Recognized in the literary world with stories such as Cinderella, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, and Peter, Peter, Pumpkin Eater, the pumpkin is no stranger to the spotlight. Each year in the USA, thousands of pumpkins are carved into jack ‘o lanterns and many pumpkin pies are eaten at Thanksgiving celebrations! Read the rest »

My kids have always enjoyed cooking and baking, and it has been my pleasure to teach them. My son, Dylan, is 4 and he is still happy with the toy ovens and licking the mixing spoons, but my daughter, Juliet, who will soon be 10, has already mastered stirring (while keeping much of the food inside the bowl), cracking eggs, and measuring; and has begun wanting a bit more leeway in the kitchen.

I am always anxious to try a kid friendly product in the kitchen and was delighted to test out King Arthur Flour K.A.F. Kidsâ„¢ Snickerdoodle cookie mix. I sat the box out on the kitchen counter and tied an apron around Juliet. She had no problems following the kid friendly directions. Not only were they easily spelled out, with child friendly fonts, margins and spacing, but there were illustrations for each step. I helped with a couple steps, but quite frankly she could have done each step solo. She turned on the oven while I melted the butter she lined the cookie sheet with parchment paper and then cracked her egg. Once the butter cooled a bit she used a whisk to incorporate the egg with the butter and then used a spoon to add the packaged cookie mix. She then followed the directions on the box and rolled the dough into balls. Dylan got into the action at the next step as he got to roll the balls in the cinnamon and sugar (the cinnamon and sugar come with the box and there is more than enough). They placed the cookies on the cookie sheet and I placed it in the oven. Read the rest »

Fun foods are everywhere. Most of us live in a culture where processed, white flour, high sugar and/or deep fried foods are commonly eaten and easily purchased. The availability of these foods combined with food advertisements on all types of media are over whelming. These types of foods are so common that avoiding them becomes a challenge.

I encourage you to focus your efforts on providing whole, unprocessed foods as much as possible. This includes:

• All fresh fruits and vegetables
• Low fat meats
• Nuts, seeds,
• Beans and tofu
• Eggs

Read the rest »

Parents today recognize the importance of feeding their children healthy nutritious foods. The problem is that the cafeteria has become just another franchise; foods aren’t healthy and well-balanced. Vending machines offer chips, cookies, sodas and a myriad of other junk foods that children shouldn’t be eating. This creates a challenge to parents that many have decided to ignore.

Assuming that it’s a lost cause, some parents have rationalized that the rest of their meals are healthy and nutritious so why worry about what their children are eating for lunch. This is a dangerous misconception considering what is being served in the majority of school cafeterias. Read the rest »

Here are some great recipes that offer a new twist to your child’s vegetarian diet!

White Bean Burritos
White beans have a great mild flavor that most children find appealing. Read the rest »

Fiber is very healthy and went somewhat missing in the modern first world diet with the onset of mass food production, processing and the fast food rage.

Food companies and the media have since picked up on a large body of scientific research indicating fiber protects us against chronic diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, obesity, certain cancers and gastrointestinal disorders.

So what do you need to know about fiber to raise a healthy family? Here’s the Fiber 411. Read the rest »

This week I’m bringing you three mom-inspired ways to feed your kids better and faster. Summer can be an especially trying time for parents. There is always a meal or snack to prepare. It doesn’t matter how newly remodeled your kitchen is, it’s no place to spend June through August.

We all know the Internet is packed full of more information than most people have time to wade through. That’s why I scoured the momosphere to find easy ways to feed your den. Mom entrepreneurs helping moms…I love it. Read the rest »