Snack Time!!

Here's a yummy little snack for the fun of it, it's also a great snack to share at parties.

Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart's w/Pina Colada Jam!!

Many people have asked me how we even find food to eat due to all the food allergies in our home. Well this is one way! Here's how we make this yummy treat...

Pull-Apart's:

• 
  
  One tube of biscuit dough, any brand will work. We like to use Buttermilk style


• 
  
  2-3 Tablespoons or so of melted butter in a dish


• 
  
  A dish with about 1/3 Cup Sugar and 1 Tablespoon Cinnamon mixed together. (My son is allergic to Cinnamon, so I always make a small pan of just sugar coated ones for him)


• A non stick pan works best, I like to use bunt or shaped pans for more fun.

First preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Now take the biscuit dough, (you can use them whole or pull them into small pieces and ball them) and dip it into the melted butter, make sure it's covered. Then dip the dough into the Cinn/Sug mix again making sure to cover it completely. Place in your chosen pan. Keep in mind that they do raise slightly, so don't pile it to the top of the pan, leave about a 1/4" or more between your dough and the top of the pan. Drizzle any remaining butter over the dough. (This is what helps the sugar caramelize just a bit to cause that yummy crunch on the outside and soft on the inside reaction) Place in oven for 15-20 minutes. Let it cool for a few minutes before turning it out of the pan. Great by it's self or with your favorite jams!

I found this recipe in "Simple & Delicious" magazine. Of course I was excited to try it because unlike most jam/jelly/preserves, it does not use pectin! Which is one of the food allergies in our home.

Pina Colada Jam:

• 6 Cups sugar


• 6 Cups shredded peeled zucchini


• 1 Can (8 oz.) crushed pineapple, undrained


• 1/4 Cup lime juice


• 2 Pkg. (3 oz. each) pineapple gelatin


• 1 tsp. rum extract

Combine sugar, zucchini, pineapple, and lime juice in a Dutch oven (I just used a large pot) . Bring to a boil. Boil for 10 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat; stir in gelatin and extract until gelatin is dissolved. Pour into jars or freezer containers, leaving 1/2" headspace. Cool completely before covering with lids. Refrigerate for up to 3 weeks or freeze for up to 1 year. This makes about 3.5 pints.

So now using almond butter as a substitute for peanut butter, and the Colada jam my boys can enjoy "pb&j" again! But the Colada jam is so yummy we enjoy it on more then sandwiches as you can see. Looks like I'll have to make more of it soon! :)

Happy 3rd Elias!

It's been 3 years since my youngest Elias came to us. I can't believe it's been that long already! He's so grown up, and I don't remember it happening.

This year he asked for a cowboy cake with sprinkles, so I put the message in a lasso and covered the rest of the cake in red and blue star sprinkles. Happy Birthday Son!

Happy Birthday!!

Another year, another birthday. I LOVE YOU HUNNY! For his birthday my husband received among other things a new fun bento box... So naturally I had to picture the first meal packed in it. :)

So I have here the bento pictured multiple times as I put it together. In #1 you can see all the parts layed out. Left to Right: Top bento piece soup bowl, Bento inner lid, Center bento piece holding a simple salad, Small container of ranch dressing with lid, Soup thermos filled with chunky mushroom soup with lid, Small container of soup crackers with lid, bottom bento piece holding colby/monteray jack cheese and dinner sausage slices.

Pictures #2 and #3 show how i put the pieces together. Picture #4 is the bento all stacked up to make an awesome Samurai Warrior!. Picture #5 is the meal all wrapped up and ready to go in the new furoshiki wrap I made to match the bento. My husband thought it was a really cool bento and was excited to take it to work and show it off. YAY! :)

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

My boys and I had lots of fun this St. Patrick's day or "Green Day" as Orion calls it. Everything we ate today had green things, we colored with green crayons, played with our green toys, and well you get the idea. So here are pictures from the Green Day meals we had. Daddy had to miss dinner so his green day meal was packed in a bento!

Breakfast:

"Clover" oatmeal with gold nuggets (dried peaches), Green sugar sprinkles on wheat toast, and Gold juice (orange juice)

Lunch:

PB&J sandwiches with a clover (Drawn on with food dye), Gold coins (Sliced carrots), and Green Milk.

Dinner:

Ranch baked breaded chicken breast, egg noodles with a sour cream dill and onion sauce (with green dye), Red bell pepper strips, Gold coin carrots, Deviled eggs (with green dye in yoke mix and the egg white), The Clover on the children's plate and the "Lucky" on the adults plates are cut from nori , and a special little prize in the center of the plate... A miniature Lucky 8 ball!! This was a big hit of course. This was served with Green apple juice, and a simple dessert of Green lime jello with whipped topping. We had so much fun with this I'm planing on doing more color specific days with my boys.

Valentines love on a plate

Happy Valentines to all of you! I've made a yummy dish here for my family's special dinner.

In the pot we have egg noodles, then a simple salad with tomatoes, mushrooms, and carrots, with the main course..... Mustard White Wine Chicken. It's fairly simple to make and very tasty, this is the second time I've made it and it was just as popular as the first time.

Here's what it looked like when served. The only thing I'd add is a fresh sprig of parsley to finish the look, but alas I had non in the house.

Now on to Dessert, These are the chocolates I chose to make this year. They're bavarian cream flavored chocolate!