Avocado & Pear Smoothie

This Christmas we got a new blender and have been having all sorts of fun experimenting with different smoothie recipes. My kids will down just about anything that comes in the form of a smoothie, so I've enjoyed the challenge of seeing just what I can sneak into their little bodies! Green Smoothies are our favourite, and while Rob and I love this one the most, it's a bit intense for the boys. They prefer something with a yogurt base. One of our favourite creations has been an Avocado & Pear Smoothie. It's a bit different than a lot of the recipes I have come across so I thought I would share!

Avocado & Pear Smoothie

1/2 of one avocado

1 pear

1/4 cup of Greek yogurt

1 cup of baby kale

10 ice cubes (approximate)

1 Tbsp blue agave nectar

1/4 cup apple juice (more for desired consistency)

The Avocado & Pear Smoothie is awesome for kids because it has a great texture.  The avocado gives it the smooth consistency that you would normally get using a banana but is a nice alternative to the typical banana smoothie flavour.  Plus, my kids normally don't like avocado (not to mention kale!!) so  I'm happy to get a bit more nutritional variety into their diet!

What's your favourite smoothie recipe? We're always looking for something new to try!!

5 minute granola bars...

Granola bars are a hot item in this house! I am constantly tossing a few in my bag, on the way out the door for snacks on the go. I have recently found it very difficult to find a chewy granola bar that isn't full of chocolate chips. Not that my kids don't eat their fair share of chocolate... it's just too messy for the car! This predicament led me to do a little research on homemade granola bars and I was amazed at how simple the recipes seem to be. Most don't even require baking!

I quickly learned that there seems to be a basic formula to making granola bars, and that you can't really go wrong with making adaptations to fit your tastes as well as what you have on hand! Andrew and I worked away with what we had in the pantry and came up with a great combination!

5 Minute Granola Bars

2 cups of rolled oats

1 cup of cereal

1/2 cup of dried cranberries

1/4 cup of sunflower seeds

1/4 cup of butter

1/2 cup of brown sugar

1/4 cup of honey

2 teaspoons of vanilla

Combine oats, cereal, cranberries and sunflower seeds in a large bowl. In a small sauce pan, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in sugar, honey and vanilla and continue to stir until sugar has dissolved. Slowly pour the butter/sugar mixture over the dry ingredients and stir until combined. Press into a greased 8"x8" cake pan and refrigerate for a half hour. Once the bars have cooled, loosen edges with a spatula, turn out onto a cutting board and slice into desired size.

The cereal in these granola bars add a nice crunch to the chewy texture. For this recipe we used Alphabet cereal, but Cheerieos, Puffed Wheat or Rice Krispies would also be great! We've also picked up a variety of freeze dried fruit to try out some new combinations! 

Homemade Granola

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How I convinced my 3 year old to love salad...

Getting enough veggies into my little man has always been a challenge. Andrew is almost 4 and seems to be getting pickier every day! Up until a few weeks ago he would eat cucumber, red peppers and carrots and could occasionally be bribed convinced to eat cooked broccoli and asparagus.  I know this is pretty common at his age, and was pretty happy that we had a few reliable veggie options. However, we were recently enjoying dinner with friends and I couldn't get over how quickly their little guy devoured his salad. My friend assured me that this was a new phenomena and gave me a few ideas for how to introduce salad to Andrew. I followed her advice and sure enough, within a couple of weeks Andrew was emptying his bowl and asking for more!

Here are her tips along with a few I found to be successful!

1. Introduce one new ingredient at a time - The first few times I made a salad for Andrew it was simply lettuce and red peppers. I made sure to hide some of the peppers under the lettuce so he would have to dig around to find them all.

2. Keep the dressing coming! - As adults we worry about using too much salad dressing, but for kids it may be necessary to entice them to try something new. Even if they are simply using a carrot to get the dressing into their mouths, if they eat that one carrot once the dressing is gone they have taken a step in the right direction. 

3. Ditch the fork - encourage your child to eat their salad with their fingers, it's much easier and fully exploring the new foods might be necessary before they pop it in their mouth.

4. Don't chop the veggies - kids lose interest fast and if their veggies are sliced, rather than chopped, they will hopefully take larger bites before they call it quits. 

5. Add some cheese - this is really a no brainer, cheese makes most things a bit tastier!

To get started, I presented Andrew with some salad a few times a week. At first he picked out what he liked, leaving the lettuce behind. I slowly added some other veggies and he didn't seem to mind that they were mixed together (previously a serious offence). After three or four days, I watched as he held a large piece of lettuce, licked off the dressing and then took a big bite (I didn't say a word but celebrated my small victory on the inside!). Now that he has become more comfortable with salads I have stopped adding the dressing and cheese. Some days he will request it, but more often than not he doesn't even notice that it's missing! 

Maybe I need to get out more, but right now watching this little man eat a whole 

salad gives me a huge sense of satisfaction! 

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Couscous Salad for Toddlers

Meal time is quickly becoming much more difficult around here. Henry has come to the realization that he actually controls what he eats and doesn't have to blindly take in whatever I place on his spoon. This means he has pretty much been surviving on yogurt, fruit and crackers for at least a week! He does, however love pasta. I have been experimenting with a few dishes that both he and Andrew might enjoy, that will give them the "noodles" they want and a few veggies too!

I'm not sure if I was completely behind the curve here, but I have just recently been introduced to Israeli Couscous. It cooks quickly, is wonderful in salads and it's soft texture is perfect for little mouths! To make this salad I simply prepared the couscous (following the instruction on the package) added cooked peas, avocado, cucumber and cherry tomatoes. For a simple dressing I tossed the salad with a tablespoon of olive oil and fresh lemon juice. 

Once I had portioned out some of the salad for the kids, I added salt, ground black pepper and crumbled feta to make it a little more tasty for us adults. 

I wouldn't say that Henry "loved" the salad, but he ate half a bowl and didn't throw the rest on the walls... so I'll count that as a win!

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Cake Batter S'more Cookies

Recently, while cleaning out my pantry, I realized that I had way too many cake mixes. There must have been a sale on at some point, because I had six boxes of various flavours! I have been messing around with cake decorating for a few years now, but there are only so many events that can justify the time (and calories) that go into a full blown fancy cake!

I have seen a number of different recipes that utilize cake batter as the beginning of a great dessert. I made Mini Egg Blondies using cake batter for Easter this year, and they were a major hit. So, I thought I would tweak the basic "Cake Batter Cookie" recipe and come up with something tasty for summer!

This recipe was super easy, it took about five minutes to mix and ten minutes to bake. The results were amazing... chewy, gooey goodness! A fabulous treat for a cookout or camping trip!

Cake Batter S'more Cookies

1 chocolate cake mix
2 eggs
1/2 cup (or less) of oil
1/2 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup mini marshmallows
1/2 cup crumbled (not crushed) graham crackers

Combine cake mix, eggs and oil until somewhat smooth, fold in chocolate chips, marshmallows and graham crackers. Drop by the spoonful onto an ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 350ºC for 10 - 12 minutes, cookies will still be quite soft. Allow the cookies to cool for a few minutes before removing from the cookie sheet to cool completely on a cooling rack. That's it! So easy!

Monte Cristo Rollups...

As a kid, I always enjoyed experimenting in the kitchen. One day, I thought for sure I had come up with the next big thing... it was a grilled cheese dipped in egg! I excitedly described my invention to my mom, who had to break the news to me that my creation was already quite famously known as a Monte Cristo. So not only did someone beat me to the chase, but they added ham to make it even better:(

I thought of this story awhile back when I came across a recipe for french toast rollups. I tweaked the recipe to try this new idea with the old classic! Here's how it went...

I trimmed the crusts off of sliced bread and cut some cheddar cheese into long, skinny pieces. Next, I whisked eggs (1 egg for every 3 rollups) and milk together and set everything out for quick assembly. 

I rolled each piece of bread flat, with a rolling pin (wine bottle works well too!), placed the cheese and ham at one end, rolled the little package up and dipped it in the egg mixture. I then placed the rollup, seam side down, in a hot skillet with a tablespoon of melted butter. The bread browned quickly, so I gave each roll a turn every thirty seconds or so. Once they were crispy and golden brown all around, I removed them from the skillet and breakfast was served!

They were very tasty, and super easy for my little guy to handle (not as messy as a sandwich)!

...and just because we are a family of peanut butter addicts, we gave this a try! I sprinkled the outside with sugar and we dipped them in syrup!! Gotta love Breakfast Dessert!!