Always Busy, Never Bored

Minion Cupcakes

2014-09-12T23:07:00.000-07:00

Minion Cupcakes are a sure hit to any children's party.

They are quite easy to put together.

These are so cuuuuute! It's almost a shame that they have to be eaten

What you need:

baked cupcakes -- any flavor, any recipe-- maybe a good idea to make it banana flavored?

blue frosting - I used the tube ones that are ready with a decorating tip!

brown sprinkles and candy eyes -- you can get them at Walmart or Michael's

a small tube of brown or black decorating icing or gel -- I used Wilton brand

Twinkies - the most important add-on is another layer of cake!

Enjoy!

PEEE-DO-PEEE-DO-PEEE-DO!

Apple Art - Paper Tearing

2014-09-12T22:39:00.000-07:00

Apples are a popular theme to begin the school year.

In class, we talked about apples, i.e., how they grow, how an apple tree changes throughout the year, what we can make with apples, etc.

A fun and easy art project I did with my students with this theme, is a paper tearing project.

All you need is a plain tree template/background, glue and some colored paper.

More than just keeping my students busy this activity also works on fine motor skills.

I loved seeing how my students are so quiet and and focused during art projects. They would even say things like 'This makes me feel happy", or "My brain feels so relaxed". -- this coming from my students! I truly believe that there is a great benefit to continue to teach or have art in our schools!

Colors

2014-09-12T22:26:00.001-07:00

Colors are always a regular theme that we do in class at the beginning of the year.

I tell my students stories such as
Brown Bear, Brown Bear by Eric Carle or I Went Walking by Sue Williams

To get into the concept of primary and secondary colors we read books such as
Mouse Paint by Ellen Stoll Walsh or White Rabbits Color Book by Allan Baker

With colors as a theme, there is a wealth of art activities that follows, such as

We make recycled crayons and color pictures with them, click here.

We mix 2 primary paints with our fingers and have some sensory fun

We put together 2 different primary colors of play dough and work on dexterity as we watch how the colors change.

We can also paint with colored popsicles, click here

We talk about the rainbow and the colors, and then I ask them why the colors of the rainbow follow the sequence ROYGBV -- we skip the indigo

We also sort Froot-Loops according to color and make a fruity rainbow art project.

Chika-Chika Boom Boom

2014-09-12T21:54:00.000-07:00

We had read Chika-Chika Boom Boom in class and my students love the rhythmic rhymes in the story. They don't get tired of it that we read it every school year.

Some activities we would do with it are...

An easy cut and paste option is to make a 2-dimensional coconut tree and pasting it on a large piece of orange construction paper. Then my students would either use rubber stamp letters or paste foam alphabet stickers.

We also do a paint, cut and paste activity. We would make a coconut tree using a kitchen towel roll that we would paint brown, and then we use green foam sheets for leaves. We then paste some alphabet crackers on the trunk. -- sorry no photo, but will update this post when we make another one

At the beginning of the week we start our paper mache maracas project so that when we read the story on Friday, we can shake away as we all say "Chika-Chika Boom Boom will there be enough room" -- again no photo, will update when I have one

Although the maracas project is prettier since we can paint it and then decorate it, sometimes we just don't have enough time so we make egg shakers the day before by using plastic eggs (from easter) with some beans inside, and then we glue cut up tissue paper around it. This can dry overnight and are ready the next day. -- still, no photo

The students love the story, but they enjoy it even more when we watch a Scholastic Video version of it, after the art activities. The video plays this funky 80's music that the kids enjoy.

Apple and Pear Pie

2014-09-12T21:19:00.000-07:00

I had a surplus of apples and pears and had nothing else better to do, soooooo I decided to bake a semi-homemade pie.

What You Need:

5 cups chopped apples and pears - I used green apples and golden pears
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2/3 cups sugar
5 teaspoons flour
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
a pinch of nutmeg (1/8 of a teaspoon)
a pinch of sea salt - regular salt will do too (1/8 teaspoon)
pie dough- thawed from frozen, 2 rolls/sheets

What to Do:

Preheat your oven to 425F.

In a bowl, toss the chopped apples and pears, lemon juice, cinnamon, sugar, flour, nutmeg and salt.

Unroll one dough at the bottom of a pie plate.

Pour the apple-pear mixture over the dough.

Unroll the second pie dough on top to cover the apples and pears.

Pinch the corners to seal the pie.

Make slits with a knife on top of the dough to make a vent.

Bake for about 40 to 45 minutes.

About 20 minutes into the baking, put foil at the edges of the pie plate, just to cover the edges and prevent it from burning.

Serve warm and top with a scoop of vanilla ice cream if you wish.
Enjoy.

Summer DIY Projects

2014-06-24T10:55:00.001-07:00

Here are a couple of DIY projects I did this summer.

After

This old buffet table was updated by sanding and staining it with brown and blue wood stain and changing the hardware with ceramic drawer pulls I found at Pier One Imports. I also did some distressing of the wood prior to staining.

Before

Updated our outdoor patio furniture by stripping, sanding and repainting it with bright red!

Before

After

An old wooden crate that used to just sit in storage + some sanding, staining and TLC = a decorative holder of our indoor plants!

Before

After

Maple Cinnamon Glazed Banana-Filled Cronuts

2014-06-24T10:18:00.000-07:00

When you merge a croissant with a donut, you get a cronut!

I heard about the cronut craze, but somehow live in an area where it has not quite caught on yet. BUT I am curious about the cronut so I decided to jump into the bandwagon and do my own spin on the cronut.

For the Cronut:

2 tubes crescent dough (such as Pillsbury)

oil for deep frying

Unroll the each crescent dough tube and separate into 4 rectangles. Press the perforations to seal. Stack the two unrolled tubes on top of each other. Then fold in half to make a stack of 4 layers.
Cut the dough using a doughnut cutter. I got mine from Williams-Sonoma
Put together by kneading, rolling, and layering the extra dough to make more.
Deep fry and drain.

For the Filling

¼ + 1/8 Cups Evaporated milk

¼ + 1/8 cups sugar

1 egg yolk

1.5 tablespoons butter

half a banana, mashed

½ tsp vanilla

Whisk together the evaporated milk, sugar, egg and butter in a saucepan over medium low heat, until the mixture is thick. When the mixture is thick, add the banana and vanilla, and remove from heat. Let it cool and place in a piping back with a filler attachment.
Inject the filling onto the different sides and into the layers of the cronuts.

For the Glaze

½ cup powdered sugar

1/8 tsp cinnamon

½ tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons evaporated milk

¼ teaspoons vanilla

1/8 cup maple syrup.

Whisk all the ingredients together and drizzle over your filled Cronuts.

All it took was one bite, and everyone in our home went Cronut-Crazy! I barely turned my back and this was what was left on the plate!!!

Found this FoodNetwork youtube video that might help you in making your own cronuts.

Brownie Rum Balls

2014-06-24T10:02:00.000-07:00

If by some unfathomable cosmic reason, you happen to have some leftover brownies, spike them up by making rum balls!

What You Need:

2 cups brownie crumbs

4 tablespoons Rum (I used Bacardi)

chopped almonds, or hazelnuts, or dusting sugar (optional)

What To do:

Using the paddle attachment, crumb the brownies—You can always just use your hands of course!
Add the rum. You will then end with a pasty mixture.

Using a tablespoon measure, shape the mixture into balls.
Roll onto the chopped nuts.

Store in a covered jar or container and chill in the fridge.
Serve chilled and eat responsibly.

If you only need a small bottle of rum, I suggest you go to BevMo and get just a tiny bottle, like the ones you find at hotel minibars. I, on the other hand, had fun and ended up with a small hoard of little bottles of happiness!

Swirly Speculoos Brownies

2014-06-24T09:50:00.000-07:00

I am in-LOVE with Speculoos and my love relationship with this spread has propelled me to take things at the next level!

What you will need:

18 oz brownie mix (I used Ghirardelli Dark Chocolate)

4 oz cream cheese – softened

1/3 cup sugar

1 egg

1 jar Speculoos (regular, swirl, or crunchy – any will work)

½ tsp salt

2 tablespoons milk

What to do:

Preheat the oven to 325F

Prepare the brownie batter according to package directions and pour mixture over a greased 9x9 baking tray.

Using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese, eggs, salt and sugar. Add the Speculoos and incorporate the milk a tablespoon at a time. The texture should be smooth, much like the brownie batter.

Pour the Speculoos mixture over the brownie batter and swirl with a knife.

Bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until it passes the toothpick test (if you poke the center with a toothpick it comes out clean).

Make life sweeter… Bite into its swirly goodness.

Wet Chalk Pictures

2014-03-23T14:38:00.000-07:00

April Showers are almost here, and that’s why this week in class, we talked about the water cycle. To make the related art activity interesting, my students made a wet chalk art project for their water cycle pictures.

SUPER EASY!

All we needed was a picture template copied on black paper, colored chalk, and a bowl of water. Students are instructed to dip the colored chalk into the water and use that to color in the pictures.

Wet chalk makes the colors appear more vibrant!

Tortilla Pizzas

2014-02-10T15:19:00.001-08:00

This was a hit in our home! I was also able to get my 9-year old involved in making dinner for the family, AND the best part is that it is SOOOOOO easy! Easier than the Quiche I made way back.

You will Need:

Flour Tortillas

A jar of pizza sauce

mozzarella cheese, grated

pizza toppings such as sliced mushrooms, chopped bell peppers, fresh basil leaves, sliced olives, mini pepperonis, chopped ham, bacon bits, pineapple tidbits, minced garlic, chopped onions, etc. – practically whatever you like!

What to Do:

Start by setting your oven to broil.

Then prepare your baking trays by spraying it with some non stick baking spray. Set the tortillas flat on the baking tray/s.

Spread about a tablespoon up to about a tablespoon and a half of pizza sauce over the flour tortillas.

Top the prepared tortillas with some grated mozzarella cheese.

Top you tortilla pizzas with any combination of toppings that you like.

Place the tortilla pizzas in the oven until just about the cheese gets melted and bubbly. Probably about 5 to 10 minutes, depending on how you want your crust to be (chewy, toasted, or crispy… your pizza your choice really.)

Take them out and serve fresh from the oven.

I promise you will enjoy it.

Baked Cheese Stuffed Mushroom Hors D’ Oeuvres

2014-02-10T15:10:00.000-08:00

I once heard a person say “Mushrooms taste like dirt”; and as much as I wanted to defend this spore bearing fungi related thing, and highlight that mushrooms have earned their place in the culinary world by being heralded as the “meat” of vegetables, I chose to keep my words to myself. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion on mushrooms and I shall respect that. I for one, though, go beyond just having an opinion when looking at mushrooms, I literally have feelings for them… I LOVE MUSHROOMS!

With this easy mushroom hors d’ oeuvres recipe, I might just be able to make someone change their mind about mushrooms.

Pimiento and Cheese Stuffed Baked Mushrooms

What you will need

1 lb baby Bella, or baby Crimini mushrooms,

4 oz cream cheese softened

½ cup ricotta cheese

¼ cup drained jarred or canned red pimientos, chopped

½ cup grated cheeses (any combination of the hard cheeses such as cheddar, colby, jack, romano, parmesan, etc.)

Olive oil

Salt and pepper

Other Things You Will Need

Baking tray

A Mixing Bowl

What To Do:

Clean your mushrooms. It is important to note that mushrooms are porous so this means that if you clean or soak them in water, they will absorb some of that water. I chose to just wipe them clean with a damp paper towel. I then take the stems off, and this would leave me with just the mushroom caps.

Place the mushrooms in a bowl and toss them with some olive oil and a little salt and pepper. Set aside.

Preheat your oven to 350F.

Prepare the cheese filling by mixing the softened cream cheese, pimientos, grated cheese and ricotta cheese in a bowl.

Take about a half a spoon-full of the mixture and put them onto the underside of the mushroom caps.

Prepare your baking tray by spraying it with some non stick baking spray. Lay the mushrooms in a row with the filled side up. You don’t necessarily need to leave a space in between them as the mushrooms will shrink a bit while baking.

Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes.

What to do with the leftover mushroom stems? Use it to make homemade marinara sauce.

------------------------

Following the same principle in the recipe above you can try other combination of fillings for the mushrooms.

I have tried it with about 1 tablespoon of chopped dill, and forgone the pimientos and grated cheeses.

I have also tried it with chopped bacon and some mozzarella cheese.

Giada de Laurentis has her own version with Italian BreadCrumbs and Pecorino Romano Cheese

Falala-Falafels

2014-01-30T22:03:00.000-08:00

Falalala-falafels... that's what you'd be singing too if you've found a super easy way to make falafels.

So how did I happen upon this genius idea of mine? This was brought about by necessity.... the necessity to get rid of 2 - 8oz containers of hummus, without having to chip-dip myself until I no longer have the interest to chip-dip any longer. In short, I needed something different to do with hummus other than eat it with chips.

My internet search was not much of help. It only lead me to site after site of how to make my own hummus. I then typed in the words "ground chick peas" on the search field, and that's when I happened upon Falafels.

Falafels are a middle eastern dish of mashed chick peas with spices such as cumin, garlic, onion, etc. I figured I can whip up a short cut version of Falafels using hummus because essentially they are made from the same thing and the same spices have already been put in there for you. The best thing about using hummus to make falafels is that the chick peas are already pre mashed, so you won't need to soak them overnight and mash them up yourself. Essentially using hummus to make falafels is already half of the falafel making process done for you! Adding a few other ingredients... most likely something that you already have in your pantry, is taking the hummus all the way to falafel-hood! All the way to Falafel-dom! All the way to Falafel-ness! (I can't decide which tagline I like the best)

So next time you go to an appetizer party, do not hesitate to bring home that container of left over hummus with you as long as you trust that no one at the party had double dipped into the hummus.

Here's what you will need...

2 tsp baking powder
1 cup flour
4 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro or parsley
2 8oz containers of hummus - I used one that was roasted pepper flavored and the other one was garlic flavored.
oil for frying

Put the hummus, flour, chopped cilantro or parsley, and baking powder together in a bowl and mix until it forms a dough. Ball it up, leave it in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let sit in the fridge for about 4 hours. (I left mine overnight).

After refrigerating for a couple of hours, it is ready to be formed into balls. Scoop about a tablespoon of the mixture onto your palms and roll them in a spherical shape.

Then heat up some oil for deep frying. Fry your chick-pea balls until golden brown. You will end up making a little over a dozen falafels. Drain on paper towels.

Serve in pita with some lettuce and sliced tomatoes and top it with tzatziki sauce for a really great all vegetarian falafel sandwich.

My 9 year old boy loved it so much he ate a lot and thought it was made with chicken. Try it with your own kids and just maybe you can have them eat some chick-pea... I think we can make that count as a vegetable right?

----------------------------------------------

Ok, so here's the recipe also for the

Tzatziki Sauce
1 8 oz container plain yogurt - i recommend you use plain Greek yogurt
1 small English cucumber - because English cucumber does not have seeds
salt and pepper to taste
2 cloves minced garlic or 1 tsp garlic paste
1/2 tbsp chopped fresh dill
1/4 tsp lemon juice
a dash of paprika (optional)

Chop the cucumber finely and mix with all the other ingredients. OR put all of the ingredients in a food processor or blender. Put in small bowl and refrigerate for about an hour. The longer it sits in the fridge the more the flavors come out.

Serve with your falafels.

Taco Cornbread Casserole

2014-01-26T12:01:00.000-08:00

We just had a small get together at our home where one of things we served our guests are nachos. Since taco meat is a popular choice item on the nacho bar, I made sure that I made a lot of them. I might have just made a little bit too much so we had a lot of meat leftovers.

Now what to do with the taco meat? This question prompted a search on the web for some left over magic ideas… which resulted to the Taco Cornbread Casserole being born from out of our kitchen for the first time!

You will need:

1 package store bought corn bread mix

1 cup grated cheddar cheese

½ cup milk

1 cup cooked taco seasoned meat

½ can Cream Corn (approx. ¾ of a cup)

Preheat oven to 400F.
Mix cornbread mixture according to package directions. Add the milk and corn. Pour half of the mixture on a prepared (greased) baking dish or pan. Layer on the hamburger meat and ½ cup grated cheddar cheese. Pour the remaining half of the cornbread mixture on top and add the remaining grated cheese on top.
Bake in the oven. Do a stick test to see if it is done. Baking will take to about 30 minutes.

Easy Cheesy Garlic Bread

2014-01-26T11:56:00.002-08:00

So it is pasta night at our home and it is no question that I would also have to make some cheesy garlic bread on the side, because this is a sure winner with my kids.

You will need:

Bread rolls, sliced in half

1 stick of softened butter

1 tsp garlic powder

½ cup Italian cheese blend

1 tsp dried parley flakes (optional)

Mix together and spread over bread. Toast in the oven at 225F just until bread is slightly toasted and cheese is melted.

Might also be a good pairing for that Braciole I made awhile back.

Wine Infused Pasta

2014-01-26T11:53:00.000-08:00

We got a lot of wine during the holidays. I like wine but I try not to drink it a lot. I do try to find other uses for it and one that I came across to on the internet is using wine to cook your pasta noodles. So I used a whole bottle of red wine mixed in with some water, oil and salt to cook some noodles and Voila! Wine infused pasta!

The noodles have a hint of that wine taste and all you need is to top or toss it with any sauce you like!

Pair it off with some easy home made cheesy garlic bread.

Easy as Quiche

2014-01-26T11:51:00.000-08:00

I wanted to make just one quiche this weekend, but since a package of pre-made pie dough always comes in twos, I had to make 2 quiches!

Quiche is a beaked open faced pastry with a filling thickened with eggs. No, it is not an omelet, because in an omelet you fold in the egg over the filling. I think it is more closely related to a frittata, which is closely related to the omelet, because in a frittata you mix in the filling with the eggs rather than folding it, but in a quiche you seem to have a mixture similar to a frittata but baked over a dough or crust.

Does that make sense? It does not really have to, because all that really matters is the savory taste and how easy it is to make. So shall we skip all this and get to the recipe already?

So there’s two quiches in this picture, one a Roasted Red Pepper with Feta Cheese and Garlic Quiche, and a Cheesy Eggplant Quiche.

Roasted Pepper Quiche

You will need:

A small jar of roasted pimientos, drained

A small container of crumbled feta cheese (about a cup)

1 Tbsp Garlic powder

some chopped basil (optional)

3 eggs

salt and pepper

1 Premade pie crust/dough

What to Do

Preheat oven to 350
Prepare your pie plate by unrolling and laying it onto the plate. You do not need to grease the plate.
Beat 3 eggs, add some some salt and pepper. Add the garlic powder. Set aside.
Chop your pimientos and basil. Put this on the pie dough together with the feta cheese. Pour over the egg mixture and bake in the oven for about an hour.
You will know your quiche is ready by doing a “stick test”. If the stick comes out clean after you poke the quiche in the middle, the egg mixture is set and done.

Cheesy Eggplant Quiche

You will need:

1 large eggplant, peeled and chopped

Chopped parsley (optional)

¼ cup onion flakes

¼ cup olive oil

‘½ cup grated Mozarella cheese

¼ cup parmesan cheese

3 eggs

salt and pepper

1 Premade pie crust/dough

What to Do

Preheat oven to 350F
Prepare your pie plate by unrolling and laying it onto the plate. You do not need to grease the plate.
Seasoned the chopped eggplant with salt. Let it stand for 20 minutes and then rinse and squeeze the excess liquid, set aside. This will take out some of the bitter taste in the eggplant.
Then, in a skillet heat up the olive oil and sauté the rinsed and drained eggplant. Add the onion flakes, parsley, salt and pepper. Set aside.
Beat 3 eggs and mix in the cheeses. Set aside.
Put the sautéed eggplant on the pie dough. Pour over the egg mixture and bake in the oven for about an hour.
You will know your quiche is ready by doing a “stick test”. If the stick comes out clean after you poke the quiche in the middle, the egg mixture is set and done.

Easy right?

Enjoy!!!

Here are other easy quiche recipes you can make at home!

Turkey, Sundried Tomatoes and Mushroom Quiche

Turkey, Spinach and Cheese Quiche

Hubby’s Honey-Lemon-Ginger Antidote to Sickness

2014-01-26T11:41:00.004-08:00

Whether the weather is cold or hot or both in the same day, your body can take a beating. Usually the first sign that you’re about to get sick is a runny nose, a headache due to an inflamed sinus, or a tickle in the throat.

My ever loving husband, concocted what I think is an anti-sicky warm cocktail of honey lemon and ginger to counteract the effects of whatever “bug” I caught.

Honey and lemon are already a popular alternative to easing the discomfort of having a cold, it does not cure the cold (because there is no cure) but it will help ease the discomfort. Staying hydrated while on the cold is as important as getting a lot of rest, as a hot drink, it loosens the phlegm and clears the sinuses. Honey leaves a coating that is soothing and the vitamin C in the lemon will help shorten the duration of your cold. The ginger acts as a booster for your immune system, it is also said to have antihistamine properties and the “spice” in it mixed in with the honey will not only soothe that croaky throat of yours, but also help in decongestion as you breathe in the steam from your warm drink.

With all this natural healing properties of honey, lemon and ginger mixed together, I find this brew as a great alternative to medicines, and something I feel safe and comfortable with giving to my own children instead of medicines. Now, if you already are sick (and I hope not yet), this will help ease that I-just-got-hit-by-a-bus feeling.

Here’s how to make it…

You will need:

1 cup Honey

2 Fresh lemons

1 thumb Ginger

Slice the lemons into really thin wedges and add crushed ginger. Put these in a jar and add the honey. To make the antidote all you need is a cup of hot water and a spoonful of the mixture. Drink it and feel the soothing effect of the ginger, lemon and honey. Store it in the fridge, it should last you about 2 weeks, but if you drink it twice a day, you’d probably need to make more (or your husband would have to make you more).

So there… Enjoy!... Be well!

Braciole

2013-12-22T11:28:00.001-08:00

Do you want something Italian but not pasta? Why don't you try making Braciole?

Braciole is a meat dish wonderfully cooked, drenched and stuffed with Italian seasonings.

I found Giada de Laurentis' version easy to do, but made some tweaking of my own to save time and ingredients. I'm sure hers taste wonderful, but my short cuts didn't really make it come out too bad!

Check out her video at the end.

What you will need:

1 (about a pound and a half) Flank Steak

1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs

4 tbsp Olive Oil (2 tbsp for drizzling and 2 tbsp for cooking)

1 tbsp Garlic Powder

1/2 tbsp Parsley flakes

1 cup Grated Italian Blend Cheese

1 cup white wine (I used White Zinfandel because it's a tad sweet and it was the one I had at home)

salt and pepper

a jar of marinara sauce - about 3 cups ( I used one flavored with roasted garlic, onions and pepper)

You will also need:

butchers twine

foil

A cooking pan deep enough to hold a roll of meat and some sauce and can transfer from stove to oven

What to Do:

Preheat your oven to 350F

Blend the bread crumbs, garlic powder, parsley flakes and cheese together in a bowl and set aside.

Lay the flank steak flat on a surface and spread the bread crumb mixture on top of it. Drizzle with some olive oil. This will help keep the bread crumb mixture intact and held together.

Now starting with the short end, roll the meat to enclose the filling and secure with butcher twine.

season all sides with salt and pepper.

Prepare your pan and heat up the left over olive oil for cooking.

Place the meat and brown on all sides.

Pour the wine on the meat and let it boil in the pan.

Pour in the marinara sauce.

Remove from stove, and partially cover with foil. This will keep your sauce from reducing to a tomato paste consistency.

Put the pan in the oven. Cook for 1 hour.

Check the meat at 30 minutes to baste with the sauce.

Remove the foil cover and continue baking for another 30 minutes.

Total cooking time in the oven is 1.5 hours. Don;t worry, this will make the meat so mouth watering and tomato-ey tender.

Remove from oven. Take the meat out from the sauce and remove the butcher's twine. Slice to about 1/2 inch slices and serve by spooning some of the the sauce on top.

Enjoy!!!

Here's Giada's Braciole Video from the Cooking Channel

Sesame Garlic Noodles

2013-12-22T10:56:00.000-08:00

A month ago I went to a get together with some college friends over in San Jose, Ca. We all had an early dinner at Kickin' Crab. It was a delectable seafood feast, with a side of garlic noodles. The garlic noodles were the perfect compliment to all that seafood... it was delicious.

But since we live about an hour drive away (factor in trudging through the city traffic), a strong craving for just the garlic noodles was not enough of a push to get us to go there.

So, I made garlic noodles of my own, with sesame to add a slight change in the dimension of flavors.

You will Need:
Noodles - yellow noodles, egg noodles, fettuccine noodles, or spaghetti noodles will do.
A lot of garlic- for a pound of noodles, I added about a whole head's worth of minced garlic
Stick of butter
1 TBSP Oyster sauce
1 TBSP Maggi seasoning
1 TBSP Sugar
1/2 TBSP Fish Sauce
1 TBSP Sesame Oil
Toasted Sesame Seeds for topping (optional)
Grated Parmesan Cheese for topping (optional)

What to do:
Cook your noodles as directed.
Heat up you pan and melt the stick of butter.
Add the minced garlic, until cooked, but not browned and toasted.
Add the oyster sauce, Maggi seasoning, fish sauce and sugar. Stir until sugar dissolves. Lower the heat so as not to burn the sugar.
Toss in your noodles until well coated. Turn off the stove.
Drizzle with the sesame oil.
Serve and then top with sesame seeds and/or parmesan cheese.

The perfect blend of the garlicky, sweet, and salty taste of the noodles is a great complement to seafood.

Kahlua Truffles

2013-12-17T13:40:00.003-08:00

You Will Need

1 lb bag of semi sweet chocolate chips

2 tbsp butter

½ cup heavy cream

‘3 tbsp Kahlua

¼ cup Cocoa powder

On a double boiler, melt the butter and mix in the heavy cream. Add the chocolate chips and whisk until everything is melted and turns into a smooth and soft consistency. Add the Kahlua.

Pour into a bowl and refrigerate for about 2 hours until firm. Think play dough like consistency.

Use a measuring spoon ( I used ½ table spoon) to scoop some of the mixture onto the palm of your hand and shape them into balls.

Roll in cocoa powder. Keep cool until ready to serve.

Kid-Stuff Christmas

2013-12-17T13:19:00.001-08:00

Preparing for your Christmas feast is one busy feat. An idea to make it a bit easier on you is to get the kids busy while you prepare for your holiday spread.

Here are a couple of ideas.

Get the kids busy starting with having them make their own breakfast on Christmas morning. Have them make…

Reindeer Sandwiches

Mid-day is also crucial task-filled time especially when you are hosting your holiday party. Have the kids make their own creations while you make some magic happen in your own kitchen. Get them to create some

Marshmallow Men

When all the guests have arrived, greetings are done, gifts are opened, and food have been served, some catching up with invited friends and family usually commence. While you and your guests get a chance for some adult time, have all the kids do a little get together of their own by decorating

Oh So Sweet ChristmasTrees

Oh So Sweet Christmas Trees

2013-12-17T13:14:00.003-08:00

You Will Need:

Ice Cream Cones

Tub/s of Frosting (White or Green)

Paper Plates

Pieces of Candy

The first thing I ask the kids to do is to spread the frosting on the plate. I usually use white for a snowy landscape, then have them use green to spread all over the cone. Green frosting, however, is hard to come by. So I would put a drop or two f green food coloring on the white frosting and just mix it until all the green is evenly distributed. You can, of course, go all-white, for a White Christmas effect, or just all-green and tell them it’s for a grassy field or meadow!

When the frosting has been put on the plate and on the cone. Invert the one over the plate. This will be the tree. Then use the candy pieces to decorate.

I just used the extra choco chips and M&Ms from the Reindeer Sandwiches, and what was left over from the Marshmallow Men, and added a little bit extra from what I could find in the pantry (think left over Halloween Candy!)

So the kids are a bit more invested in the creative process, tell them the best Christmas Tree wins a prize! When everything is decorated and done, have the children set all their creations on a table or corner and call in grandma to be the judge. The best one wins a special prize!

Marshmallow Men

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You Will Need:

Toothpicks

Marshmallow in different sizes (during the holiday season they also come in different colors and Holiday flavors!)

Tube icing (optional)

This one is easy. All the kids need to do is use their imagination (which they seem to have an abundant supply of) to put together the marshmallow pieces and hold them with toothpicks. Use tube icing to make little dots for the eyes or mouth.

They need not create just one Marshmallow Man (or woman), they can make their own army of Marshmallow People! Or a whole herd of Marshmallow monsters, or Aliens. Let get carried away with their creations, but DON’T let them poke each other with the toothpicks!

Reindeer Sandwiches

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You will Need;

Sandwich slices

Plastic knife

Chocolate chips

Red M&Ms

Pretzels

Spread (could be anything your kid like)

The objective is to have the children get their own feel for food preparation. Whether it be making a PB&J sandwich (spreading peanut butter on one slice and jelly on the other) or a Bananas and Chocolate (spreading Nutella on one slice and having them peel and cut their own bananas), you want the kids have fun making food that they will eat.

After deciding on what spread you want your kids to have, the Reindeer effect is all in the assembly. See the picture.

Use the pretzels for the ears, be sure to tuck them in the middle layer between the bread slices, use chocolate chips for eyes, and a red M&M for the nose.

Always Busy, Never Bored

Minion Cupcakes

Minion Cupcakes are a sure hit to any children's party. They are quite easy to put together.

These are so cuuuuute! It's almost a shame that they have to be eaten

What you need:

Enjoy! PEEE-DO-PEEE-DO-PEEE-DO!

Apple Art - Paper Tearing

Colors

Colors are always a regular theme that we do in class at the beginning of the year.

With colors as a theme, there is a wealth of art activities that follows, such as

Chika-Chika Boom Boom

We had read Chika-Chika Boom Boom in class and my students love the rhythmic rhymes in the story. They don't get tired of it that we read it every school year.

The students love the story, but they enjoy it even more when we watch a Scholastic Video version of it, after the art activities. The video plays this funky 80's music that the kids enjoy.

Apple and Pear Pie

I had a surplus of apples and pears and had nothing else better to do, soooooo I decided to bake a semi-homemade pie.

What You Need:

Serve warm and top with a scoop of vanilla ice cream if you wish. Enjoy.

Summer DIY Projects

Maple Cinnamon Glazed Banana-Filled Cronuts

Brownie Rum Balls

Swirly Speculoos Brownies

Wet Chalk Pictures

Tortilla Pizzas

Baked Cheese Stuffed Mushroom Hors D’ Oeuvres

Falala-Falafels

Taco Cornbread Casserole

Easy Cheesy Garlic Bread

Wine Infused Pasta

Easy as Quiche

Hubby’s Honey-Lemon-Ginger Antidote to Sickness

Braciole

Sesame Garlic Noodles

Kahlua Truffles

Kid-Stuff Christmas

Oh So Sweet Christmas Trees

Marshmallow Men

Reindeer Sandwiches

Minion Cupcakes are a sure hit to any children's party.

They are quite easy to put together.

Enjoy!

PEEE-DO-PEEE-DO-PEEE-DO!

Serve warm and top with a scoop of vanilla ice cream if you wish.
Enjoy.