15 Healthy Recipes You Can Make With Your Toddler

One of my friends from high school contacted me on Facebook last week saying I seemed like a healthy mom and could I help her find some good recipes she could make with her pre-school class. (side note: I am always amused when people pick me out of crowds, including facebook, as "the healthy mom." Or "the kind of person who would use cloth diapers." I swear, I don't wear gypsy skirts or own anything made of hemp. Maybe someone I know in real life can tell me how I put out this vibe. But I digress...).

My little guy loves helping me in the kitchen and has his own little apron he likes to wear when he helps. I realized when my friend asked, though, that I hadn't focused much on my blog about food you can make with your toddler. What a great idea!

15 Healthy Recipes You Can Make

{With Your Toddler}

(clockwise from upper-left)

1: Chewy Chocolate Coconut Bars from Mad in Crafts. Have your kids help you mix the ingredients and let them have fun packing the granola down into the pan (put down a wax paper barrier and they can use their hands).
2: Healthy Creamy Apple Dip from C.R.A.F.T. This has only three ingredients (peanut butter, yogurt, cinnamon) and would be great for dipping organic apples into.
3: Personal Baked Apples from Having Fun at Home. You peel and core the apple and then let kids fill it with cold butter, cinnamon sugar (and I would add raisins and other dried fruit to the mix) before wrapping the whole thing pie crust and baking. Yum!
4: Peanut Butter Cracker Spiders from Mad in Crafts (scroll to the bottom below the costume). Even though Halloween is over, kids love insects any time of year. Up the health factor by using whole grain crackers and homemade peanut butter (below).

(clockwise from upper-left)

5: Peanut Butter from Carissa's Creativity Space. Peanut butter is super easy to make and a great way to connect kids with where their food comes from. Let kids pour the ingredients into the food processor and then press the buttons once the lid is locked on.
6: Crispy Almond Butter Power Balls from Rook No. 17. These are packed with calcium, omega 3's, whole grains, protein and antioxidants. Eat them right away or store them in the freezer for up to 3 months.
7: Chunky Cinnamon Crockpot Applesauce from Mad in Crafts. There are few snacks that kids seem to love more than applesauce. Making your own is really easy. In a classroom, you could set this up in the morning, cook it on high and have it ready to go by lunch time.
8: Banana Mint Ice Cream from C.R.A.F.T. We make banana ice cream in a similar way in our house and I LOVE how it tastes like ice cream when it's pretty much just fruit. Jamie adds honey to hers but we never do and find it's plenty sweet.

(clockwise from upper-left)

9: Whole Wheat Pita Pizzas from The Picky Eater. I love pita pizzas. Using pitas instead of dough makes this project easier for kids (and easier to do in a large group). Give the kids plenty of healthy topping options and let them make their own masterpiece.
10: Pumpkin Pancakes from Modern Mom. This is a tasty way to get more veggies into your kids diet and  they will love you for it. Leanna from All Done Monkey says you can do something similar with sweet potatoes for a different flavor and a boost of vitamin A.
11: Zots (Zucchini Tots) from Carissa's Creativity Space. These are great if you can find anyone with zucchini left (I personally have a large one still on my counter) or just pick one up from the store. These are a fun alternative to tater tots and easy for kids to help make.
12: Healthy Breakfast Cookies from Mad in Crafts. These are full of fruit, seeds, and whole grains. Let the kids pick what to add and calling it a cookie makes them feel like they are getting a special treat.

(left to right)

13: Strawberry Yogurt Waffle Stack from Carissa's Creativity Space. As written, this recipe is sized for a grown up, but you can make it toddler friendly my using mini whole wheat waffles (we like the ones from Earth's Best).
14: Chewy No-Bake Granola Bars from Money Saving Mom. I love that you don't have to make these and you can add whatever mix ins the kids prefer.
15: Apple Cinnamon French Toast from Carissa's Creativity Space. Use leftover apple sauce from idea #7 and help your kids make a tasty apple cinnamon breakfast treat that tastes like dessert.

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A special thanks to all the bloggers that featured such great content for me to share. I was delighted to feature you.  If you like showing off your "as seen on" swag, please feel free to grab a button:

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Healthy Easter Treats: How to Make Cheddar Bunny "Carrots"

Aside from all the plastic junk that accumulates around the holidays, the other thing that makes this green mom  crazy, is that Americans are conditioned to always celebrate holidays with large quantities of sugar. Candy candy everywhere! So if you aren't filling your little bunnies' easter eggs with candy, what do you put in their basket or bring as treats to class parties?

Creative Carissa's Favorite Healthy Easter Options

• Make your own playdough
• Books  (I just bought brand new Dr. Seuss books at Goodwill for $1 each)
• Socks
• Non-Toxic Nail Polish like Piggy Paint
• Sidewalk Chalk
• Healthy Snacks 
• Cheddar bunny carrots!

What you need
These carrots are super simple and were made with things I already had on hand. You will need:

• Annie's Cheddar Bunny crackers
• Plastic baggies **see my note below about plastic bags**
• Scissors
• Green Yarn or ribbon

**An important note about plastic bags**

Beware of the triangle shaped party bags often sold in the seasonal section of department stores as the plastics used often contain questionable ingredients like BPA. Instead, purchase baggies made for food that are explicitly labeled to be PVC, BPA and phthalate free. I personally use the bags from Whole Food's 365 brand as they are 100% polyethelene and free of these questionable ingredients.

Step 1: Fill the bag
Open a bag and pour in about 1/2 cup of crackers.

Step 2: Check for "carrotiness"

Make sure your bag is filled to the right level to make you happy with its carroty shape. Add more crackers if needed.

Step 3: Trim the top
Trim the top zipper edge off the bag.

Step 4: Tie the top
Pull out a length of about 2 yards of yarn. Keep folding the length in half until you have a large loop about 6 inches in length. Tie it around the top of the crackers.

Step 5: Make it pretty
Slide your scissors in the ends of the yarn loops and trim them to make a cute little tuft of fringe.

Step 7: Repeat
Keep going until you have all the little carrots you need. If you are bringing these to a class party or group event, be sure to keep or photocopy the ingredients list from the box so anyone worried about food allergies can check them out before enjoying.

If you have a favorite non-toxic or non-sugary Easter idea, I'd love to hear about it! Please feel free to share in the comments.

Morning Sunrise Smoothie

I love love love fresh juices and smoothies. They are a fun, delicious way to get more vitamins and nutrition into your diet. Kids love smoothies, too! Kids think they are getting a fancy dessert but mom knows they are loading up on good for you nutrition.

This is the smoothie recipe I have been making a few times a week now and my son loves it just as much as I do.  It's especially high in vitamins A and C and has less than 150 calories

I have a juicer that I use to make the fresh carrot and ginger juice. If you don't have a juicer, you could use packaged organic carrot juice from the store.

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Morning Sunrise Smoothie Recipe

Ingredients 

• 8-10 organic carrots (or approx 12 ounces packaged Organic carrot juice)
• 1 inch piece of ginger
• 1 orange, peeled and white center parts removed
• 1 cup chopped peaches (fresh or frozen)
• 1 banana (fresh or frozen)
• 6 ounces greek yogurt
• Ice cubes

1) Juice the organic carrots and ginger.

2) Add the carrot/ginger juice (or 12 ounces packaged carrot juice), orange segments, chopped peaches, banana and greek yogurt to a blender. Pulse on high until frozen parts are broken up. Blend on high until well blended and liquifed.

3) Add ice cubes until smoothie reaches desired consistency.

(Makes approximately 4 servings)

Nutrition information is approximate and may vary based on the freshness and brand of your ingredients
Nutrition information calculated at: Calorie Count

How to Make Peanut Butter

Back in November, news stations around the country were warning that peanut butter prices would skyrocket due to droughts and poor growing conditions in the areas of the country where peanuts are grown. That same week, my local grocery store had a 10 for $10 sale on 14 ounce bags of dry roasted (and salted) shelled peanuts. JACKPOT!

Making peanut butter is super easy and is a great way to save money....especially if you can find dry roasted peanuts on sale. You also have maximum control over what goes into it...you can do salt or no salt, honey or agave or no sweetener at all!

Following this recipe, I made 16 ounces of peanut butter for approx $1.25. Even the super cheap, preservative laden peanut butter is $3 for 16 ounces. You will save even more if your family is used to buying Adams or another premium natural peanut butter.

Ingredients

• 14 ounces (by weight) roasted shelled peanuts*
• 2 Tbsp pressed coconut oil
• Agave syrup or honey to taste (optional)
• Sea salt (optional, though you will probably want a bit if using unsalted peanuts)

*Either salted or unsalted will work. Unsalted gives you maximum control over the salt content. I just use whichever kind is on sale
Yields 16 ounces (by volume) of peanut butter

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How to Make Peanut Butter

Pour the peanuts into your food processor

Lock the lid and process on high approximately 2 minutes

It may start to look gritty...like finely chopped peanuts

Keep Going

Check your peanut butter

If it's not smoothing out very well, melt a couple tablespoons of coconut oil (which is solid at room temperature) in the microwave for about 15 seconds. Add to the peanuts and process 30-60 seconds.

Add agave syrup or honey to taste  (I added a little less than a tablespoon of agave). Taste and add salt if desired when using unsalted peanuts.

Process another 30-60 seconds

Stop here if you want chunky peanut butter

Keep processing if you prefer smooth peanut butter

Pack your fresh peanut butter into a 16 ounce jar with a lid.

Make the tastiest peanut butter and organic strawberry jam sandwiches ever.

Feel good that your kids are eating peanut butter with no preservatives or dangerous ingredients. Smile that you just saved money, too.

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Frequently Asked Questions:
How long will this keep? Does it need to be refrigerated?
Food safety standards recommend that you keep in an airtight container in your fridge for up to two months. Keeping in the fridge helps the oil stay suspended longer, too.

I will admit I am a bit rebellious and keep about 3 weeks worth in a sterilized glass jar in my pantry and nobody has gotten sick from eating it. If you choose to do this, do so at your own risk.


Can you can peanut butter?
Peanut butter is too thick to make it a food that you could can at home (the heat would not be able to permeate everything evenly). This process is so quick, though, needing to repeat it every 2 months or so isn't a big deal.

I'm sharing my recipe with...

* Creative Juice at Momnivore's Dilemma * A Crafty Soiree at Yesterday on Tuesday * Cast Party Wednesday at Lady Behind the Curtain * Lil Luna Link Party at Lil Luna * DIY Thrifty Thursday at Thrifty 101 * Whatever Goes Wednesday at Someday Crafts * Wicked Awesome Wednesday at Handy Man Crafty Woman * Homemade Year at Blissful and Domestic * Pin Inspirational Thursdays at The Artsy Girl Connection * A Pinteresting Party at Tutus and Tea Parties *

How to Make Apple Sauce in Your Slow Cooker

It's slow cooker week over at The CSI Project! I love to use my slow cooker for all kinds of things from dyeing yarn to making dinner.  So when I bought close to 50 pounds of Apples (and was then subsequently gifted about 10 more!), I recruited my slow cooker to help me make apple sauce.

It's not hard to do and if you like to can, it puts up really well using either a boiling water canner or a pressure canner.  Don't can? That's okay! It keeps in your fridge for up to a week and you can share the extra with a friend.

I make my applesauce without sugar because most of the time, the apples are plenty sweet without it. Plus my toddler inhales bowlfuls of this stuff and doesn't need extra fillers like sugar.  Adding cinnamon and nutmeg give the applesauce a great flavor but you can leave it out if it's just not for you!

Of all the times to invest in organic, any recipe using apples as the key ingredient is the time to do it. Conventional apple farmers use 56 or more different pesticides to keep those apples picture perfect and in 92 percent of apples tested this year, at least 2 of those pesticides remain on the apple even after they have been initially washed and brought to market (you can see more info about 2011 testing at Grist.com). What does that mean?  It means you use conventionally gown apples, you may be getting a side of poisonous chemicals with your fruit. If you're going to go through the effort of making homemade apple sauce - do it right and do it chemical-free.

Ingredients

• About 10 pounds (or however many you have) of organic apples
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice (optional) to help preserve color
• Water as needed
• 1.5 Tbsp ground cinnamon (more or less to taste)
• 1.5 tsp nutmeg (more or less to taste)

Instructions

1) Wash your apples - even if you bought organic - to get all the dirt and dust off.

2) Peel, core and slice your apples. I LOVE my apple peeler slicer corer. It clamps to your counter or a stand and peels, cores and slices your apples with the turn of a crank. If you spend any amount of time baking with apples, it's definitely worth the investment because of all the time you save!  Here's what it looks like...

So back to what we were doing...

Once you run the apples through this, you have a big long apple slinky (it's sliced in a spiral). Just cut the apple in half from top to bottom after running it through.

If you don't have one, just peel your apples and then core and cut into chunks or us one of those core and slice tools that you push straight down onto the apple.

3) Fill your slow cooker. As you peel and slice your apples, throw your slices into your crockpot. Just keep going until you run out of apples or space in your crock pot...whichever comes first.

4) Add Water. Add your lemon juice and some water to the crock pot. You don't need to cover the apples. For this full pot of apples, I probably added about 4-6 cups of water. If you add too much, you can always take the lid off and cook it down later, though that will add some time to the process.

5) Cover and Cook. Place the cover on your slow cooker and turn it on. If you set it on high, the apples will be ready in about 4 hours. If you're going to be away, set it on low and leave it to cook for 8-10 hours. You'll know your apples are ready when they are really soft and look about like this:

6) Blend or mash. Depending on what kind of texture you like for your apple sauce, you'll want to blend or mash your apples. I like to use an immersion blender and mostly blend it but leave it with some small chunks. Blend or run through a food processor until it's the texture you like.

7) Cook Down if Necessary. Evaluate how watery the applesauce is. If it's a bit too runny for your preferences, remove the lid and cook on high until it's the way you like it. Already like the texture? Move on to step 8.

8) Spice it up! If you're making spiced applesauce, now is the time to add your chosen seasonings. I usually add about 1.5 Tablespoons of cinnamon and 1.5 teaspoons of nutmeg for a full crockpot. Add what you like and keep tasting it until it's just right. If your applesauce isn't sweet enough for you, you can sugar at this point as well.  Allow it to cook for about 5-10 more minutes to allow the spices and sugar to fully permeate the sauce.

That's it!  You're done! 
At this point, you can can your applesauce OR just chill and serve.


If you're going to can....
(disclaimer: these canning instructions are targeted to those who already know canning basics and technique. If you are a canning newbie, check out FreshPreserving.com's Guide to Canning or pick up a copy of the Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving and then come back!)

If you're going to can your apple sauce, go ahead and prep your jars (quarts and/or pints), lid pieces and chosen canner type (you can use either a boiling water canner or pressure canner for this recipe).

My shortcut from prepping jars is to fill clean jars with about 1 inch of hot water from the tap and load them into my microwave. Then microwave on high until the water boils - and then for about 2 minutes beyond that. It helps sterilize the jars with steam and warms them up. Then you just leave them in your microwave until it's time to fill.

Once everything is ready...
Fill your hot jars with hot applesauce, leaving 1/2 inch head space.

Wipe the rim, add and adjust your lids and load into your canner.

Processing times for pint and quart jars of Applesauce
Boiling Water Canner: 20 minutes 
Steam Pressure Canner: 5 pounds of pressure for 8 minutes

Thanks for joining me! Now go fire up those slow cookers!

Want a printer-friendly version of this recipe without all the pictures? Check out the BakeSpace entry for this recipe here.

I'm joining these fabulous parties this week. Won't you join me?

* Mad Skills Party at Mad in Crafts * Get Your Craft On at Today's Creative Blog * Lil' Luna Link Party at Lil' Luna *  These Chicks Cooked Party at This Chick Cooks * What's Cooking Wednesday at The King's Court 4 * Show and Tell at Blue Cricket Design * Tutorial Tuesday at Newlyweds on a Budget * Creative Juice Thursday at Momnivore's Dilemma * Thrifty Thursday at Thrifty 101 * Strut Your Stuff Saturday from Six Sisters Stuff * Savvy Homemade Monday at Home Savvy A-Z * Inspire Me Fridays at The Joyful Stamper * Frugal Friday at the Shabby Nest * Flaunt it Friday at Chic on a Shoestring Decorating * Homemade Year at Blissful and Domestic *

 

How to Make Baby Cinnamon Rolls

Yesterday I told you about getting to meet Heather from Dollar Store Crafts at the premiere party for her new show, Get a Little Creative. And as you all know....a party isn't a party without great food!  The night before the party, I was stressing a little about what to bring because I needed to bring something either awesomely creative or super tasty....but I had no time to invest in making something awe-inspiring. I didn't have time to run to the store, either, which meant I needed to come up with something great using items I already had on hand. A tall order!

I remembered I had a roll of low fat crescent roll dough in the fridge and with some pantry staples figured I could gussy them up a bit to make something. A little of this and a little of that and these babies were born. And boy were they awesome!  They turned out even better than I had hoped. Plus they were easy and quick to make. I'm sure they will be making appearances at future potlucks and fall food events this year!

Be a Breakfast Time Hero: Strawberry Yogurt Waffle Stack Recipe

I wrote this post while participating in a blog tour conducted by Clever Girls on behalf of Dannon. I have been compensated for my time commitment to the program but my opinions are my own.

For more information and recipe ideas, visit www.oikosyogurt.com or www.Facebook.com/oikos. I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective, which endorses Blog With Integrity, as I do.

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It's coming. The cool nights are setting in. The clouds are coming back. The corn stalks are drying up. Just this week you could start to feel the first hints of fall in the Pacific Northwest. In addition to all of the fabulous things that fall brings: deep jewel tones, scarves, crunchy leaves, the last of the fresh produce, warm cinnamon scents, beautiful scenery....I know for a lot of you, it's also bringing school: which in my house means a panic about what to feed everyone as life gets busy again.

This is the Blueberry 'fruit on the bottom' kind - yum!

This week I was given an opportunity to try Dannon's new Oikos® Greek yogurt. I'd tried a different brand of Greek yogurt at my sister's house a few months back, but this stuff was way better. It was super thick and creamy - like the yogurt equivalent of super premium ice cream. You know....the kind of thing that you're sure has a ba-jillion grams of fat and might make you gain 5 pounds just by thinking about it. What's amazing, though is that is fat free. I'm told that's because Dannon® Oikos® is created through an authentic Greek straining process which gives it a rich and creamy-thick texture. Straining out the extra whey is what keeps more milk solids and gives it that awesome texture without the fat. The texture reminds me of something that's a hybrid between cream cheese and standard issue runnier yogurt. The thicker texture also conveniently sticks to little spoons so my one year old with only budding silverware skills can eat it with way less mess.

Not only is this yogurt pretty fabulous by itself, but I think you could definitely go a long way with this as a recipe ingredient or maybe even a condiment. Oikos® is so thick and creamy, that you could spread it on your bagel instead of strawberrry cream cheese for all the flavor but none of the fat. And it was exactly that thought that inspired my recipe below. It is super fast and easy to make, is packed with protein and is low in fat. I personally think it would be a great way to start your day on your way out the door to work or school.


Dannon is also offering a coupon to try this yogurt for free! (we all know that's my favorite price). Head over to their Facebook page to 'like' them and grab the coupon.(update: It appears this current promotion was so popular they have run out of coupons. If you visit the page, you can still click the link to get a coupon for the Stonyfield Oikos and by liking the page you'll be able to find out about new coupon offers they have in the future)

Strawberry Yogurt Waffle Stack

Ingredients 

2 Frozen Waffles (I used multigrain waffles from Trader Joe's)

1 container Strawberry flavored  Dannon® Oikos® greek yogurt

2 or more strawberries, washed and sliced

How to be a Breakfast Hero in Less Than 5 Minutes