SBBK - Cooking 4

Summer Boredom Buster Kids - COOKING!

Here are previous cooking ideas from years PAST.

THIS IS A REPOST!!

Its original post date was : October 2012!

We like to have a little adventure and let the kids make their own dinner...sometimes.

Last night, I wrote a bunch of ingredients on different pieces of paper and the kids chose what we were having.

They chose: Mushroom, Garlic, Spinach, and Pineapples.

(We had pineapples on the side)

We made quesadillas.

 I sauteed mushrooms, garlic, and spinach and put them all in separate bowls.

The kids then built them.

 The kids were pretty happy with their creations.

 It was a fun family night, and made a perfect meatless monday!

*We do this kind of dinner at least once a month. I usually write what randoms I have in my fridge*

SBBK - Cooking 2

Summer Boredom Buster Kids - COOKING!

Have you heard of Super Healthy Kids?

I decided this recipe would be perfect for my 5 year old to make for family dinner.

I made a few tweaks.

 Instead of doing double beans I swapped the black beans for left over chicken and added green chilies to the chicken. Because of the chilies I nixed the salsa. 

My kids were big fans, and we will be having them again.

 My 5 year old did EVERYTHING except put in the oven, and take out of the oven.

Here is HER recipe:

• 6 tortillas
  
• 1 egg white
  
• 1 can refried beans (fat-free or mashed pinto beans)
• 1 can El Pato Salsa de Chile Fresco
• 2 tsp Oil
  
• Shredded Cheese
• Desired Toppings: Lettuce, Tomato, Cilantro, Salsa, Sour Cream, Plain Yogurt

Add egg whites to a bowl and mix with whisk.
Add beans to the middle of your tortilla, and sprinkle with cheese.
Begin folding your tortilla. Start with one side and fold up an inch and then fold sides and then add more egg white where you make the last fold.
Flash-fry chimis by placing in a pan of 2 tsp oil on medium-high heat. Heat on both sides for 1 minute until golden brown.  Place chimichangas onto a pan covered in foil, seam-side down.
Bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes.

---

Prep Time	15 minutes
Cook Time	12 minutes
Yield	6 Servings

Try it! Let your kids help!

Paper Mosaics

Continuing on with the theme, I grabbed my square punches and let the girls "punch" from scrap paper.

I like this Fiskars one because it uses a grip instead of a thumb pointer motion.

Here is the other one.

Peek a Boo!

I showed them an example:

Then let them do it completely by themselves.

I loved what they came up with.

 This kept them so busy, I was able to balance the books without interruption!

It was a perfect thing to do with each age group.

Try it! It is so simple, uses scraps, and uses fine motor skills they need for handwriting.

Edible Mosaics

I just got back from a much needed, and deserved (if I do say so myself) vacation without my kids to New York!  While I was there, we saw several mosaics in the subway stations throughout Manhattan.

It was incredible. I took pictures of each one I saw.

When I got back to my children, I decided to teach them all about Mosaics.

I am not an art expert, but, what a perfect opportunity to showcase something awesome to my children!

We talked about what Mosaics are : a picture or other design constructed from smaller pieces.

I also realized that I have a few of these types of art pieces at my house.

Cool right?

So I grabbed some Graham Crackers, Frosting, Cheerios, Puffs, Marshmallows, Sprinkles, Reeses Pieces, and Mini M&M's and had the kids make their own "edible mosaics"

3 year old and almost 2 year old

yellow shirt 5 year old.

They were so quiet and precise. It was a great activity for all ages, even my 1 year old.

Time to eat!

Blue shirt 6 years old.

Please excuse this display of poor manners. It was my fault. I said "is it good?" and then snapped this as he said yes!

This whole week we will be working on different mosaics.

If you like this type of activity and want more, please leave me a comment and let me know!

If you want something else...tell me!

Also, hi to my new followers from MO! 

Fall Snack!

Caramel Apples are delicious - and messy.

Since I didn't feel like adding another load of sticky dirty clothes to the laundry we made Apple Dippers!

One good thing about having lots of kids, is that I have lots of helpers.

While we were melting the cream and the caramels we had a discussion about which apples would be better with the dip.  Granny Smith or Honey Crisp?

Then we added sea salt.

YUM!

This is perfect for an after school snack. After Dinner snack, or if you just want to do something fun!

Quick Date!

We meet our friends for lunch, or at chick-fil-a.

A lot of my friends who work meet over coffee.

How about taking time out for some hot chocolate and a sweet treat.

Some one on one (or in my case 5 to 2) time!

 I promise the conversations, and the $3.00 will be worth it!

I love these little moments and discussions that we have as a family.

Sensory : Seeing with our Ears

Have you ever taken your kids on a blindfolded walk?

You should try it!

The sights, sounds, and smells, are such an experience for those little minds.

I took my kids to the local nature reserve.

The rule was one blindfolded person, and one guide.

The 3 year old didn't like this. But, she is 3 and 3 year olds don't like anything.

The other kids loved it!

We stopped, listened and observed.

It was cold, but so peaceful and quiet.

When we got home, we took notes of our observations and drew pictures of what we 

heard but couldn't see.

I love being outside, even if it is fall/winter.

There are less people out, and the kids have more room to enjoy.

You should try it!