Red, White, and Blue Desserts for the Fourth of July

Life is Good: our forefathers made sure of it!

I love Independence Day. Maybe it's because it was my due date when I was in the womb? (I arrived a week late and my mom says that I have been trying to make up for it ever since!) Or maybe I'm just naturally patriotic. Either way, I love the holiday---warm sun on my face, pool or lake time, and...dessert! 

Yesterday I shared my yummy-tasty-easy-I mean eeeeeeasy-recipe for eggless individual banana cream pies so today, as promised, I'm sharing how I made red, white, and blue Rice Krispies treats (with all due credit for the idea to our Big Kid--I'm glad he's learning something from me! Party, party!). 

Very important to remember: you will need the ingredients for THREE full recipes of the traditional Rice Krispies treats. 

The recipe for one quantity is:

3 T. butter

1 pkg (10 ounces or 4 cups) mini marshmallows

6 c. Rice Krispies cereal

(So you will need three times everything above to make the Star Spangled Rice Krispies Treats.)

Directions:

1. In a large saucepan, melt butter over low heat.

2. Add marshmallows and stir until completely melted. 

3. Remove from heat. 

4. Add cereal and stir until well coated.

To make Susie's Star Spangled Rice Krispies treats:

1. Make one quantity of Rice Krispies treats.

2. Before you add the cereal, add five drops of blue food coloring to the melted marshmallows.

3. Add cereal and mix.

4. Spray a spatula with Pam spray and fold the blue treats mixture into a 9 x 13 Pyrex dish. Use the spatula to flatten the treats into the dish.

Here is a pic of the first layer. (I did mine backwards---red, white, blue instead of blue, white, red.) I know...it kind of looks like raw meat. I promise it tasted better than that!

5. Make a second quantity of Rice Krispies treats following the traditional recipe.

6. Using your sprayed spatula, add the treats recipe atop the blue layer. (This is your "white" layer.)

7. Make a third quantity of Rice Krispies treats. Before adding the cereal, add five drops of red food coloring to the mixture.

8. Mix in the cereal. 

9. Using the spatula, flatten the red mixture atop the plain (white) treats layer.

10. Allow to cool a few hours.

11. Cut into desired sized pieces. 

12. Marvel at how crafty you are!

13. Enjoy!

Happy Independence Day!

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Red, White, and Blue Desserts for Memorial Day or Fourth of July

Life is Good: dig in!

If you're starting to think about Fourth of July desserts, then my recipe from Memorial Day is just what you're looking for!

We had such a fun Memorial Day weekend this year--a little rest & a lot of fun. Part of that fun was spending a day with our Goddaughter (age 10) and her family. We had great weather that was perfect for dads vs. kids baseball and rolling around in the grass. 

We grilled out and had the uber holiday weekend menu--burgers, brats, corn on the cob...super traditional and low key. "Casual" was the name of the game, and that called for an easy but fun dessert.

Our Big Kid informed me that he had THE best idea for dessert: red, white, and blue Rice Krispies treats. I had to give it to him...that was simply brilliant! And I knew the kids would love it. But I wanted something a little more grown up, too, so I decided to make (eggless, of course) individual red, white, and blue banana cream pies, too. Turns out, everybody wanted one of each. Success!

Susie's Red, White, & Blue Individual (Eggless) Banana Cream Pies

Filling Ingredients:

2/3 c. sugar

1/4 t. salt (I use pink Himalayan)

1 2/3 c. milk

1 t. vanilla (I use Madagascar)

3 T. cornstarch

2 T. butter

Directions:

1. Cook the first four ingredients over low heat until smooth. 

2. Slowly, add three Tablespoons of cornstarch--one at a time-- to the mixture, whisking constantly to avoid lumps.

3. Increase your flame to medium and continue to whisk until the mixture thickens.

4. When thick, add butter and whisk as it melts. 

5. Turn off the flame and slice two bananas into the thickened mixture.

6. Gently fold the banana slices into the mixture and allow to cool, but not completely.

7. Transfer cooled mixture into individual serving dishes, layering blueberries then the banana pie mixture, then sliced strawberries for a "red, white & blue" effect.

8. Place in refrigerator to cool completely until ready to serve.

For my Memorial Day banana cream pies, I rolled out pre-made pie crust and used a cookie cutter to cut out stars. I baked them for about 15 minutes (every oven is different, so watch your stars closely) and added them to my cooled "pies" right before I served them.

Tomorrow....my red, white, & blue Rice Krispies treats recipe!

  

BEST Eggless, Egg free, Light and Fluffy Doughnut Donut Recipe

Life is Good: we finally have a good eggless doughnut recipe!

I have tried so many times to convert doughnut recipes to be eggless for our kids. This egg allergy is always a challenge and doughnut recipes have been a pain. Every time I try to make doughnuts, they end up being really dense and cake-like. Now, nobody is crying or complaining about that. However, I have longed to give my family a true, light, melt-in-your-mouth EGG FREE doughnut.

This past week, our Big Kid and Little Kid went to Vacation Bible School (VBS) and so, as usual, I was charged with the task of recreating any of the week's snacks that my kids could not eat (because they contained eggs, nuts, or other of their food allergies). The theme was "Surf Shack" so, of course, there was a powdered doughnut decorated like life preservers. ACK!

I have determined that cake and cookie decorating (and now, doughnut decorating) are God's way of keeping me humble! ; ) Martha Stewart need not be afraid of me taking her job!

Like I said, I have struggled to find the right recipe that is not a dense cake shaped like a doughnut. This week, I finally found the right recipe from sweetestkitchen.com. Thank you!!!

I adjusted the recipe to be eggless as well as the nutmeg and vanilla amounts. I've made the recipe three times already and everyone of all ages were satisfied. Sift some powdered sugar on them or roll them in cinnamon & sugar--either way, yum! These honestly taste very similar to the mini doughnuts that you get at the MN State Fair or out of food trucks and at carnivals around here. On second thought, I may need to lose this recipe unless I want to buy all new pants in the next size up.

Ingredients:

In a separate bowl, combine & mix thoroughly:

1 Tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 quick dashes of ground nutmeg

1/2 cups all-purpose flour

In a separate bowl, mix together:

1/4 cup applesauce 

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

Then, add:

1/2 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

In a separate bowl, cream together with a hand mixer:

6 Tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a mini doughnut pan with spray oil.

2. In a bowl, mix together the baking powder, salt, nutmeg, and flour with a spoon.

3. In a separate bowl, mix together applesauce & baking soda mixture with milk and vanilla.

4. In a separate bowl, cream together softened butter and sugar with a hand mixer until fluffy.

5. Add half of the wet ingredients to the creamed mixture, being sure not to use the hand mixture too much so that your doughnut batter doesn't become tough. Too much use of the hand mixture can make baked goods end up tough and not light & fluffy.

6. Add half of the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture.

7. Add the rest of the wet ingredients to the creamed mixture.

8. Add the rest of the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture.

9. Spoon the batter into a ziplock bag, zip it and then cut the very tiny corner out of the bag.

10. Push on the ziplock bag to pipe the batter into the doughnut pan. ONLY fill the circles halfway. TRUST ME. Do not fill the circles all the way full unless you are in the mood to clean oozed out, burnt doughnut batter off of the bottom of your oven. I'm speaking for a friend, of course.

11. Bake for 10-12 minutes until golden brown and spring back when you lightly touch them.

12. Let the doughnuts cool in the pan completely. Then, tap the pan on the counter to release them from the pan. This is the tricky part. I tried several different ways including trying to gently pop them out using forks, knives, spoons, etc and often, they were breaking apart. Tapping the pan on the counter was the best way to keep the doughnuts intact. 

13. To coat the doughnuts with cinnamon & sugar (our favorite), I melted two teaspoons of butter in the microwave in a small bowl. Then, I mixed 1 Tablespoon of cinnamon and 2 Tablespoons of sugar together in another small bowl. 

12. Lightly tap each doughnut in the melted butter, just enough to make them "wet" but not soggy. Then, roll them in the cinnamon & sugar mixture. Another option is to put the cinnamon & sugar mixture in a big baggie and then put the buttered doughnuts in the bag, ziplock and then shake the mixture around the doughnuts.

13. Try not to eat all of them.

14. This recipe makes approximately 36 mini doughnuts, which appears to be enough for one small human at our house. 

15. I got my pan from Michael's with a coupon. This one from amazon.com is similar.

School Lunch Ideas

Life is Good: lunch is ready!

Winter boots? Check. Winter parka? Check. Long-sleeved shirts, hoodies, sweaters, jeans, and pants? Check. I've purchased enough winter gear for the big kid to survive an early winter. Now, please, don't let us have to use all of this until January!

The countdown has begun...school starts on August 28th for the big kid. Not just school. KINDERGARTEN! For the past two years, I have been so excited for the big kid to start preschool. I knew he would love it. And he did. But this time around, I find myself a bit melancholy. I have to stop myself from thinking about it for fear of tears welling up. Like right now. So I will put on the brakes once again and save that for another post!

There is so much prep work in getting kids ready for school. I have been working on different pieces of this since July. Last week, the big kid and I sat down and wrote a list of good ideas for school lunches. In the past, he stayed once a week for lunch at preschool, but now he will take his lunch five days a week since his food allergies prevent him from eating foods at risk for cross-contamination.

I was really thrilled that the big kid listed things like red peppers and fresh green beans as lunch items! We've also discovered that Thomas brand whole wheat mini bagels work with our dietary issues so he added bagel sandwiches to his usual faves, grilled cheese. Ah, the glorious grilled cheese sandwich! I often hide spinach, carrots or other shredded meat or veggies in them. Cheese makes everything better, right?

I love the lunch bag we bought for him. I bought it when he was two and attended a Friday morning playroom where they ate lunch. We had his name embroidered on it and it still looks as good as it did when we first used it three years ago. I wash it in the washing machine and line dry it. I store it in the freezer so that it keeps the cold pack cold longer and therefore, the cold foods cold longer.

I've bought what seems like a million water bottles and cups with straws in the lids over the years. Each one ended up leaking at some point. Until I found these at the Container Store in the spring. So far, no leaks! And they are super easy for the 5 year old and 2 year old to open themselves. They are BPA-free, so I like that. But I have wanted to find something that wasn't plastic at all. The same goes for some BPA-free reusable plastic containers I use for yogurt, berries, etc. Then today, I noticed this post and was thrilled to find a list of tried and tested environment-friendly, kid-friendly products from a mama devoted to serving her family yummy recipes made from organic, unprocessed foods. I just ordered these great stainless steel containers!

As satisfying as it is to be prepared, my kiddos have taught me to live in the moment. And so that is what I am going to get right back to. Quiet time is over for the big kid so we are going to examine the "summer list" ("bucket list") we made in May and see what we need to accomplish in the next 15 days. No matter what is left on the list, I have no doubt that we have accomplished the priority for the summer...fun!

Eggless Banana Bread Recipe

Life is Good: and yummy!

A few weeks ago, I helped make snacks for the kids with allergies at our church's Vacation Bible School (VBS). The first day, all of the kids had "celebration bread", which was a slice of banana bread topped with craisins, raisins, and whipped cream (frosting for the lactose-intolerant kids) to form a smiling face.
I've made this recipe several times and have altered it a bit. It's super easy and quick to make and simple enough that kids can do most of the prep. Here is my version:

Eggless Banana Bread

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups flour (I use all-purpose*)
1 t. baking powder
1 t. salt
3/4 cup sugar
4 large, over-ripe bananas*
3/4 cup applesauce plus 1 heaping tablespoon applesauce (I use organic, no sugar added)
4 T. butter, melted
1/4 t. vanilla extract (I use Madagascar)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix the first five (dry) ingredients together in a large mixing bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, mash the bananas well.
4. Stir the butter or margarine, vanilla extract and applesauce into the bananas.
5. Add the banana mixture into the mixing bowl with the dry ingredients.
6. Mix gently by hand, just enough to form a thick, clumpy batter. If the mixture seems too dry, add    more mashed banana to adjust the consistency.
7. (Fold in chocolate chips and/or walnuts, if using.)
8. Pour batter into greased loaf pan and bake for 45 minutes or until the bread is a deep golden brown and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

* NOTE: I have used the half all-purpose/half wheat version of this recipe in the past and while I agree that using wheat flour makes it a tad more healthy, I think using entirely all-purpose flour in this recipe makes it taste best. It also tastes MUCH better if you use very ripe bananas and I add one more to this recipe than the original recipe calls for. The applesauce helps create a soft texture and together with the bananas, binds the ingredients together so you'll never miss the eggs. The original recipe suggests that you add walnuts or chocolate chips. But in my opinion, this bread is divine as is.

Space Party Cupcakes

Life is Good: We have a five year old!

Recently, our big kid turned five. (*Holds hands to cheeks, shakes head.*) The time has flown by. Indeed, the hubs and I agree that these have been the best five year of our lives!

Since our oldest is silly for space, nutty for Neptune, and mad for the moon, of course, we threw a space-themed party!

I love a party! I mean I lovvvvvvve a party. And the prep is just as much fun as watching our guests enjoy it. This year was especially thrilling because the big kid and I did a lot of the party brainstorming and preparation together.

Baking with my grandmother was a wonderful thrill of mine as a child, so I have been including our big kid in (eggless, due to allergies) baking since he could dump a cup of flour into a bowl. He and I made these blueberry muffin cupcakes for the party. We talked about the different ways that I could decorate the cupcakes---like astronauts faces, maybe with a rocket shooting off of the top, or perhaps an alien? Then I made the mistake of suggesting suggested that it might be fun to let everyone decorate their own cupcake as an activity for the party. The birthday boy jumped at the chance. And as far as party activities go, it was a great idea! (I was just a little bummed that I didn't get to try my hand at decorating them myself...)

The prep was pretty simple. I purchased takeout containers to house all of the decorating supplies. I made different colors of frosting using my Grandma's recipe. Guests could also use chocolate chips (my kids have egg and nut allergies, so these were a blessing to find!), marshmallows, craisins, and fruit snacks that I cut into inch and a half-sized pieces.

The birthday boy thought the fruit snacks looked like alien antennas and asked if we could make the marshmallows look more like eyeballs. That's my kid! So I dipped a toothpick into black food coloring and dotted some marshmallows in the center. Voila!

I threw a plastic tablecloth over the dining room table so that when all of the guests had jumped into their rockets and zoomed home to planet Earth, all I had to do was pull up the sides of the tablecloth and throw it all in the trash!