Make-A-Meal Monday: Holiday Treats for Easter and Passover

Posted on April 18, 2011 by viviankirkfield

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Right now, we are in the middle of two important week-long religious celebrations…for Christians, there is Easter which is next Sunday, but the entire week has significance as yesterday was Palm Sunday and Thursday is Maundy Thursday and Friday is Good Friday. For those of the Jewish faith, there is Passover, which starts tonight with the first Seder and continues for an entire week. For more detailed information about either of these holidays, you can go to http://www.infoplease.com/spot/easter.html.

I thought it would be fun to see if I could find a recipe from my book for parents of preschoolers that would be appropriate for each of these important celebrations. When you invite your child to help with food preparation, you help build their self-esteem. It is also a wonderful way to teach young children about holidays and traditions that are important for your family.

CHILD-FRIENDLY NOODLE APPLE CASSEROLE

Here is a really simple recipe that is similar to Noodle Kugel, a delicious treat enjoyed by many during Passover week.

You will need: 4 cups cooked wide noodles, 2 eggs, ¼ cup honey, ½ tsp cinnamon, 1 cup grated apple, ½ cup raisins, 1 Tb margarine or butter, a large bowl and a 2-quart greased casserole dish.

1. In a large bowl, combine eggs, honey and cinnamon and beat well.

2. Stir in apples, raisins, noodles and butter.

3. Pour into a greased casserole dish, cover with aluminum foil and bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes.

4. Be careful when you pull away the aluminum foil…there may be a lot of steam!

5. Makes 4 lunch-size servings or many more side dish, snack or dessert servings.

CHILD-FRIENDLY HOT CROSS BUNS

This simple recipe forgoes yeast and uses muffin tins…so easy and delicious; you’ll want to enjoy it all during the year, not just at Easter.

You will need: For the buns: ½ cup orange juice, ¾ cup seedless golden raisins, 2 cups flour, 1 Tb baking powder, 2/3 cup granulated sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon, ½ cup milk, 1/3 cup canola oil, 2 eggs, 2 tsp vanilla extract, zest of 1 orange, 3 mixing bowls and a 12-cup greased muffin tin. For the icing: 1 cup confectioner’s sugar, 1 Tb orange juice.

1. Combine orange juice and raisins in a micro-wave safe bowl and micro-wave on high for 1 minute.

2. In another bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and cinnamon.

3. In a smaller bowl, whisk together milk, oil, eggs, vanilla and orange zest.

4. Add the milk mixture and the raisin mixture to the flour mixture and stir until just moistened.

5. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups and bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean and dry.

6. Remove the muffin tin from the oven and cool for 5 minutes before placing the muffins on a rack to cool completely.

7. When the muffins are completely cool, prepare the icing (in a small bowl, mix confectioner’s sugar and 1 Tb orange juice until smooth) and drizzle on top of each muffin to form a cross.

Please stop by tomorrow…and don’t forget that THE HOPPY EASTER EGGSTRAVAGANZA GIVEAWAY BLOG HOP starts here on Wednesday…and at over 200 other blogs. You will be able to enter to win a copy of Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Esteem Through Reading, Crafting and Cooking and then hop over to the other blogs to enter their giveaways.

Make-A-Meal Mondays: Child-Friendly Veggie-Loaded English Muffin Pizza

Posted on April 11, 2011 by viviankirkfield

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Some things just go together.

Peanut butter and jelly.

Children and buckets of sand to make sand castles.

A good movie and a bowl of popcorn.

A good book and a comfy corner.

When it comes to finding things that children like to eat, you can’t go wrong with PIZZA.

I remember when my children were young, English Muffin Pizza was a hand’s down favorite and it was so simple to make, they were able to help me with the preparation.

Here is a really HEALTHY version of this family favorite.

CHILD-FRIENDLY VEGGIE-LOADED ENGLISH MUFFIN PIZZA

You will need for each serving: 1 English Muffin, 2 Tb fresh diced tomato, 2 Tb fresh diced green pepper, 1 Tb fresh diced onion, 1 Tb small broccoli florets, 1 tsp grated Parmesan cheese, 1 Tb shredded mozzarella cheese and 1 cookie sheet.

1. Split the muffin and top each half with the veggies and cheeses.

2. Place the muffins on the cookie sheet and bake about 10 minutes at 350 degrees, until the cheese is melted and the veggies are soft, but not mushy.

3. Let the muffins cool before serving to young children…be CAREFUL because the veggies under the cheese can be VERY HOT!!!

4. You can add or substitute other veggies or fruits such as sliced mushrooms, diced zucchini, small cauliflower florets, diced pineapple…use your imagination!!!

This is only one of 100 child-friendly healthful recipes you will find in my book, SHOW ME HOW! BUILD YOUR CHILD’S SELF-ESTEEM THROUGH READING, CRAFTING AND COOKING. Saturday was the last day of the half-price sale and giveaway of the collection of craft supplies. The winner is Baxter at http://thebaxterbunny.com/ CONGRATULATIONS!!!

If you visit my website, you can check out this valuable resource that just WON the KIDLUTIONS PREFERRED PRODUCT AWARD. Hurray!!!!!

I’m also thrilled that I’ll be interviewed on May 24^th at 10am by Lisa Hein, Radio Talk Show Host of Everyday Parenting. Hurray!!!!!

And, last, but certainly not least, tomorrow I will be hosting Max the Dog and Anthony, his partner who are on a 36-day book blog tour. You can check them out at http://www.readwithmax.blogspot.com Please stop by here tomorrow and find out all about Leader Dogs for the Blind and an awesome new children’s book!

Make-A-Meal Mondays: Child-Friendly Banana-Raisin Bran Muffins

Posted on March 21, 2011 by viviankirkfield

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The theme for my posts this week is companions.

The dictionary defines companion as one that accompanies another comrade or associate, a friend who is frequently in the company of another.

When I think about ingredients that are happy companions of each other, this simple, child-friendly recipe for BANANA BRAN MUFFINS comes to mind.

After all, how can something with applesauce, bananas, cinnamon and raisins taste badly…and when you add oat bran and whole wheat flour, you get a muffin that packs an enormous nutrition punch!!!!

CHILD-FRIENDLY BANANA-RAISIN BRAN MUFFINS

These highly nutritious muffins make a wonderful snack…or team them with a vegetable salad or soup for a terrific lunch!!

You will need: 1 cup whole wheat flour, 1½ tsp baking powder, ¼ tsp baking soda, ½ tsp cinnamon, 1 cup oat bran, 3 Tbs milk, 1 egg, ½ cup canola oil, 1 cup mashed banana, ½ cup raisins, 1 cup applesauce, 1 tsp honey, a large bowl and a lightly greased 12-cup muffin tin.

1. In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients and mix well.

2. Add milk, egg, applesauce and oil and blend together.

3. Mix in raisins and mashed banana.

4. Spoon batter into muffin cups and bake at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes.

5. Cool well before serving. Makes 12 regular size muffins.

This recipe is just one of 100 easy child-friendly healthful cooking activities you will find in SHOW ME HOW! BUILD YOUR CHILD’S SELF-ESTEEM THROUGH READING, CRAFTING AND COOKING. This book is a wonderful resource and shortcut for busy parents and teachers who want to provide educational fun-filled activities for preschoolers. Visit my website to take advantage of the 50%-off-the-cover-price sale, going on until April 9^th! You can also enter to win a great colection of craft supplies for your preschoolers by purchasing a copy or by just filling in the contact form on the website or leaving me a comment here on why you would like to win the craft supplies. Make sure you leave your email so I can notify you if you are the winner. Winner will be announced April 10th.

Please stop by tomorrow for Quotable Timeless Tuesdays for some great quotations on Companionship.