Fall Flower-Apples and Cream Cheese

For a very tasty and fun seasonal snack try this.

Cut one of those yummy red fall apples into slices.

Arrange them around a plate so they look like a flower.

In the center put a spoonful of whipped cream cheese, pumpkin flavored.

Add a dash of cinnamon and eat by dipping the apple slices in the cream cheese.

If your kids don't love it, great! That means more for you.

Enjoy.

It's the season..

I know, It is the height of food season, and I haven't posted anything. I've been baking my mom's butter tarts, and making homemade chocolates, and kettle corn, and basically using the holiday season as an excuse to try new recipes since I am giving most of it away as gifts. And by gifts I mean little tokens to neighbors and friend's to let them know that we care about them via large doses of rum flavored chocolates in thrift store tins decorated with ribbon.

I tried making kettle corn for the first time this month using Rachel Ray's recipe. It was fast, simple, and tasted great. I added cinnamon and nutmeg to the sugar as a little flavor twist and we think it tasted quite yummy. Oh, and did I mention inexpensive? I would say though that if you do try this recipe you need to be sure to remove it from the heat the instant the popping slows down. Sugar burns fast we found out.

My snacking on baked goods has been kept to a minimum by insisting that I have to have tea to go with it. This meant that on Christmas day at the grandparent's, I finally ate my dessert a good hour after everyone else since I sat down to eat and found that the tea was all gone and had to brew some more, and keep them from clearing my plate while I waited. But in the end, I really enjoyed that dessert, and didn't really have the opportunity to eat more after since it was all already put away.

And in other news, in spite of a months worth of eating and baking, I dug out the fabulous red dress the other day for the first time this year while looking for party clothes and discovered, to my delight, that it fits again. In fact, the only place it's even a bit snug is in the chest. This is a tailored fitted dress so it's very unforgiving and it looked great. I was so happy and planning what shoes to wear with it when I realized that I couldn't wear it to the party because it's impossible to breast feed in and the Baby would be in attendance, for several hours and I didn't relish the idea of stripping naked in the bathroom in order to feed her. (Sigh. Must get a life soon and go out with just my husband somewhere that a fabulous dress won't be terribly out of place.) I'm honestly not sure I remember where it is that grownups go to have fun without children.

In other good news, I think I am finally thinking like a thin person. I'm not counting calories or feeling guilty about certain foods, I'm just eating sensibly and spending most of my effort trying to get as much healthy food into my family and myself as possible. I try to move because it feels good and my body tells me when I've gone too long without it and my muscles get tight. And I stop when I'm no longer hungry, and have treats in frequently but habitually ritualized, as with the tea thing. I'm not focused on weight loss, or gain, but every so often I look in the mirror and think, "Wow, I look pretty good." (And now you all think I'm a narcissist, but I'm not.) I don't use a scale. I can tell by the way my pants fit if I'm losing or gaining and the measures that keep things steady are mostly instinct now, as are the healthy eating habits. (I can't serve a meal and call it done without a vegetable for instance.)

So, I guess there is a pay off at the end of all that hard work and relearning after all. Make healthy behaviours habits and add habits gradually and one day it will seem like magic, like the weight came off all by itself. If I can do it....I know you can do it too.

Cinnamon Sticks are a Fun Snack

Are your kids bugging you for dessert, again? Are you wandering around your kitchen feeling snacky and wanting to put something in your mouth but you're not really hungry? Have you ever tried a cinnamon bark?

Cinnamon sticks are those things that usually come as a garnish for fancy apple cider or hot chocolate drinks. What they are made of is rolled up cinnamon bark. It's the same substance that you have ground up in a jar in your spice cupboard. Cinnamon is just the bark from a particular tree.

So, if you like cinnamon, try taking one of these little sticks or whole pieces and chewing on it for a while. It tastes good, and has the added benefit of regulating your metabolism. This in turn helps to curb your cravings, as well as the really strong flavor. The calories in cinnamon bark are negligible so it's a great thing to have on hand if you are trying to curb a snack addiction too.

My kids think I'm so generous when I let them have a whole cinnamon stick to themselves!

Peanut Butter Happy Face

This only takes a few minutes to do, and your kids will love it. I used sprouted grain bread, Trader Joe's Organic Chunky Peanut Butter, and raisins.

You can mix it up and use whatever you want. Why shouldn't lunch be fun?

summer tips-revised

See bottom for update.

Why yes you are in the right place. Yes, we have rearranged things a little. I was getting bored with the old template this one is brighter.

Now that summer is here and hot days are upon us don't forget about water. It's a good idea to carry water with you at all times. If you buy a Nalgene bottle with a large lid you can put a ton of ice in it as well and keep it really cold and fresh. If your tap water tastes awful, now is a good time to purchase a water filter. They don't have to be too expensive and if it helps you to stay hydrated it's worth it.

One of the tricks to keeping cool in the summer heat is to eat lightly throughout the day. When you consume a large meal your body temperature rises as you metabolize the food. Eating a large heavy meal with hard to digest fats and animal proteins in the middle of the day can make you feel hot and sleepy. This is great for weight loss as you are less likely to feel like eating a lot when you're body is warmer so stock up on natural light snacks and enjoy the sun.

Summer is also the time to keep food simple. Fresh fruits are a great summer time snack. Cut up some cold watermelon and carry it along to the beach or poolside in a Ziplock bag. Don't forget about grapes and strawberries and peaches as well. This is the season for fresh berries of all kinds. Grab some almonds and sunflower seeds and you have to protein to go.

*After a. borealis commented about some Nalgene bottles leeching dioxins I remembered a very old post by Journey Mama where she mentioned a type of metal water bottle. After a long time digging through her archives I am proud to bring you the Kleen Kanteen the stainless steel alternative to plastic water bottles as their site proudly proclaims. I think I may get us a few of those this summer.

Apple Flowers

For a quick and fun snack for little ones try this.

Wash a large apple and cut it into thin slices.

Put a large spoonful of nut butter in the center of each child's plate. Arrange the apple slices around the butter all facing the same way like flower petals. (the nut butter is a dip for the apples)

Serve to excited toddlers who think you're amazing and then sit down and relax for the 3 minutes it will take them to eat their snack before they start pulling on you again.


(Also works with cottage cheese or yogurt)