LilSugar

Delilicious: Monster Candy Eyeballs

LilSugar — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 08:00:22 -0700

I know it is only a short while before my lil ones come home with bags of treats, so I wanted to try to make my own candy! Epicurious had a great recipe for a frightful version of buckeye candy; traditionally it is a peanut butter ball that is then coated in a thin layer of chocolate. With a little creative dunking and a bag of M&M's, these candies are transformed into a spooky, yet, scrumptious monster eyeball.

Kids can definitely help with the whole process because the recipe only requires a microwave. You might even be grateful as mixing the peanut butter and powdered sugar is best done by hand and can be a pretty messy job! The finished candies would be cute packaged in small gifts bags as a ghoulish treat for your kids' friends! Children of all ages (including adults) are bound to love this classic combination, so if you want to get started on your own eye-poppingly delicious candy for Halloween keep reading for my tips and recipe.

Did You Start Eating Better Once You Entered Motherhood?

babysugar — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 07:00:44 -0700

Before baby arrived, mama may have occasionally skipped dinner or even resorted to a liquid diet at the local happy hour. But when there's a wee one in the family, mommy's schedule shifts and often, so does her eating habits. Pregnancy usually kicks a woman's bad eating habits to the curb, giving her a head start on better food choices. When her child reaches the 6-month mark and starts eating solid foods, mum may find herself eating better than ever before. If she's making her own babe's pureed broccoli, chances are she's nibbling on the crowns, too and upping her own folic acid and iron intake.

Did you start eating better once you became a mama?

Share your favorite dishes and family foodie tips in the The Children's Table group over in the LilSugar Community!

Delilicious: Jack-O'-Lantern Pumpkin Pancakes

LilSugar — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 06:00:21 -0700

Trying to trick your children out of sweet and fancy treats like Goblins, Ghosts and Spider Cupcakes?

Add a little festive flare to their breakfast by making pumpkin pancakes! Not only is pumpkin a great source of beta-carotene, vitamin C, and potassium, but a sprinkle of cardamom will help aid the digestive system.

Let your lil ones decorate their mini jack-o'-lanterns with a handful of chocolate chips, raisins or cookie icing for dramatic effect.

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To get the recipe, read more.

Pumpkin Pancakes
Health.com

Ingredients

1/2 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup low-fat vanilla yogurt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 large egg yolk
1/4 cup cake flour
4 large egg whites
1/4 teaspoon salt
Cooking spray
Maple syrup or honey

Directions
Whisk together pumpkin, yogurt, baking soda, egg yolk, and flour. Whisk egg whites with salt; fold into pumpkin mixture. Heat a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium heat. Spoon in 1/3 cup batter for each pancake. Flip when tops are covered with bubbles and edges are slightly brown (about 3 minutes per side). Drizzle with syrup or honey.

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10 Easy Dishes to Deliver to New Moms

babysugar — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 08:00:21 -0700

One of the last things on a new mother's mind is dinner. Any extra time she has on her hands is typically used to pick up things off the floor, throw in a load of soiled laundry, or catch up on some lost z's. Kitchen time is usually limited to heating up bottles, pouring a glass of water or throwing together a quick sandwich. An overwhelming 77 percent of LilSugar readers said they would prefer a meal over a newborn gift when given the option. So next time you think about showering that baby in layette, think about prepping one of these easy meals instead.

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Tasty Treats For Halloween Bashes: Sparkly Cookies on Sticks

LilSugar — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 13:00:35 -0700

If your little goblins won't be satisfied with fancy fruit lollipops, indulge their sweet tooth by making small sugar cookies on sticks.

These simple treats are easy to make and don't require a fancy production line. Just bake your favorite sugar cookies from scratch or a pre-made batter and impale round dough with lollipop sticks (can be found at a party or gourmet store) before they are baked. Ice with a simple sugar icing and decorate with sparkles or candy corn. If you're feeling adventurous ask your lil helpers to turn the cookies into pumpkins by drawing funny faces with candy or black cookie icing.

Wrap your final project in a cellophane bag with a ribbon for a pretty party favor.

Hosting a Halloween party this October? Whether spooky or sweet, we have you covered with our new designs for Pingg! Create your invite, then send reminders to your guests via email, SMS, and Facebook.

10 Grab and Go Snacks For New Moms

LilSugar — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 09:30:20 -0700

Once baby arrives, new moms tend to trade in the bowls of ice cream for healthy snacks that will nourish them while helping them shed the baby weight. While healthy eating can be tasty, it isn't always quick and with a lil one demanding constant attention, eating with one hand and on-the-run is essential. We've rounded up 10 quick and easy one-handed snacks that should give a new mom the energy she needs to make it through the day.

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Delilicious: Ring in Rosh Hashanah With a Round Apple Challah

LilSugar — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 13:30:16 -0700

Let the celebrations begin! Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, begins at sundown tonight, and the holiday is filled with Fall flavors to kick off the Autumn season. As a religious celebration, Rosh Hashanah is ripe with foods that symbolize the cyclical nature of the calendar and the sweetness that comes with the new year.

To usher in the holiday, we brought the kids to the kitchen so they could enjoy the fun of whipping up a modern twist on the classic challah, or egg bread. Unlike traditional challahs, this one is round (to celebrate the cycle of a new year) and includes plenty of apples and sugar to guarantee a sweet year ahead. Best of all, the bread can be enjoyed by everyone throughout the year.

See the recipe and step-by-step directions when you read more.

New Year's Apple Challah
From Tammy's Recipes

Ingredients

Dough Ingredients
1 cup warm water (110 degrees F)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup oil or melted butter
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons dry yeast
5 to 6 cups flour

Apple Filling
3 cups coarsely chopped apples
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon lemon juice (skip if apples are tart)

Egg Wash
1 beaten egg
1 teaspoon sugar
Coarse sugar, for sprinkling (optional)

Directions
1. In a large mixing bowl, combine the first seven dough ingredients, in order listed. Stir in a cup or two of the flour, then add yeast.

2. Add enough additional flour to equal about 5 cups, and stir/knead into a smooth dough, adding additional flour if needed. Knead dough for 8-10 minutes. Shape into a ball, place in a greased bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 45-60 minutes.

3. Place apple filling ingredients in a medium bowl and toss to coat. Set aside.

4. Punch down the risen dough, kneading to remove excess air bubbles. On a lightly-floured surface, roll the dough into a large round, about 1/2-inch thick. Spread apple mixture over the dough.

5. Fold the edges of the dough over the apples and continue to fold/roll the dough to make one big lump with the filling enclosed. Let rest 5 minutes.

6. Grease a 10-inch springform pan. Place springform pan on a large cookie sheet (to catch any leaks during rising/baking).

7. Using a sharp knife, cut off chunks of the dough and place them in the prepared pan. You should end up with 15-20 chunks of dough (though a particular number doesn't matter). The apple pieces should be randomly dispersed throughout the dough chunks. Sprinkle with any escaped apple pieces.

8. Combine the egg and sugar, and then dab the egg wash over the top of the dough. Sprinkle with coarse sugar if desired. Cover gently with a piece of plastic wrap and place pan in a warm location to rise.

9. When dough has almost doubled in size, preheat oven to 350 degrees and then place baking sheet/springform in the middle of the oven (remove the piece of plastic wrap first, of course!) to bake for 45-55 minutes or until done. When I make this, usually the edges of the top get well-browned before the middle is cooked. So, after about 25-30 minutes, I cover the darker areas loosely with foil - sometimes forming a large loose "ring" of foil (with no foil in the middle) to lay on top.

10. When challah is done, remove from the oven and cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Turn out of pan onto a cooling rack and cover with a clean towel until completely cool.

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Rachel Zoe Puts Pedialyte on Ice to Get Through Fashion Week

LilSugar — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 07:07:06 -0700

It turns out stylist Rachel Zoe doesn't just know how to dress a pregnant woman, she also knows how to use kid products to heal an aching adult body. The style maven put a photo on twitpic of Pedialyte on ice from Fashion Week, which got me thinking about grown-ups using goodies formulated for kids.

Pedialyte is an electrolyte drink that was "specifically designed to replace fluids and minerals (electrolytes) that are lost when a child has diarrhea with or without vomiting," but many adults - especially athletes - use it to replenish their bodies after times of stress, sickness and electrolyte loss. I've been known to snack on the Cliff Kid Z Bar instead of the jumbo-sized meal replacement Cliff bar, but I can't say I've used Pedialyte as a remedy.

While food and medicine made for little bodies don't offer us adults the full nutrition we need, I know many parents who pop a Children's Tylenol every now and again or steal beauty products from their kids. Do you ever use products intended for tots?

Eat This, Not That: A Healthy Food Option Quiz

babysugar — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 07:00:34 -0700

Many parents think they know what's best for baby, but fat and sugar can be lurking in some not-so-obvious places. David Zinczenko and Matt Goulding have co-authored a tell-all on healthy food choices for children. With this smart book, parents can start making healthier choices about their kids' diets. Take the quiz to see if you're dishing out the good goods or if there's a better option to consider.

Take the quiz

Do Your Kids Indulge in Sweets More Over the Summer?

LilSugar — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 08:00:24 -0700

Think twice before letting your lil ones indulge in their favorite snacks this Summer. Sunny days spent outdoors often lead families to the ice cream truck for respite from the heat and humidity, but those little treats add up. According to WebMD, without the structure of school programs, many tots don't get the physical activity they need to burn off the fat and calories their snacks pack in.

Trips to the beach, state fair and carnival offer up a buffet of unhealthy foods. Among the worst offenders are:

Baskin Robbins' Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Sundae: 1,250 calories, 81 grams fat, 91 grams sugar.
Cold Stone Creamery Dark Chocolate cone: 800 calories, 47 grams fat, 68 grams sugar.
Fried macaroni and cheese: 572 calories, 33 grams fat, 1,840 milligrams sodium.
Cherry Slurpee: 240 calories, 64 grams sugar.
Corn dog and fries: 770 calories, 1,600 milligrams sodium.

For a look at more very sweet treats, read more.

Fried dough: 360 calories, 20 grams fat.
Dunkin Donuts Blueberry Muffin: 510 calories, 16 grams fat, 490 milligrams sodium, 51 grams sugar.
Nestle Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Sandwich: 500 calories, 24 grams fat, 40 grams sugar.
Lemonade: 198 calories, 51 grams sugar.

Do you throw the rules out the window in the Summer and let the kids dive into more unhealthy snacks than usual?