Tuesday, April 30, 2024
We always look forward to Tuesdays
and the opportunity to reconnect with you all!
Can you believe that APRIL will soon be in the back window?
Tomorrow MAY arrives and we are ready for the warmth and flowers to come!
May is filled with so much goodness…
- May Day, Cinco de Mayo & Mother’s Day -
all in the first ten days this year!
Last week we shared our ideas for Mother’s Day projects to make with your Littles!
We added our own touch as Grands
by focusing on gifts we can help our grandkids (our Littles)
create/prep for their moms (our Middles)!
Today, Laura is sharing 3 easy breakfast recipes
to prep, mix, stir, cook and bake with our Littles…
just in time for Mother’s Day!
I love cooking with kids
and these days Little L and I have lots of fun in the kitchen together!
Whether I’m visiting Little L’s family or they are spending a few days with us,
you’ll usually find Little L and I whipping up some snack or dish to share!
I’ve put together a few of our breakfast favorites
- we’re calling them Brunch Bites -
all recipes that YOU can mix and match to make with your own Littles,
whether a grandchild, your own Little or one in your care each day!
Mother’s Day would be the perfect day
to give one or more of our dishes a try!
Sometimes we are together on Mother’s Day since we usually stay with each other when visiting. Obviously, times like that work well for cooking experiences! However, you could also help your Little(s) prep a dish or two ahead of time OR if your Little(s) are old enough, you could practice cooking for the big morning OR you could even share this post with your Little(s)’ dad and let him take the reins that day! Check out our Grand Tips! along the way for some suggestions!
And, of course, while these recipes would be perfect to serve to Mom on her big day, they’d also be equally fun to make any day you are together with a sweet Little or two! One of my favorite places to cook with Littles is at the lake on a summer morning - first as an auntie, then as a mama myself and, these days, as a Grand! While everyone else is sleeping in a bit, you’ll usually find us baking in the kitchen together, creating memories along the way!
Please take the following into consideration
when cooking with your Littles!
While young Littles (preschool and younger) will take on the role
of helping you in the kitchen,
older Littles (elementary aged and older) could lead the way
with you being their sous-chef!
Have you seen this popular recipe on TikTok?
Recently, I’ve been wanting to add more protein to my meals
and I’ve been making this dish as an easy lunch option during the past few months!
(One quiche lasts me about 3 days!)
On a recent visit, Little L and I made one for her mama!
DELISH!
INGREDIENTS (for one quiche - serves 1-2)
• burrito size tortilla (I’ve used flour, whole wheat, low carb and gluten free!)
• 3 large eggs
• 1/3 cup cottage cheese
• salt & pepper to taste
• veggies and/or meat of your choice (we used about 1 cup sauteed mushrooms & spinach)
• 1/2 cup shredded cheese (cheddar, jack, mozzarella, feta, goat… you choose!)
• sliced cherry tomatoes (optional)
• Parmesan cheese
DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Grease a pie tin or round pan with cooking spray or butter and place the tortilla in and press down lightly to form the quiche “crust”.
2. Crack the eggs into the tortilla crust. Add the cottage cheese and the salt and pepper. (Feel free to add additional spices, too - garlic powder or paprika are great options). Whisk together.
3. Saute veggies of your choice. We sauteed mushrooms and spinach but many veggies - peppers, zucchini, onions - work well! Sprinkle the veggies over your egg mixture. NOTE: You can also add cooked meat at this point (bacon, sausage, ham).
4. Sprinkle the cheese over the top. Use the cheese or combination of cheeses you prefer! We used Cheddar Jack but mozzarella or feta or even a combination of two or more would be yummy!
5. As a final step, arrange halved cherry tomatoes on top of the egg dish, making a design of your choosing. Little L loved this step! (Of course, you can skip this step or you can even add diced tomatoes to your veggie mixture.) Sprinkle parmesan cheese over it all.
6. Bake your quiche in the oven for 20-25 minutes, until the eggs are set and the top is golden brown. Keep an eye on it in case the tortilla browns and needs to be covered with foil.
7. Let the quiche cool for a few minutes before removing it from the pan. Then cut into wedges to serve!
A Grand Tip!
Let Littles use their own combination of ingredients!
Also, you don't need to saute the veggies ahead of time
if you cut them Into small pieces!
Also, while this dish is best when freshly cooked
(the crust is crisper)
it can also be made ahead of time and cut into wedges.
Then your Little and his/her dad can simply warm a slice up
on Mother’s day morning!
We LOVE French toast at our house
and these muffins are a simple alternative to the original
but with the same taste and texture!
They’d also be a lovely addition to any brunch for a crowd,
as they can be frozen and then warmed as needed.
They’d be delicious served at a baby or bridal shower or even at a grad party!
INGREDIENTS (these quantities made 8 for me)
• 3-4 slices of bread, cut or torn into small pieces
NOTE - We used cinnamon bread… yum!
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon (IF NOT using cinnamon bread)
• 1/2 cup blueberries (if big, cut in half)
DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a muffin tin with butter or cooking spray.
2. Crack the two eggs into a large mixing bowl and whisk them together. Then add the milk and the vanilla. If you are not using cinnamon bread, add the cinnamon, too. Whisk all these wet ingredients together.
3. Tear or cut the bread into bite size pieces and add to the bowl with the wet mixture. Stir together, coating all of the bread. Let the mixture sit and soak for 5 minutes.
4. Gently, fold in the blueberries. Distribute the mixture to the muffin tin, filling each section about half full. (We were able to fill about 8 sections.) We also added a few additional blueberries to each muffin.
A little cutie might have been trying to nibble a blueberry or two!
5. Bake your French toast muffins for 20 minutes. Check to see if the eggs have set and bake for a few additional minutes, as needed. When done, remove from the oven and let the muffins sit for 5 minutes before removing them from the tin.
Little L agrees…. Her mommy is going to love these!!
6. Serve with maple syrup or on their own… delicious either way!
A Grand Tip!
You and your Little can make these together ahead of time
as these will keep in the fridge.
They freeze well, too!
One of Daughter J’s go to breakfasts
is fruit and yogurt,
so this would be a winner to serve her!
BERRY PARFAITS
Littles will love layering fruit and yogurt into a jar
and my homemade granola adds a sweet crunchy touch too!
INGREDIENTS FOR ONE PARFAIT (Granola recipe below)
• 1 cup plain or vanilla yogurt (we try to use Greek when we have it)
NOTE - If using plain yogurt, you can stir in 1 Tbsp honey
• 1 cup mixed berries - strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and/or blackberries
• 1/2 cup granola (recipe below)
DIRECTIONS
1. Spoon half of the yogurt into the bottom of a glass or jar.
2. Top with half of the berries.
3. Sprinkle 2-3 spoonfuls of granola on top.
4. Repeat by layering remaining yogurt, berries and granola on top. Add a festive touch and garnish with fresh berries!
A Grand Tip!
Serve the parfait immediately
OR
use a glass jar, screw the top on and refrigerate
until you are ready to serve!
TOASTED VANILLA MAPLE GRANOLA
You and your Little(s) can make the granola together
and then it could be sent home for Littles to recreate a simple parfait
for Mom on Mother’s Day morning!
This would be easy for them, especially with Dad’s help!
This granola also makes a lovely treat for friends, teachers
or as a hostess gift during a weekend getaway…
simply a lovely way to start a new day!
An added bonus?
Your home will smell amazing!!!
INGREDIENTS FOR GRANOLA
• 2 1/2 cups old fashioned rolled oats
• 1 cup slivered almonds
• 1 cup shredded coconut
• 1/4 cup sesame seeds (or flax seeds)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
• cinnamon (optional - see below)
DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Line two sheet pans with parchment paper.
2. Meanwhile, combine the maple syrup, coconut oil and salt and microwave on high for 30 seconds. Stir to combine and then microwave for 30 additional seconds at a time (up to 90 seconds or so) until the coconut oil is melted. Set aside.
3. Combine oats, almonds, coconut and flax in a large bowl. Stir to combine. Add the maple syrup mixture and stir gently until all the ingredients are combined.
4. Spread the mixture evenly onto parchment lined pans. If you’d like, you can lightly sprinkle cinnamon over the mixture for some extra goodness!
5. Bake for 1 hour, checking the pans every 15 minutes but don't stir! Watch the mixture closely for the last 15 minutes so it doesn’t burn. Bake until golden brown. (If after an hour, the mixture isn’t golden brown yet, give it another 10 minutes or so, watching closely)
6. Let the mixture cool completely. When cooled, lift the parchment paper and the granola will break, some into chunks. Store the granola in an airtight container for several weeks.
A Grand Tip!
Our Daughter J loves dark chocolate
so this is the perfect ingredient to add to her granola once it’s cooled!
Other delicious options include dried cranberries, cherries or pineapple!
Here are two simple ways Little L and I have dressed up a special morning meal!
🌺 Fruit Kabobs!
Add any cut up fruit to a kabob stick and you’ve created a festive addition to your Mother’s Day tray! Rainbow kabobs are some of our favorites!
🌺 Cookie Cutter Flower Toast!
How simple is this idea? We toasted some bread, used our flower cookie cutters and turned our break into beautiful spring flowers made of toast!
With the addition of some jam spread on top (or cinnamon sugar) these tasty toast bites become a fun add on to any Mother’s Day plate!
As you can see,
any of the 3 recipes shared above
can be combined or adapted to be as simple as you’d like
or you could take things to the next level
when extra support, time and energy allows!
It’s really up to you and your Littles!
We hope the dishes you’ve seen here will inspire you
to have fun in the kitchen with the Little(s) in your life!
As always, if you have any suggestions for us,
especially fun cooking experiences you've shared with Littles,
please comment at the end of this post!
Did you happen to notice Little L’s purple cast
in the photos above?
Yes, as I mentioned in a recent post,
Little L is sporting a cast these days with one more week to go
before it comes off!
Despite it all, she did a great job cooking and baking with me - her Bacco!
OH, AND DID I HAPPEN TO MENTION...
we are on baby watch right now!!!
Our newest Little is due within the next few weeks!
Daughter J and SIL are gearing up for what's ahead
and Little L can’t wait to be a BIG sis!
She’s been busy practicing!!
Our sweet Little L looks ready, doesn’t she? ♥
No one knows yet if it will be a baby sister or a baby brother…
we can hardly wait to meet him or her!
If you are still looking for Mother’s Day gifts for the young moms in your life,
don’t forget that we’ve got two posts for you, devoted to this subject!
Our 2024 post and last year’s edition
both offer fun ideas!
Tomorrow is May Day and then Cinco de Mayo and Mother’s Day
are right around the corner!
We’ll be highlighting our ideas for each there!
You can also find our growing collection of ideas on Pinterest, too!
We’d love to have you follow us on any or all three platforms!
Speaking of MAY DAY, we’ve got last year’s post available
in case you are looking for last minute fun with Littles!
We both have such fond memories of May Day from our youth and years of teaching!
AND, our recent post A Family Fiesta! would be perfect to revisit,
especially if you are planning a CINCO DE MAYO party this weekend!
As Laura’s family gets ready to welcome a new Little
our resident expert, Laurie (who’s been a Grand to two Littles for six months now)
will be back next week with her post,
Laurie will share her suggestions and advice with Laura and us all
for navigating the world of more than one Little!
She’ll include Grand ways to welcome the newest Little
and ways to support our older grandbabies
all while encouraging the new mommy and daddy, too!
We can’t wait!
SPECIAL THANKS TO
Senior Salon Pit Stop from Scratch Made Food for Hungry People
Full Plate Thursday from Miz Helen's Country Kitchen
Saturday Sparks from Pieced Pastimes
Thank you for featuring this post on your sites!
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