Whining and Dining

Around LA: A Bittersweet Birthday

It was an orange kitty cat cake with a cute little nose. It was adorable, and I was sure it tasted as all birthday cakes do....mediocre at best. So, I sighed when I took that first bite expecting the orange frosting to have that typical flat sugary mush taste.

Wait a minute. That was goooood. I try it again. This time my bite included some of the inner chocolate frosting. Hmmm....it was like smooth, velvety chocolate ganache. Swooning over this mouthful, my husband's fork starts to swoop in. "Nooooo!" I quickly box him out of a bite. "Get your own," I snarl back.

I don't like to admit that I am wrong, but boy I was REALLY wrong about this cake. Like embarassingly wrong. Hands down, it was the best birthday cake I've ever had. I'll say it again. Best. birthday cake. ever.

The cutesy orange kitty cake (like the doggie pictured right) was made by Danielle Keene owner of LA-based Bittersweet Treats. I couldn't wait to get home to check out her site, and I was almost drooling at the list of delicious treats that she makes. In addition to making cakes, Keene crafts homemade ice cream with flavors like cinnamon basil and salted caramel plus all the basics. Heck, you can even hire her to come do an ice cream social party where she brings several ice creams and all the fixings for sundaes. I may just want to do that for MY birthday!

Certainly it 'twas a bittersweet finish to a great birthday party. I didn't want to see that cake go.  So thanks, Danielle, for restoring my faith in the kid birthday cake. I'm now a believer.

Get Your Toddler to Sit Down At Dinner

I know you've missed me. I took a bit of a blogging / social media hiatus last week. I know, I know....I should have warned you. But then again, I've left you on the edge of your seat waiting for the next post. And here it is....

Getting toddlers to sit down at dinner is kind of like herding cats. If you're like me, and you've been frustrated by this feat, then I think you'll enjoy reading this article by Dr. Joanna Dolgoff who runs Dr. Dolgoff's Weigh, a child and adolescent weight management program. In her most recent blog post, she gives parents "Six Ways to Get Your Toddler to Sit at the Dinner Table." Some great tips for occupying your wee one so you can actually have a family dinner. Novel idea, huh?

Toddler Test Kitchen: Scrambled Eggs with Goat Cheese & Basil

Trader Joe's has done it again. They inspired me with a tasty sample of scrambled eggs with goat cheese and fresh basil. I'm officially hooked on this stuff and so is my whine 'n dine girl.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

10 large eggs (sometimes I do half full eggs and half egg whites to make it a little lighter)

1/4 cup coarsely crumbled soft fresh goat cheese (such as Montrachet)

1/4 cup chopped green onions

1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

1 Tbsp. butter or butter spread

Directions:

Whisk eggs in large bowl until well blended. Add goat cheese, chopped basil, salt and pepper; whisk to blend. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add egg mixture; cook 2 minutes without stirring. Using spatula or large spoon, gently stir and turn over portions of the egg mixture until cooked through but soft, about 4 minutes.

Divide scrambled eggs among 4 plates. Garnish with basil, if desired, and serve.

Lemon Pear Yogurt Muffins

 

My girl is quite the critic when it comes to muffins.
Much more so than her mama. She went crazy for these lemon pear yogurt muffins, though.

We all know that sour cream in baked goods makes them even better. If you want a similar effect without all of the fat, yogurt is a much healthier substitute for sour cream. And it works beautifully in these muffins. Yum.

Plus how springy is lemon and pear together? Very!

Makes 12

Ingredients
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 eggs beaten
1 cup light brown sugar
1 cup yogurt
1 4oz. stick butter, melted
1 tsp. vanilla
2 diced pears
zest from 1 lemon
sugar and ground cinnamon for dusting

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. Sift flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt in a large bowl.
3. Place eggs, sugar, yogurt, butter and vanilla in second bowl and beat until blended.
4. Add egg mixture to flour and fold in diced pear and lemon zest (use a spatula to fold in). Do not overmix; the mixture should be smooth.
5. Divide mixture into greased muffin cups and dust with cinnamon and sugar.
6. Bake until edges shrink from sides of the pan. 12 - 15 minutes
7. Let muffins cool in pan for 5 minutes before removing.

Enjoy!

The Plan Ahead Baby Food Cooking Schedule

As I may have mentioned before, I have a 7-month old baby girl who is delighting in her new found love of solid foods. This time around I'm trying to make more baby food at home. Now that I'm getting the hang of it, I'm finding that it's really quite easy.

Today, I discovered a new blog called "Once A Month Mom," where these two mamas, Cortney & Tricia, give you a plan for cooking once a month. Yes, you heard me! One time per month. They provide a menu complete with 10-15 breakfasts, 10 lunches, 15 dinners for two families of four. WOW!

They also have a 4-6 month cooking day schedule for baby food, which includes a menu of sweet potatoes, apples, carrots, peas, green beans, potatoes, bananas, pears, peaches. If you've never made your own baby food before, this post has a great step-by-step instruction guide. You could even have a baby food party with a few friends if you're so inclined.

News Alert: Ideal Bite for Mamas

Ever heard of Ideal Bite? It's the stylish, eco-friendly newsletter that comes on a daily basis. You know, so you can be cool AND green. Everybody's doing it.

Now, there's Ideal Bite just for Mama's. Here's just a little sampling below. With all of the talk about purees, you can see why it caught my eye! For example, did you know that only 15% of us recycle baby food jars. Yikers!

Pretty sweet, eh?

"Where the Wild Things Are" Bento Box

Now this is really cool!It's a work of art. Really, it is. I mean, to make Max and the other wild things out of rice, seaweed, fish cakes, etc. Impressive.

I was excited to find Anna the Red's Bento  Factory blog and thought you might want to know about it, too. You know, just in case you need some crazy creative inspiration. Anna's got all kinds of fun, cutesy ideas on her blog.

But what about that free time that you need to create a work of art like this? Well, I can't help you there.

 

Roasted Kale with Sea Salt

Kale. It's an incredibly nutritious member of the leafy green family. It's got a plethora of vitamins (A, K & C plus manganese, calcium and iron). Some say it's close to the perfect vegetable. When it comes to eating kale, it's pretty finicky. It's tough texture keeps it from blending into salads like its cousin, spinach. Kale likes to be cooked in soups, so it's common to hear of kale popping up in white bean soups and hearty stews. Frankly, it's not been in my cooking repertoire. Ever.

That is until friend Tracy spoke of its greatness, especially when roasted. Her toddler looooves it, so she makes it on a regular basis.

This week, I decided to buy some kale to see if my whine 'n dine gal would dig it. I roasted it with olive oil and sea salt and wallah....she loved it. We've had it a few times since then. Last night, I roasted kale along side cherry tomatoes. The crispy kale paired with the roasted cherry tomatoes was a delicious treat as well.

Ingredients
1 bunch of Kale
Olive oil
Sea salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Wash kale and tear leaves off of stems. Discard stems.
3. Place kale leaves on baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and toss.
4. Sprinkle with sea salt.
5. Roast for 5 minutes. Then turn kale over and roast for 5 - 8 more minutes until crispy.

So open your mind and tummy to this leafy green. You won't be sorry.

Kids With Food Allergies

Has your child been diagnosed with milk, egg, soy, wheat, peanut, tree nut, fish, shellfish or other food allergy?

If so, you're not alone. If you are a parent of a child with food allergies and you need support, check out the Kids With Food Allergies organization. You could join thousands of other parents to learn about your child's food allergy, advice, recipes, etc.

It's National Food Allergy Awareness Week, so doing our part here to make you aware of the support that's out there for you and your child with allergies. We'd love to hear your favorite allergy-free, kid-friendly recipes this week! So send them to whine.dine@yahoo.com or post in the comment section.

News Alert: Some Baby Foods May Be Worse Than Junk Food

Yikes! Not such great news here....

Some baby foods contain as much sugar and saturated fats as cookies or cheeseburgers, a British food pressure group said on Monday.

Publishing results of a survey of more than 100 foods for babies and toddlers, the Children's Food Campaign said Farley's rusks were 29 percent sugar and some Cow & Gate toddler biscuits contained trans fats, which have been linked to heart disease. Click here for the rest of the story from the Today Show this morning.