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Tag Archives: eats

Toddler Food: What Miss G Eats {3}

3 / 20 / 123 / 20 / 12

Toddler Food

IMG 8030Breakfast // Scrambled organic egg with basil and fresh parmesan.  Wholewheat english muffin with all-nautral cream cheese.  Strawberries, honeydew, and banana slices.

IMG 7790Breakfast // Old-fashioned oatmeal with stewed apples, walnuts, ground flax, cinnamon, and whole organic milk.

IMG 7609Breakfast // Toasted multigrain bagel with all-natural almond butter.  Melon and avocado slices.

IMG 7667Snack // Blueberry banana oatmeal smoothie.

IMG 7671Snack // Roasted garlic parmesan chickpeas.

IMG 7687Snack // Steamed edamame beans.

IMG 7791Snack // Fresh mango.

IMG 7793Snack // Jalapeño havarti on multigrain seed crackers.

IMG 8045Snack // Apple sandwich (all-natural peanut butter, old-fashioned oats, and organic raisins).

IMG 7612Lunch // Veggie and bean soup with crostini cubes and fresh parmesan.

IMG 7831Lunch // Creamy curry penne with grilled chicken and veggies.

IMG 8100Lunch // Chicken and wild rice wrap (low-sodium spinach tortilla, fresh spinach leaves, brown wild rice, grilled chicken, toasted almonds, green grapes, onions, and celery). Fresh veggies.  Roasted red pepper humus for dipping.

IMG 8124Lunch // Tomato, spinach, and orzo soup topped with feta.  Turkey, oat, and seed meatballs.  Seedy organic sourdough drizzled with olive oil (the bread she selected while on our recent Trader Joe’s visit – a special treat because we don’t normally eat white breads).

IMG 7443Dinner // Chicken and refried bean burritos baked in tomatillo sauce.  Fresh avocado and tomato.  Sour cream for dipping.

IMG 7608Dinner // Poached chicken breast with lemon and herbs.  Barley, kale, cranberry salad.  Steamed beets.

IMG 7681Dinner // California shrimp pizza (wholewheat crust, pesto, shrimp, sun-dried tomato, parmesan, feta, and fresh avocado).  Roasted red cabbage. Lemon wedge for drizzling (or for sucking on if you’re like Grae).

IMG 7779Dinner // Amita’s curry (Amita, our housekeeper in Kuwait made this at least once a week for us and we never got sick of it…delish).  Sticky white rice (a special treat because Papa says Amita’s curry just can’t be on brown rice).

IMG 7832Dinner // Wholewheat spaghetti with grilled chicken, fresh baby spinach, artichoke hearts, sun-dried tomatoes, feta, garlic, onions, and fresh parmesan.

IMG 7686Dessert // Greek yogurt with hemp hearts and frozen blueberries.

IMG 8025Dessert // Baby banana.  All-natural almond butter for dipping.

IMG 7783Dessert // Organic yogurt with homemade granola and organic raisins.

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Toddler Food: What Miss G Eats {2: St. Paddy’s Edition}

3 / 17 / 123 / 16 / 13

I can’t tell you how happy I am that Gracen is a good eater.  As a mama, providing her with proper nutrition is at the tippy top of my list of goals, right next to making sure she gets proper sleep.  Of course I’d like to attribute her good eating habits to the way we introduced her to food initially (and the way we continue to deal with her eating in general), but it could very well just be that we are lucky.  Or perhaps it’s a little bit of both.  Either way, if she was a picky little thing, as many munchkins are, you’d better bet I’d use St. Patrick’s Day to trick her into eating as many green things as possible in one single day of the year.  It would most likely involve some crazy story involving pesky leprechauns and lucky green super foods, but for now, let’s just be thankful I don’t have to go there. Today Gracen and I ate green foods at each meal, and she was more than happy to do so!

Toddler Food

IMG 7836Breakfast // Green pepper enclosed organic egg.  Green fruit salad.  Toasted multigrain farmer’s bread drizzled with olive oil.

IMG 7923Lunch // Veggie and black bean quesadillas (low-sodium spinach tortilla, roasted zucchini, avocado, green onion, no salt added black beans, and jalapeño havarti).  Avocado sour cream for dipping.

IMG 8003Snack // Spinach and green fruit smoothie.

IMG 8011Dinner // Pesto chicken breast.  Spinach linguine with avocado, fresh spinach, and toasted pine nuts.  Roasted spicy green beans.

IMG 8028Dessert // Grape skewers.

4 Comments

Spinach & Green Fruit Smoothie

3 / 17 / 123 / 17 / 12

Recently, Miss G and I have been experimenting with spinach smoothies.  So far, we’ve found that you can pretty much add a couple giant handfuls of fresh baby spinach to any smoothie without altering it’s taste very much.  Now, I’m not going to lie…  Despite the flavour remaining the same, the appearance does not.  In fact, many of the smoothies we’ve tried look like poop.  Strawberries or raspberries plus green spinach equals brown.  Blueberries plus green spinach equals an even darker brown…  So today, with St. Patrick’s Day in mind, we set out to make a bright green, vitamin-packed smoothie that not only tasted good, but looked appetizing too.  And we succeeded!  Here’s our spinach and green fruit smoothie:

IMG 7957First off, our ingredients…  Fresh baby spinach, green grapes, honeydew, a frozen ripe banana, a green apple, and coconut milk.

IMG 7961Start off by putting your frozen banana into a blender.

IMG 7967Add your apple chunks.

IMG 7965Be sure to stop and take a bite.

IMG 7970Dump in your honeydew.

IMG 7971And then pour in your grapes.

IMG 7974Next, fill up your blender with fresh baby spinach.

IMG 7977And pour in some coconut milk (or your preferred type of milk).

IMG 7982Pop on the lid…

IMG 7991And blend until bright green and smooth.

IMG 7994Pour into glasses (or sippy cups).

IMG 7999Enjoy!

Here’s our {approximate} recipe:

Spinach & Green Fruit Smoothie

  • 1 ripe frozen banana
  • 1 green apple, chopped
  • 3/4 cup of green grapes
  • 3/4 cup of honeydew melon
  • 3 big handfuls of fresh baby spinach
  • 1 cup of coconut milk

Put all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.  Enjoy!

*For a less-textured smoothie, peel your apple first.  Plain greek yogurt and kiwi would be great additions to this recipe.

2 Comments

St. Paddy’s Day

3 / 17 / 123 / 16 / 13

Today Grae and I had a busy day filled with all things green.  It started out with a happy little munchkin waking up extra early and extra hungry, so we got to it and prepared a green breakfast.IMG 7844

Finding something green to wear was a bit of a challenge as this little lady has very little green in her closet, but it was nothing a ridiculously big green bow couldn’t fix.  It was so adorable in fact, that we ended up having a little impromptu St. Patty’s Day photo shoot.

IMG 7858IMG 7852
IMG 7856

The weather forecast called for a rainy, snowy morning, but by 9:30, neither had made an appearance so we packed up our things and headed down to Granville Island to get some fresh air and do some exploring.  We picked up our usual Granville Island treats (Terra Bread cheese flutes for G and a coffee for Mama) and headed to the playground where Gracen played in sand, slid on repeat, and made some friends.

IMG 7867IMG 7868IMG 7871IMG 7873Afterwards we headed back to the Public Market area and visited the birds, boats, and performers like usual.  IMG 7880IMG 7885IMG 7887IMG 7896Apparently Grae was pooped after a crisp morning outdoors because she was out like a light after just a minute in the car.

IMG 7912

After a great nap, I prepared lunch while Gracen begged for pieces of green onion below me.  I ended up giving her a whole green onion and the little monkey was pleased as punch, headed to the living room with it, and chowed down.  Luckily she saved enough room for our green lunch.IMG 7914IMG 7934
The afternoon turned out to be beautiful too, so we took advantage of it and headed outside to do some art.  Grae was beyond excited to use bingo dabbers (sadly, we didn’t have green, so we ended up with blue and rainbow coloured shamrocks, but oh well…) and dug the sidewalk chalk as usual.

IMG 7947IMG 7949By late afternoon, G had worked up an appetite, so we whipped up a quick green smoothie to hit the  spot.IMG 7997
Shortly after, it was time for our last green meal of the day.  Of course this little monkey carefully picked out and ate each pine nut and avocado chunk before eating anything else.IMG 8020IMG 8024

Gracen’s second St. Patrick’s Day… Whew!  How things have changed in a quick year.  Just take a look at my chubby-cheeked, spiky-haired little munchkin last year.

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Roasted Garlic Parmesan Chickpeas

3 / 14 / 1210 / 18 / 15

IMG 7659This afternoon Gracen and I whipped up a quick and delicious snack that I pinned a few days ago – roasted garlic parmesan chickpeas.  We eat beans all the time and Grae really loves crunchy snacks (nuts, seeds, crackers, crostini, biscotti), so I figured this recipe would be a hit.  And it was!  Here’s what we did:

IMG 7615
Get started while your little one naps by draining and rinsing a couple of cans of chickpeas.

IMG 7617
Then lay them out on a towel to dry.

IMG 7618
When your munchkin wakes up and has had her quiet time, ask her if she wants to bake and watch her run to the kitchen to retrieve her apron (happens every time).  Then get her to transfer all of the chickpeas from the towel into a large bowl.

IMG 7624
Get started by adding a splash of your favourite oil.

IMG 7625

Then shake in a little bit of sea salt and freshly ground pepper.

IMG 7627
Sprinkle in some basil and oregano too.

IMG 7630
Then add a few cloves of minced garlic.

IMG 7632
Lastly, add a generous amount of freshly grated parmesan cheese.

IMG 7636
Give everything a really good stir.

IMG 7643
All of the herbs and seasonings should be evenly distributed.

IMG 7646
Dump the contents of the bowl out onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and spread the chickpeas out into a single layer.

IMG 7650
Sneak a few just to make sure they taste good.

IMG 7651
Then pop them in the oven and try to wait patiently while they crisp up for the better part of an hour.

IMG 7659
When they’re crispy and slightly browned, take them out of the oven to cool.

IMG 7674
Then give your highly impatient toddler a little bowl…

IMG 7678
And watch her devour them.

If you want to give these a try, the original recipe can be found here, and this is our slightly modified version:

Roasted Garlic Parmesan Chickpeas

  • 2 cans of no salt added chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1/2 of a cup of freshly grated parmesan cheese
  • 3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • 1 TBSP of avocado oil
  • 1 1/2 tsp of basil
  • 1 1/2 tsp of oregano
  • 1/2 tsp of freshly ground pepper
  • 1/4 tsp of sea salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Drain the chickpeas and rinse them well.  Lay them on a towel to dry for 30 minutes to an hour.

Put all ingredients into a large bowl and mix well.  Spread mixture onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour until crispy and slightly browned.  Let cool and enjoy!

 

3 Comments

Toddler Food: What G Eats {1}

3 / 12 / 123 / 18 / 12

I’m always a little bit shocked to find out that people outside our friends and family visit our blog now and then. I mean, of course I find Miss G irresistibly adorable, even when copious numbers of photos are involved.  I can even understand that our friends and family members may feel the same way…  But people whom we’ve never met?  (Okay, let’s be honest – it’s not very many people whom we’ve never met, but I’m still a little surprised that they find what’s posted here interesting enough to visit.)  Either way, it’s very flattering. That being said, imagine my surprise when I was contacted last week by a fellow mommy who asked if I’d be willing to share more about what Gracen eats throughout the day after stumbling upon one of my ‘Cooking with Miss G’ posts…

As a little back story, I subscribed to several ‘mommy blogs’ when we first learned we were expecting and reading about other people’s journey through mommyhood has now become a part of my daily routine.  I know that sounds kind of creepy, but reading mommy blogs has allowed me to learn from other’s experiences, be comforted by other mama’s  stories, and come across all kinds of great toddler-friendly activities, projects, and recipes.  And since little ones seem to be constantly eating, I’ve always enjoyed finding new meal and snack ideas to prepare for G.

So… I figure since I obviously already make the food, and since I already take a minimum of 100 photos a day (crazy, I know), why not share some of the things Grae eats?  It keeps with the theme of this blog being a modern day baby book of sorts and if it gives just one mommy one new idea, then why not?  So here it is… Our first Toddler Food post.

Toddler Food

IMG 7117

Breakfast //  Organic yogurt with chia, hemp hearts, seeds, and dried fruit.  Grapefruit sections.

IMG 7345Breakfast // Wholewheat flax waffles with stewed berries.

IMG 7406Breakfast // Avocado on toasted farmer’s bread.  Banana slices with all-natural peanut butter.

IMG 7446Special Saturday Brunch // French crepes with berries and fresh whipped cream.

IMG 7465

Breakfast // Oatmeal with walnuts, blueberries, and organic milk.  Banana berry flax smoothie.

IMG 7413Snack // ‘Lulu Mix’ (walnuts, almonds, pecans, cashews, organic raisins, organic o’s).

IMG 7199Snack // Cranberry Almond Biscotti.

IMG 7363Snack // Banana Almond Oatmeal Smoothie.

IMG 7408Snack // Fresh veggies.  Multigrain seed crackers.  Organic artichoke pesto for dipping.

IMG 7052Lunch // Grilled avocado and cheddar on multigrain flax seed flat bread.  Fresh veggies and sun-dried tomato humus.  Banana almond oatmeal smoothie.

IMG 7204Lunch // Wholewheat shells with cheddar, white tuna, peas, and herbs.

IMG 7554Lunch // Chickpea patty. Quinoa salad. Broiled jalapeño havarti on multigrain flax flatbread.

IMG 7113Dinner // Wholewheat spaghetti with turkey spinach tomato sauce.  Roasted asparagus.  Ice water. (G LOVES ice!)

IMG 7343Dinner // Salsa and cheddar baked chicken.  Orzo with feta and toasted pine nuts.  Steamed broccoli with lemon. (This meal idea was stolen from my sister-in-law!)

IMG 7400Dinner // Mulligatawny with chicken and brown wild rice.  Multigrain flax flat bread for dipping.

IMG 7557Dinner // Wholewheat pesto pizza with roasted chicken, artichoke hearts, mushrooms, and sun-dried tomatoes.  Spinach salad with avocado, dried cranberries, and seeds.

IMG 7203Dessert // Mango chunks.  Strawberry slices.

IMG 7404Dessert // Orange slices. Greek yogurt for dipping.

9 Comments

iPhoneography // Sushi

3 / 10 / 123 / 28 / 12

IMG 2744We very rarely eat out, so when we do, it’s exciting!  Especially because it’s normally sushi, which Miss G absolutely loves.

IMG 2750Tonight, as usual, she ate her weight in miso soup, veggie rolls, edamame beans, and tofu.

She also tried this… (Try your best to ignore my machine gun laugh. Ugh.)

Apparently she’s not a fan.  I don’t blame her.  Yuck.

 

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Smoothie Chef

3 / 7 / 129 / 9 / 13

IMG 7347

This morning Grae and I whipped up one of her all-time favourite snacks, a banana almond oatmeal smoothie.  These are seriously delicious, take all of 2 minutes to make (maybe 5 if working with a mini sous chef), and require ingredients we always have in the house.  Here’s what you need:  A frozen ripe banana, milk, yogurt, old-fashioned oats, almond butter (or any nut butter for that matter), and pure vanilla.

(Side note: Please try to ignore our hideous kitchen tiles!  We are currently renting and somehow the 6 months we’ve spent here has allowed me to enter the kitchen without shuddering in disgust, but seeing these photos makes me wonder how that’s possible…  Yeesh!  I’m sure they were fashionable at one point in time.)

IMG 7348

Break your frozen banana in half and pop it in the blender.

IMG 7351

Add your old-fashioned oats.

IMG 7353

And some yogurt.  (Make sure it’s GOOD yogurt.  Good yogurt makes all the difference.  We’re all about the Greek yogurt right now.)

IMG 7356

Pour in some milk.

IMG 7358

And some all-natural almond butter.

IMG 7359

Add a couple of drops of pure vanilla if you wish.

IMG 7361

Blend until smooth.

IMG 7365

Voila!  Done.

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Shove your entire mouth into your glass and slurp as quickly as possible to achieve this awesome smoothie moustache.

You really can’t go wrong with this smoothie.  If you like to experiment, just chuck the ingredients into the blender and play with the ratios to reach your desired flavour and consistency.  If you prefer to follow a recipe of sorts, here’s what we normally do:

Banana Almond Oatmeal Smoothie

  • 1 frozen banana
  • 1 cup of milk
  • 1/2 cup of yogurt
  • 3 TBSP of old-fashioned oats
  • 2 TBSP of all-natural almond butter
  • 1 tsp of pure vanilla

Put all ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth.  Pour into two cups and enjoy!

1 Comment

Baking Biscotti

3 / 6 / 123 / 6 / 12

IMG 7127It’s been a little while since I baked something with the help of my little sous chef, so this morning we got to work and tried making some healthy, wholewheat, low-sugar biscotti.  First things first, we gathered our ingredients:  wholewheat flour, raw almonds, organic dried cranberries, baking powder, sea salt, pure maple syrup, pure vanilla, pure lemon extract, and eggs.

IMG 7129Then it was on to our dry ingredients.  As always, I measured and Miss G dumped.  Her aim is not always spot on, but boy, oh boy, does she ever love this part.  In with the flour.

IMG 7132Add the baking powder and sea salt.

IMG 7133Chuck in your almonds.

IMG 7145And your cranberries.

IMG 7151Next, on to the wet ingredients.  Crack your eggs and pour them into a separate bowl.

IMG 7154Add the maple syrup, vanilla, and lemon extract.

IMG 7159And give it a good whisk.

IMG 7161Now for the combining.  FIrst, give your dry ingredients a little mix.

IMG 7163Then slowly add your wet ingredients into the dry ones.

IMG 7165Mix just until combined and scrape your attachment clean.

IMG 7166Plop the sticky dough onto a parchment-lined pan.

IMG 7170With very well-floured hands, gently pat your dough into a rectangular shape about 1 inch thick.

IMG 7174Then pop it into the oven and bake.

IMG 7177While you wait, clean up and then have a tea party.

IMG 7181Or play with a tray of ocean items.

IMG 7185When risen and golden brown, take your loaf out of the oven and let it cool for about 10 minutes.

IMG 7186Once cooled, carefully cut into thick slices.

IMG 7188Place the slices back onto your pan, pop it in the oven, and go for a walk around the block.

IMG 7189Come home to a delicious smelling house and fully baked biscotti.

IMG 7193Enjoy!

These actually turned out really well and got the Gracen stamp of approval in the form of a sign for ‘More, more, more!’  Ours have just a tiny bit of sweetness and a good crunch without being rock hard.  If you want to try making your own, the original recipe can be found here and this is our modified version:

Cranberry Almond Biscotti

  • 1 1/4 cup of wholewheat flour
  • 1 tsp of baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp of sea salt
  • 1/2 cup of chopped almonds
  • 1/4 of dried organic cranberries, chopped
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 TBSP of pure maple syrup
  • 1 tsp of pure vanilla
  • 1/2 tsp of pure lemon extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Mix together flour, baking powder, and sea salt. Stir in the nuts and fruit.

Whisk together the eggs and extracts. Slowly add to flour mixture, stirring until combined.

With floured hands, shape dough into a rectangular loaf about 1 inch thick on the parchment-lined baking sheet.  Bake for about 25 minutes until the loaf is risen and firm. Remove the loaf from the oven and reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees.

Let the loaf cool about 10 minutes on a cutting board, then cut into thick slices.

Arrange slices cut-side down and bake 10 minutes.  Turn the slices over and bake for 10 more minutes, until dried.  Let cool on wire rack.  Enjoy!

*Grae and I cooked our slices for the first 10 minutes, flipped them, turned the oven off completely and let them sit in the cooling oven as we went out for a 45 minute walk, and ours turned out perfectly!

 

 

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What We Eat While Papa’s Away

2 / 21 / 123 / 1 / 12

Today we had a day of rest and relaxation at home. It was filled with snuggles and stories, drawing and colouring, doing puzzles on repeat, and multiple games of hide-and-seek.  Sadly, our day of relaxation meant missing a Port Moody play date we were anxiously awaiting, but after coming home to a runny-nosed doodlebug who coughed herself to sleep last night, I knew we were in need of a very low-key day. In addition to the things I already mentioned, Gracen and I spent a good part of our day doing one of her very favourite things – cooking!  We whipped up two of our ‘while Papa’s away’ staples – chickpea patties and quinoa salad. Both are easy to make, full of nutrients, and delicious (despite what Bradley may say).  The best part?  Both are very sous chef friendly.  :)

 

Chickpea Patties:IMG 6075
First things first, we drained and rinsed our chickpeas well.  Then Gracen carefully shuffled them into a large bowl.

IMG 6084Next, we added a drizzle of olive oil and an egg.

IMG 6079Then Grae mashed like mad.

IMG 6087When the chickpeas were good and mushy, Gracen added in our fresh ingredients – carrots, zucchini, sweet onions, garlic, green onions, and fresh cilantro.

IMG 6094Then we added the dry ingredients – wholewheat flour, cornmeal, black pepper, sea salt, curry powder, and garam masala.

IMG 6099And just for fun, today we tossed in a little feta.

IMG 6108That’s it.  Then my little sous chef mixed, mixed, and mixed some more until all of the ingredients were evenly distributed.

IMG 6111Then we formed them into patties.

IMG 6114And popped them in the oven.  And while those baked, we started on our next dish…

 

Quinoa Salad:
IMG 6126First off, Miss G added our fresh veggies to our already cooked quinoa.

IMG 6131Of course she stopped to steal a few big chunks of avocado in between handfuls.

IMG 6134Then we added a little drizzle of olive oil…

IMG 6137And generous drizzle of the Okanagan’s own, Little Creek Dressing (delish).

IMG 6141Then Grae mixed it all up.

 

IMG 6149

That’s it.  Lunch is served.  Chickpea patty, garlic scape pesto, quinoa salad, and apple slices for dessert.

IMG 6152Of course Grae gobbled it up like we hadn’t fed her in a week!  Hopefully a vitamin-packed lunch will help her fight this little bug that seems to be pestering her.  Recipes below. :)

 

Truthfully, neither of these are “recipes”.  Both just kind of came about last summer when we were freshly home from Kuwait and taking advantage of Grandma Charlotte’s fully stocked vegetable garden.  There are tons of possible ingredient variations and honestly, nothing I’ve done to either dish has turned out badly.  Yay for forgiving recipes!  :)

Chickpea Patties:

  • 2 cans of no salt added / low sodium chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1 egg
  • generous drizzle of olive oil
  • 1/2 of a large carrot, grated
  • 1 small zucchini, grated
  • 1/4 of a sweet Spanish onion, finely chopped
  • 2 green onions, chopped
  • 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • handful of fresh cilantro, coarsely chopped
  • small chunk of feta, crumbled (yummy, but totally optional)
  • 2 – 3 TBSP of wholewheat flour
  • 2 – 3 TBSP of cornmeal or breadcrumbs
  • 1 TBSP of curry powder
  • 1 TBSP of garam masala
  • generous grinding of fresh pepper
  • pinch of sea salt (not needed if using feta)

*Veggie combos are endless.  Mushrooms, leeks, kale, and spinach are delicious in these too.  Also, instead of curry powder and garam masala, basil, thyme, and oregano can be substituted for a more Italian feel.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a baking pan with parchment paper.

Drain and rinse the chickpeas.  Add the olive oil and egg and mash well.  Add all other ingredients and stir well.  Gently form into patties and place on the lined pan.  If patties are difficult to form because the mixture has too much moisture, adjust the amount of flour / breadcrumbs.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, flipping once halfway through. Serve as is, with a dipping sauce, on a bun with traditional burger toppings, or wrapped in a pita with lettuce and tomato.

 

Quinoa Salad:

  • 2 cups of boiling water
  • 1 cup of uncooked quinoa
  • 1/2 of an avocado, diced
  • 2 green onions, chopped
  • 1/2 of a red pepper, diced
  • 1/4 of a long English cucumber, chopped
  • handful of fresh parsley, chopped
  • small drizzle of olive oil
  • generous drizzle of your favourite dressing

*For a more Mexican vibe, replace the cucumber and parsley with some black beans, corn, jalapeños, and cilantro.

Bring water to a boil.  Add the quinoa, cover, and turn the heat down to low.  Remove from heat when all water is absorbed and fluff quinoa with a fork.  Let cool.

Add fresh veggies, herbs, olive oil, and dressing.  Mix well and serve.

 

3 Comments

Granola Crunchers

2 / 17 / 123 / 1 / 12

Okay, so maybe we’re not really granola crunchers, but we’re definitely granola lovers.  The problem is that granola you buy at the store is filled with all kinds of sugar, sodium, and other things we don’t want Grae to eat. And since we picked up a bunch of delicious Liberté yogurt today, we needed a batch of homemade, healthy granola, pronto.  Of course my little sous chef was more than happy to help out in the kitchen.

IMG 5900First things first…  Gracen measured out our old-fashioned oats.

IMG 5903Then she added the almonds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, ground flax, wheatgerm, and quinoa flakes.

IMG 5908And enthusiastically shook in the unsweetened coconut.

IMG 5910That was it for dry ingredients.  Then it was time to stir, stir, stir.  (Don’t mind Grae’s bruised cheek – the poor little thing had a fall a couple of days back.)

IMG 5920On to the wet ingredients and spices!  In a separate bowl (or in our case, measuring cup), we added and mixed together our applesauce, pure maple syrup, olive oil, cinnamon, ginger, and salt.

IMG 5924This part is the most fun.  We added the wet ingredients to the dry and Grae went on a stirring frenzy.

IMG 5929When everything was evenly coated, we dumped the mixture out on two large baking sheets, spread it out, and drizzled on just a touch more olive oil before popping both pans into the oven.

IMG 5930Gracen was our official granola watcher and I was the official granola flipper.  We make a pretty good team. :)

IMG 5934And after about 45 minutes in the oven, we took it out to cool on the counter. Voila!  Done.

IMG 5941Gracen patiently waited for dinner to be made, ate up her portion, and then moved on to her anxiously-awaited dessert course – yogurt with granola and dried fruit!

IMG 5943Apparently it was so good that it disappeared more quickly than she was prepared for.

IMG 5947Be warned – if you try this recipe, licking leftovers off of your sleeve is a total possibility.

Here’s the original recipe and here’s our slightly modified version:

  • 6 cups old-fashioned oats
  • 2 cups chopped raw almonds
  • 1/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds
  • 1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds
  • 1/4 cup sesame seeds
  • 1/4 cup wheat germ
  • 1/4 cup ground flax seed
  • 3/4 cup unsweetened coconut
  • 2 TBSP quinoa flakes
  • 2 individual cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 1/4 cup pure organic maple syrup
  • 3 TBSP extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 TBSP ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 TBSP ground ginger
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt
Preheat the oven to 300°F.

Mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl.  Mix the wet ingredients together in a separate bowl, and then add to dry ingredients.  Stir well to mix thoroughly.

Spread the mixture onto two baking dishes. Bake for about 45 minutes, or until evenly golden brown, stirring every 15 minutes to ensure even browning.

Enjoy!
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Popcorn

2 / 16 / 123 / 1 / 12

IMG 5780A little while ago, we let Gracen try some plain stove-popped popcorn for the first time…  And boy, oh boy, does she ever love it.

IMG 5782Apparently she also loves flinging it out of the bowl and all over the place.

IMG 5783Time for a smaller bowl and fewer pieces…

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G’s 2nd Annual Valentine’s Tea

2 / 14 / 129 / 22 / 13

Today we hosted Gracen’s second mamas and munchkins Valentine’s tea.  It was a very different scene than last year’s party where us Kuwait mamas sat around a blanket of rolly polly babies while chatting and sipping on hot coffee.  This morning was wonderfully chaotic, and by the end of it, I think all of us mommies had worked up a sweat.  Just goes to show how much things change in one year.  Here are some photos from this morning’s mamas and munchkins tea, complete with three curious and busy toddlers and one adorable 6 month old.

The decor:

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Sidewalk chalk art.

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The mantle.

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Pink tulips, a free Valentine’s print, a paint chip garland,and a candy bar we didn’t even get to because there were so many other sweets.

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Gracen’s bedroom door decorated with hearts she painted and hung {mostly} by herself.

Mama treats:

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Dark and white chocolate covered strawberries.

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Raspberry white chocolate scones.

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Fruit salsa and cinnamon sugar chips (adapted from this recipe).

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Pain au chocolat.

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Cookies from Mozart Bakery. (There was also the most delicious dip with strawberries and heart-shaped fruit cut outs, but somehow I missed taking a photo.  Shoot.)

Munchkin treats:

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Fruit leather hearts.

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Melon hearts.

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Mini heart-shaped margherita pizzas.

Activities:

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Mess-free finger painting station.

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Mural wall.

The munchkins:

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Jackson.

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Ainsley.

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Keagan.

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And of course this little pizza monster.

The action:

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Snack time for Ainsley and Jackson.

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Drool never looked so cute!

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Finger painting toddlers.

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Obsessed with Keagan’s soft blanket. In fact, she loved it so much that she insisted I take her ponytails out so she could roll around on it without her head hurting.

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Checking things out.

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Recess time at the school across the street looks pretty cool.

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Baby love.

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Team cleaning.

 

Happy Valentine’s Day!

IMG 5556♥

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Valentine’s Day with Miss Grae

2 / 14 / 129 / 22 / 13

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Gracen and I had a jammed-packed fun-filled Valentine’s Day today and it all started out like this.

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With heart-shaped pancakes, strawberry slices, and fresh whipped cream.  Gracen was in heaven.

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After breakfast, Grae opened her little Valentine’s Day bag from Bradley and I.

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Inside she found a new photo book called Gracen Loves…

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A pretty little shirt (that she helped pick out last week)…

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And a new set of felt hair clips made with love by Mama.

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With the help of her Papa, she got dressed and ready for the day while I zipped around the house doing a few last minute things for the tea.

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This morning when she woke up Papa for breakfast, she marched into the bedroom and proudly presented Bradley with this card she made. (From the bottom of my heart…)

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(To the tips of my toes… I love YOU!)

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And before he left for work, Grae snuggled in closely and they danced around the living room for a few minutes. ♥

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Before her guests arrived, Gracen tested out the mess-free finger paint station we set up on the front window.

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After a wonderfully busy (and slightly crazy) Valentine’s tea (separate post to come) and a much needed nap, Grae had an afternoon snack of strawberries and fresh whipped cream.

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And then we headed to the park to get some fresh air and enjoy the day’s last hour of sunshine.

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When we got home, my sous chef and I started working on dinner.

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This little lady loves helping in the kitchen.  Not to mention that having her cook with me has solved our recent  “witching hour” dinner making disasters.

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For Mama and Grae – chicken, sundried tomato, roasted garlic, and feta pizza.  (I’m embarrassed to say that Grae ate 5 – yes, FIVE – mini heart-shaped pizzas at her little party today and I had already planned pizza for dinner too.  BIG helping of steamed green veggies needed on the side!)

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And for Papa – prosciutto and caramelized onion pizza.

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And if we hadn’t overdone the heart thing yet, heart-shaped bananas for dessert.

Overall, a wonderful day with my little valentine.  ♥

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Breakfast Helper

2 / 13 / 123 / 1 / 12

IMG 5442This morning Gracen helped me make one of our favourite ever breakfast dishes – Lottie + Doof’s baked oatmeal. (You can find the recipe here.  I normally follow it fairly closely, but I go very easy on the maple syrup and add some ground flax and wheatgerm for added nutrition.)

IMG 5444We normally make it with blueberries, but this morning we decided to switch things up a little and made it with raspberries instead.  Naturally, Gracen was the designated taste tester.

IMG 5447After all that hard work in the kitchen, this little lady ate and then asked for a washcloth.  I gave her one and found her below her chair a few minutes later “cleaning up” her mess.  :)

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