Giddy Up Friday: Be my Valentine....

Last year I helped to remake these "fortunes" for my daughter's school. They were originally used for their Field Day - as the "just before summer - here's your fortune - token gift with a real cookie" - SO CUTE!  I only remade them because they were a copy from a copy from a copy...and I also added more.

But then I decided to make them last year while I was volunteering for their Valentine Celebration into Valentine Fortunes and make felt Fortune Cookies...when my daughter wakes up in the morning - I'm going to hope that she will want to make a whole slew of these for the kids in her class instead of getting the Disney kind of store bought ones....If she doesn't - at least I can hope someone else's kids will prefer to make some of these for their school friends...Handmade my child - handmade makes all the difference...maybe if I let her pick out the fabric? (I convinced her...it worked - we bought the fabric today and will make them tomorrow!)

Needs:
Pink Felt by the Bolt. (Depends on how many you are making!) Or Red for the boys...
5" Circle Pattern (find a bowl approx 5" and trace onto cardboard)
Self-Adhesive Velcro Circles cut into half circle (save money!)
(don't forget your coupons! Signup at Joann's or ACMoore's website for an email and save a fortune - no pun intended!)

How to:
1. Cut all your fabric with a rotary cutter (easier that way - but not a have to - just cut straight lines!) into 5" squares.
2. Using your Cardboard Circle pattern...cut off the corners and round it out. You can also trace with a pencil if your child is good with scissors...that will be easier for them!
3. Place the fuzzy half moon close to the edge and the rough half moon on the opposite edge.
4. Make them kiss!
5. Place the fortune into the "cookie" - flat up against the flat back of the cookie.
6. Place another fuzzy half moon close to the edge and the rough half moon on the opposite edge.
7. Push in the center of the fortune - and make those two velcro'd edges kiss.

And there you have it. Make a wish - keep your fortune forever...Let your kid color in the pictures - or leave the hearts uncolored for the receiving child to color in. Now's the time to prepare. Don't procrastinate like I do....If I forget to say it...Happy Valentine's Day! : )  -kg

 

Edible Wednesday: Scrambled Pancakes!

"What? Scrambled pancakes?"
"Did she say that right?"
Oh yes I did!!!

Someone put those 2 words together sometime last year and I haven't been the same since! (and I can't figure out who it was - so you know who you are - and I thank you!) So I just had to try it for myself. Every (almost every) Friday night is pancake night here at my house. It's just a fun way to end the week and get ready for our weekend. My husband is not a complete fan of it - because he's always hungry later - so that's why it's almost every Friday night! But until recently - our pancakes were always the same... round, flat and well...just there. Now it's a whole new ball game!

Why Friday Night Pancake Night?...for a few reasons. 1. I'm a cereal girl (in a cereal world). Whole grains - not the sugary kind...but without cereal in the morning - I can't start my day. 2. Saturday mornings I would much rather sleep in and Sunday we are rushing out the door to church - so where's the time to make pancakes? 3. My husband can cook - but I don't think I've ever seen him get out a bowl and make pancakes from scratch or with Bisquick....so it's all me. 4. It's one less meal to think about - plan for and prep in advance.

So here it is - really easy...ready?

1) Make your favorite kind of pancake mix...mine will always include a splash of Pure Vanilla Extract, Cinnamon, Tiny Chocolate Chips, with one or two of the fruits: Frozen Blueberries, Frozen Raspberries, or Bananas.
2) Use a REALLY good non-stick pan. Sure you can use non-stick spray and loads of butter, but a good non-stick pan will really go a long way in helping with the scramble.
3) After warming up the pan, pour in enough batter to cover the surface. Let cook for a bit until the bottom is golden brown - just like you would with making a normal pancake. Once that's ready - flip it in sections if you have to - and let it begin to fall apart....or break it up with your spatula!
4) Continue cooking until it's all nice and golden brown and yummy looking.  Repeat the steps for the remaining batter.
5) Serve immediately with Whip Cream (when my oldest was littler - she called it Whoop Cream - so funny!)...and a few frozen fruits on top. To make it extra special - make a funny face or even dribble some chocolate syrup too!

Now here's the disclaimers...
1) If it's not Bisquick...it's not as good! (I laugh as I type that - I grew up on Bisquick and will still willingly eat the powder straight from the box)
2) There's no such thing as portion control here. Many times I make a batch of pancakes and I always have a few left over. But when I scramble them - amazingly - they are all gone and there's no left overs. It's a complete illusion...so beware of your portions!

If I can think of any others - I'll let you know! Enjoy, and check us out next week for the MacDaddy Meat Sauce....it's heavenly & shared by a kid giddy friend! - kg


Do you have any meal traditions? Tell me in the comments below. And if you have a recipe you'd like to share - Your recipe could be a future Edible Wednesday! Click the Contact Me button above and email it to me.  Please include one photo (must be your photo) of said recipe completed - the Ingredients, Directions and the story behind it. Thanks!

Giddy Up Friday: Getting Ready for School....

Every morning it's the same thing. "Girls - it's not time to play you need to get ready for school". "but mommy....we just want to play.", "yeah mommy, I don't even know what I'm supposed to be doing". WHAT - have we not done this everyday for the last 4 months????? Sound familiar?

Ready to Color in Chart

Well I couldn't take it anymore so I began the search - I can't seem to find a decent chart out there with all that I want/need on it - so I made my own. And I'm sharing them with you. I'm including one that includes the images in each box. They wanted to draw the pictures, so I filled in their words and left their images blank. Once they have drawn their pictures, then I'll have their pages laminated so they can use some washable crayons or dry erase markers....yep - crayons! Dry erasers - what was I thinking?!Then I made just this blank one. That way - if your child needs to feed a pet or does not like to eat breakfast...then you can make your own list. I have made them very simple. My daughters are artists - so they tend to doodle around the edges! Use stickers - use markers - whatever works - just use it! Feel free to share it - but don't use the files without my permission please!

Blank Chart

I'd love to see some finished pages. If you'd like to send me some - click the contact KG link above and send them my way. Have a great weekend! -kg

Edible Wednesday: Easy Pea...sy Soup

Here' the split pea soup recipe I mentioned last week...even though I'm sure you've eaten dinner by now and have slipped into dreamworld!

I've always liked Split Pea Soup and always thought it was so time consuming to make. I even remember a time when my sister made some with an actual Ham Hock - but that thing was nasty. So - I created my own way of making it really easy and still tastes just as good!

Ingredients:
1 package of Dried Split Peas - 16oz (1lb)
1 package of Ham Steaks total of 12oz (I prefer lower sodium - 22% or less and even that is too much for kids!)
1/4 cup Dried Minced Onions

Basically, follow the directions on the package for the Split Peas. You begin by taking a look through them and discard any that look weird - or are yellow.
Then you rinse them really well with cold water, and then put them in boiling water to start cooking mine could have used at least 1 extra cup of water).
You dice up your Ham Steaks into 1/2 cubes. (or smaller if you'd prefer).
Add the diced Ham to the boiling water and Split Peas.
Let that boil for at least an hour but stir occasionally. Add the minced onions here.

You'll begin to notice some of the peas are becoming mush (the second picture). Keep cooking it. Once all of it is mush - it's ready. Some cooks suggest taking the Split Peas and blending them to a puree. But this is the easy recipe people...no need for that! All you have to do now is serve it up. Add some salt and pepper to taste and enjoy! This also freezes well. Just grab some of the Ball freezer containers and save some for a while! -kg