Cute Things for Kids

Click HERE for this and other cute food crafts for kids.

When I see cute kid's foods, it sure makes me miss mine being little!  I LOVED making them cute food snacks and meals!  They would think I was crazy if I tried serving them all of these now, so I'll have to wait to make them for my grandchildren when they come to visit in the future!

And then look at this adorable quilt made by Daphne Scott using some of her granddaughter's first year clothes!  I am glad I kept a box for each child!  With those and using their old blankets as edging, it will make very sweet blankets for them to pass down to their own children.  I love this idea!  Of course, someone else will have to sew and quilt it for me, but I still will get it done some day :).


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Chicks 'n Bunnies

Well, I had a great new recipe all ready to publish for you this morning.  I was so excited about it!  But there was a big problem:  It was NOT GOOD!  It was a BIG FLOP! So, it's back to the drawing board with the Crock Pot Mandarin Orange Chicken!  Oh, well!

So, instead...here are a few cute ideas for Easter.  A "Peep" in a little graham cracker house, complete with edible grass and edible eggs.  My husband would steal the Peeps and eat them (yucky, in my opinion!).

And the next cute food craft is bunny pancakes!  Kids would surely want to gobble him up!  If they don't like coconut, replace it with yogurt or a little spray of whipped topping. Adorable!

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Taco Salad in a Bag

Saturday my daughter and a few friends were coming to town to do a service project for the children's home here. They were going to be here for lunch, and because I was gone to a wedding shower all morning and because my daughter had said she was hungry from taco salad a few weeks before, I decided to make taco salad.

On the way home from the store, I had a thought: Taco Salad in a bag where everyone did their own! It worked out perfectly and the girls thought it was fun!

Just put into various bowls:  hot ground beef, heated Ranch Style beans (undrained), chopped lettuce, cherry tomatoes, shredded cheddar cheese, crushed tortilla chips.  I had two choices for dressings: Classic Catalina (Kraft) and homemade garlic ranch.  I also put out Picante Sauce.  You could add onions as an ingredient and serve guacamole and/or sour cream on the side as a topper.  Put all ingredients into a Ziploc bag, seal, and shake! Dump your salad into a bowl...your OWN bowl.  Such fun!  So good!

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Fun Pancakes for Kids

(cheapskateprincess.com)

There's nothing more fun for kids than eating fun food!  This Mr. Potato Head pancake looks extra-fun to eat!  

(littlenummies.net)

This owl pancake is cute! Kiwis and strawberries trim out the face, feathers, and feet.

I made these puppy dog pancakes several years ago. They were so much fun to make, but our kids thought they were even more fun to eat!  Find the recipe HERE.

When food looks fun, children especially enjoy eating!  It doesn't have to be fancy, but  just take a little more time in preparing or presenting. That makes all the difference!

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Candy Corn Marshmallows

Do you like candy corn? My husband does, and he likes marshmallows.  In fact, I found some Kraft Candy Corn Flavored Marshmallows and bought them for him. He said they were great! They smelled great, but didn't fit the no flour, no sugar diet at the moment!

Here's a really cute way to make Candy Corn Marshmallows:

1 bag big or giant marshmallows

8-10 oz of white chocolate

Vegetable Oil (to thin chocolate)

Yellow and Orange food coloring

Black Gel Icing

In the microwave or in a double boiler, carefully melt the chocolate. Once melted, divide the chocolate evenly into two bowls. Add enough yellow food coloring to one bowl until the desired yellow shade is achieved. Then add orange food coloring to the other bowl to get the desired shade of orange. *Hint: To make it easier to dip the marshmallows, I thin out the chocolate by mixing in about 1 tsp of vegetable oil. Dip a marshmallow in the orange first about 1/3 of the way up and then set on a piece parchment paper.  Repeat with the rest of the marshmallows until you use up all the orange chocolate. Put the marshmallows in the refrigerator for 10 minutes to set the chocolate. Remove from fridge and repeat, only half-way up the orange, with the yellow chocolate.  Set on parchment or wax paper. Finish by dotting two circles with the gel tube to form the eyes. Let the chocolate set and then enjoy!
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Family Fun - Stir Fry Bowls

I know I posted something similar to this a month or so ago, but this is different and even more fun, so I wanted to share it with you!

Last night I made fried rice using the packets in the photo at the top. It was GREAT!  Although, I've made some from scratch that were great, too. In fact, I posted a recipe from my sister not long ago that she said is really good.

I used chopped up bell peppers, sliced red onions,  chopped squash, carrots, fresh green beans, and broccoli florets.   I also opened up the sweet and sour chicken sauce, stir fry sauce, and the small seasoning packets and put them in separate containers.  Salt and pepper were out, as well. I used chopped up chicken for the meat, but steak, shrimp, pork would all work, too!

Each person got a bowl and placed their meat, veggies, and sauce/seasonings in there, then brought it to me - the make-shift Hibachi chef!  I rinsed out their bowl (because of the raw chicken) then stir fried each bowl of goodies individually.

The fried rice was placed in the bowl, then was topped with each family member's creation.  It took a while with five people (good thing Lauren isn't here!! Ha ha!), but it was lots of fun and well worth the time.  It all tasted great!  We're looking forward to making this a regular family meal that's healthy and delicious.

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Defrosty the Snowman

One of my blog readers sent me this recipe for "Defrosty the Snowman", originally from Family Fun Magazine.  It's such a 

CUTE and FUN recipe!  Thanks, Marsha!

This wistful snowman appears to be going the way of winter, and we have a feeling he'll soon disappear altogether. He's made from a puddle of white candy melts.

What you'll need

• Meltable candy wafers (one 14-ounce package makes 16 snowmen)
• Mini chocolate chips
• Light cocoa candy melts
• Rolos
• Candy corn

How to make it

1. For each snowman, you'll need 6 mini chocolate chips, a light cocoa meltable candy wafer, and a Rolo. To make the nose, cut the orange section from a candy corn, then slice it in half lengthwise. Roll the piece between your fingers to form a carrot shape.
2. To assemble your snowman, melt the white candy in a bowl according to the package instructions, then scoop a rounded tablespoon onto a sheet of wax paper. With the back of a spoon, smear the candy into a puddle. Working quickly, stick on the light cocoa meltable candy wafer, add a dot of white melted candy, then place the Rolo on top. Finally, add the candy corn nose and mini chocolate chip eyes and mouth.

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Minion Cupcakes!!

Sorry I'm posting so many pictures, but they're just so cute, I can't help it!

I made 75 of these cupcakes last Friday for our elementary Red Ribbon Week party.

 The head is half of a Twinkie, the eyes are from Wilton, which was a HUGE timesaver, and I baked the cupcakes in natural colored liners, but set them in blue liners to make it all blue - like their suspenders.

 I forgot to get little chocolate jimmies for their hair, so had to use a tiny icing tip. That's why the hair isn't "great" looking.  But, it worked.

 In the pictures below, you can see a tiny red ribbon piped with icing.  I thought it would have been cute to have the Minions holding a sign that said....

 "Bleh, bleh, bo!" for Just Say No! :)

I used the homemade white cake mix for the cupcakes that I posted last week. It is a delicious homemade recipe.  So much better than the boxed white cake mix!!  

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Ice Cream in a Bag

A few weeks ago, I had a 4-H meeting.  Our county extension FCS educator helped me and gave me a great idea to do with the members: Ice Cream in a bag!

I had seen it done before, but had never done it with students or my own kids.

To make the ice cream, take one quart ziplock bag.  Place 1 cup of half and half, 1/2 cup of sugar (can use 4 tablespoons for Stevia), and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla.

Fill a gallon zip lock bag half full with ice.  Add 1/2 cup of rock salt.  Place smaller bag (zip well!) inside of larger bag.  Zip large bag well.  Shake for five minutes or until ice cream is hard.  After it hardens, remove the quart bag of ice cream from the larger bag. 

Run the bag under water to clean off the salt, taking care to get the top, near the zip lock seam.  Open the bag, grab a spoon, and enjoy!

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Chili Bar!

Recently we had our church youth group over for a meal and devotional.  I wasn't sure what I was going to serve them at first, but my mom suggested something she had seen somewhere - a chili bar!

It worked out perfectly, and it was lots of fun!  We had chili, hot dogs, Frito chili pie, nachos, and baked potatoes (potatoes not shown) for options.  I used big and little stainless steel bowls for serving all of the foods and condiments.

If I had time, I would have liked to make a "CHILI BAR" banner and little signs for each of the bowls. It would have been cute, but I don't think the kids would have noticed!

They only cared about getting together, eating, and enjoying playing in the yard. :) After the meal, we sang and had a short devotional thought from my husband.  The "Chili Bar" will become a standard meal for the youth group.  Thanks, mom!

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Pizza Grilled Cheese

I found this Pizza Grilled Cheese recipe on Facebook, but originally heard of it from a friend's daughter. She was doing mission work over seas, and her host families' mom made these delicious sandwiches. I couldn't remember everything she said about how to do the sandwiches, so was really excited to see the recipe come across my newsfeed a few days later!  They were a BIG HIT with my family! It's always great to get a new, quick and easy recipe that also tastes delicious!

(I made more than is called for in the recipe, but below is for two sandwiches.)

4 slices of bread (I used Arroweat Italian sliced bread)

Buter

4 sliced mozzarella (I used shredded)

Italian seasoning

Parmesan cheese (optional, but I used)

Garlic powder (original recipe doesn't have, but I added)

Pepperoni (or other pizza-type toppings)

Pizza sauce (for dipping)

Warm a medium/large skillet or griddle over medium heat.  Butter each piece of bread on one side. When skillet is hot, place a piece of bread, butter side down, on the skillet.

*Warm a medium/large skillet over medium heat. Butter each piece of bread on one side. When skillet is hot place a piece of bread butter side down on the skillet then add one slice of cheese and small shake of Italian seasoning or basil (add a small shake of Parmesan cheese here too if desired). Top with a desired amount of pepperonis (I used about 8 -10 whole regular pepperonis per sandwich) If any other toppings are desired, add now. Add another slice of mozzarella and top with slice bread butter side up.
Repeat with second sandwich. When bottom slice is golden brown then flip over carefully. Once both sides are brown remove from pan cut and serve with pizza sauce if desired.


Makes 2 Sandwiches

Then add one slice of cheese, small shake of Italian seasoning, Parmesan cheese, and garlic powder.  

Top with pepperonis (my kids would want more pepperonis when I make these again....so about 10 or 12 would be better).  If other toppings are desired, add now.

Add the second slice of cheese and top with bread, buttered side up.  Grill until browned on bottom.

Flip carefully and grill other side until browned.

Serve immediately, with pizza sauce, if desired.

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Bacon Turtle Burger

Have you seen this??!  It's a Bacon Turtle Burger!  Actually, I would call it a Bacon Turtle Burger Dog, but left the "dog" off because of the link I am sharing.  They don't use the "dog" part.  Anyway, this weekend may be the perfect weekend to try this popular bacon-weaved turtle!  Here's the link: http://bacontoday.com/bacon-turtle-burgers/

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Franks and French Fries

This recipe has FOR CHILDREN written all over it!  Not, really, but when you see the title and read the ingredients, you know it would be a huge hit with almost any child!

I got this recipe from one of my sister-in-law's church elders' wives cookbooks.  I took a picture of it to share with all of you.  

I look forward to making interesting dish for my kids!  Not sure I would like it (I don't eat 'franks'!), but I know that at least two of them will.  I think my husband would, too.  :)

FRANKS AND FRENCH FRIES

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

1 pound frankfurters, sliced diagonally

3 Tablespoons butter

2 (9-ounce) packages frozen French-fried potatoes

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon pepper

2 (8-ounce) cans tomato sauce

1/4 pound cheddar cheese chunks

2 Tablespoons chopped parsley

In a lare skillet lightly saute' onion and franks in butter. Push to edge of skillet, forming a ring.  Place frozen French-fried potatoes in center of ring and saute' 5 minutes more, turning potatoes to brown all sides. Add salt and pepper, tomato sauce and cheese chunks.  Sprinkle with parsley. Simmer until cheese melts.  Serves 4 to 5.

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