This sweet twist on classic tortilla nachos is sure to delight, and a great way to use up the last of your fall apple bounty!
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We’ve been enjoying a great book recently about Abraham Lincoln (from the Ordinary People Change the World series written by Brad Meltzer), which prompted talk about a log cabin. You can introduce your child to this style of architecture through classic toys like Lincoln Logs of course, but even more fun was putting together this edible version!
To construct the cabin, you need thick pretzel rods and your frosting of choice – we like the vegan vanilla from Wholesome Sweeteners.
Start out with a base, using the frosting as “glue” to attach the four corners.
Travis loved smearing on the frosting with a plastic knife, but your child may find that a makeshift pastry bag (i.e. a zip-top bag with a hole snipped in it) is easier.
From there, we spread our pretzels with more frosting (“cement”), and built up several layers.
A little carpenter at work!
It was tough to make the roof stay in the way we originally planned; if you have chocolate at home, it may be useful to melt some and use that to adhere two pretzel rods diagonally together. We managed to balance ours with generous globs of frosting, though it wasn’t particularly sturdy.
Luckily, the cabin was meant to be eaten, not saved – what a fun snack!
If you make this craft in the wintertime, your child may want to sprinkle the structure with coconut “snow” before snacking, too.
These cookies are absolutely loaded with yummy ingredients, a few of which you can feel good about (rolled oats, shredded coconut), making it a treat you won’t mind giving your kids. You could also add 1 cup walnuts or raisins to the mix, if desired.
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Set the slow-cooker going in the early afternoon for this recipe, and it’s ready by dinner time. We love walking in the door to the smell of curry!
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This homey casserole is perfect for chilly autumn nights! This time of year, consider using 1 and 1/2 cups pureed fresh butternut squash, but the canned version will do in a pinch.
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It finally feels like fall, after a strange spike back into 80 degree weather, and today simply called for this apple dessert. The flavors and smells practically scream out autumn.
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These adorable little toasts, the recipe in our October High Five magazine, make a great snack – simply vary the shape to make them appropriate throughout the entire fall!
For our first toasts, Travis chose pumpkin- and leaf-shaped cookie cutters. Adults: toast 1 slice of bread per each shape.
Travis loved helping press the cookie cutters into the bread, and seeing the shapes pop out.
Next came spreading them with red-pepper hummus, giving a nice autumnal hue to our snacks.
I cut up small strips of red and yellow peppers for him to arrange on the toasts as decoration, including red color for our pumpkin’s stem.
Okay, the leaf veins were care of mama.
Closer to Halloween, make a ghost toast! Use a ghost-shaped cookie cutter and spread with non-dairy cream cheese. Add eyes and a mouth from cut black olives.
Once we’re into November, consider a turkey version. We spread with red-pepper hummus again, and used bell pepper pieces for tail feathers and a beak.
Happy snacking!
This breakfast bowl will give a powerful boost to your kiddo’s day. I love that it’s packed with superfoods, and kids just love that it tastes good.
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Kids are all too often over-scheduled these days, and I’m as guilty of it as the next parent. That’s why I love the afternoons that I deliberately keep wide open for my son and me. It’s the perfect excuse just to play or, one of our favorites, to bake! This cooking project is messy, that’s for sure, but so worth the smiles.
To start, we made a basic sugar cookie batter. In a bowl, cream together 2 sticks (1/2 pound) Earth Balance butter and 1 cup sugar using a wooden spoon or fork. Travis loved this step! Usually we use our stand mixer, and it was so fun to get in there with muscle power.
Add 2 Ener-G eggs and 2 teaspoons vanilla extract, stirring until combined.
Carefully stir in 2 and 1/2 cups flour just until blended. Travis pretended he was a stand mixer on “slow” setting for this step. Loved it!
Now for the messy part. Divide your dough into about 4 or 5 portions on a floured surface. Working with one portion at a time, knead in colors of the rainbow. We didn’t make a full rainbow, but soon had red, yellow, green, and blue portions, using the all-natural food coloring from Watkins.
You’ll notice Travis took a moment to steal some leftover batter!
Wrap each portion of dough individually in plastic wrap and place in the fridge for at least 1 hour (longer is fine).
When it’s time to bake, coat a baking sheet with cooking spray. Pinch off a section of each color and roll into a long worm, then make rainbows on the baking sheet.
Bake at 375 degrees F for 7 minutes. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack and repeat with the remaining dough until gone. (Note: we made two batches today, and the dough easily freezes for future rainbow-making).
Kids will love shaking up this snack… literally! Prepare the pretzels in the morning, and they’ll be ready after school for an afternoon nibble.
You’ll need a 2-gallon zippered plastic bag to make the pretzels. I only had 1-gallon bags on hand, so we divided the pretzels into two portions, and for all of the quantities below, we divided in half among each bag.
Place the plastic bag (or bags) in a large bowl, and fill with 1 (16-ounce) bag mini pretzels.
Add 1/2 cup olive oil.
Sprinkle in 2 teaspoons garlic powder, 2 teaspoons dried dill, and 4 teaspoons ranch-dressing seasoning (note: try the Saucy Ranch Seasoning from The Vegetarian Express). Travis loved smelling each herb!
Now the fun part: seal the bag and shake!
Leave the pretzels to marinate at room temperature for at least 8 hours before snacking.
Thanks for the great snack idea High Five magazine!
joyful parenting 