on lettuce-lined plates or in toasted pita pockets. Serves 5.
I made this last night and it was very yummy! Great summer dish.
Peeps Recipes For Easter
Apr 20th
Peeps S’mores
I came across this super cute idea for Peeps S’mores on Eclectic Recipes for Easter. I LOVE S’mores it is my favorite part of cooking outside on a open fire. And I LOVE Peeps, so the combination sounds delicious. I know that Mr. Toddler will totally enjoy Peep S’mores too!
And did you know that the “Peeps” brand has a website with oh so cute Craft and Recipes for Peeps. Here are few of their Easter ideas.
| Easter Cupcakes Ingredients 24 assorted PEEPS® Marshmallow Bunnies 1 standard box cake mix (see package for additional ingredients) 1 container of butter cream frosting 1 cup of shredded coconut 1/3 cup water 1 oz. green food coloring Disposable pastry bag and piping tips (optional) |
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| Directions 1. Prepare cupcakes according to package directions and let cool. 2. Spread coconut shavings onto a tray. Mix 20 drops of green food coloring with 1/3 cup water in a spray bottle. Spray green color onto coconut shavings or add drops directly onto coconut and mix well with hand. 3. Frost cupcakes. Use pastry bag and assorted piping tips if desired. Add green coconut shavings to the edges. 4. Place one PEEPS® Marshmallow Bunny on top of each cupcake. Makes:24 cupcakes |
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| Ingredients 12 PEEPS® Marshmallow Bunnies 6 cups crispy rice cereal 3 tbsp. butter or margarine 4 cups miniature marshmallows or 10 oz. regular marshmallows Kitchen Tools Needed: |
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Directions
Makes: Warning: |
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St. Patrick’s Day Rainbow Cupcakes and Cookie Pops Recipe
Mar 9th
I was looking for a St. Patrick’s Day treat for Mr. Toddler and I to make. And I came across some super cute recipes.
I really love the Disney Family Fun website, they always have great craft and dessert items for kids.
Here is their recipe for St. Patty’s Rainbow Cupcakes.
I mean how cute are these! I am definitely going to have to make these for St. Patty’s Day!
Here is the instructions:
- Prepare your favorite white cake mix, then divide the batter evenly among six small bowls. Following the chart below, dye each bowl of batter a rainbow color.
RAINBOW COLOR DROPS OF FOOD COLORING Purple 9 red and 6 blue drops Blue 12 drops Green 12 drops Yellow 12 drops Orange 12 yellow and 4 red drops Red 18 drops - Line 16 muffin pan wells with baking cups. Evenly distribute the purple batter among the cups, then the blue, and so on, following the order shown. As you go, gently spread each layer of batter with the back of a spoon to cover the color underneath.
- Bake the cupcakes according to your recipe directions. Before serving, remove the paper wrapping, and if you like, top each cupcake with a whipped-cream cloud.
Again the Disney Family Fun website has another adorable idea: St. Patty’s Day Cookie Pops!
20 vanilla wafer cookies
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 12-ounce bag white chocolate chips
green and yellow gumdrops
green Dots
green and yellow Nerd candies
Cake decorating writer gel in green, yellow, red, orange, and black
1 tube of green cake decorator frosting with tip
green and yellow decorator sugar
green food coloring
ice cream or lollipop sticks
wax paper or paper platesInstructions:
Spread peanut butter onto the flat side of the cookies. Place an ice cream stick into the peanut butter on half the cookies. Top with another cookie so the stick is sandwiched between the two cookies.Melt chocolate chips in the microwave, one minute, then in 20 second increments, stirring until smooth. Before melting, separate the white chips into two bowls. After melting, add a few drops of green food coloring to one of the bowls of white chips to make green chocolate.Dip cookie pops in the melted chips, covering completely. Sprinkle with green and yellow sugar, and place or stand on waxed paper or paper plates. Put in refrigerator to chill.Fun Variations
Leprechaun
After coating with white chocolate, dip top of pop into green sugar. Slice two yellow gumdrops to make beard. Allow to dry on wax paper. Use black and red decorator gel for eyes and mouth, and for trim on hat.Rainbow with Pot of Gold
After coating with white chocolate, cut a green Dot in half lengthwise, adhere to chocolate. Before chocolate has a chance to dry, place 3-5 yellow candy Nerds “in” pot. Create a rainbow with various colored decorator gel.Shamrock
After coating with white chocolate, sprinkle with yellow decorator sugar, then draw on a shamrock using green cake decorator icing.Four Leaf Clover
After coating with green chocolate, use green sliced gumdrops to create clover leaves. Slice a small strip out of remaining gumdrop for stem. Use a green candy Nerd for the center of the clover.Note: Another variation is to use vanilla or chocolate frosting instead of peanut butter for the filling.These can also be made without sticks. Use one stick to be able to dip the cookies in chocolate and roll in sprinkles, then remove the stick and put on wax paper or paper plates, then chill.
Recipe: Chicken Tortilla Soup
Jan 3rd
I found this recipe on a blog I love, the Recipe Shoebox. She always has the most delicious looking posts, and great ideas for dinners and desserts. You should definitely swing by her blog and check it out! We tried the Chicken Tortilla Soup and it was super TASTY. Mr. Toddler even loved it, and he is quite the picky eater.
Chicken Tortilla Soup Recipe from the Recipe Shoebox
The ingredients:
1 onion, chopped
2 Tbs. oil
4 cups water
4 bouillon cubes (I use 2 chicken, 2 beef)
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. cumin
1 Tbs. chili powder
1 bay leaf
1 can black beans
2 chicken breasts, cubed (I used the southwest purdue pre-cooked chicken strips)
4 corn tortillas, torn in pieces
1 can diced tomatoes with green chilies (or regular diced tomatoes if you prefer)
Desired garnishments: sour cream, shredded cheese, crushed tortilla chips
Saute chopped onion in hot oil–Cook until soft.
Add water, bouillon, beans, spices, tortillas, chicken, and tomatoes. Heat until boiling. If you are using pre-cooked chicken then it’s ready to serve immediately, otherwise simmer until chicken is cooked through.
Serve hot with your choice of sour cream, grated cheese, and corn tortilla chips.
Serves 4.
Holiday Fun Desserts
Dec 17th
I think I am going to start a new tradition for each holiday! Mr. Toddler and I had so much fun making our Thanksgiving Turkey Cupcakes,
that I would like to continue the theme and make something for each holiday. Here are some super cute ideas that I found on familyfun.go.com.
Just adorable! And fun for Mr. Toddler to decorate!
Ingredients
-
- bag of 8-inch pretzel rods
- 1 cup white chocolate chips
- mini chocolate chips
- orange decorators’ gel
- fruit leather (various colors)
- gummy rings
- gumdrops
- Instructions
-
- To make a batch, melt 1 cup of white chocolate chips in the top of a double boiler.
- One at a time, dip one end of an 8-inch pretzel rod in the melted chocolate and use a plastic spoon or knife to spread the chocolate two thirds of the way down the rod.
- Set the pretzels on a sheet of waxed paper and press on mini chocolate chips for eyes and buttons. Use orange decorators’ gel to add a carrot nose.
- When the chocolate has hardened, stand the pretzels in a mug or glass and tie on strips of fruit leather for scarves. For each hat, stretch a gummy ring over the narrow end of a gumdrop and secure it on the pretzel rod with a dab of melted chocolate.
Ingredients
-
- A dozen cupcakes from your favorite recipe
- 8 ounces of softened cream cheese
- 2 tablespoons of softened butter
- 2 cups of confectioners’ sugar
- Pinch of salt
- Sweetened flaked coconut
- 3/4 teaspoon of vanilla extract
- Pepperidge Farm Pirouette cookies
- M&M’s Minis
- Instructions
-
- First, mix up a batch of Cream Cheese Frosting. Using an electric mixer, beat together 8 ounces of softened cream cheese, 2 tablespoons of softened butter, 2 cups of confectioners’ sugar, and a pinch of salt until smooth and creamy. Blend in 3/4 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Chill the frosting while you complete step two.
- With permanent colored markers, have your child draw windows and doors on 12 empty paper bake cups. (It’s easier if you keep the cups stacked and draw on the outer one rather than on the individual cups.)
- Dab frosting inside each decorated cup (3 or 4 spots spaced equally apart and about 1/3 inch down from the top should do it. Now fit the decorated cups over the ones the cupcakes were baked in, pressing gently so the frosting sticks the 2 layers together.
- Spread frosting on each cupcake, heaping it in the center to resemble a peaked, snow-covered roof. Carefully press on sweetened flaked coconut, if desired. For a chimney, gently but firmly push half of a Pepperidge Farm Pirouette cookie into the cake. Finally, add M&M’s Minis holiday lights around the roof’s perimeter.
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Turkey Cupcakes That Your Kids Will Adore
Nov 23rd
I decided to make Turkey Cupcakes for my Thanksgiving treat, and I wanted to find a recipe that Mr. Toddler could help with. I came across these Cupcakes which just look so adorable–almost too cute to Gobble UP. I got the recipe here, at Disney Family Fun.
- Ingredients
-
- 24 frosted cupcakes
- 24 Nutter Butter cookies
- 2-3 tablespoons of white frosting or decorator’s gel
- Mini chocolate chips
- Fruit leather, various flavors and colors
- toothpicks
- Instructions
-
- To make each turkey, press the lower portion of a Nutter Butter cookie into a frosted cupcake for the bird’s head.
- Use tiny dabs of frosting to stick on mini-chocolate chip eyes and a red fruit leather wattle.
- For each turkey’s tail, use a butter knife to cut out a dozen feather shapes (about 3 inches long and 1 inch wide) from fruit leather.
- Lay 6 of the feather shapes on a flat surface and place a wooden toothpick lengthwise atop each so that one end of the toothpick extends about an inch below the feather. Layer another fruit leather feather layer atop each of the 6 shapes, sandwiching the toothpicks between them.
- Press the 2 layers together to make them stick, then fringe the edges of the feather with a butter knife. Now your child can stick the colored feathers into the cupcake behind the cookie head.
I ended up substituting fruit roll up for orange slices candy and it worked great! Mr. Toddler of course approved of the delicious CUPCAKE!
Halloween Healthy Treats
Oct 11th
I came across these super cute Halloween treat ideas on familyfun.go.com, and I just had to share! If you have big fans of Halloween in your house, these treats will be quite the hit. Or great ideas for Halloween party treats! These are “healthier” options that you can make and serve. Below are just a few of my favorite ideas! Here is a link for these tasty treats! I can’t wait to try these out with Mr. Toddler!
Flavorful Phantoms
- Ingredients
-
- White Bread (1 slice per ghost)
- Whipped cream cheese
- Currants
- Instructions
-
- For each, toast a slice of white bread and then cut a ghost shape from it. You can do this freehand using a knife, or you can use a gingerbread-girl cookie cutter.
- When the cutouts have cooled, spread on a generous coating of whipped cream cheese.
- For eyes and mouths, add currants. (I am going to substitute cut raisins for the this part!)
Pizza Mummies
- Ingredients
-
- English muffins
- Pizza sauce
- Black olives
- Scallions
- Red or green pepper
- Cheese sticks or slices
- Instructions
-
- Heat the oven to 350º F. For each mummy, spread a tablespoon of pizza sauce onto half of an English muffin (toast it first, if you like).
- Set olive slices in place for eyes and add round slices of green onion or bits of red or green pepper for pupils.
- Lay strips of cheese (we used a pulled-apart cheese stick) across the muffin for the mummy?s wrappings.
- Bake for about 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the muffin is toasty.
Banana Ghosts
Here’s a Halloween trick your child will have no trouble pulling off–turning a ripe banana into a Halloween treat.
Remove any stringy fibers from the peeled banana, then cut it in half widthwise. Push a Popsicle stick into each half through the cut end, then cover each pop with plastic wrap and freeze until firm (about 3 hours).
Next, place a 1.5-ounce piece of white chocolate candy in a microwave-safe bowl and cook on high until melted (it generally takes about 1 minute). With a butter knife, spread the melted white chocolate on the frozen banana halves.
Set the pops on a waxed-paper-covered dish. Press on candies or currants for eyes and mouths and return the pops to the freezer until ready to serve. Makes 2
Snack O Lantern
- To make one lantern, use a small knife to slice the top off a navel orange and cut around its interior to hollow it out. Scoop out the orange segments, chop them, and mix them with canned or fresh fruit salad.
- Carve small facial features in one side of the orange, then cut a slit in the lid to accommodate the handle of a green plastic spoon. Fill the lantern with fruit salad. Insert the spoon and set the lid in place.
