Store-bought hummus can be too strong for my kids’ taste buds. Adding creamy non-dairy yogurt helps make it just right!
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We love this served with pita chips!
Biscuit recipes can be sticky and tricky to work with, but this one comes together like a dream. It’s definitely worth the effort to make fresh sweet potato puree, instead of buying a can.
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These are delicious with a pat of Earth Balance butter for serving. You can store leftover biscuits in an air-tight container.
Unlike turning out homemade ice cream, this frozen yogurt comes together with almost no effort.
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Update: We discovered this is just as yummy with other frozen berries, too. Blueberries were a big hit.
Then we used 1 cup frozen fruit for our version with strawberries…
…and one with raspberries, for results that were deemed even more delicious!
This sorbet needs just two ingredients and it’s perfect on a hot day. For a little variation, you can add fresh grated ginger to the mix, too.
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This pizza was so fun to put together, complete with a tropical island background, an X-marks-the-spot, and golden treasure! You can prepare your edible mini maps on individual pita pockets, or do as Travis did and make a full-size pizza.
To start, pat pizza dough onto a pizza pan, then spread with tomato sauce, leaving a 1/2-inch crust. Sprinkle with your favorite non-dairy mozzarella.
Travis loved assembling a little pirate island that included the following: two bell pepper strips to mark an X for treasure; palm trees made of orange bell pepper trunks and green bell pepper fronds; mushroom rocks; olive footprints leading to the treasure; and corn kernels as nuggets of gold.
The kids had so much fun peaking while it baked!
Bubbles in the crust after baking even meant that we had some fun topography, like a little “hill” now below our X.
Then it was time to gobble up the treasure.
Mango and honeydew might not make an obvious fruit combo, but a dish of this sorbet is so refreshing on a hot day. And contains no added sugar, to boot!
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Note: If you forget an interval of fluffing or two, don’t fret. We certainly did on a busy summer afternoon, and it still turned out just fine!
There are a few twists to this take on tabbouleh: quinoa instead of bulgur wheat, flat leaf parsley instead of curly, and the addition of cannellini beans for a nice protein boost.
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Mango adds a fun tropical note to this summery side dish. If your kids are older, you can prepare it raw like a traditional coleslaw. I like to cook the cabbage mixture first, though, so it’s easier for my toddler to chew. For an added nutrition boost, stir in chopped collard greens, too.
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I am loving storytime with Veronika these days; at long last she’ll sit in my lap and snuggle for a story (although she still prefers to “read” solo!). One other way to keep her engaged in a book is to add a hands-on element, bringing the story to life. Books about food are especially fun for this, so here’s how we played today!
We started out with a read of Blueberries for Sal, one of my personal favorites. I gave Veronika a plastic cup and some blueberries, intending for her to ka-plink ka-plank ka-plunk along with the book. Lots of dumping and pouring of blueberries, ensued!
I had enough extra berries on hand that my intention was to make blueberry muffins thereafter, cooking in the kitchen just like Little Sal and her mother. But a certain big brother ate all the blueberries!
Oh no! I had already promised the kids muffins, so I searched online for a recipe that was quick and used only pantry staples. Veronika loved scooping flour and spices with a set of kitchen utensils while I did the real baking.
Well, it turned out these last-minute muffins were so good that the kids delighted in running back and forth from living room to kitchen for bites with huge grins on their faces, while shouting out, “Mama Moose’s Muffins!”
That made us think of another kiddie lit classic, If You GIve a Moose a Muffin. So we read that book over our muffin snack!
As a result, here is my recipe for “Mama Moose’s Muffins”, which might just become a classic around here.
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This warm breakfast cereal is a nice alternative if your kids are tired of oatmeal.
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Note: If the barley was cooked the night before, rewarm each portion briefly in the microwave.
You can also try this recipe with strawberries…
peaches…
…apricots, or any other fruit, instead!
joyful parenting 