Yum! Yum! Yum!: Kids Corner

Showing posts with label Kids Corner. Show all posts

Feb 9, 2021 No comments:

BellPepper & Mushroom Grilled Panini Sandwiches

I have recently ventured into these Veggie Panini Sandwiches not knowing they could become family favorite and could be a super hit on the dinner table or on the road trip. I always loved the Bell Pepper and Onion filling that Charley Phili Steaks use in their Sub Sandwiches, I always ask for that just that filling to make a veggie sandwich out of it from their store. They are so goood, if you haven't tried yet, you gotta give it a try! However one day I have replaced their steak with Mushrooms and copy cat (aka inspired by ;-)) their Sub and converted into Veggie Panini Sandwich, and Boy, that was a super hit and turned into super delicious. Since then Bell Peppers and Mushrooms have become regular staples on my grocery list. Here is the recipe for you, Njoy!

Ingredients:

Bell Pepper - 1

Mushrooms - 10 to 15 or small package ( Baby Bella Mushrooms are preferred)

Onion - 1 medim

Multigrain Bread Slices - 10 (any bread of your choice will work, pick ThickSlice Bread)

Cheese - 2 cups

PAM or OilSpray - to spray on Panini Griddles

Spices:

Pink salt

Black Pepper - freshly ground

Crushed Red Pepper

Gadgets - Panini Sandwich Maker is preferred to get nice char effects, if not these can be made on stove top too

*yields - 5 Sandwiches

Preparatory Steps:

Clean and wash Bell Pepper, remove stem and remove the seeds & membranes inside. Chop into thin slices of 2 1 in length
Remove and trim edges of Onion, wash in water, thinly slice them into 1 inch length
For Mushroom, remove the stems at the bottom and clean the mushrooms with wet kitchen towel to remove any dirt on top. (DO NOT wash mushrooms, they become soggy quickly when you saute). Chop mushrooms into thin slices.

Method:

Heat a non-stick pan on stove and once hot, add 1 tsp of oil and saute the BellPeppers first until they wilted slightly and should be still crunchy. Add lil bit of salt and freshly ground black pepper. (it enhances bell peppers taste), transfer peppers to a plate
In the same pan, now saute onion slices, until they turn slightly browned and caramelized; Transfer these to a plate
Now Finally saute the mushroom in the same pan, they ooze some water, let them simmer until they become slightly dry, add salt and crushed red pepper flakes (that enhances mushroom taste), transfer to plate.
Switch off the stove, now you are ready to grill.
Start the Panini Grill and spray with PAM or oil generously
First keep the 2 bread slices on grill and toast slightly, then reverse them, on one bread slice add mixture of sautéed onion, bell pepper and mushroom, sprinkle with 1 - 2 TBSP of cheese, top with another bread slice that is already toasted. Press hard and cook for 1-2 min on grill, until the cheese melts. Now remove the Panini Sandwich from Panini grill, cut them diagonally or in 4 squares and serve right away when cheese is smothered and melted.
Repeat the process until you are done with making all the sandwiches.

Packed and ready for Road Trip!

Tips:

Today i still have some stuffing left and I am out of bread, so i have used the Tortillas instead that are handy, and they turned into a good looking Quesadillas that are approved by kids.
These will be perfect for Roadtrips and/or picnics; and a great veggie finger food for game parties too.

Made this Grilled Panini Basket for SuperBowl 2021! GoBucs!

Hope you have enjoyed this quick magical and kids friendly recipe, will be back with another interesting one soon Until then take care!

Keep Smiling and Spread the Joy!

-Mythreyi

Jan 27, 2021 No comments:

Veg & Egg Puffs ~ Kids Corner

When I was a kid Puff is an exotic snack, matter of fact any bakery items are like that, since these can't happen at home like any other regular snack or deep fried snack. But Thanks to this country (US) where Oven is default gadget in the kitchen and any bakery items can be made in jiffy with less effort. So recently when our cousin came to US for studies and visited us, I made these Veg Puffs possible when he mentioned he is craving for those. He astonished with thought itself that Puffs can be home made and later thrilled how easy it was to make once you have Puff Pastry Sheets at hand, and very happy at the end how tasty they turned out. ( yeah we got him trained on how to make best Puffs!;-)). Usually these are very addictive for me, that's why i don't keep these Pastry Sheets handy, otherwise I will eat more than my kids. Though it is quick and easy snack, it is little on the high calorie side, Kids can handle it well as they are at growing age, for grown-ups watch out for calorie intake and limit with at most 1 or 2 in a batch. I have to warn you because these are so addictive. Here is the recipe, Njoy!

Ingredients:

Puff Pastry Sheets - 2 (I always use Pepperidge Farm Brand)

Potato Filling - 1 cup

Boiled Eggs - 2 ( 4 - halves)

*yields - 10 Puffs

Preparation:

Thaw the pastry sheets for about 1 hour

Cut each boiled egg into half, you will have 4 halves

Before they go in Oven, notice the ridge effect!

Method:

Unfold the pastry sheets cut into equal pieces (each pastry sheet you will get about 5 puffs)
On each puff sheet, place potato filling on one side and fold it with other side so that they are closed like book. Seal the edges by pressing with fork, it gives nice ridge effect.
Use Egg halves (facing Yellow/Yolk part down side) as filling in some sheets and repeat the process until all sheets are done
Heat Oven to 400 F, arrange the prepared Puffs on Baking Sheet.
Once oven is pre-heated, bake Puffs for about 15 to 17 min. (watch out the last 2 min to avoid any burns or over baking)
Once oven is done Ta daaa, Hot Veg and Egg Puffs are Ready to be served. Serve as it is and with some ketch-up on the side.

Hot and Tasty Puffs Ready!

Notes/Tips:

Thawing the pastry sheets is the only critical step you need to remember (so plan accordingly). Keep the sheets at room temperature to thaw at noon, in case you are making these as evening snack.
To save time, I keep Potatoes and Eggs in Pot in Pot, in Insta Pot, Pressure Cook mode for 10 min, so that boiling can be done at once.
Optionally You can apply egg wash on each of the Puff before it goes to Oven to get nice char effects on top (just like the bakery ones)
If you want to experiment more, having less puff sheet and more filling, then you can use half of the sheet, place filling in the middle and fold the sheet on four corners. it looks like a flower shape.
Or you can keep the filling one side of big pastry sheet (with out cutting into small pieces) and fold and roll like a log, cut the log into circles and bake. You will get like pin wheel shape snack. (for this shape, baking 14 to 15 min is enough, otherwise they get burnt)

Puffs experimented in many forms! :-) ( Flowers and PinWheels shape in one plate)

Hope you have enjoyed this Yummy and Exotic Snack Recipe,

Will be back with another one soon

Until then Keep Smiling and Spread the Joy

-Mythreyi

Jul 26, 2020 No comments:

Simple & Stunning Vanilla Pound Cake ~ Video Recipe

The credit of recipe goes to my daughter, She has been into baking lately, but during covid times that has became her activity to keep herself amused. Well that's a win-win, family gets baked goodie and her baking cravings gets satisfied. She is baking a new cake every week and this particular one has won everyone's heart due to it's simplicity and amazing taste. Every time it does come perfect with shape, texture and taste with out any fail, this has been become a go to recipe. Due to it's popularity, we had to make a family video recipe to publish at hub's workplace as well. Here is the recipe, Enjoy!

Ingredients:
All Purpose Flour - 3 cups
Baking Powder - 1 Tbsp
Salt - 1/2 tsp
Sugar - 1 1/4 cup
Butter - 1 cup ( 2 sticks)
Eggs - 4
Milk - 1 1/4 cup
Vanilla Extract - 1 tsp

Tools you need:
Large and Medium glass bowls
Baking Pan (we are using Bundt Pan)
Hand Mixer

Preparatory Steps:

Keep butter at room temperature for at least 30 min (it should be in soften state)
Spray PAM or oil in the Baking Pan (we are using bundt pan) around the outer walls and inner walls. Use a Baking brush and spread oil all over esp around corners. This is critical step as this helps for the cake to turn over perfectly with out messing the shape once it is baked.

Method:

Pre-heat Oven to 350 F.
First Mix dry ingredients Flour, Salt and Baking Powder in a medium bowl
In a large bowl add softened butter and sugar and whisk together until it becomes fluffy. To the same bowl add eggs (1 egg at a time) and beat until everything is incorporated well. Add Vanilla Extract and mix well.
To this bowl add flour mixture and milk in parts one after another and mix until the batter is formed and it should be fluffy.
Now transfer the batter to prepared baking pan and spoon it even, tap the pan gently so that any air bubbles will be out.
Keep the pan in Oven for 55 min. (Keep watching from 52 min for it not to over burnt, as based on the oven the temps might vary)
Once the tooth pick comes out clean, remove the pan from the oven and let it cool for 5 to 10 min
After that invert over and cut into pieces and enjoy. See told ya, it is as simple as that! :-)

Note:

You can serve this with berry fruits it make it look fancy or with chocolate ice cream to contemplate.
Actually I have tried this cake slice with Coffee, it tasted amazing. Always experiment with new combination, you will never know you can end up with new best and unique taste.

Simple Vanilla Pound Cake - Video Recipe:

Will be back with another simple recipe, Until then happy cooking and
Keep Smiling and Spread the Joy!
-Mythreyi

Apr 21, 2020 No comments:

Pineapple Praline Loaf Cake

Call it a Bread or Loaf or Coffee Cake, when i saw picture of this Pineapple Praline Bread in my FB news feed during quarantine times, it won my heart and My daughter fell for it as it is made with "Pineapple" ( her favorite fruit). We have lot of Pineapples handy at home at the edge of getting ripen, so we took this recipe as a perfect opportunity to put those pineapple and lockdown time to good use. And in this recipe there is no butter or oil used, all the greatness of taste comes purley from the fresh crushed pineapple. This recipe is so simple and you can find all the ingredients in your pantry and preparation is also as easy as dump everything, mix it and bake it to perfection, hence it is so apt to make it with your kids or let them experiment on their own if you have tweens/teenagers at home. Here is the recipe, Njoy

Pineapple Praline Loaf Cake

Ingredients:
All Purpose Flour - 2 cups
Baking Soda - 1 tsp
Baking Powder - 1 tsp
Salt - 1/2 tsp
Eggs - 2
Sugar - 1 cup
Crushed Pineapple - 1 can (15oz) ( I have used fresh pineapple)
Pecans - 1 cup ( chopped and divided) (Optional)

For Praline Sauce:
Unsalted Butter - 1/2 cup
Brown Sugar - 1/2 cup

Adapted from: Manila Spoon

Method:

Pre-Heat Oven to 350 F. Grease Loaf pan with butter or PAM spray
Mix all dry ingredients in a bowl (APF, Baking Powder, Baking Soda, Salt)
Combine Eggs, Sugar and crushed pineapple in another bowl.
Pour wet mixture to dry ingredients and fold well until everything is incorporated. (Don't beat or overdo mixing)
Add 1/2 of Pecan Chopped Nuts into batter and fold gently.
Pour this mixture into loaf pan, top with remaining chopped pecans and bake until 40 - 50 min until toothpick comes out clean
Cool the Loaf cake in pan for 10 min once it is out of the oven, slice it up and serve with Coffee.

Praline Sauce Topping:

Combine unsalted butter and brown sugar in a sauce pan and bring to boil (1 to 2 min on stove top). Pour this sauce on top of bread, once it is out of oven.
Alternatively you can spoon over this sauce on batter before baking, top with pecans and bake as instructed also. (called out from original recipe, I haven't tried yet).
Honestly if you skip this entire Praline sauce is also Okay, because the loaf cake tasted so good as it is, it is so dense and moist. (and it is Healthy too, when we skip butter in cake recipe, why to add on top again, right! )

Before Praline Sauce Topping

With Praline Sauce Topping

I will let you choose which topping you prefer. It's your call! If you have nut allergies, you can totally skip nuts also.

Pineapple Praline Loaf Cake

My hubby who is not so much Pineapple lover, munched on this until it is done, Go figure! Hands down to this recipe, I will be going to make this quite often, knowing how simple it is plus chance to infuse more fruit to my sweet tooth family! Shhhhh....!

This bite is so moist and Delicious...! Nom..Nom.. Nom..!

Other Baking Recipes with Fruit you may enjoy:

Will be back with another simple baking recipe
Stay tuned until we meet here next time.
Keep Smiling and Spread the Joy!
-Mythreyi

Apr 6, 2020 No comments:

Mini Chocolate Chip Muffins

Today I am presenting the simple recipe of Muffins that are filled with mini chocolate chips, that you can make from scratch with simple ingredients that are available in your pantry. This is such a simple recipe that your kids can make on their own with minimal guidance. Today kept the quarantine time to best use by making these muffins with my little man. Had loads of fun and bonding time in kitchen with my son, definitely made few long lasting memories. When Life throws lemons at you, make lemonade out of it. When COVID gives Quarantine time, make the best memories out of it while you are locked down at home is the best time for family bonding. Here is the recipe, Njoy!

Ingredients:
All purpose flour (APF) - 3 cups
Sugar - 1 cup
Baking Powder - 2 tsp
salt - 1/2 tsp
Milk Chocolate chips - 1 1/2 cups
Butter - 1 /2 cup ( 1 stick, unsalted, at room temp)
Vegetable Oil - 1/2 cup
Eggs - 3
Milk - 1 1/2 cup
Vanilla Extract - 2 tsp

Adapted from :The Country Cook

Method:

Mix Dry Ingredients: Take a wide bowl, add APF, Sugar, Baking Powder, salt and mix well. Then add chocolate chips and fold them together. keep it a side.
Mix Wet Ingredients: Take a wide bowl add butter and melt it ( microwave for 30 sec). Add oil, eggs, milk and whisk well together. Add in vanilla extract and whisk again.
Pour the wet ingredients into dry ingredients and fold and up & down, until everything is combined and moistened, becomes like batter.
Pre-heat oven to 375F
Line Muffin Tray with cup cake liners in baking sheet. Fill with batter in cup cake liner (up to 3/4 way)
Muffin tray goes in Oven and Bake for 15 to 18 minutes
Take them out when the toothpick comes out clean, allow them to cool for 2 min and enjoy the cup cakes or muffins right away!

Tips:

Add few chocolate chips on top of the batter in each cup cake before they go oven, that makes it best presentation when they come out of oven (clearly i have missed that as i am out of choco chips)
As i have few milk chocolate chips at hand, i have mixed in white chocolate chips as well.
If you want to cut down on sweet, you can add brown sugar in place of white sugar. I have used Turbinado sugar (Sugar in the Raw, brand)
These are best, very easy to make, no need to fuss with topping or anything. Will be a good to-go breakfast or snacks.

take a peek inside, so fluffy and filled with small choco chip morsels!

Hope you have enjoyed this quick and easy baking recipe!
Keep Smiling and Spread the joy, Take care until we meet again!
-Mythreyi

Aug 28, 2017 1 comment:

Carrot Cupcakes

As 'Back to School' bash started this week, my morning has been fun and hectic in the kitchen with making lunches and packing lunch boxes for my kids. I always love to make fresh meal to pack in their lunch box, as I feel like I connect to them through food while they eat lunch. Me and my silly belief, do you ever feel that way, or am I the crazy one :-) This year I have started packing their snacks in a cute snack box, it's a save on plastic ( I used to pack in ziplock snack bags) and will do good to earth. Though I make time to pack healthy lunches, but I end up packing processed and sugar filled food for their snacks. I have been eyeing to make a batch of cupcakes, so that I can load in their snack box, but the crieteria is they should be healthy ones! When I spotted this Carrot Cupcakes recipe at Pinch of Yum, that made my day. The recipe is so simple with minimalistic ingredients that you can find in your panty and these cupcakes are loaded with goodness of grated carrot. I have made a batch right away and gave these hesistantly to my kids crossing my fingers to see their reaction, they have super liked these and I immediately got their approval to pack these in snack box. They have double okayed it, I bet these will happen once a week for sure in my kitchen from now-on-wards. Here is the recipe for you, Njoy!

Ingredients:

Adapted from: Pinch of Yum

Flour - 1 cup
Sugar - 3/4 cup
Cinnamon - 1 tsp
Baking Soda - 1 tsp
Baking Powder - 1/2 tsp
Salt - 1/4 tsp
Grated Carrots - 1 1/2 cup
Oil - 2/3 cup
Eggs - 2

*yields - 12 cupcakes

Preparatory Steps:

Pre-heat the Oven to 350 F
Line the cupcake liners in the Cupcake Baking Tray.
Trim edges and peel carrots. Grate carrots with the grater and set the grated carrots aside.

Method:

Combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking soda baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Mix it with whisk and swift the flour so that there are no lumps in it and set aside.
In a separate bowl, combine grated carrot and the oil. Slowly add the dry flour mixture to carrot mixture and fold in gently. Add the beaten eggs and stir/beat few times with cake mixer. ( around 15 beats)
Scoop the batter into cupcake liners about 2/3 of full. Finish all the batter in 12 cup cake liners. Keep the cupcake tray in the oven and bake for 15 min.
After 15 min, you will notice the cupcakes are ready with springy tops and test with toothpick, it should come out clean when you poke inside. Take out these cupcakes from the tray and place them on cooling rack allowing them to cool for 10 to 15 min. Once these are cooled, they are ready to be served.
You can store them for 2 to 3 days at room temperature in air-tight container or store these in refrigerator for 5 to 7 days.

Notes:

Original recipe calls to grate the carrot in food processor, but I did hand grated carrots in grater, I love the carrot flake like texture in my cupcakes. Feel free to grate in food processor if you need to rush or less manual work. ( that doesn't change any flavor so you should be good either way)
For me 4 medium carrots yielded 1 1/2 cup grated carrot.
Baking time for these cupcakes varies based on the oven, I had to keep for 3 more minutes after 15 min. So I suggest to start with 15 min, adjust as needed later at the end.
My family not a biggie for frosting on the cupcakes, that's why I didn't make any frosting or decorate with cream. You can decorate with cream cheese or vanilla frosting. Believe me, these tasted good as it is with out any frosting.
Oh, the cinnamon gives grate taste for these cupcakes, so I insist DO NOT skip the cinnamon, otherwise you will miss out lot of flavor.
These cup cakes are so delicious, spongy and so good. I suggest baking these in cupcake liners as you can directly pack them in lunchbox with liners to avoid any mess.

My kids loved these cupcakes, I hope your's will too, give it a try!

Will be back with another great and healthy recipe,

See ya next time,

-Mythreyi

Aug 26, 2017 No comments:

Fruit & Yogurt Popsicles ~ 2 Ingredient Recipes

Back to School Rush has begun in Dallas, but the Texas heat hasn't cool down yet for this summer. My kids are returning from school with thirst quench. One day my daughter is back from school and craving for popsicles and we are out of popsicles or ice creams, she is so desperate for popsicles that she wanted to make popsicles right away, yes 'SHE wanted to make'! These days she is on the spree to make her own recipes. And also she remember that I bought several popsicle molds, but never used those, so she insisted! So I had to remember where I tucked in those in my cabinates, and luckily found them quickly and we started making these fruit and yogurt popsicles right away. I have to admit, "Daughters are daughters, LOL!' Finally we both enjoyed making these together and had fun in the kitchen, That's what matters! Here is the recipe, enjoy!

Ingredients:

Honey Flavored Greek Yogurt - 1 cup

Fresh Fruit Cut-up - 1 cup ( I have used mango and strawberries)

Method:

Take Yogurt in a medium bowl and cream it with spoon/small spatula/whisk, so that there are no lumps or flakes in the yogurt.
Peel mango and cut up into small cubes. Trim stems of strawberries and cut them into small tiny pieces.
Start adding yogurt into popsicle molds and alternate with fruit pieces. Complete this process until all the molds are full. Seal these molds with cap that has stick that goes in the middle.
Keep them in freezer and allow them to freeze for 24 hours.
Next day take them out, run under lukewarm water and rub the molds in your palms and slowly take popsicles out from the molds, serve and enjoy these right away.

Notes:

For one posible I have used 1 fruit variety. You can add variety of fruits in one popsicle that makes it even more colorful. But try out with your kids favorite fruit first and then you can sneak in other fruits. ;-)
My daughter loved Mango flavored popsicle than strawberry ones, as strawberry one turned out little sour.
Instead of greek yogurt, you can try these with home made yogurt with honey mixed in it. If you are using homemade yogurt, I suggest to strain in a cloth first to remove any cream flakes or lumps.
On Roti Subzi dinner days, I let kids enjoy these yogurt popsicle instead of Curd Rice. They get to enjoy their favorite and it is healthy as these are loaded with fruit and yogurt with no preservatives. Win-Win!

This is a very quick and easy kids friendly recipe, as there is no heat/stove/oven usage in this recipe, kids can just try this on their own. As the title says this recipe uses just 2 ingredients fruit & yogurt. I have used honey yogurt and fresh fruit, however you can vary this recipe by using flavored yogurt and/or frozen fruit variety as well.

will be back with another easy recipe,

Take Care until then

-Mythreyi

Sep 10, 2016 1 comment:

Veggie Pancakes

These are simple veggie pancakes that happens in my kitchen even in morning rush time. These are super easy to make, super quick, super tasty and loaded with veggies and without any added preservatives. Makes it super healthy breakfast for your kids, Whenever I make these, I can't really wait to eat these, infact i always eat half of them in the process of making. :-) These are that addictive and I am happy with these type of healthy addictions. Here is the recipe for you, Njoy!

Ingredients:
Zucchini - 1
Carrot - 1
Potato - 1
Multi Grain Bread Slices - 2
Egg - 1

Salt - 1 tsp
Black pepper - 1/2 tsp ( freshly ground)
Cajun Seasoning - 1/2 tsp ( or try all spice seasoning)
Dry Basil Flakes - 1/2 tsp
Oil - 1 Tbsp

Method:

Trim Zucchini and Carrot. Peel Carrot and Potato. Grate all the veggies in medium grate setting. ( so that flakes shouldn't be small)
Take grated veggies in a medium bowl. Add salt, black pepper, cajun seasoning, dry basil and mix well.
Cut the bread into small pieces add to the veggie mix. Add egg to the bowl and mix it thoroughly until you will get like batter consistency.
Heat the Griddle and spread spoonsful on to the pan ( yields 6 medium size pancakes).
Drizzle Oil around each pancake. Cook on both sides for about 2 min on each side.
Switch off the stove, serve these in plate with Hot & Sweet Magee sauce. Oh Heavenly!

Notes:

If you want to skip egg, replace it with 2 Tbsp Besan Flour mixed in 1 Tbsp water ( or adequate amount water)
For another variation you can add 1 Tbsp of sooji rava to the mixture to get slight crunch.
In US, veggies are very hydrant rich, water in the veggies is enough to get the batter like consistency, no need to add any extra water in this recipe. If you feel like you didn't get batter like consistency because veggies are little dry, then you can add 1 tbsp of water and adjust accordingly.

Will be back with another kid friendly recipe
Take care until we meet here again!
-Mythreyi

Sep 3, 2016 No comments:

Nutella Cookies

On one Friday evening, I was dying to make or bake something new in my kitchen as it's been a while that i made any new dish. But here are the conditions

1. Ready in or under 30 min
2. With very simple and minimal ingredients
3. served as snack that please my kids
4. mess free recipe, so that I should still be tidy after making this to hit the Friday Family Dinner.

Nutella Cookies

After browsing several awesome recipes and gazing at mouth watering dishes, I was set with these quick Nutella Cookies! This recipe met all my conditions and happened in jiffy with only 3 ingredients, I hit the dinner date with family too after baking these cookies!

Usually I am not a cookie person, but Let me tell you all about these cookies, these are slightly crispy outside, very soft inside, chewy overall and melts in mouth, tasted awesome.. Oh boy these are so good and I am sure this recipe is a keeper and happens a lot in my kitchen!

My daughter's eye got on this recipe, she is planning to turn this into video recipe... keep your eye for that upcoming video recipe as well! :-)

Ingredients:
adapted from : she knows

Nutella - 1 cup
All Purpose Flour - 1 cup
Egg - 1

Method:

Take Nutella in a medium mixing bowl. Add egg and beat with electric mixer on medium speed for 2 min. Add flour to the same bowl and mix again for 1 to 2 min until everything is combined.
Keep the mixer away, using your hands knead the mixture slightly until it gets dough consistency. Make a big dough ball or log and keep it aside.
Pre-Heat the Oven to 350 F / 180 c degrees.
Take the baking tray and place the silicon baking cookie sheets.
Take 1 Tbsp of dough into hands and roll into small balls between your palms. Turn the dough into balls and place them on the baking sheet.
Take a heavy bottom glass, and press the balls gently so they become flat into cookie shape.
Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 7 minutes. Take the baking sheet out of the oven and let the cookies completely cool for 5 min.
Enjoy these cookies right away or store them in air tight container for later.

knead, roll, flat, bake! :-)

Notes:

This recipe yields 24 cookies of medium size.
Silicon baking cookie sheets are so convenient to place the cookies in pre-defined circles.
These cookies store good for 3 to 5 days at room temperature and 7 to 10 days in refrigerator.

Oh.. My... these are so delicious!

hope you have enjoyed this simplest recipe,

Happy Baking until next time!

-Mythreyi

May 3, 2016 No comments:

Corn Cheese Chicken (CCC) Quesadillas

My son Abhi used to have a 'Magic Can' concept, in his day care, (when he was a pre-schooler and 2 years ago), where every kid will be given a Can and One Alphabet Letter for one week. So the kid has to think of anything that starts with that Letter, and need to drop a picture or toy or photo or words that starts with that letter. My son used to love that game, when ever his turn comes, he will get into my kitchen and starts exploring for those words, and surprisingly he used to get most of the items from my kitchen and pantry (fruits, vegetables, staples) etc. As we are in India now, recollecting these memories and trying to play such games with my little one (Anvi, who is a preschooler now).

Corn Cheese Chicken Quessedillas

Today I picked a letter 'C' for her, started exploring in my kitchen, and ended up with this recipe. After I explained the ingredients and the dish name, my little naughty started saying like these....

'C' for Corn
'C' for Cheese
'C' for Chicken
and
'C' for Cassedilla also 'Mommy!!!'.

I couldn't laugh better and felt happy, as she is trying to use that basic 'C says Ca' technique for the words. Of course, then my Son, keeps correcting her... (My son always come to rescue !!). That's why It is always fun for me to cook with my kids in the kitchen at least once a week (or only once a week, Beyond that it would be impossible to manage them. :-)) ).

Note: If you are a mom for pre-schoolers, Leap Frog's Letter Factory helped both of my kids a lot to learn their Alphabets, Phonic Sounds, and pronunciation. Of course, I have learned the correct phonic sounds too while teaching to my kids.
if you don't want your Tot to leave at the Tube while you are busy in the kitchen, these Fridge Phonics comes to rescue. If you are thinking about the Christmas Gifts, Hint, Hint!!! :-)

Here is the recipe for you and Enjoy!

Ingredients:
Multi Grain Tortilla - 2
Corn - 1/2 cup ( have used frozen and thawed)
Chicken - 1/2 cup ( cooked)
Taco Cheese - 1/2 cup ( or four cheese Mexican style)
salt - 1 tsp
black pepper - 1 tsp
cilantro - 2 tbsp

Method:

Heat one Tortilla on non stick pan on low heat.
Layer with half of the cheese. and then Layer the Corn on the tortilla.
Mince the cooked chicken and layer on top of corn on the tortilla.
Sprinkle Salt, Black Pepper and Cilantro.
Layer the remaining cheese on top.
Top with another tortilla, and press hard and evenly on all sides with spatula.
After 2 min, turn it to other side and cook for 1 min.

Now remove from the heat, cut into triangles and serve the protein packed Corn Cheese Chicken Quesedillas to your kids while they learn the letter 'C'.

Oh! look at that melted cheese, Yummm!

Tips:

I have used chicken breast to cook the chicken, marinate the chicken with salt and pepper for 5 to 10 mins. and saute it on the non stick pan with 1 tsp oil, until it gets cooked on all sides. usually it takes 5 to 10 mins.
I cook this chicken will store in the fridge for 2 days. And this will be handy, for chicken noodles and chicken fried rice items for kids.

Happy Cooking with Kiddos
-Mythreyi

Belgian Hazelnut Spread and Weekly Breakfast Menu

I am one of those people who will stand in long lines to try all the samples at the grocery stores looking for something new. Wait,wait, don't get me wrong. These 'sampler stalls' are very nice to get an idea of the product with out buying and not to get disappoint after buying it when you don't end up liking it. As we are big fans of Costco, some times their samplers are huge enough to skip the breakfast. ;-) While I miss those days, here in Bangalore, Hypercity comes to my rescue, when i saw 'sampler stalls' at this place. So one morning this Hazelnut spread got my eye, as I am not a huge fan of chocolate or sweets, reluctantly I have tried this sample hoping this chocolate spread does not taste like 'Chocolaty' and No I did not, it is so Natural ( no artificial flavors) and it tasted so delicious. With out any thought it has been added to my grocery cart, and Vj gave me that look which conveys, 'For people like me only the sampler stalls meant for. They make you try and make you buy' :-)

So next day I want to see my recent impulsive buy in action, I spread this on the milk bread and served to kiddos, they simply loved it. That evening I heard Abhi talking to his friend saying ' My mom, got this spread you know, it is so yummy.. you should try this too... ' ( his exact words with his big eyes that expresses all his liking about this spread). Couldn't ask more when my kiddos love the new things that I always try and buy. :-)

With that let me share my Weekly Breakfast Menu planner here... ( As I am in India now, I am including all the tropical fruits in their breakfast and kids are enjoying new kind of fruits).

Day	Carbs and Protein	Fruit
Monday	Milk Bread with Hazel Nut Spread	Pomegranate
Tuesday	Boiled Egg	Apple
Wednesday	Oatmeal with Milk and Honey	Banana
Thursday	Bell Pepper Omelet	Watermelon or MuskMelon
Friday	Milk with Chocos	Papayya or Guava
Saturday	Semya Upma with Vegetables	Mango Juice
Sunday	Idli/Dosa	Strawberry Yogurt

I made sure I have included Carbs and Protein and Nutrients to well balance the kiddo's diet. Hope this makes it your busy morning easier. :-) Please share your breakfast planners and new breakfast ideas for little ones. Would love to try them all.

Have a Happy Morning Everyday

- Mythreyi

Mar 26, 2016 1 comment:

Potato and Broccoli Stir-Fry

Do you love Potato? Who doesn't! Majority of the kids favorite is Potato. My son Abhi is potato lover in our home. I always make something with potato twice a week for him. Usually I sneak in some greens in potato fry, and today's green is Broccoli, which is not his favorite at all. Shhhhh! He didn't notice a thing about broccoli and finished all the potato fry. I told him at the end though and he gave thumbs up for this stir-fry, Win-Win, wink! ;-) Here is the recipe for you, Njoy!

Ingredients:

Russet Potato - 2 medium

Broccoli - 10 Florets

Onion- 1/2 small

Green Chili - 2

Curry Leaves - 5

Oil - 2 Tbsp

Red Chili - 2

Urad Dal - 1 Tbsp

Chana Dal - 1 Tbsp

Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp

Mustard Seeds - 1 tsp

Turmeric Powder - 1 tsp

Salt - 1 tsp

Preparatory Steps:

Peel potatoes and wash them. Chop into small pieces ( I have used my veg chopper)
Chop onion into small pieces. Cut the Chili lengthwise.
Grate Broccoli or chop into small pieces. ( I have used my veg chopper)

Method:

Heat non-stick pan and add oil to it. Once the oil is hot add red chili followed by chana dal and urad dal. As the lentils brown, add cumin seeds and mustard seeds. Once mustard splutter, add curry leaves, green chili and onions. Add turmeric powder and saute well.
Now add chopped potato pieces to tempering in the pan and mix well; close the lid and cook on low heat for 10 min.
After 10 min, potatoes should be tender and become soft by now. Add salt and chopped /grated broccoli and mix well with potatoes. Let it cook for 5 more minutes on low heat.
After 5 min, taste and adjust accordingly. If you need more spice you can add some red chili powder and coriander powder.
Now increase the heat to medium to high heat and stir-fry so that everything gets mixed and fried well.
Switch off the stove now and transfer immediately into serving bowl.

Serve hot with hot white rice and enjoy the dinner!

Will be back with another kid's favorite,
Take care until then!
-Mythreyi

Mar 21, 2016 No comments:

Chocolate Pancakes

Recently I have tried these Chocolate Pancakes by altering my popular recipe Old Fashionable Pancakes, it was a super hit with my kids. They love these pancakes, I serve these for breakfast on weekends and in lunchbox on weekdays. The recipe is super simple and these pancakes are super addictive. Here is the recipe, Njoy!

Chocolate Pancakes

Ingredients:
All Purpose Flour- 1 cup
Cocoa Powder (unsweetened) - 1/2 cup
Baking Soda - 1 tsp
Salt - 1/8 tsp
Butter (unsalted) - 3 Tbsp
Brown Sugar - 1/3 cup
Egg - 1
Milk - 1 cup
Vanilla Extract - 1/2 tsp

Method:

In a medium bowl, mix all the dry ingredients APF, Cocoa Powder, salt and baking soda; close the lid and set aside.
In a large bowl cream the butter, add 1/3 of brown sugar and mix it well. Add 1 Egg and whisk it well until egg combines with sugar mixture.
Add 1/2 tsp vanilla extract to 1 cup milk. Add Milk to the sugar and egg mixture and mix well until everything is combined.
Now add dry flour mix to the wet ingredients and mix it with spoon until smooth batter forms. Leave it aside for 5 min, for everything to settle allowing the batter to slightly ferment.
Now heat the skillet at 250 to 300 F temperature. Pour ladleful of batter onto skillet and cook on both sides for 1 to 2 min, until Pancakes are done. Repeat the process until all the batter is done.

Arrange pancakes in a wide plate, pour some maple syrup all over, dust powdered sugar on top and serve as it is or top with some fruit ( Blueberries or Banana).

Notes:

If butter is not at room temperature, it won't cream properly, then microwave in glass bowl for 30 sec.
If you don't have brown sugar, you can replace with 3 Tbsp of White Sugar.
As butter is already in the batter, you don't need to add any oil while cooking the pancakes.

Dec 27, 2015 3 comments:

Oreo Truffles ~ No Bake & No Egg

Truffles are sweet magical things that melt in your mouth taking you close to heaven in one bite, esp if you are a chocolate lover. These are very popular during Holidays Season around Christmas and New Year! I wanted to make these truffles from long time, but didn't dare thinking about all those complicated ingredients. Recently I have come across this easy Oreo Truffles recipe, where these are made with only 3 Ingredients, with out any other thought and wasting time, I have made these and they were super hit at my house and at work. My family, friends and colleagues loved these and loaded me with tons of compliments. I have already made 3 batches of these in the past 3 weeks . I am warning you these are quite addictive and loaded with calories, so be mindful when you are having these. Here is the recipe for you, Njoy!

Ingredients:
Recipe Source: Life in LoftHouse

Oreo Cookies - 1 package
Cream Cheese - 8 oz
Dipping Chocolate - your favorite ( I have used 8 oz of White Chocolate and 8 Oz of Dark Chocolate)

Method:

Place OREO cookies in a food processor. Pulse until cookies become fine crumbs. (If you don't have a food processor place cookies in a large zip-lock bag, seal shut and pound with a rolling pin). Remove 1/4 cup of the cookie crumbs and set aside.
Place all the remaining cookie crumbs in a large bowl. Add the cream cheese and stir with a spatula until combined and smooth. Roll mixture into 30 one-inch balls. Place balls on a parchment paper lined baking sheet and set in fridge to chill for one hour.
Heat both of the Baker's chocolate in the microwave, according to package directions.
Dip 15 chilled OREO balls into the melted dark baking chocolate and 15 balls into the white baking chocolate. Let excess drip off.
Place dipped balls onto another parchment lined baking sheet. Sprinkle tops with the reserved cookie crumbs.
Let chocolate truffles set completely before serving. Store left over truffles in the refrigerator.

Notes:

Do not use chocolate chips for dipping. Use Dipping Chocolate Bars or Chocolate Bark for this recipe, which helps the chocolate to set and harden.
I have to tell White Chocolate Dipped Truffles are Kids Favorites.

Pictorial: