Tag Archives: food

Healthy Snacks and Meals for Kids

We’re entering week 4 for the stay at home, shelter in place, self-quarantine orders in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, and I’m pretty sure we are all starting to feel it. When I say “it,” I mean the stress, the fear, uncertainty and challenges of trying to do it all.

And one of the most frequent requests from my kids is, ” What do we have to eat?” This question is also a big challenge because I would love to have more time to cook up or even think up healthy snacks and meals to have on tap for them..but the reality is…I don’t, and sometimes it seems easier to direct them to the prepackaged (sort of) junk foods in the cabinets.

Thankfully I spoke with Chef Rebekah via Zoom, and she gave me a few easy kid-friendly recipes, and also offered tips on pantry staples and what items to have on hand, to help keep those hunger monsters from driving you completely nuts! Well, you know what I mean…we can all be a little “nasty” when hunger sets in!

A few of the items she suggests keeping stocked in our kitchens that keep, are fresh eggs, crackers & pretzels, frozen veggies and peanut butter. Chef Rebekah’s ideas and tips can all be found at readyseteat.com

High Tech Help For Food Allergies

Allergies seem so much more prevalent these days among kids, and if you have school age children, you know, awareness and the way allergies (especially food allergies) are handled at school…is different from when we were in school. Okay, now I’m dating myself, but just this morning at Costco, I bumped into a Mom friend who asked me what other snacks can we send to school, since there are no nuts allowed. All this to say, even if you’re child doesn’t have allergies, it’s important to understand how serious it is for those that do.

Enter Veta, the world’s first high tech smart case for EpiPen. Veta helps families living with anaphylaxis by connecting loved ones or caregivers to those with life-threatening allergies, while providing emergency and location alerts. And because it keeps everyone connected, parents and caregivers can feel a little more secure, free and confident when it comes to those allergies.

The Veta Smart Case is a reusable and transparent carrier that incorporates electronics and sensors that integrate with a cloud-enabled mobile app infrastructure to ensure peace of mind for auto-injector users, their families, and their extended support network. It replaces the stock epinephrine auto-injector case to provide a variety of connected benefits, including: Separation Alerts, Auto-Injector Removal Alerts, Temperature and Expiry Alerts. When the auto-injector is removed from the Smart Case, Veta notifies and shares location information to everyone in the private Support Circle – a chosen group of trusted individuals that can provide comfort and assistance in the event of an allergic reaction. For example, a parent can be part of their child’s Support Circle and grant access to their child’s teacher or caregiver, so they can reach you physically or help coordinate support remotely.

Additional Veta App features include:

  • FindMe Locator that triggers a flashing light on the Veta Smart Case and audio pings, along with sharing the GPS location to help users locate a misplaced auto-injector
  • Integrated sensors that monitor temperature shifts that could affect the integrity of epinephrine
  • Emergency notifications that are instantaneously sent to the user’s Support Circle, along with loud verbal alerts so bystanders can act in an emergency
  • One-touch access to videos and other training material on the correct use of an EPIPEN® auto-injector
  • Helpful resources including shopping lists, barcode scanning, food photos, grocery-shopping tips, nearest open pharmacy, nearest hospital and trip planning tools

The Veta App runs on iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch and Android mobile devices. Currently, the Veta Smart Case is compatible with EpiPen®, EpiPen JR® and Mylan’s authorized generic to EpiPen® auto-injectors. To purchase Veta for $129 (one-pack) or $169 (two-pack), please visit www.aterica.com/shop. **For a limited-time introductory pricing of $40 OFF for the Two Pack and $50 OFF for the One Pack. ** 

Making Over the Traditional Cookie

3 Bags with Love Signs

Calling all cookie monsters! Molly Hamilton is changing the cookie game with her very own food innovation, Molly’s Bakeovers. Like me, this Mom is a cookie lover, but when it comes to her four kids, they all have food allergies.

Molly's Bakeovers Choc Chip 1

So, Molly took matters into her own hands and decided to make a treat her kids could enjoy, without the stuff that wouldn’t love them back. And in doing so, she made over the traditional cookie, with a cross between a cookie and granola bar aka “One Smart Cookie!” They are healthy, tasty and free of the most commons allergens that keep some kids from cookies!

Cookie Jar with 3 Flavors

Bakeovers are gluten, dairy, egg, soy, and nut free, with no added sugar. The only “tree nut” is a coconut! Flavors include chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin, blueberry and apple pie. YUM!! These smart cookies are popping up on store shelves from California to Hawaii and now in the Bay Area and the East Coast too! Visit Bakeovers online for all the delicious details.

Toddler Favs this Month

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I am always on the lookout for new foods, snacks and goodies to give to my boys when we’re at home and on the go. So, I thought why not post and share what we’re munching on…right!?!? Seasons change and so do their choices, but I came up on a couple new snacks and they have renewed interest in an old one, so check out our “Toddler Favs this Month.” Click to read more about supplements here.

First up, I found these rice rollers. I will admit, I do check out the snacks other parents give their kids at the playgrounds and when we’re out and about. So, since I had noticed this snack on more than a few occasions and finally found them on the shelves at Costco, I decided to go for it. The label says, low fat, low sodium, no cholesterol, gluten free and vegan…I mean easy enough, right? And — they are compact and easy to take on the go. It took a few tries before my boys actually took a liking to them, but now they love them. They have a nice crunch when you bite into them, they are lightly sweetened, so kinda like a rice crispy treat, but way healthier. Plus, they didn’t cost too much either…score!

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For whatever reason on that same Costco trip, my older toddler was adamant about getting gummy vitamins. We picked a couple jars of these gummies up and they like them a lot. One every morning and they are always asking for more. I didn’t set out to make sure they got a multivitamin everyday, but a nice supplement to make sure they are taking in more of the “good stuff” they need!

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Last on the list this month…and at Costco as well, Danimals Smoothie drinks! They’re pretty small servings and we just stick a straw in the foil top and it’s good to go. It’s an easy yogurt-based smoothie drink that they love. This is an oldie but goodie. They go through phases where they ask for Danimals all the time and this month is one of those months.

Let me know what your toddlers are snacking on this month, I’m always looking for new suggestions!

 

Holiday Mix Nuts Roca Candy

roca5

Every week, Chef Bob of Farm Fresh Supermarkets, makes an appearance on the TV show I host and this week he made his “Holiday Mix Nuts Roca Candy.” Now, I’m not big on nuts, but I know people tend to go “nuts” for this stuff, especially around this time of year! Well, he graciously shared his recipe with me, so now I’m going to share it with you!

roca3 roca2 roca1

Holiday Mix Nuts Roca Candy

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Cooling time: 1 hour

Ingredients:
1 lb. Unsalted Butter
2 cups Sugar
2 Tbsp Light Corn Syrup
5 Tbsp Water
1 Tbsp Pure Vanilla Extract
2 1/2 Cups Mixed Nuts (Planters Deluxe)
12 oz bag Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips
1/2 bag of 12 oz bag White Chocolate Chips
1/2 cup Chopped Mixed Nuts

Directions:
1. Over Medium heat, melt butter in a large pot.
2. Add corn syrup, water, vanilla and sugar to pot and cook until temp reaches 290 degrees (use a candy thermometer) or until the mixture becomes the color of a brown paper bag (about 15-20 minutes) stirring constantly with a wooden spoon (mixture will rise and bubble quite a bit).
3. Remove from heat and stir in mixed nuts.
4. Pour mixture onto a non-greased cookie sheet with edges.
5. While the nut mixture is cooling, melt the semi sweet chocolate and white chocolate chips separately in a double boiler until all the chips are gone, and chocolate is smooth.
6. Pour the warm semi sweet chocolate over the nut mixture and spread evenly.
7. Use a fork or spoon to drizzle the white chocolate over the dark chocolate.
8. Sprinkle with chopped nuts (Planters is fine), and allow candy to cool completely and chocolate to harden before breaking it apart.

Note: May want to cool in freezer for at least an hour.

If you want to watch the video clip when he made this click HERE

Mac n Cheese

macncheese

My girl @amarisjones shared this YUMMY photo and recipe for her Mac n Cheese on her social media…so I felt like it was my duty to share it with all of you!!

Ingredients:

6 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
4 cups milk, warm or half n half
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 onion powder
1/4 smoked paprika
1/4 dried chives
Dash hot sauce (to taste)
salt and and fresh cracked black pepper ( to taste) 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup shredded Muenster cheese
1/2 cup shredded Gouda cheese
1/2 cup shredded Asiago cheese
1 pound macaroni pasta, cooked al dente
1 cup breadcrumbs
1/2 cup shredded mild cheddar for topping

Directions:

Heat oven to 350 degrees F.

Melt 6 tablespoons butter in a large sauce pot over medium heat. Add flour and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Whisk in the warmed milk or (half n half) and bring to a boil, continue to whisk constantly. The mixture will thicken as the heat increases. Continue to stir while adding the dry mustard, nutmeg, cayenne, salt, pepper,onion powder, smoked paprika and hot sauce. Stir in the 3 cheeses (muenster, gouda, asiago). Once melted, pour the cheese sauce over the noodles and add to a 3 quart casserole dish and stir well with a wooden spoon. Sprinkle the breadcrumbs and Cheddar Cheese on top, and bake for 35 minutes. Enjoy!

Halloween Goodies

deviled egg spiders

Halloween is such a fun time of year. It’s a quick one day “holiday,” that usually gets lots of play in the week(s) before the actual day when kids (young and old) don their costumes and head out for some treats! Anyway, I wanted to share some Halloween goodies in the form of the above photo, which I got from my Media Blogger friend Monica. I just love the simple creativity to make it spooky and fun for the occasion. You may need to do some fancy chopping on the olives to get the spider just right..but what a fun alternative to the traditional candy and sweets.

I also did an interview with the saavy Sandra Lee of the Food Network and she offered some great tips and advice for costumes, decorations and treats (sweet and not so sweet) to help you get into the spirit of Halloween…so if you need some last minute inspiration, press play on the video above! Hope your Halloween is SPOOKtacular!

Skewer It!

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I’ve found a new way to entice my toddler to eat… He’s definitely entered the “picky” stage where he will not eat everything in front of him, but rather pick and choose what he deems “appetizing.” There really seems to be no rhyme or reason as to what he will eat and it’s almost like a flavor of the day/week where his favorite foods seem to be on his “what’s trending” list!

So, what happened was… I had brought home my leftovers one evening, and among the items were a couple skewers of chicken. I sort of held the skewered meat up toward him to see if he showed interest… and sure enough, he “bit” it! Then, with each bite he would proclaim, “I did it!” since he was able to feed himself by biting off chucks of food from the stick.

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Naturally, my next move was to buy a bag of bamboo skewers! The good thing is skewers are inexpensive, and you can stick just about anything on them. So, we did some beef kabobs with mushrooms and I also did a mango and grape medley! **Note – skewers can have a sharp end, so supervision is a MUST when serving a toddler food on a skewer.**

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Now, it wasn’t total success, but I do think he managed to eat more of the food then he would’ve normally eaten for the simple fact that it was on a skewer. I’m not saying it will work for every baby, but it’s def worth a try. I think it gives them a sense of empowerment to feed themselves, and also be in control…plus it’s fun! I couldn’t get enough of his “I did it” statements as he happily chowed down with his skewers!

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Packing Lunches for Kids

kids-eating-lunch

It’s August and summer is winding down. Parents are thinking about sending the kids back to school and planning for the year ahead. Well, sure in that preparation the subject, idea and chore of what to feed, pack and give to the kids food-wise is in that equation. And, with kids they can be picky eaters, so trying to be creative, yet healthy can be a bit of a challenge. My boys aren’t quite school age yet, but packing snacks and a lunch are a must every time we head out the door.

I remember being a lunchbox toting child, and besides having to have the “right” lunchbox, I’m sure my parents struggled with how to get me to eat the right stuff for lunch. I wasn’t a cafeteria kid, so I always brought lunch with me to school. I do distinctly recall sifting through my lunch every day, picking out the treats, string cheese and juice…rather than eating the sandwich and healthier options my Mom would put in there for me.

Sure it’s easy to fall back on prepackaged foods and fun character-themed snacks, but if you can, there are some easy ways to try and make lunches look more appealing using nutritious ingredients! And yes,I know it can seem like  a chore to have to plan and do the extra little things, just to get them to eat… BUT with a little planning and persistence, it’s doable!

Some of the tips I’ve read and seen include using a cookie cutter to turn sandwiches into fun shapes…I mean they’re going to ask you to cut the crust off anyway! Purchase baggies in fun colors and stuff them with fresh veggies like celery and carrot sticks. Use small plastic containers to pack some fresh cut fruit. If sandwich bread isn’t getting much play, try tortillas or pita bread as an alternative.

At my day job as a TV Host I got to interview Kelly Lester, the Mom behind easylunchboxes.com. Press play in the clip below and see what advice and ideas she offers when it comes to packing lunch for the kiddos! Happy packing!

Kid’s Eat FREE at Olive Garden on April 24

Olive Garden Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Foundation

Olive Garden invites families to celebrate and enjoy a special meal together on Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day on Thursday, April 24, and is offering one free children’s menu item (children under 12) for every adult entree purchased that day.

This year, more than 37 million youth and adults are expected to participate in Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day at more than 3.5 million workplaces. Olive Garden has partnered with the Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Foundation since 2012, and last year more than 7,000 Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day participants visited Olive Garden restaurants nationwide.

DARDEN RESTAURANTS, INC. OLIVE GARDEN USO UNITED THROUGH READING“Olive Garden is proud to support the Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day Foundation and all it does to create enriching educational experiences for children around the world,” said Jay Spenchian, Olive Garden’s executive vice president of marketing. “By offering free kids meals we hope to make the day a little more special for parents and their children, and encourage everyone to join us for a family meal together.”

The Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day free kid’s meal coupon will be available at OliveGarden.com. The coupon is valid for lunch and dinner with the purchase of any adult entree, including more than 20 new menu items recently introduced on Olive Garden’s menu as part of the most comprehensive update in the restaurant’s history.

I love that Olive Garden is so family-friendly, like when they did the “Parents’s Night Out” event with My Gym no too long ago! Make sure to print a coupon for this FREE offer.

To find the nearest Olive Garden restaurant, visit OliveGarden.com. Connect with them at Facebook.com/OliveGarden, Twitter.com/OliveGarden and Instagram.com/OfficialOliveGarden.