Busy Mommy Media» Holiday Recipes

How to Make Baked Eggs for Easter

Lorie — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 07:05:42 +0000

During the Easter season, my family eats a lot of boiled eggs. We like to color them for Easter egg hunts but I hate to see these eggs go to waste and as long as you take precautions for safety of the eggs, you can reuse them in several food recipes.

Some of my favorite foods to make with the eggs are deviled eggs and egg salad. Recently, I learned how to make perfect boiled eggs by cooking them in my oven. The whole process was really easy and the middle of the eggs looked perfect.

With these easy directions, you can make your Easter eggs with this method too.

How to Bake Eggs

You can use this method to make eggs for any recipe calling for boiled eggs. I like to use this method when I have a lot of eggs to boil.

The first step is to position the oven rack in the middle of your oven. Preheat your oven to 325 degrees and place the eggs on the rack as pictured. Bake the eggs for 30 minutes and then remove them with tongs and place them in a bowl of water with ice in it. After the eggs cool a little, you can peel them and then place them back into the cold water to cool completely. You can also leave them in the water to cool completely and then dry them off if you plan to color the eggs.

Since I placed the eggs right on the oven rack several of my eggs had a brown mark on the egg white where it touched the rack when cooking. This is perfectly normal and it will not affect the flavor of the egg and I actually cut on the line when making the deviled eggs so the mark would be less noticeable. The big difference with baking eggs is that they have less of a smell, which is always nice, and they have a creamier texture to them.

Deviled Egg Recipe

I have to have deviled eggs for Easter every year. They are actually quite easy to make. I use a simple recipe with only a few ingredients.

12 boiled or baked eggs
½ cup mayonnaise
1-2 teaspoons white vinegar (to suit your desired tartness)
2 teaspoons yellow mustard
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 to 1 ½ teaspoons sugar (to suit your desired sweetness)
Pepper (to taste)
Paprika (for garnish)

Cut the eggs in half and remove the egg yolk and place in a separate bowl and set the white part aside. Mix all the other ingredients with the egg yolks and mix well. Next take the egg yolk mixture and spoon into the hole in the egg white. Garnish with paprika and store in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Egg Salad Recipe

I like to make egg salad and store it in my refrigerator for a quick dinner. My kids really enjoy the sandwiches, since I do not add many ingredients to the egg salad. This is a great way to use up the leftover Easter eggs and is quick and easy to make.

12 boiled or baked eggs
½ cup mayonnaise

Dice the boiled eggs and then mix in the mayonnaise until thoroughly mixed. Serve on bread as a sandwich and serve with fruit or chips.

Valentine’s Day Treats (Linky)

Rachel — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 19:04:45 +0000

When it comes to any holiday, I have to admit, my favorite part is usually the food. Valentine’s Day is a great opportunity to share some really fun treats with your family and kids, especially, love helping to create fun holiday-themed snacks.

We scourer Pinterest to find some of our top picks for Valentines Day treats.

For more Valentine’s Day treat ideas, be sure and follow our Valentine’s Day Pinterest board.

Heart Shaped Boiled Egg

Source: annathered.com via Busy Mommy Media on Pinterest

Heart Shaped Hot Dogs

Source: cutefoodforkids.com via Busy Mommy Media on Pinterest

Love Drink Smoothie

Source: makeandtakes.com via Busy Mommy Media on Pinterest

Heart Pizza

Source: cutefoodforkids.com via Busy Mommy Media on Pinterest

Chocolate Dipped Oreos

Source: 247moms.com via Busy Mommy Media on Pinterest

Valentine’s Day Pancakes

Source: jimspancakes.com via Busy Mommy Media on Pinterest

Bacon Hearts

Source: Uploaded by user via Busy Mommy Media on Pinterest

Red Velvet Pancakes

Source: recipegirl.com via Busy Mommy Media on Pinterest

Chocolate Dipped Pretzels

Source: 5minutesformom.com via Busy Mommy Media on Pinterest

Do you have a favorite Valentine’s Day treat you like to enjoy with your kids? Share the link with us in the comments or add it to the linky below.

Valentine’s Day on a Budget

Lorie — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 00:04:21 +0000

Valentine’s Day is one of the biggest gift buying holidays. It has also become a time to tell the one we love how much we love them by showering them with gifts. I think the old saying, Money can’t buy love, should make you think twice about how much you need to spend to let the one you love know it. Some of the most popular gifts for Valentine’s Day are cards, a romantic dinner, candy/chocolate, flowers, and jewelry. I have a frugal option for all of those items that won’t break your budget and still show your loved one how much you care.

Valentine Cards

Premade Valentine cards in the store can cost you up to $6 (or more). Why buy those? You can easily make your own for a lot cheaper. Sit down and write a love letter to your loved one. These letters are more meaningful than a card someone else has written. You could also try to write a poem. These handmade cards and letters will become cherished keepsakes. You can also send your loved one an e-card. There are a lot of different places online to send free e-cards. I have also printed cards that I have made online. These are a lot more personal because you can write what you want on them. If you just really are not very crafty then Dollar stores offer cards for fifty cents, so you might try there.

Romantic Dinners

Going out for dinner is another popular way for couples to celebrate Valentine’s Day. It can also cost you over $100. One thing you could do to save money is go out to eat for lunch instead. Lunch will cost about half of what dinner would have and since my kids are in school, I do not even need a babysitter. Another option would be to go out for dessert only. If you have never gone out for dessert only then you have try this. I am always too full to order dessert and this way I do not have to worry about that. This also allows for more time talking since you are not eating as much. Lastly, you can make dinner at home. This can be really nice with candlelight and all. There are however some drawbacks . . . you will actually have to cook and cleanup. If you are willing to do that you could save money and still have a nice evening. There are a lot of nice restaurant copycat recipes online. One of my favorites is the Alice Springs Chicken from The Outback. I have made this several times. So there are several options to have a romantic meal and still save money.

Candy/Chocolates

Have you looked at the store and noticed how much chocolates are now? You can pay $20 or more for a nice box! There are a lot of easy recipes online that you can make yourself to give. Some of my favorites are chocolate covered strawberries, coconut balls, truffles, and even chocolate chip cookies. You can also make your own conversation hearts and write something on them that you want. Homemade foods are always a hit for Valentine’s Day.

Flowers

Flowers can cost you up to $100. If you really want to give flowers, think about buying a plant or even a rose bush. These will give your Valentine the gift of flowers for a long time and may be a better use of your money.

Jewelry

Jewelry is another item that men usually like to buy women for Valentine’s Day. This can be expensive. If you still really want to get something special for your loved one in the jewelry department you can try Free Jewelry.com. They have a great selection of jewelry for free or low cost. The only thing you have to do is pay $6.99 for shipping per piece. Believe it or not the quality of the jewelry is really nice. Just make sure if you order from there to note how long shipping will take.

Planning a Last Minute New Year’s Eve Party on a Budget

Lorie — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 18:00:00 +0000

I have been so busy with Christmas that it is hard to believe the New Year is right around the corner. If you are like me a New Year’s Eve party is probably the last thing you are thinking about. Time is running short, but you can still plan a fun New Year’s Eve party that will fit your budget. Here are a few ideas to get you started.

Inviting Guests

If you want to keep your budget low then you will need to consider inviting only a few close friends or members of your family. Just make sure you have enough to do something fun together. At this last minute you may want to call friends and family to personally invite them or you could send an invitation in an e-mail. You could also use free programs like Envite or even make a Facebook event page. I like the Facebook event page because people can RSVP right on the page and you can get an idea of who is coming, but some people do not use Facebook so other options might work better for you. Any of these options would be quick and not break your budget.

Decorations and Party Favors

You could spend a lot of money on decorations if you are not careful. Do not waste your money on this category. Your money will be better spent in the food category. Use what you already have on hand at home. Leave your Christmas decorations up. For the most part, this will be plenty of decorations for the evening. I have found that my Dollar Tree has special New Year’s Eve party favors. These include hats and blowers. Buy a few of these for your party and you will be all set.

Food

I think this will probably be your biggest expense for the party. Do not plan to feed your guest a whole dinner. Just plan on serving a few snacks and drinks to your guest. You will want to buy some paper plates, cups, napkins and other paper goods. You can also find these items at the Dollar Stores that will not cost you much at all. I like to spend some money on these items because it will save me time on the cleanup later. We also do not drink alcohol at our house so that would make it a lot cheaper. If you have some time, here are a few quick recipes that you can make for your party.

Dill Dip (this is great with vegetables or chips and taste like ranch dip)

New Year’s Eve Punch (I’ve also made this with Rainbow Sherbet)

Egg Salad Sandwiches (or any sandwiches, cut these in half)

Tortilla Chips and Salsa (I make my own salsa in the summer when tomatoes are ready)

Activities

You will need to plan some activities for your guest. Go search in your game closet and you will probably find board games or cards that would be fun for your guest. Be sure to plan a few things for the kids to do, if they will be at the party. You might even have an older child help with the children so you and your adult guest can do some fun things together without worrying about the kids. If you like music, you can go to Pandora and play a music list on your computer for your guest to listen to during the party or you can play CD’s you already own. You could also plan to watch a movie together and enjoy popcorn or caramel corn and soft drinks.

There are so many options for a fun filled New Year’s Eve party that won’t cost you a lot of money. Just take a few minutes and get a plan in action for a fabulous New Year’s Eve Party!

Frugal Thanksgiving Ideas

Lorie — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 11:20:44 +0000

Many families are still struggling with the high cost of food. Thanksgiving is one holiday that we spend more money on food than usual. Being frugal does not mean we have to give up all that food we enjoy eating, it means that we just need to plan for this extra expense in our budget. Here are a few ideas to make your Thanksgiving a little more budget friendly.

Plan Ahead

Planning ahead is one of the best pieces of advice you can get for planning a frugal Thanksgiving. If you plan several weeks ahead, you will find that there are plenty of coupons and specials to help you get the most for your money. Plan to spend a little each week on the extra items you will need and then you will not feel like you are spending so much money. You can also plan ahead by getting most of the food items cooked ahead of time. This will allow you to spend more time with your family on the big day. Here are a few recipes for you to try that you can make ahead of time.

Make-Ahead Mashed Potatoes

Make-Ahead Stuffing

Cranberry Sauce

Freezer Apple Pie

Shop for the Cheapest Turkey

During the holidays, many stores will mark down turkeys. There are also great coupons on turkeys and other Thanksgiving foods during this time. Right now you can get a coupon for $3 off a Butterball Turkey when you buy 4 other products like Stove Top Stuffing or Pillsbury Crescent Rolls. This is a great deal because lots of these products are already marked down. Many stores also offer deals like buying so much in groceries and then you get a free turkey or a greatly reduced one. This can be a good deal if you really need the other items you are buying to get the great turkey deal. While turkeys are marked down so cheap, consider buying a second one to place in your freezer for a future dinner. This will save you money later.

Bake Your Own Pies

If you buy a pie from the store you can easily spend $10 for each pie. Why not make your own pies for Thanksgiving. You spend a lot less money and get more pies since most recipes will make more than one pie. Here is a basic pie crust recipe that includes a video. With a little practice you can easily make your own pies and save money.

Choose Potluck

One great way to save money and have more time with the family is to have your guest bring dishes for the dinner. Most family members will be more than happy to help you out. This will also give you a good selection of different foods.

Use Leftovers

When planning your Thanksgiving meal, plan for leftover meals. I can easily get two or more meals with my leftovers. One casserole I love to make is the Thanksgiving Memories Casserole. My kids love it and you can basically use what you have leftover. This will also help to stretch your food budget and not make you feel like you are spending so much money on one meal.

Fast and Frugal Halloween Pizza

Lorie — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 16:54:53 +0000

Some families like to eat certain things on Halloween night. I have heard of spaghetti, chili, and soup to name a few. My family has always ordered out pizzas on Halloween. These make trick or treat night quick and easy for my family. This year ordering out really is not in our budget, So I will be making homemade pizzas for my family. Even the good frozen pizzas are more expensive than making it homemade. The way I have always made homemade pizza is not very quick since I make the dough in the bread machine. My community’s trick or treat night is on a Monday this year, so I have to get things done really quick since the kids are in schools all day and I will only have about one hour to get them ready and fed. Here are some ideas to making frugal homemade pizza quicker and easier.

Pizza Dough

The pizza dough will usually be the part that takes the longest because it will have to rise. There are several things you can do to make it quicker. First you can buy pizza crust mix in a bag at the store. These are usually around $1.00 or less and all you have to do is add water and let rise for five minutes. You can also have homemade crust quicker with a little pre-planning. You can make the dough in your bread machine and freeze it in a zip lock freezer bag. On the day you are ready to bake, take it out of the freezer and place in a large bowl and leave on the counter. It will defrost and rise during the day and be ready to bake that evening.

Another idea is to use a no rise pizza dough recipe. Here is one that I have used that I like. This recipe is made by hand but I mixed the ingredients and kneaded in my Kitchenaid mixer which made this super quick. If you want to make this taste more Italian, I recommend using the optional spices.

No Rise Pizza Crust

1 Tablespoon active dry yeast (I used quick rising yeast)

1 cup warm water

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

2 Tablespoons olive oil

2 ½ cups flour

¼ teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon basil (optional)

1 teaspoon oregano (optional)

1 teaspoon minced onions (optional)

Dissolve yeast in water. Add rest of the ingredients in order listed in the recipe and mix until it forms into dough. Place dough onto a floured surface and knead for 5 minutes. Roll out and press down on a greased pizza pan (I like to use my stoneware for pizzas). Add toppings and bake at 350 degrees F 12-15 minutes.

Pizza Toppings

Choose pizza toppings your family will enjoy. I can find pepperoni for around $1.50. Other meats will probably cost you more. Use veggies like onions and green peppers (I chop mine up when they are on sale or from my garden and freeze them so I can use them on pizza later when green peppers are more expensive.) or canned mushrooms to cut down cost. Cheese can be an expensive topping so go light on it and that will cut back on calories as well. There are also lots of inexpensive pizza sauce recipes online, but I found that buying a large bottle of spaghetti sauce is cheaper and quicker for me. You could also save money by only having cheese sticks. Roll your dough into a rectangle and leave off the sauce and add pizza only. Cut into sticks after cooking. These are super easy and kids love them. Serve with your favorite dipping sauce.

Halloween Pizza Ideas

As I was searching blogs and recipe sites for Halloween themed pizzas, I came upon this recipe for Spooky Spiderweb Pizza that is so cute. It would make your Halloween pizza more special. You could use some of the decorating ideas in that recipe and still use some of the quick frugal tips given in this article. You can also use cookie cutters to cut out spiders in cheese slices to decorate the top of your pizzas. Cut these before and store in the refrigerator to make decorating quicker.

Planning a Frugal Halloween Party for Kids

Lorie — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 01:00:12 +0000

Halloween is a fun time of year that kids enjoy dressing up and gathering way too much candy. It is also a fun time for kids to get together with their friends and have a party. Kids enjoy dressing up, eating fun Halloween themed foods, and playing exciting games.

Parties can really be expensive and sometimes people who are watching what they spend decide they can’t afford a party. If a party is what your kids want, you don’t have to deny them of it. You will just need to do a lot of planning before the party to make the expense a little easier for your family. Here are a few ideas to get your frugal Halloween party started.

Invitations

Invitations bought at stores can be way too expensive. There are several options to make the invitations fit into your budget. First, make your own. You can place spider or pumpkin cut outs on an index card and write your invitation right on it. If you don’t consider yourself crafty, you can even find these cut outs online or you can find places online to make invitations for free to print out. If you make your own invitations you will want to try to hand deliver them to save on postage. Many teachers will allow you to hand them out to your child’s friends at school. I have also seen lots of friends using Facebook to make an event page and inviting friends that way. The nice thing about event pages on Facebook is that you can have your friends RSVP right on the page. Another invite method that I just recently learned about is evite.com. This is a great way to make and send invitations to all your friends that you want to invite to your party, and the best part is that it’s free.

Decorations

Whenever I want to have a party on a budget, I turn to the Dollar Stores. My favorite one is the Dollar Tree. They already have a lot of really neat Halloween decorations and they only cost $1 each. This makes planning a party a lot more reasonable for me. You can also use pumpkins that have been carved out already as decorations. Don’t forget to reuse carved pumpkins after the party. Here’s a great recipe for Jack-O-Lantern Pie. This way you can get the most out of it for your money. Check to see what kind of decorations you have left over from years past that could be used. It is a good idea to buy holiday decorations after the holiday. You will be able to find decorations for 50-75% off at that time. Just make sure to have a place to store them so you can find them the next year to use them. You can also buy orange and green light bulbs to replace bulbs in the house and create an eerie effect. Music can also be bought pretty reasonable and played at the party to create the mood.

Entertainment

There are a lot of fun things that you can do with kids at a Halloween party that will not cost you a lot of money. One activity I have seen kids do at a party was pumpkin decorating. The hostess asked the kids to bring a small pumpkin and then the kids decorated them at the party. The hostess provided paints and markers for the kids to decorate the pumpkins, and after they were all done they picked winners in several categories like cutest, scariest etc. Another fun activity is to play the Monster Mash song and let kids dance to it. Kids love to dance and with all the extra candy they get at Halloween the extra activity will be nice too. You can also ask kids to wear a costume. I think it would be fun to ask them to wear a handmade costume, put on some scary music and have a fashion show. Pick some winners and give out small prizes. You can also find a ton of great Halloween party games online or even in some books at your local library.

Food

The food will probably be the biggest expense of the party. Making items from scratch will save you money on the food for your party, so if you have time then plan to do this. Some items that are always a hit are cupcakes, cookies, and finger foods. If you are planning to serve a meal at the party plan on serving an item like hotdogs which can be bought in bulk and are easy to prepare. You can also plan Halloween themed food items. Most kids really enjoy eating an eyeball or seeing hands in the punch. Here are a few ideas for some food items that make great party foods.

Mummy Dogs

Halloween Cut Out Sugar Cookies (Here’s a perfect Halloween Cookie Cutter)

Cupcakes and icing with Halloween decoration like candy corn

Cheese-Finger Food

Severed Fingers Halloween Cookies

Grave Yard Cake

Nutter Butter Ghost Cookies

Caramel Apples

Candy Apples

Frankenstein Cupcakes

Black Frozen Hand Punch

Frugal Memorial Day Cookouts

Lorie — Tue, 24 May 2011 15:35:12 +0000

Memorial Day is a day we celebrate and remember our deceased relatives and soldiers. For many people, it is also a time to welcome summer with a three day weekend of summer activities. In fact, many people pull out and fire up the grill and have a cookout. Cookouts do not have to be expensive or hard work. Just make sure to plan ahead to make this a day of fun and relaxation. Take advantage of this holiday by looking for specials in the grocery store, there are usually lots of deals. Here are a few simple items you can make to save money and still have a yummy cookout and also a relaxing weekend.

Hot Dogs/Hamburgers and Buns

I like to stock up on hot dogs during this time because I can usually find hot dogs on sale for $0.5o a pack. I also like to get ground beef and make my own hamburger patties. This is so much cheaper than buying the frozen patties and I think they taste better too because I can add what I want to season up my burgers. Another way to save money on hot dogs and hamburgers is to make your own buns. You will want to do this a couple days ahead because they do take a little work. This will also give you more time to enjoy your family on the actual cookout day. Here are the recipes I like to use.

Hot Dog Buns

Hamburger Buns

Potato Salad

I like to make potato salad with my cookouts. I really do not have a recipe. I just throw a bunch of stuff together. I boil the potatoes which I cut into smaller pieces before boiling, and then I add salad dressing, mustard, vinegar, sugar, and some small boiled egg pieces. I usually have everything on hand in my kitchen to make this salad too.

Baked Beans

Baked Beans are an easy addition to a holiday meal. You can just take them out of the can and put them in a casserole dish and heat them, if that’s all you want to do. I like to add a bit more to my baked beans, so I usually make it the night before and put it in my refrigerator and then heat it up the next day. I brown a pound of ground beef and then add that to the beans in a casserole dish and then add mustard and brown sugar. I just add enough mustard and brown sugar to get it to taste like I want, so add a small amount at first and then add more to taste to your desire. The next day I cook them at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Canned baked beans are also a summer item I find easily on sale during this time of year.

Vegetables

I like to add a vegetable of some sort to my cookout dinner. Corn on the Cob is so easy to cook right on the grill. You can cook the corn in the husk and I think they come out so much better when cooked that way. Here’s a recipe that I use when grilling corn on the cob.

Grilled Corn on the Cob

Desserts

I have several money saving dessert ideas. My favorite idea is to buy a Watermelon. I seem to see these go down in price this time of year. They cut up easily so they do not require a lot of extra work. Another item I find on sale in the summer is strawberries. I like to buy a one step angel food cake mix, bake it and then top with strawberries and non dairy whipped topping. I cut up my strawberries and add sugar or Splenda to them and then use them on top the cake. My final idea for dessert is banana pudding. It is so easy to put together and people seem to really love it in the summer. Here is a recipe for banana pudding that I like to make.

Uncooked Banana Pudding

Leftovers

I love having a cookout because we always have leftovers that I can use for a lunch or sometimes even a dinner. This also saves me more money and time after the cookout. So, plan for leftovers.

Potlucks

Another great way to save money is ask the people coming to the cookout to bring something for the meal. This will save you money and give you a good variety of yummy food and make less work for you. Make sure you plan by asking people what they plan to bring so you do not end up with all the same foods.

Egg Nest Rice Cereal Cupcake Treats

Lorie — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 02:57:40 +0000

It’s getting close to the end of the school year for my kids. This is the time that parents are asked to donate cupcakes to sell in order to make money for field trips and end of the year activities. My kids have needed cupcakes once a week for over a month now, so I decided I wanted something a little different, something with a little more pizzazz. So instead of cupcakes, I made Egg Nest Treats in cupcake liners. They were really easy and quick to make and did not cost me a fortune to make. You might also want to make these for Easter parties at school and Easter dinners. I made a batch of these and they sold out fast.

Ingredients

¼ teaspoon water

3 drops of green food coloring

½ cup flaked coconut

3 Tablespoons butter or margarine

1 teaspoon vanilla

4 cups miniature marshmallows

5 cups rice cereal

Speckled jelly beans (can also add chocolate eggs, colored marshmallows, or other jelly beans)

Stove Top Directions

In a small bowl, mix together water and green food coloring. Stir in coconut until coconut is tinted. Spread on a baking sheet to dry. Place 16 cupcake liners in muffin pans and set aside for later use. In a large saucepan, melt the butter and then add the vanilla and marshmallows. Stir until completely melted. Remove from heat and add rice cereal and stir until cereal is well coated. Spray hands with butter flavored non stick cooking spray. Place mixture into each cupcake liner and press down so as to leave a small recess in the middle, like a birds nest. Cool completely. Add the grass on top of the cupcake. Press in three different colored speckled jelly beans.

Microwave Directions

You can choose to make the mixture in the microwave if you desire. Instead of cooking on the stove top, place the butter, vanilla, and marshmallows in a microwave safe bowl. Heat on HIGH for 3 minutes, but make sure to stir after 2 minutes. Stir until smooth. Continue following the stove top directions for placing the mixture in the cupcake liners and decorating after cooled.

Adapted from: Robin’s Egg Nest Treats

Valentines Day Meal: Bring on some RED!

Guest Writer — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 16:29:11 +0000

Yes, I’m usually ( highly) suggesting that we all color our plates at all meals but with February 14th quickly approaching, I get a little excited about having a very pinky, red whole food day! It all began many years ago when a neighbor invited us over for a Valentine’s day party. Although both kids and adults were invited, it was definitely geared for adults. The theme was food – red, hot flavored foods! I brought a pot of lover’s tea but the table was packed an eclectic array of all red foods you could imagine! Since that spicy evening, I decided to embrace this holiday and introduce my kids to some new ( and old) tasty foods.

Here are a few of my favorites this year!

The appetizer … Red tortilla chips and salsa

• Kids will love this pre meal appetizer and they will love it even more if you have them make the salsa! It’s quite easy. Mix together chopped tomatoes, cilantro, white onions, juice of a whole lime and a dash salt and pepper ( some jalapeno if you are up to it!) in a medium sized bowl.

The drink … Hibiscus herbal iced tea with blood orange

• Usually it’s water with our meals but I do have pitcher of herbal iced tea available for the kids in replacement of juice ( and they like it better too!). To add an extra surprise, I’m going to place slices of blood oranges in the pitcher. It will add to some great conversation … how did that orange become red?

The entrée …. Whole roasted red potatoes, roasted red peppers, pink wild salmon

• I’m not one to spend too much time in the kitchen if not needed so I like to multi task! My kids really like roasted veggies so I have been doing that a lot lately. I will toss the veggie with olive oil, salt and pepper and then put in the oven. For this meal, I will poke the potatoes with a few holes and put them in the oven first, then the peppers and finally, the salmon. Simple, fast and nutritionally delicious.

The dessert … Red Pomegranate seeds

• Pomegranate seeds are a stunning bright red color, that gives a pack of nutrition and a healthy dose of fiber, so, sprinkle the seeds on top of some vanilla yogurt or ice cream!

PS In Italy, pomegranates were known as the, “royal fruit.” That may entice the kids to give it a try!

Next time you are at the market, spend a little more time seeking out red fruits and vegetables. The watermelon radish, beets (and I have even seen red carrots) are all great alternatives!

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Dr. Heather

Dr. Heather Manley, who in 2001 received her medical degree from the National College of Naturopathic Medicine,is a practicing physician whose primary interest is preventative healthcare for families. She is the author of Human Body Detectives, her educational series of story-telling audiobooks and accompanying activity workbooks. www.drheathernd.com
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