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Dinner Planning For Busy School Days

Hi, how's it going? I spent the weekend painting. Not my favorite task, but it turned out good! Anyway, just a quick note to let you know that I posted a new article on the Dine Without Whine site. You can find it here: Dinner Planning For Busy School Days.

Christine

My Favorite Kitchen Appliance

As I was making my smoothie this morning, I was reminded that my Vita Mix Blender is honestly my favorite kitchen appliance. We use it almost every day. You can read my complete thoughts on it here: http://www.dinewithoutwhine.com/vita-mix.htm

I also have a great free smoothie recipe book for you here: http://www.healthymenumailer.com/healthy-breakfast-smoothies.pdf

Smoothies are a staple at our house. Such a great way to sneak some extra fruits, veggies and protein into ourselves (and our kids!)

C-

Breakfast Bagel Casserole

Breakfast Bagel Casserole

3 plain bagels (thinly sliced)
12 eggs (beaten)
1/2 pound cooked ham (diced)
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 tablespoon fresh chopped parsley
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 cup milk
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons butter

Place butter in heavy skillet. Add ham and onion. Sauté over low heat until tender (approximately 2 minutes). Set aside. Slice each bagel into 4 thin slices. Arrange 6 bagel slices at bottom of lightly greased baking dish. Top bagels with ham and onion mixture. Then top with cheddar cheese. Finally top with remaining bagel slices. In a separate bowl whisk together eggs, milk, parsley, and salt and pepper to taste. Pour the egg mixture over the bagel layers. Bake at 375F for approximately 30 minutes or until eggs are firm and cooked through.

Banana Muffins - YUM!

I had some bananas that needed used up (which doesn't happen too often around here - they usually get eaten quite quickly) so I pulled out this recipe. They were delicious and were gobbled up extremely fast at our house. I guess the boys were hungry!

Banana Muffins
1 1/2 c. Flour
1 t. Baking Powder
1 t. Baking Soda
1/2 t. Salt
1 t. Cinnamon
3 Large Bananas
3/4 C. Sugar
1 Egg
1/3 Cup Butter, Melted
1 t. Vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Coat muffin pans with non-stick spray, or use paper liners.

3. In a medium bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Set Aside.

4. In a large bowl beat bananas, sugar, egg, melted butter and vanilla.

5. Add flour mixture and beat until smooth.

6. Scoop into muffin pans

7. Bake for 20-25 minutes.


I hope you enjoy them as much as we did!

My FREE Soup Came!

My free soup came today! (see previous post) We had some for dinner and I must say it was VERY Good and I plan to order more. The creamy potato one was like the Bear Creek mix we used to buy at Costco (at least I think that was the brand…) It was a bit spicy for my taste (which isn’t saying much…) but it was good. I also made Chicken Noodle, and I am pretty sure that is going to become a stable at our house this winter. It has the Noodles like what come in Lipton Noodle Sides - but this is soup. It was PACKED with noodles. Generally at our house we fish out all the noodles and then have a pot of broth leftover. Well, this time, I fished out enough noodles for everyone and still had lots left in the pan! It also didn’t leave you with that “thirsty for the rest of the night” problem because it was so salty. It was packed with flavor but not so salty that you feel like you had your salt intake for a week in one serving. (Like many canned soups I’ve had). Generally in our house my four year old and I are the soup fans. But everybody gobbled this up! My four year old had seconds, and even my 23 month old tipped his bowl up and slurped the last drop. (which is saying a lot!) I made some biscuits to go along with it and we were full! I love that it comes in little packets too - less space in the pantry then those cans take, and each packet is equal to 2+ cans of soup. (although they also have single serve and bulk packets available) If you haven’t ordered your free sample yet you can do so here: www.dinewithoutwhine.com/soup (There is a small shipping charge, but it is worth it!)
Enjoy!

Pancakes

My kids love Saturday Morning Pancakes! (I personally do not care for panckes, but I think most people like them...)

Here is a basic recipe. We sometimes add bananas or chocolate chips too.

Basic Pancake Recipe
Makes approximately 8 pancakes

2 cups flour
2 cups milk
2 eggs (beaten)
1/3 cup butter (melted)
2 tablespoons sugar (optional)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

In a large bowl combine flour, milk, beaten eggs, 1/3 cup melted butter, sugar, baking powder and salt until just blended. Preheat lightly greased griddle or frying pan. Pour about 1/4 cup of batter into pan per pancake. Cook until pancakes begin to bubble. Flip once and cook for 1 to 2 minutes longer. Serve with maple syrup, jam or fruit.

Happy Labor Day Weekend!

Getting Your Kids to Eat Their Veggies – Six Easy Tips

One common struggle that most moms will face at some time or another is getting your kids to eat their veggies. Most kids will turn up their nose at the site of anything green. So how do you get around the veggie issue? Here are some fun and easy ways to convince your kids to gobble up their veggies.

Fun Presentation – Kids love fun and colorful food. Cut up some carrot sticks, cucumber rounds, sliced cherry tomatoes and sliced bell peppers and arrange them all in a plate. You can make a face using the cucumber rounds for the eyes, carrot sticks for eyebrows, cherry tomatoes for nose and mouth and arrange the pepper strips to form the face. Serve with hummus and cut pita bread on the side.

Make it Routine – Try to serve at least one veggie with each meal your child has. You can alternate between salads and cooked or cut veggies but always serve at least one with each meal. Your child may not eat them at first but if they see that veggies are a standard part of meal time they just may start trying them.

Set a Good Example – This one goes without saying. Just like making veggies a routine part of meals it will also help kids to see mom and dad eating their fair share. Show your kids how nice veggies can be by filling your plate up – adults need veggies too!

Get Creative – Okay this is a little sneaky but definitely works. Most kids love spaghetti so place some steamed veggies such as broccoli, cauliflower, peppers into a food processor and whiz until liquid. Add the mixture to your spaghetti sauce for a nutritious meal. Just make sure you don't go overboard and add too many veggies, as this will change the taste of the sauce. The trick is to start out slow and gradually increase the amount of veggies as your kid's taste palette changes.

Veggie Muffins – Add a little grated carrot or zucchini to your standard muffin recipe. Banana carrot muffins are delicious and so are zucchini chocolate chip muffins. You can also bake pumpkin muffins or cake. This is a great way to give your kids a yummy treat and still ensure they’re getting a good serving of veggies.

The One Bite Rule – We have a rule in our house. Even if the kids don't like the look of the veggies they must at least try one bite. If they actually don't like it then they don't have to eat it. This avoids a lot of meal time tantrums and a lot of times the kids will actually like the food once they taste it. Try it, you may be pleasantly surprised at how many different foods you kids will actually eat.