The other day someone asked me if I was more of a baker or a cook. My first reaction was that I’m a cook – but I’m also a baker (kind of). I’m not a patient person, so waiting for something to bake drives me batty. I can’t open the oven and stir or baste or season. With baking, you’ve got to wait, wait, wait a bit more, and then wait. You can’t frost cake until it’s cool. Let the cookies rest before removing from the pan…

But, I do love making quick breads.

And I love yogurt.

Today the tot and I whipped up a simple yogurt quick bread. It’s nice and moist, lovely drizzled with glaze, and perfect for taking to any picnic or gathering. Use a good, thick plain yogurt for a delicious, tangy bread.

Ingredients

1 egg

1 cup plain yogurt

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup melted butter

1/4 cup sugar

1 packed tablespoon brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 1/4 cup flour

1 tablespoon pain yogurt

1 tablespoon powdered sugar

1/4 teaspoon vanilla

Directions

Preheat your oven to 375 F and get out a mixing bowl. Whip together the yogurt, egg, oil, salt, sugars, and melted butter. Sprinkle in the baking soda and baking powder and then slowly add the flour. Once the batter comes together, pour into your greased loaf pan and pop in the hot oven for 45-minutes.

Yes.

It’s that easy.

Now the hard part. While the bread is baking your house is going to smell really good. Really, really, really good – and you have to relax and wait. You can whisk together the glaze by smoothing together the yogurt, powdered sugar and vanilla so it’s ready when the yogurt quick bread is. After 45-minutes, take out the bread and let cool for at least 20-minutes before drizzling with the glaze.

Enjoy!

We had this cubby in our bedroom that needed something. I happened to have an unused canvas that needed a little something, too. It was also the perfect day for doing an art activity with my toddler. Mother’s Day is all about being a mom, celebrating mom, honoring mamas all around us, making special memories with your kids and remembering memories that you’ve had with your mom. Making something together that then would be displayed in our home was the perfect thing to do on a lazy Sunday afternoon. And, this is pretty much a no-fail way to create something seriously cool to hang in your house. Even if you’re not that crafty you only need a few things, it’s okay if things get messy and all smooshed up, and you can use any color combo you’d like. Older kids can get into creating patterns or intricate designs – or you can just go willy-nilly like we did.

Start by cutting lots of squares out of tissue paper. Older kids can be in charge of cutting tons of squares, big or small, and of any color. Once you’ve got a big pile, mix together equal parts of Mod Podge and water in a small container, get out a few brushes, your canvas (any size), and cover your work area with newspaper.

Now slather the canvas with Mod Podge and start layering on the tissue paper squares. This gets messy – and sticky – but it’s lots of fun. Your kids can watch as the tissue paper squares blend together and create new colors.

Once the entire canvas is covered, let the tissue paper and Mod Podge dry. What’s great is the Mod Podge gives things a nice gloss, creating a really finished feeling.

We decided on accenting our tissue squares with circles, but you can use any shape you’d like. Squirt a few drops of acrylic paint onto a paper towel to create a stamp pad. We found that paper cups created the perfect circle stamps and placed lots of black and white circles all around the canvas.

The finished toddler fine art fit our empty spot perfectly!

And I had a wonderful time spending Mother’s Day with my tot.

(lovely)

The tot and I have really been enjoying this glorious spring weather. While tending to the garden – and checking just about every 10-minutes to see if any strawberries are ready – we’ve been checking out the colors all around us. Thing are pretty cheery right now and I’m trying to soak up every moment. My somewhat-agreeable-but-often-stubborn toddler is growing up, which makes me happy and totally sad all at the same time. It is so awesome when she finds something she’s excited about and to hear her tell me everything she knows (this flower is yellow, bees like flowers, AND bees make honey!).

The one word that comes to mind when describing the artwork of Ted Harrison is cheery. The famed Canadian artist creates whimsical images full of color, line, and natural elements. From mountains to animals to sunsets, Harrison’s paintings are wonderfully simple but amazingly composed. His paintings depicting the Canadian Yukon are iconic and the reason he’s one of Canada’s most celebrated artists.

What I love about Harrison’s paintings is his use of balance. Through line and color, his images are balanced or arranged in a visually pleasing way. Balance is one of those art terms that is part of The Principles of Design, which are concepts that are used to organize or arrange elements of design (which also have their own collection of concepts). Balance is the idea of equal weight within a creation. It can be symmetrical (the same on both sides) or asymmetrical (not the same – or informal) where things work together to create harmony.

While looking at Harrison’s artworks, one can see how he uses line and color to create asymmetrical balance within his paintings. The tot and I spent a bit of time enjoying his creations and observing colors and subject matter. I figured we could create our own Harrison inspired artwork with the help of crayons and watercolor paints!

Older kids can use an artwork of Harrison’s for inspiration or create their own uniquely balance design. Start by outlining the artwork with crayons. Your child can use random colors or ones that correlate with the subject matter. While working, encourage your child to think about if they are creating an artwork using symmetrical or asymmetrical balance.

Once the outline is finished, your child can use watercolor paints to fill in the artwork. Along with creating vibrant areas of color, your child is also honing hand-eye coordination by concentration on painting within the lines. Once again, your child can use color to create balance within the artwork by working symmetrically or asymmetrically.

After the painting has dried, find a special spot to display the vibrant Harrison inspired artwork!

*My toddler is a bit young for this activity, but that didn’t stop us from painting over the crayon and watching as it poped through! I made a second outline drawing and encouraged her to paint her own unique Harrison inspired creation.

With Mother’s Day right around the corner I have been finding myself thinking about food. Honestly? I think about food pretty much all the time. Lately I’ve been thinking about the things my mom made when I was young that have stuck with me over the years. With my own tot at home, I want to start great cooking memories with her – just like my mom did with me. The theme for this month’s Shine Supper Club also fits right in – making your mom’s best recipe!

I absolutely love my mom’s homemade Sticky Monkey Bread. Sure, you can follow the recipe found on the side of the biscuit can, but this is the original version straight from the 1970′s church cookbook of my midwestern town. This is the stickiest, gooiest version of goodness out there. While growing up, my mom would hand my sister and I our own plastic baggies filled with cinnamon and sugar to shake-shake the bits of cut canned biscuits and then toss into our well-used bundt pan. After a serious coating of butter, more sugar and cinnamon, and a bit of love, that seriously sticky bread was devoured on Sunday mornings.

She still makes it for us every time we visit.

This isn’t the healthy breakfast dish. And, after talking with my mom, I was planning on adjusting the recipe to make it a bit less sugary and buttery but just couldn’t. Why mess with something so good?  I admit to updating the recipe with brown sugar and vanilla to give it a bit more kick, but other than that, this is the best Sticky Monkey Bread  you’ll ever make.

Ever.

This is a great recipe to make with the kids to surprise mom with on Mother’s Day. It’s super easy and you can’t mess it up. And, along the way, your kids hone fine-motor skills as well as learn more about cooking in the kitchen. Older kids can make this pretty much all on their own – just remember to offer a helping hand when melting the butter and using the oven.

Ingredients

3 tubes buttermilk biscuits

1/2 cup sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon

3/4 cup butter

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon vanilla

Directions

Open the biscuit tubes (trying not to flinch when they pop) and then quarter. Your kids can use butter knives to cut the biscuits into bits or, if you’ve got young ones, they can tear the pieces into smaller pieces. Go ahead and preheat the oven to 350 F.

Fill a plastic zip-top bag with the plain sugar and 2 teaspoons of cinnamon. Enlist the kids to shake-a-shake the bits in the cinnamon sugar, remove, and then drop into the bundt pan.

While things are shaking away, melt the butter, brown sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon together until things are bubbly. You can also sprinkle in any leftover cinnamon sugar from the zip-top bag.

Pour the melted butter mixture over the sugar-cinnamon covered biscuit bits and then pop into the hot oven for 30-minutes.

Remove the bundt pan from the oven and let cool for 10-minutes. Place a large plate over the top of the bundt pan and carefully flip over. Let the big oeey-goooooey Sticky Monkey Bread rest for a few minutes before digging in.

Enjoy!

Thanks to Echelon Vineyards and the Clever Girls Collective, I had the opportunity to sample a few bottles of Echelon wine. Let me tell you up front, I wasn’t paid to write this review – just offered a few bottles to taste test and then share my honest opinion. I mean, really, twist my arm and all that stuff.

(I couldn’t wait to start sampling!)

Honestly? I pretty much like all wine. But, I do have a bit of a wine-snob husband. He worked his way through college while waiting tables at the San Ysidro Ranch and part of his job was checking out wine – and we’re talking the good stuff. He’s a bit of a snoot and is brutally honest while tasting, so I enlisted him to assist. I decided what better way to really get a full understanding of the flavors than by cooking up a special dinner for each bottle.

Let me tell you.

All kinds of wonderful.

We started out with the 2010 Echelon Vineyards Chardonnay that I paired with grilled garlic and oregano marinated boneless skinless chicken thighs over rice and fresh spinach topped with homemade tzatziki sauce. We had a sip of the Chardonnay before eating and both commented on how light and smooth it was. Neither of us had read the label, but the husband noted instantly the hints of honey, pear, and apple. It went wonderfully with our dinner, and, I’ll be honest, there wasn’t any wine left once we were finished. Echelon’s Chardonnay is a complex but light wine that I would bring to any barbecue.

The next night we cracked open a bottle of the 2010 Echelon Vineyards Red Blend. We both had a bit of hesitation – the idea of a red blend had me concerned (headache in the morning), but we figured we’d have a glass and then (potentially) use the rest for cooking. While putting the finishing touches on our oven-baked vegetarian eggplant parmesan, we sampled a small glass and both couldn’t keep sipping. Once again, neither of us had read the label, but commented on the light, fruity flavor of the blend and called out the oaky-ness as well as the smoothness, which didn’t leave a dry feeling in the mouth. Once again, there wasn’t any wine left at the end of dinner….

A few nights later I made barbecue chicken breasts along with a hot lentil salad with roasted red pepper, radishes, and beets. We couldn’t wait to try the 2010 Echelon Vineyards Pinot Grigio because the other bottles had been so good. Let’s just say we’d both had a nice, big glass before we even sat down to dinner. It was so cold and fresh and the husband noted the light but super-crisp flavor with the slight fruit undertones.  I simply tasted all kinds of goodness. We both decided this was our favorite bottle of the three – by far. It also went wonderfully with our dinner. This is a perfect summer wine and lovely with anything from grilled meats to big salads

Echelon Vineyards has won its fair share of awards and I can see why. Their wines are easy to drink and not overly anything in any way. And, they are wonderfully priced ($10-$15 per bottle), making them taste even better.

Head on over to Echelon Vineyards for more information about their wines and where you can pick up a bottle. Do it – seriously, do it now. You’re entitled to a nice glass of wine!

*Once again, I wasn’t paid to write this post – just provided with some really amazingly good wine to sample. I also wasn’t asked to write a blog post about the wines, but I did because they were that good.

I have a toddler that loves pasta. She could eat the stuff all day everyday and be happy. I’ve played around with different kinds of pasta with great success (homemade spaghetti-ohs, white bean mac-n-cheese) but she was ready for something different. After the fifth round in a row of homemade spaghetti-ohs, she was moping around and even asking for peeup-and-belly-witches.

So the other day, while she was chomping down her sandwich, I experimented with a new pasta dish for dinner. I had fresh carrot juice in the fridge along with a bit of Greek-style yogurt. Yes, they don’t sound like a good pairing, but along with the help of some cheddar cheese, anything is possible.

And, I was right.

This is a really easy recipe, you just need the ingredients. Most markets carry carrot juice, but make sure you don’t pick up a blend with orange or cucumber. If you’ve got your own juicer, you’re totally good to go.

Ingredients

8 ounces dry fusilli pasta cooked (which makes about 4-cups)

1/2 cup carrot juice

1/2 cup Greek-style plain yogurt

1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt (you know, that Lawry’s stuff)

1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Directions

Bring a big pot of water to a boil, toss in a bit of salt, and then your pasta. Any shape works, but the fusilli really is perfect. While things are bubbling away, mix together the carrot juice, yogurt, oil, seasoned salt, and salt in a bowl. Give things a whisk to make sure it’s all creamy. Go ahead and shred your cheddar, too.

Once your pasta is cooked and happy, give it a strain. While it’s hanging out, toss the carrot-yogurt mixture into your hot pot and turn the heat down to medium-low. Give things a stir while the sauce starts heating up.

As soon as the sauce starts bubbling, add the pasta back to the pot. Stir to coat the pasta and then add the shredded cheese. Keep stirring and simmering until the cheese is all melty.

Now is the time for taste testing – this is a kid-friendly recipe, so it’s low in salt and also not too strong in flavor. If you know your kid loves garlic, add some in with the mix. Got a child that loves the spice? Kick things up with a few shots of hot sauce. Mine can’t get enough of that tangy yogurt flavor, so I added an extra dollop at the end, along with a dash of pepper (and another sprinkling of salt).

The finished faux mac-n-cheese has an almost neon-orange color and is good hot or cold. My tot scarfed down 2-bowls for dinner, and happily ate a big serving cold the next day at preschool.

*The first time I made this recipe, I included shredded, slow-roasted turkey breast, which was out of this world. For an adult version, finish the pasta with a couple of good handfuls of spinach, top with extra shredded cheddar and pop under the broiler for a fabulous side dish.

Because, you remember when she colored on the wall, right?

(which resulted in the homemade chalk board…)

The thing is, your toddler is hard-wired to make marks. Her right-brain is in overload, desperately searching for ways to share thoughts, feelings, and ideas. This stage of creation is referred to as the scribble stage, due to the child’s desire to scribble, scribble, scribble. Nothing looks like much, but your toddler can actively tell you about the animals, monsters, people, and other crazy stuff in artworks. Before you discard those pages and pages of scribbles, understand it is the expression of your child’s brain developing in amazing ways. From starting to understand hand-eye coordination to simple mathematical concepts, your toddler’s scribbles are the stepping stone to speech, reading, and writing development.

Meaning, it’s a good idea to encourage your child’s disorganized scribbling as much as possible.

But what to do when your child colors on everything and anything possible?

Remember the afore-mentioned day – that day I was writing and the tot was “napping?” When I went down to see if she had actually fallen asleep, because things had gotten pretty quiet, I made quite the discovery. She had colored everywhere. From her dresser to her closet doors to her side table to her light switch, just about everything in her room had a colorful mark.

Before I took a moment to think I scolded her. Instantly I realized it was the absolute wrong decision. She had spent just over an hour artfully decorating her room in a way she was excited about and excited to share with me. She had spent time expressing herself though scribbles and colors (really, each area was a different color combination), and she was looking forward to dazzling me with its beauty. And, I had left those crayons in her room. After we both calmed down, the two of us spent some quality time together cleaning up those scribbles and discussing where those crayons belong – on paper!

Do you have a super scribbler? Here are a few simple ways to encourage those marks to stay where you want them:

- Don’t leave any mark making implements within reach of your child (unless you are right there!): Yes, this is a bit of a no-brainer, but, as your toddler ages, you begin to feel they have an understanding of keeping crayons on the paper. Remember your toddler is still a toddler (until the age of four) and still has those inner-toddler instincts to see what might happen. Leaving crayons out for your child is an open invitation to color away on whatever is available. Make time to color alongside your toddler showing your amazing skills to keep those crayon scribbles on your own paper. Toddlers love copying behavior.

- Designate a coloring area: Make a spot in your home just for your toddler to create. Whether it’s the kitchen table, a small end table no one uses or an easel in the corner, make sure your toddler knows this is “the spot” to go for making marks. Keep the area stocked with paper, stickers, and chalk (which washes off everything) but keep the markers and crayons out of reach. When your child finds herself over at her creative spot, offer crayons, markers, or paints – but keep an eye on things. As your child matures, she’ll understand the area is for being creative, and markers shouldn’t travel around the house.

- Don’t be afraid: Sure, you might not be into fingerprinting, but your child is. Art is one of the main ways a child defines who they are. Getting creative with your child shows that you find her scribbles important, encouraging her self-esteem. You’re going to get messy. Your child is going to get messy. Stuff in your house might get messy. But, if you have a plan of attack, and stay calm, things will turn out wonderfully. Use plastic placements under paper to cut back on mess. Or, place a sheet pan under artwork while painting. Keep a wet washcloth (or a container of baby wipes) next to your creative area to tackle messes the minute they happen.

- Don’t yell (but don’t praise either): At some point your child is probably going to color on something. Hopefully, it will be with a mark-making implement that is washable. Before reacting, take a deep breath. If you are expecting it to happen during the toddler years it won’t be such a big surprise when you come across a colored white wall, right? Start by acknowledging what you see and then calmly explaining that crayons only belong on paper. Walk your child over to your creative area and get out a paper for your child to scribble on. Once she’s had a moment to make a few marks, remove the crayons. Walk back to your newly colored wall and discuss how the walls aren’t for coloring, but for hanging pictures and that you can frame one of her artworks to look at….

- Frame your child’s scribbles and hang them on the wall: Even though you might not think her scribbles are anything exciting, she sure does. If your child spends a good amount of time on a creation, pick up a simple frame (less than $10 at the craft store!), pop in her artwork, and display in your home. Make sure to point it out to your toddler or hang it at just above arms reach so she can stand in front of her framed artwork and appreciate it. Not only are you showing you are proud of her and her abilities, you are encouraging her to continue exploring her creativity.

So get out the crayons and start scribbling – on paper!

It seems everywhere I look there are blossoms, blossoms, blossoms. Spring is officially here, and with it, tons of flowers. While out for a nice walk, the tot and I couldn’t help stopping every few blocks to check out the colorful beauties, which reminded me of amazing Chinese blossom paintings. Full of bright pinks and reds, traditional blossom paintings are delicate and pretty and then lined with black lengths of tree. Blossom trees welcome spring in Asia and are also a large part of Chinese New Year celebrations as decorations.

After we returned from out outing, I pulled out the tissue paper and glue. While I cut several circles of pink, red, and fuchsia tissue, I enlisted the tot to mix together equal parts glue and water in a small container. If your child is old enough to cut with scissors, she can be in charge of cutting tons of different sized tissue circles.

Once there’s a nice pile of tissue circles get out a sheet of white paper and invite your child to sprinkle the tissue circles around the paper and then brush with the glue water. Encourage your child to overlap and layer the tissue as much – or as little – as she’d like.

While the paper is still wet, offer your child a black marker and invite her to draw lines to represent trees and the branches of the trees. The marker washes in with the glue water and tissue, making the artwork dreamy and spring-like. Your child can even use a green marker to add the surrounding grass.

Don’t’ forget to find the perfect spot for displaying your child’s finished spring blossom artwork!

Happy spring!

Yeah.

So it all came out in a big breakdown the other night, which was pretty unfair to the husband. He already does so much – and not so fair for me to do the total female crying-wailing-drama thing.

But the salvation of it all was our new thing.

This thing.

This radio.

Since its amazing arrival we’ve been listening to it. LISTENING to it. The TV has been off, us adults have been a bit more attentive to the tot, and the husband and I are having good and beneficial conversations. We also spent most of the weekend outdoors. Seriously, who can resist the smiles of a toddler in a tutu swimsuit on a play horse?

We also had an amazing meal of grilled chicken thighs alongside grilled salad.

Yum.

So, all in all, things turned out just fine. Sometimes you have to deal with the bad to get to the good, right?

I’ve spent a lot of time daydreaming about pizza lately. Crisp, thin crust topped with zesty tomato sauce and coated with amazing cheese… Yeah. I just can’t stop. I make lots and lots of pizzas with the tot, but I’m really trying to find ways to cut the calories. With Easover behind us, we still have a few boxes of matzo hanging around, and they’re going to be there for next year’s Easover unless something is done with them.

Pizza.

Pizza sauce is a seriously tasty thing. It can be chunky or smooth, salty or sweet, tangy or spicy-hot. All I know is that I didn’t have any in the fridge when I had the brilliant idea of using a piece of matzo as a base for my super-low calorie pizza. I did have an old can of tomatoes in the pantry, which wasn’t very appealing. But, with a bit of love, that can of tomatoes turned into something seriously flavorful, and I had total matzo pizza success.

 Ingredients

1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes, strained

1 clove garlic, chopped

1 teaspoon olive oil

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon dried oregano

Dash of red pepper

Couple of drops of Worcestershire sauce (optional)

What you do

This sauce is a snap to make. Simply open the can of tomatoes and strain away any liquid. You want to use un-seasoned canned tomatoes (I also used organic). Put those tomatoes in the blender with the rest of the ingredients and blend. If you like your sauce chunky, blend for just a few pulses. But, if you prefer things nice and smooth, blend for as long as you like. If you’ve got Worcestershire sauce hanging out in your pantry, don’t shy away from adding a few drops. This adds a lovely smoky flavor and just a bit of an earthy saltiness, which makes the tomato sauce even better.

To make your own mini-matzo pizzas, preheat your oven to 450 F. Place a single piece of matzo on a sheet pan and then coat with a few big spoonfuls of that fresh pizza sauce. Add your favorite pizza toppings, a sprinkling of cheese, and then pop in the oven until the top is bubbling.

Yum.