Granola

Granola

8 cups quick oats
1 c wheat germ
1 1/2 c brown sugar
1 c coconut
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 t cinnamon

Mix together in a large bowl.

In a small bowl combine-
2/3 c oil
1/3 c water
2 teaspoons vanilla

Pour over oatmeal mixture and mix just until combined. Spread in a large cookie sheet.

Bake at 300 degrees for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, stirring occasionally (about every 20 minutes). Bake until lightly toasted and coconut is lightly browned.

When cool, mix in:
2 cups raisins or any dry fruit
1 c sunflower seeds or any misc. nuts

Store in an airtight container.

Eat with milk or sprinkle over yogurt or ice cream.

Applesauce Muffins

Applesauce Muffins

Ingredients

1 C margarine, softened

2 c sugar

2 eggs

2 c applesauce

2 t baking soda

4 C flour

1 T cinnamon

1 T allspice

2 T vanilla.

Heat applesauce and add baking soda. Add allspice, cinnamon, and vanilla. In alternating increments, add margarine and flour.

Bake for 15-20 minutes at 350 degrees.

Makes 24 muffins.

Notes: I made this with whole wheat and they were extremely moist. These also freeze very well and you can half easily.

Baby Food

Baby food- SO EASY.

I thought this would be an appropriate place to share a baby food trick I learned with baby #1. Thanks to an amazing, very frugal, sister-in-law, this came about.

First, boil your vegetables or fruits until they are soft (peel first unless keeping the peel). I've done peaches, pears, plums, apples, carrots, sweet potatoes, green beans, and peas. Maybe more but I can't think of any more right now.

Next, puree. No big chunks. The peas are a bit harder and take a bit longer in your processor.

Place into ice cube trays and freeze. After about 6 hours or when they are frozen solid, break them out and place them into ziplocs for long-term storage. You can freeze them up to 6 months.

Then, the night before I'll decide the menu, take them out of the ziplocs, and put them into small rubbermaid containers. They last 2-3 days in the fridge. At the beginning they eat one cube size. My baby now (At 8 months) eats 2-3 per meal.

This is so easy and you can do a months' worth of food in only a couple of hours. Also, it saves you SO much $$$!!!

Also, they make great fillers- throw a couple sweet potato cubes in your spaghetti sauce or some apples into your brownies (in place of oil). Yum!

Cute Ideas for Moms!

I haven't tried these out yet, but saw them at the Family Fun website (here) and couldn't resist sharing!

Butterfly Cheese Sandwich


Ingredients

1 pat butter or margarine
2 slices bread
2 slices cheese
Vegetables (such as celery, carrots, cherry tomatoes, red bell pepper)





Directions

Melt butter in frying pan
Assemble the sandwich, as you would a normal grilled cheese sandwich, with the exception of putting the rounded tops of the bread at opposite ends. then grill.
Cut the sandwich in half so the rounded tops go out to the sides, cut out 2 small triangles from each side's middle to form each wing.
Place celery stick in the middle, with cherry tomato as head, carrots as antennae, and slice carrot or peppers to make spots on wings.
----------OR------------
**Put out the vegetables in bowls and let the kids decorate their very own butterfly!**


Strawberry Shortcake Snake

Ingredients
2 cups all purpose flour
6 tablespoons confectioners' sugar (plus a little extra for berries)
4 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine
1 quart strawberries
Whipped cream
M&Ms
Green fruit leather


Directions:

Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Sift together the flour, 2 tbs confectioners' sugar, baking powder, and salt into a large mixing bowl. Cut in the margarine with pastry cutter. Once the dough is crumbly, slowly stir in the milk. Turn the dough onto a floured working surface and gently roll or pat the dough into a 1 inch thick rectangle (It should measure about 6 by 8 inches) for best results handle the dough as little as possible.
Slice the rectangle into 4 1 1/2-by 8-inch strips. Place the strips on an un-greased baking sheet, then mold and curve them into S-shapes to resemble snakes. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until the bottoms are golden brown. Transfer the baked shortcakes to a wire rack to cool.
Slice all but 4 of the berries lengthwise into a mixing bowl. Toss with the remaining confectioners' sugar.
Carefully slice the cooled shortcakes in half lengthwise, arrange the sliced strawberries on the bottom half of each one cover with shortcake top. "Frost" with whipped topping and sliced strawberries as scales. Add whole strawberry for head, dab small amount of whipped cream to hold M&ms in place for eyes, and add a fruit leather tongue. Serves 4!