Homemade Pop Tarts – With a Twist

I’ve seen quite a few homemade Pop Tart recipes on the internet.  They look delicious and fun, but for me they were still made with white flour, and well –  I wanted to find a way to bring them even further Out of the Box.  These homemade Pop Tarts are chock full of whole grain wheat, flax meal, and fresh fruit – Making them a win in both taste and nutrition. (more…)

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A Trip Down Blueberry Lane – Blueberry & Challah Breakfast Bread Pudding

Blueberry picking has been an annual summer tradition in my family for seven years now.  As a Southern California native, berry picking was not an activity I grew up with.  But fortunately for my kids, we were lucky enough to have the opportunity to move to Vancouver B.C. for a brief time when they were two.  What a gift.  While Blackberry bushes thickly lined the paths down to the sparkling sea, U-pick blueberry farms were only a short drive away – and we found ourselves taking that drive many times that summer. (more…)

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Valentine Pancakes

I admit, I had an entirely different post ready to publish this week.  But when my friend Samantha from Good Life Organics posted a Beet Pancake recipe from Weelicious on my Facebook Page, I knew I had to change things up.   Now, I already knew I liked to use beet “juice” as a food coloring, but Catherine McCord at Weelicious took it a step further – she pureed the entire beet and added it to recipes.  I love this idea!  The picture of her bright pink, beet pancakes instantly made me think “Valentines Day” so I used her idea of pureed beets, added them to my buttermilk pancake & waffle recipe, poured the batter onto the griddle in the shape of a heart and VOILA – Valentine Pancakes.  I hope you and your special Valentine enjoy these on Tuesday and well…why not celebrate all year!

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Can Yogurt Actually Be Unhealthy?

We know how important it is to read labels on snack foods, boxed dinners and cereals but do we actually need to read the labels on yogurt?  YES.  If I’m learning anything during this journey it’s that you have to read the labels on everything. Yogurt should contain only milk, live yogurt cultures and any natural fruit they might add.  Should.  But many of the fruit flavored yogurts on the market contain a lot more than that.  I’ve seen some that contain carrageenan, others that contain high fructose corn syrup and artificial colors, and some fruit yogurts that contain no fruit whatsoever.  So how do you find yogurt that contains simply fruit, milk and yogurt cultures?  Two ways:  read the labels or mix up your own. (more…)

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Granola Bars: Grab-and-Go Chemicals or Nourishment?

Granola bars stir up quite the controversy at our house.  My kids want to bring them to school for snack, but a nut-free school means no granola bars with nuts of any sort.  That rules out a lot of the granola bars on the market.  Then when we look at what’s left and examine what ingredients are actually in the remaining granola bars things really start to get interesting.  Let’s just say we’re left with…well, not much. (more…)

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Granola: The “Sometimes” Healthy Snack

homemade granola for kids

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Granola.  What image does the word “Granola” evoke for you?  I’ve always felt the word “Granola” was synonymous with “health”.  For me growing up, the word Granola evoked images of health food markets where you could barely fit down the aisle but you could find things like Wheat Grass and Hemp seed.  But now Granola is common, good food and chances are you can find a healthy, minimally processed granola at the average supermarket.  But not all Granola is the same and this is a perfect opportunity to discuss the importance (and ease) of reading labels.

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The Holidays and Marshmallows – The Final Chapter “Hot Cocoa”

A few nights ago we took our boys to see the holiday light displays on “Candy Cane Lane”.  As we rolled our minivan slowly through the streets behind the rest of Los Angeles, we spotted a neighbor selling hot cocoa to benefit the Eagle Scouts.  What’s more festive than a cup of hot cocoa, brightly colored light displays and holiday music on the radio, right?  We bought each of the boys a cup and as they sat cozy in the back, sipping the warm drink and slurping the marshmallows out one-by-one, I realized that it was probably time to take a deconstructed look at instant hot cocoa.  I was pretty sure those drink packets weren’t as innocent and idyllic as they seemed.  Turns out I was right.
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