Father's Day Candy Basket

I know I have seen a TON of those cute poster boards floating around where you use candy to spell out a phrase for someone for their birthday or another holiday. I wanted to put my own spin on this idea and instead of a poster, I wanted to just put all the candies in a basket and have a phrase or saying for each! Here's what I came up with:

Of course my helper, Kye, had to make his own too ;)

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Peanut Butter and Banana Muffins

Ingredients:

• 1 cup brown sugar
• ½ cup peanut butter
• ½ cup carrot (finely shredded/pureed)
• ½ cup cauliflower (finely shredded/pureed)
• ½ cup mashed banana
• 1 large egg white
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon baking power
• 1 teaspoon baking sode
• ½ teaspoon salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350, spray muffin pan with nonstick spray
2. Combine ½ cup brown sugar, peanut butter, vegetables, banana, and egg in large bowl
3. Mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a separate bowl
4. Fold dry mix into wet mix. Don't over mix...you want it lumpy. 
5. Add remaining ½ cup brown sugar and stir just once or twice (this gives a nice "crust" to the muffins)
6. Cook until lightly brown 15-20 min

These also freeze well! Stick in lunch box frozen and they are thawed by lunch and you know you are giving your child some added nutrients to their special treat :)

Macaroni and Cheese Bites

An awesome recipe perfect to make ahead and serve at your next gathering!

Ingredients:

• ½ lb macaroni pasta
• 1 ½ tbsp butter
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 2 tbsp flour
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 cup sliced american cheese, chopped
• 1 egg yolk
• 1/4 tsp paprika
• bacon pieces if desired

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 (if you don't plan to make in advance)
2. Boil salted water in a large pot then cook macaroni about 5 min then drain
3. Spray muffin tins with non stick spray then sprinkle with parmesan cheese on bottom (I also sprinkled bacon bits on the bottom of mine with the cheese)
4. In a large saucepan, melt butter then whisk in flour over medium heat for 2 minutes
5. Whisk in milk and whisk constantly until boiling (roughly 5 minutes)
6. Add in cheddar and american cheeses and whisk until melted
7. Remove saucepan from heat and which in egg yolk and paprika then fold in drained macaroni
8. Spoon macaroni mix into muffin cups
9. At this point you can cover and refrigerate the day prior to your event
10. Once ready to bake sprinkle the tops with parmesan then bake about 10 minutes (slightly longer if straight from fridge). Let cool 5 min and remove from pan!

I also froze some of these leftover and have reheated them for school lunches and they do great! Big hit!!!

Crock Pot Spinach and Artichoke Dip

Crock pot meals are my JAM and being able to use it for party food? Even better! We LOVE this new recipe and it's become a family favorite...even if there isn't a party going on ;)

Ingredients:

• 2 (14 oz) cans artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
• 1 (10 oz) package frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
• 8 oz sour cream
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 3/4 cup milk
• ½ cup crumbled feta cheese (this ingredient MAKES IT! YUM for FETA!)
• 1/3 cup mayo
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 8 oz cream cheese cut into cubes

Directions

1. Put everything in crockpot except for cream cheese and stir until well combined.
2. Top with the cream cheese cubes
3. Cover and cook on low for 2 hours
4. Uncover and then stir until cream cheese is well mixed in
5. Cover and cook on high for an additional 15 minutes

Is even excellent cold leftover!

Pinwheel Pizzas

An easy party food to make in advance! Keep your party day prep to a minimum and still wow 'em! (this is double the original recipe as these are so good you'll want plenty!)

Ingredients

• 2 cans crescent roll dough

All other ingredients are not exact, you can eye ball the amounts and easily trade things out to make your own original combinations!

• 4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• 48 slices pepperoni, cut into quarters
• 2 cans pizza sauce (28 oz)
• 2 teaspoon italian seasoning

Directions

1. On a large baking sheet pinch together 8 crescent roll triangles into 4 separate rectangles. Gently stretch out the dough a little bit
2. Spread desired amount of pizza sauce over the dough followed by mozzarella and pepperonis
3. DO NOT overload it! I made the mistake of putting too many toppings on and then not being able to roll it ;) 
4. Once each rectangle has the toppings, start at the long end of each dough and roll tightly in a log. Repeat with each rectangle.
5. Place in freezer until firm, about 15 min. 
6. Remove from freezer and cut each log into 6-8 pieces. Sprinkle with italian seasoning.
7. At this point if you are making them in advance you can freeze them! I made mine a few days prior to my party and froze them and they were fabulous :)
8. When ready to cook preheat oven to 375
9. Bake until golden brown (roughly 12 min, maybe longer if straight from freezer). Serve with remaining pizza sauce for dipping! 

Pizza Bites

These are simply AMAZING! I doubled the recipe here because, trust me, you will need to!

Ingredients

• 2 rolls refrigerated pizza dough 

All other ingredients are a rough estimate as you can just kinda eyeball how much you need :) 

• 4 tbl grated parmesan cheese
• 2 tbl olive oil or melted butter
• 1 tea garlic powder
• 2 tea dried italian seasoning 
• mozzarella cheese
• pizza toppings of your choice (we use pepperoni in ours)
• marinara or pizza sauce 

Directions

1. Preheat to whatever package says on dough (typically it's 400)
2. Cut dough into square shapes. I take the whole roll out of the package and then cut it, typically it makes around 20 squares
3. Top each square with toppings and cheese, leave enough space to "close" the dough over it
4. I just eye ball all of this and my finished products aren't super pretty. I just kinda pull up the dough to cover the toppings and then make it more into a ball to make sure all the toppings are closed in.
5. Once they are all sealed shut place them seam side down onto a lightly sprayed pan
6. Brush the tops with olive oil and sprinkle with the garlic powder, italian seasoning, and parmesan cheese
7. Bake for 10-15 min, until golden brown on top. 

I dare you to have any leftovers!!!

Simple Egg and Sausage Burritos

Simple, quick, and freezes great!

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 lb breakfast sausage
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 12 eggs
• ½ cup milk
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon pepper
• shredded cheddar cheese
• 10-12 medium or fajita sized tortillas 

Directions

1. Heat olive over medium heat in large skillet. Cook sausage and break into tiny peaces. Drain then set aside.
2. In large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, salt and pepper until well combined. 
3. Heat large non-stick frying pan over medium heat and melt butter all over the pan. 
4. Add eggs and scramble until cooked all the way through
5. Lay out tortillas and scoop a heap of meat, eggs, and cheese onto each
6. Fold into burrito (or pocket type shape)
7. To freeze lay on a baking sheet lined with wax paper and place in freezer for at least 30 minutes. Store in plastic freezer bag
8. When ready to eat (or pack in school lunches) simply place in microwave and heat until warm. Eat right away or wrap in foil to keep warm in lunch box!

I froze and went ahead and wrapped some in foil to make it even easier when packing lunch! Also makes a great breakfast on the go :) 

Cauliflower Spinach Bites

Easy to freeze and great for toddlers! Perfect food for Baby-Led Weaning!

Ingredients:

• half a head of cauliflower
• pinch of nutmeg
• 1/3 cup parmesan cheese
• ½ cup cheddar cheese
• 1 egg
• dash of black pepper
• spinach
• olive oil

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Steam cauliflower until soft
3. Add to bowl and mash with form until only small grains of cauliflower remain. Set aside to let cool.
4. Add cheese, pinch of nutmeg, black pepper, spinach and egg to cauliflower. Mix to evenly combine
5. Greece baking tray. Form mixture into bite size shapes and place on baking tray. Brush tops with a little olive oil. 
6. Bake for 20 min then flip and bake another 20 minutes. You want them golden on both sides.
7. Serve or freeze! 

Carrot Zucchini Muffins

These muffins are awesome to freeze then pack in lunches for school! They thaw by lunch time and provide a healthy boost to your child's day!

Ingredients

• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 3 tablespoons melted butter
• ½ cup maple syrup or honey
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup grated zuccini
• 1 cup grated carrot
• ½ cup raisins (I cut mine up into small pieces)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Coat muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray
3. Combine flour, cinnamon, salt and baking soda in mixing bowl and whisk until combined (great job for child to do!) then set aside 
4. In large mixing bowl stir together the butter, syrup (or honey), egg and vanilla extract
5. Add flour mixture to wet ingredients and stir until just combined
6. Add zucchini, carrot and raisins and stir gently just until distributed
7. Fill each cup of the muffin pan about 3/4 full
8. Back for 15-20 minutes or until toothpick instead in center comes out clean!

These freeze well and fit perfectly into a lunch box! They are also a healthy snack for toddlers!

Chicken Pot Pie Muffins

This is a super simple, mega taste meal! I didn't anticipate my whole family enjoying them as much as we did and I've added them into our regular rotation!

Ingredients:

1 chicken breast, cooked and cut into small pieces

2 (10 oz) cans refrigerated biscuits

1 (14.5 oz) can cream of chicken soup

1 cup frozen mixed vegetables

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (I always add extra)

1 tablespoon Herbs De Provence

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon garlic salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400
2. In large bowl combine cooked chicken, cream of chicken soup, frozen vegetables, cheese, herbs and spices.
3. Grease a 12-cup muffin tin and place biscuits into each cup, pressing down the bottom and up on the sides
4. Evenly spoon mix into each cup. Bake 15 min and check at 12 min to make sure they aren't already done!
5. Enjoy!

I didn't personally try freezing these but I feel like they would freeze well to possibly heat up for lunches too!

Turkey Cookies!

For the past couple of years we have been making Turkey Cookies for Thanksgiving! It's a WONDERFUL thing to do with a preschooler (this year Kye is four and could do them pretty much all by himself) and they look cute to display on Thanksgiving! I could NOT find my recipe for these this year and thankfully Kye remembered all of the steps for me!!! 

Ingredients:

• Whoppers (You only need one box, I bought two but didn't use one of them)
• One package of Double Stuffed Oreos (MUST be double stuffed!)
• Chocolate icing (I got the squeeze tube to make it easier)
• One bag of mini Reese's peanut butter cups
• One bag of candy corn
• One package of writing icing (you only need the yellow but make sure NOT to get the kind that isn't dark enough to show up...it was tricky for me to find! You also may want to use another color for the eyes)
• I have a container of blue small sprinkles I use for the eyes, but you could easily use something else or just use the writing icing

 Directions: (They sound WAY trickier than they are! Scrolling to the bottom of this post and seeing the finished cookies may make it easier to follow along with the instructions!)

1. Put a line of the chocolate icing along one edge of the cookie. Then place 5 candy corns into the icing. 

2. Put a dab of the chocolate icing (as you can tell the icing is your "glue" for this project!) on another cookie and place the candy corn one on top of the new one. This picture shows it well...see the ones on the left side? That's how yours should look at this point!

3. Open enough Reese's to have one per cookie (ours made 19 cookies which yours should too assuming you buy the brand name Oreos!). Cut a little sliver off one end of the Reese's cup. Of course, you totally have to eat the sliver as a taste test!

 

 Taste Test!

 4. Now turn the cookies so the candy corns are facing you (see the cookies on the right side of this picture!) Put a dab of the chocolate icing on the candy corn cookie, near the bottom where the two cookies connect. Next put the "top" side of the Reese's onto the icing (the cut side should be against the other cookie)! Have it so the "side" of the Reese's is facing you!

5. Keeping the cookie in the same position, put a dab of the chocolate icing on the candy corn cookie, directly above the Reese's and place a Whopper on the icing. This is the head of the turkey! 

6. Now turn the cookie where the candy corn is facing the ceiling. Cut the white portion of enough candy corns to have one per cookie and attach it to the front of the Whopper with a little of the icing (I used some yellow gel type icing I had bought on accident just to get it used and because it dried clear so it was less noticeable). Add some eyes with icing or sprinkles, whatever you chose to do!

7. Finally draw on some legs for the turkey using the yellow icing (since I couldn't find the correct yellow icing last year ours didn't have legs and were still cute!). 

 I let Kye do pretty much 100% of this project. I only did the cutting, the chocolate icing, and the legs! 

 Enjoy!!!

I was able to find the original recipe I used! I could NOT find it when we made them but I'm glad I can now b/c I like to give credit where it is due! Here is the original recipe (and of course hers turned out 10 times cuter haha) from Our Best Bites!