Thursday, August 25, 2011

Pineapple Parfaits

My kids don't have much time in the mornings to eat breakfast...for that matter, they're really not interested in breakfast that early anyway.  What's the most important meal of the day?  Everyone together....BREAKFAST!  I have seen that the kids function better at school if they have eaten at least a little something, so this year I have implemented a rule that they HAVE to get out the door with food or milk in their tummies.

While I was perusing through my recipes not long ago, I found one for these Pineapple Parfaits.  Last night, I told the kids I was going to make them and they would enjoy them for breakfast....super quick and easy.  Jonathan said they sounded great.  Benjamin groaned and said he didn't want one.  Lindsay asked me if they were healthy.

I made them in the smallest Glad disposable plastic containers, so the kids could just grab one out of the fridge.  The recipe said to make them in parfait glasses and of course there would be a couple of layers of each item, but I knew the kids didn't want a lot for breakfast, so I just made them "single" parfaits.


The recipe:
20 ounce can chunk pineapple, drained
32 ounce container lowfat vanilla yogurt
1 cup granola (I used the oats and honey crispy granola bars and crunched them up in a storage baggie)
Set out 9 of the plastic Glad containers.  Divide the pineapple, yogurt, and granola (respectively) equally among the containers.  Place the lids on tip; store in the fridge.

Print Pineapple Parfaits Recipe

I got 6 thumbs up from my kids this morning!  Benjamin the Naysayer was licking his bowl clean!  The only suggestion was to add more granola.  Oh and they make a great after-school snack as well.  Hope your kids enjoy them as much as mine!

Love from the kitchen...

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Appetizer Night

I am probably the world's worst about collecting recipes that sound good, but never trying them.  I currently have all of my recipes stored in Excel, but I recently purchased a new software (Living Cookbook 2011) and I'm working on getting them all transferred over.  This has inspired me to introduce many of these new recipes to my family. 

I wasn't quite sure how I was going to tackle the Appetizers/Snacks section of my recipes, so when I was planning our menu for this week I decided to have Appetizer Night for one of our dinners.  And I also planned it for just me and the kids since Ed's not usually into "light" eating.  So what did we have?

#1) Everyone's favorite...Meatball Appetizer
I guess I should ask people to help me rename this with something fancier, but meatball appetizer sounds better than meatballs and grape jelly, because that's all it is!  Don't knock it...they were awesome!


32 ounce package frozen homestyle meatballs
18 ounce jar grape jelly
1. Add meatballs and grape jelly to large pot.
2. Mix well to coat meatballs with jelly.
3. Cook on medium heat until jelly has melted down and meatballs are done.  If you have time, cook them in the crockpot on low for a couple of hours or until they're done.

Print Meatball Appetizer Recipe

#2) Puff Pastry with Cranberry Chicken Salad


1 sheet frozen ready-to-bake puff pastry, thawed (from 17 1/4 ounce package)
1 heaping cup chopped cooked chicken breasts
1/4 cup chopped green onions
1/4 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons jellied cranberry sauce
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
Garnish: jellied cranberry sauce
1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. Place pastry sheet on lightly floured surface. 
3. Cut 12 (2-inch) rounds from pastry (I didn't have a round cookie cutter or biscuit cutter, so I used the rim of a glass, but it was larger than 2" in diameter, so I ended up using both pastry sheets.); place on ungreased baking sheet.
4. Bake for 15 minutes or until puffed and golden brown; remove from baking sheet; place on wire cooling rack.
5. While still warm, split each round into 2 layers to form 24 rounds; cool completely.
6. In small bowl, combine chicken, onions, mayonnaise, cranberry sauce, ginger, and dry mustard.
7. Mix all ingredients well and refrigerate until serving time.
8. To serve, spoon 1 teaspoon chicken salad on split side of each round puff pastry.
9. Garnish each with a small dot of cranberry sauce.
Yield: 24 appetizers

Print Puff Pastry with Cranberry Chicken Salad Recipe

#3) Veggie Bars


2 cans Pillsbury crescent rolls
1/4 cup milk, room temperature (this prevents the cream cheese from seizing up when combining the two)
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1 package buttermilk ranch dressing mix
1 teaspoon dill weed
3 stalks broccoli, chopped
4 cauliflower florets, chopped
1 large carrot, peeled and grated
6 green onions, chopped
1 cup grated Cheddar cheese
1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Unroll crescent dough and place flat on cookie sheet (I used a large baking sheet and had some crescent dough left over).
3. Bake dough for 15 minutes; let cool.
4. Combine milk, cream cheese, mayonnaise, dressing mix, and dill; blend until creamy.
5. Spread dressing mix on cooled bread.
6. Top with vegetables and grated cheese (I used a little more than 1 cup of cheese...I rarely measure cheese).
7. Chill 2 hours before serving.

Print Veggie Bars Recipe

The kids and I really enjoyed all of these.  I was surprised that the boys liked everything, but they gobbled it up and went back for seconds!  So if you try them, I hope you like them, too!

Monday, August 1, 2011

Is It The Memory or The Mind That's The First To Go?

I got up over an hour ago to let the dogs outside.  I took my glass with me so I could circle through the kitchen to refresh my ice water to take my meds.  While I was in the kitchen, I decided to check our supply of ice so I could set aside some for Hoover's water...he's our outside dog...to help him stay cool in this horrid heat.  Our ice maker only holds so much ice and I wanted to set aside some so the ice maker could continue to make more (in case you were wondering).  When I opened the freezer door, I realized I had frozen a water bottle earlier to take it out to Hoover.  I pulled out the frozen bottle, walked out back and threw it over to Hoover's side of the fence and then let the dogs in (who were now upset because Hoover got something and they didn't...well, except Angel...she can't see so she didn't realize what was going on).  I walked back in the living room, sat back down in my chair, got my computer comfy in my lap, Brutus curled up on my ottoman, and restarted my movie "When In Rome." 

It's now over an hour later, and I just realized I never refreshed my water much less brought it in here with me.  Normally, I could ask one of the boys to go do it for me, but I'M THE ONLY HUMAN IN THE HOUSE!!