holiday

5 Cute Earth Day-Inspired Snacks

April 22nd is Earth Day.  A day to celebrate the earth and teach our kids about how they can help change their carbon footprint.  While you are reading some great books or creating some Earth Day crafts, how about making these Earth-inspired treats with your child.  One more way to help you child understand the world in which we live!

 

1.  Create these Earth Muffins or Earth Shaped Cake (gluten free) by separating the green and blue batter.

 

earth day muffins 

earth day cake

 

2.  Create worms in dirt with chocolate pudding, crushed chocolate cookie crumbs (like Oreos) and gummy worms! 

 

earth day snacks

 

3.  Switch up your usual recipes, like Rice Krispie Squares, and add blue and green food colouring to make spheres or put them on sticks, this these.

 

earth day treats

 

4.  This Earth Day cake is amazing from Rock UR Party.

 

earth day snack ideas

 

5.  Enjoy the fruits of the Earth but in a new and creative way, like these ones in waffle cones.

 

earth day snacks

Posted by momstown team on 04/07/2013 - 09:29
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One Dish Leftover Ham and Scalloped Potatoes

Are you cooking a ham and know you are going to have leftovers? Here's a simple recipe for scalloped potatoes that can make a whole new dinner the next day. Something the whole family is sure to gobble up! 

leftover ham with scalloped potatoes
  
Ingredients:
 
 
5 large potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
1 small finely sliced onion
Ham, up to 1 1/2cups sliced into pieces
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 3/4 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons mayonnaise (light)
Dash of pepper
Paprika

 

Directions:

1. Spray or butter baking dish, in layers add potatoes, onion and ham.

 
2. In a medium pot over med-high heat, melt the butter; stir in flour until smooth. Gradually add broth, mayonnaise, salt and pepper; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thick and bubbly. Pour over potatoes. Sprinkle with paprika.

 

3. Cover and bake at 325 degrees for 2 hours or until tender.

 

ham and scalloped potatoe dinner in one pot


*optional to add up to ½ cup of Parmesan or Cheddar cheese over the top in the last ½ hr to brown and make a  cheesy crust.

 

Submitted by momstown Mississauga

Posted by momstown team on 04/02/2013 - 16:43
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5 ways to glaze your Easter ham

A spiral-cut ham may be the centrepiece of your Easter or holiday meal - we love it for the ease of preparation, not to mention the many leftover uses (soup, sandwiches, or in a casserole). It's also fun to mix up the flavours each time with a different glaze - here are 5 ways to make your ham delicious this holiday.

 

 

glazed ham

Balsamic-maple glazed ham from the Kraft Kitchens.

 

 

glazed hamHoney-mustard glazed ham from Chow.com.

 

 

glazed ham

Maple glazed ham from Cook with Campbell's.

 

 

glazed ham

Apricot glazed spiral ham from Canadian Living.

 

Maple-rye glazed ham from Chatelaine.

 

Do you have a favourite glaze for your spiral ham? Share it with us!

Posted by momstown team on 03/20/2013 - 12:23
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St. Patrick's Day Treats

Bring the fun and magic of St. Patrick's day to your home with this quick and delicious St Patrick Day pudding. Turn your house into a party by using only green play-dough, create a green rice pour & scoop sensory station (with shamrock confetti and lucky coins), and then the delicious part – green Pistachio Pudding.

 St. Patrick's green puddingSt. Patrick's Day snacks

Ingredients:

Pistachio Jell-O pudding package

Milk

Oreos

Cool Whip

Parfait glasses or clear plastic glasses

 

Directions:

Mix together 1 box Jell-O Pistachio pudding with & 1 ½ cups milk for 2 minutes. Put aside to thicken.

Crush together Oreo cookies. The original idea was to roll them with a rolling pin but you can put 2 or 3 in a Ziploc bag and let the kids squash them with their fingers, which makes the experience more fun.

 

By the time the cookies are squashed, the pudding will be set, so add 1 cup Cool Whip to the pudding and layer pudding and cookies into parfait glasses, saving some cookie crumbs for the topping.  One box should make 4 servings, that is, if you can get all the pudding into the parfait glasses!

 

This is a very easy delicious desert to prepare for St Patrick’s Day celebrations or anytime. 

 

St. Patrick's Day fun and recipe by momstown Brampton.

 

Posted by momstown team on 03/17/2013 - 14:35
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10 Homemade Valentine Treats

One week until Valentine's day means you need ideas to make it special in your house! Do you have red food colouring on hand? Because it can make the ordinary, extraordinary!!

 

momstown dug up some favourite Valentine treats that we'd love to try this Valentine's Day!

Valentine Parfait: Stinkin' easy but so pretty! Your kids could help with the layering and decorating with foamy stickers and voila 'fancy' dessert!

Valentine Cheesecake Bites: What's not to love here?? Cute and delicious? I'm sold. AND yes, the littles can help with the cookie cutters and you score mama points too!

Candy Cane Valentine Heart Cupcakes: Have any candy canes still kicking around from Christmas? What a simple way to use them up in a Valentine way. Regular cupcake disguised as a Valentine! Little effort and maximum heart!

Valentine pretzel: Set up an assembly line for this treat for dipping into icing or melted chocolate and then sprinkles. A handful of these wrapped up would be a perfect Valentine gift for a special friend or teacher.

Pink Lemonade Valentine Pound Cake: Bring on the red / pink food colouring and colour this angel or coffee cake! This would be perfect for a princess birthday tea party too. Oh, the ideas!!

Valentine Candy Kabobs: Awesome kid friendly job to thread pink and red candies onto a skewer to share with friends. Might even replace a paper Valentine?

 

Valentine Vegan Cookies: No red foot dye here, just beet juice which is pretty brilliant really. It's so stainy, put it to productive use!

Heart On a Stick Fruit Kabobs: Put your cookie cutters to good use! The polar opposite of 'heart attack on a platter" with a platter of healthy hearts! You could create a platter of hearts or as pictured skewer with popsicle sticks for hearts on a stick!

Two Ingredient Valentine Fudge: Only two ingredients?? Yep. Frosting + White Chocolate Chips. Have fun making and eating these!

Divine Layered Valentine Cupcakes: Double the layers, double the fun? Despite being really pretty to look at, I've heard these are really delicious too with their creamcheese frosting.

 

Enjoy these Valentine treats and make room for your impressive kiddos at your kitchen counter.

 

For more great family-friendly meal ideas, recipes, and more, subscribe to our monthly newsletter!

Posted by momstown mama on 02/08/2013 - 23:58
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Cooking with Kids: Valentine's Day S'mores

These Valentine's Day S'mores were easy to make and a great recipe for kids to get involved with.  These Valentine's Day treats would be great to make for a party or you could wrap up a few pieces to give as gifts.

Valentine's day smores for kids

 

Ingredients:

1 package chocolate or regular graham crackers
1/2 cup butter
1/2 firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 cup hot water
3 cups miniature marshmallows
1 cup red and pink smarties or m & m's

 

Directions:

1.  Preheat the over to 350F.  Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil, leaving an overhang.  Spray with cooking spray. 

2.  Put down the graham crackers onto the sheet so they cover the entire thing, right to each edge.  Get the kids to help line up the graham crackers on the baking sheet.  It is good practice for creating a pattern and for figuring out the best way to put them down so that they covered the whole sheet.

3.  Encourage the kids to help measure out the marshamallows and candy.  They can even taste a few for quality control!

4.  Melt the butter and brown sugar in a pot over medium heat, stirring often until smooth and mixture comes to a boil.  Add the hot water.  Pour evenly over the crackers and bake for 6 minutes or until bubbly.

5.  Remove from the oven and sprinkle on the marshmallows.  Put back in the oven for about 3 minutes.

6.  Sprinkle with the red and pink candy and put back in the oven for 1 minute.  Cool completely.  Lift from the pan and cut into small squares.

 

Have a Sweet Valentine's Day from momstown Oakville!

Posted by momstown team on 02/03/2013 - 14:21
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The Best Oven Baked French Toast Recipe

This is the perfect recipe to make for the holidays- Christmas, Boxing Day or even New Year's Day!

It's perfect for a crowd and super easy for hosting as you make it the night before and then just bake the morning of your gathering.

challah bread baked french toast recipe

 

What you need:

7 eggs
2 to 2 1/4 cups milk (if you use more bread, add the extra 1/4 milk)
2 1/2 tsp cinnamon
12 – 18 slices Challah bread*, crusts removed (2 loaves usually)
½ cup butter, melted
½  cup brown sugar

What you do:

Lightly butter 9 X 13 pan.

Combine eggs, milk and cinnamon.

Dip bread in egg mixture, coating both sides, and layer in pan.  Pour the rest of the egg mixture on top.

Stir together butter and brown sugar and drizzle over top.

Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.

The next morning, bring to room temperature, preheat oven to 400 F and remove foil.  Bake for 30-35 minutes or until top is golden and custard has set.

baked french toast recipe

 

*Another name for Challah bread is egg bread.

submitted by momstown Oakville

Posted by momstown team on 12/24/2012 - 10:55
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Easy dessert ideas for the holidays from Kraft - perfect for gift-giving

Two momstown mamas had a blast in the kitchen - testing out some great Kraft recipes for the holidays! When it comes to holiday baking, Kraft has easy and quick recipes that even a novice baker can accomplish. And baking makes a great homemade gift - we got to try out some great ways to wrap up the yummy treats to share with friends and family.

 

kraft baking ideasDon't we look professional?

 

We made three recipes for a variety of treats to sample and to give. Christy's holding the Chocolate, Caramel and Oatmeal bars - rich and delicious (our families loved these!).

 

kraft baking ideasAlly made the salted chocolate-covered caramels - don't they look pretty in the silver box?

 

kraft baking ideasAnd the Crunch "bars" were Christy's grande finale - topped with walnuts and chocolate.

 

We were so pleased with how well our baking tasted and looked, thanks to the great gifting ideas provided by Kraft!

 

Give a homemade gift this season with more great holiday baking ideas that make special gifts.

Posted by momstown team on 12/11/2012 - 15:18
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Kraft Salted Chocolate-Covered Caramels

Kraft Salted Chocolate Covered CaramelsIf you're looking for a yummy treat for the holidays, it truly doesn't get any easier than this. Melt, dip, sprinkle - enjoy! A great treat to give as a holiday gift - or just enjoy for yourself!


prep time:  20 min
total time:  20 min
makes 8 servings, 4 caramels (40 g) each


Ingredients:
1 pkg. (269 g) Kraft Caramels
5 squares Baker's Premium 70% Cacao Dark Chocolate, melted
1 Tbsp. sea salt


Directions:

  • INSERT toothpick into 1 caramel; dip in chocolate. Shake gently to remove excess chocolate. Place on waxed paper-covered baking sheet. Remove toothpick. Repeat with remaining caramels.
  • SPRINKLE immediately with salt. Let stand until chocolate is firm.
  • kraft kitchens tips

 

Cooking Know-How
Use a small off-set metal spatula to easily slide the dipped caramels onto the prepared baking sheet.

 

Note: To firm up the melted chocolate more quickly, refrigerate until firm.

Posted by momstown team on 12/10/2012 - 17:48
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Kraft Chocolate, Caramel & Oatmeal Bars

Kraft Chocolate, Caramel & Oatmeal BarsAfter making these treats for a recent holiday event, we can honestly say that even licking the bowl is delicious! Chocolately goodness, mixed with yummy caramel treats - you'll be the hit of any cookie/treat exchange!


prep time:  20 min
total time:  55 min
makes 24 servings, 1 bar (44 g) each

Ingredients:
24 Kraft Caramels
1/2 cup canned evaporated milk
1 cup flour
1 cup quick-cooking oats
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 cup cold butter, cut up
1 cup Baker's Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
1/2 cup chopped pecans


Directions:

  • HEAT oven to 350ºF.
  • LINE 9-inch square pan with foil, with ends of foil extending over sides; spray with cooking spray. Cook caramels and milk in saucepan on low heat 2 to 3 min. or until caramels are completely melted and sauce is well blended, stirring frequently. Remove from heat.
  • MIX flour, oats, sugar, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Cut in butter with pastry blender or 2 knives until crumbly; press half onto bottom of prepared pan. Bake 10 min.; top with chocolate chips and nuts. Drizzle with caramel sauce; sprinkle with remaining crumb mixture.
  • BAKE 20 to 25 min. or until golden brown. Cool completely. Use foil handles to lift dessert from pan before cutting into bars.

 

Kraft Kitchen Tips:

Substitute
Substitute walnuts for the pecans.

 

Use Your Microwave
To prepare caramel sauce in the microwave, place caramels in microwaveable bowl. Add evaporated milk. Microwave on MEDIUM 5 min. or until caramels are completely melted and sauce is well blended, stirring after 3 min.

 

*Recipe courtesy of Kraft Canada

 

Posted by momstown team on 12/10/2012 - 17:40
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