My daughter chose "flowers" as the theme of her 5th birthday party. We celebrated at home with her friends. My mom and I prepared the dishes. This was her "fruit cake". I used watermelon, honey dew melon, blueberries, raspberries, pineapple (hearts & flowers) and tangerines with the help of few toothpicks. Kids loved it.This is the whole … [Read more...]
Roasted Root Vegetable Medley
This recipe is a modified version of one of the dishes in Ultimate Reset. I have been receiving a big bag of Root Vegetable Soup mix from Fresh Picks for the last two shipments, I decided to cook this instead of cooking soup over and over. Ingredients:1 big carrot 1 medium sweet potato 1 big red beet 1 medium yellow onion 1 … [Read more...]
How to Make Baked Kale Chips
I have been reading the kale chips, the queen of the healthy snacks craze on many blogs. I had planted kale in my vegetable garden this year and oven-baked kale chips one of the recipes I tried with my kale harvest.First, I washed the leaves thoroughly and cut the stems off. I also cut the rather thicker midribs off.Then I dried them well, … [Read more...]
How to quickly defrost frozen meat without microwave
I've listed what kind of foods and dishes that I prepare and freeze in case of emergencies in my "The foods and dishes that every practical mama keep in their freezer" post. I freeze a lot of meat patties, meat balls, poultry and fish for last minute lunch/dinner prep.When you freeze meat, any kind, the safest and healthiest way to unfreeze or … [Read more...]
Product Review: Apple Slicer
You might think I am lazy, when you take a look at the picture of this post. First, yes, I am a bit lazy. In truth, I had thought this product was a lazy-man's-work as well, when I had first seen it. I had thought, can't people use knives to slice an apple anymore?However, I have been using this slicer every single day, sometimes more than once … [Read more...]
Why we prefer not to order from kids menus in restaurants
In the last two weeks, we had to eat out more than usual because we had guests. During the first visit, we went to a nice American restaurant which is not a chain and our server recommended Mac Cheese for children. We told him that our children eat from the adult's menu, right when, my son had opened the menu, screaming “I want calamari!” as my … [Read more...]
Bell pepper flower eggs
This is a Pinterest inpised breakfast. All you have to do is:Find big, curvy bell peppers of any color. Slice them horizontally Put them on a pan Crack the eggs into the slices Make sure peppers touch the pan well so that the egg white does not flow out. Decorate with leaves or cucumbers as you wish. … [Read more...]
Angry Birds themed breakfast
My children love Angry birds. They knew Angry Birds, even before we had any smart phones. One morning I prepared them Angry Birds themed breakfast, just for the fun of it. I used a leftover pancake from the day before and half a pita bread. Egg whites (from hard cooked egg) and cherry jam pieces for the eyes. Homemade plum marmalade for the face … [Read more...]
Make your own homemade pre-packed waffle and pancake mix
I like to serve different breakfast options to kids during the week. Weekends are pancake and waffle days. If the kids aren't extremely hungry or I haven't decided to sleep in, kids prepare their own pancakes and waffles under my observation - from far away. The recipe is taped to the cabinet door. They know where the ingredients are. They measure … [Read more...]
Teaching kids how to eat healthy
I am known as the crazy daughter or wacky daughter-in-law among my family members. I might turn into a evil witch when people offer unsolicited sweets or candies to my kids. Yes, I am that mother.I love deserts and chocolate myself, that’s for sure, I won't lie. "Sweets and candy" is not limited to grocery/bakery purchased packaged foods. For … [Read more...]
Why is eating healthy so hard?
It is great to be raised in the Mediterranean region and yet sometimes it is not good completely either. I don’t think there is any other kitchen in the world that serves so many varieties of veggies and legumes. I feel really lucky in this sense. Western part of Turkey is source of good quality olive. Therefore, olive oil is staple of our cuisine. … [Read more...]
Prepare ahead
After my regular visit to my doctor, at the checkout I saw this really neat list on the cubicle wall. It was called "101 ways to cope with stress". I think it wasn't only for stress. It was more of a "Oprah got together with Martha Stewart and made a to do list" kind of list.You can find the whole list here. And don't just sneak peek and … [Read more...]
Practical solutions and ideas with a pair of scissors
Easy grab hole/ window for teabags. If you are a tea fan, like I am, you know how hard it is to get teabags out of the stacked boxes in the kitchen cabinets. The boxes clutter, fall down, just drive you crazy.I figured this trick actually from a Stash tea box. You just cut a half circle at the bottom. Then sort the tea boxes vertically, side by … [Read more...]
Fun looking, great tasting meals for children
If you think, decorating the dishes for your children will help them increase their appetite or make them eat better, with some creativity you can create anything with the foods you have on hand. You don't necessarily have to buy the ingredients in a recipe that you see on Pinterest or book. you can get inspired by them, but use the ingredients you … [Read more...]
Three Bean Salad
I learned this recipe from the book called "Perricone Prescription".Ingredients:1 can of black beans 1 can of chick peas 1 can of red kidney beans 1 onion (if the onion is large, then just use half of it) 1/2 Lemon juice CuminDirections:Open the cans and rinse the beans out, put them inside a bowl. Chop the onions in … [Read more...]
How to de-seed a pomegranate
Deseed pomegranate without making a mess Winter time is fresh pomegranate and pomegranate juice time. The hardest part is to cut and de-seed them. There is an easier way to cut and de-seed pomegranates. Instructions: 1. Before starting, make sure you are wearing an apron. Even though this method prevents the pomegranate from splattering juice … [Read more...]
Chicken Broth Soup for common cold cure
I wasn't able to add new posts since the terminator cold has entered our house, knocking down my son first, then me. That said, I feel this chicken broth soup recipe is the most appropriate post to share with you with cold viruses making rounds around the country.If you research, you will find many articles from reliable sources that chicken … [Read more...]
Strength Soup for cold winter days
I do not have a scientific proof but I am sure this soup has immune strengthening properties. It is the perfect soup blend for cold winter days like the ones we have in Chicago.Ingredients:8 cups of beef broth 1 medium yellow onion 1 beet 1 potato 1/2 celery root (head) 1 cup shredded green cabbage 1 tomato 1 tablespoon … [Read more...]
Yogurt Soup for soothing upset stomach
This is a delicious soup that will help calm your upset stomach down if you have nausea or after throwing up with rice's soothing effect. I cook this without salt, however you might add some to taste. Yogurt soup is soft and mushy enough to serve to your babies (who started on solid food) and children.Ingredients:3/4 cup white or brown … [Read more...]
How to quickly peel potato skin
This is another video in Japanese, showinh how to quickly peel potato skin after boiling them.Make a cut around the potato before boiling. Prepare a bowl on cold water, preferably with ice. Put the boiled potatoes in to cold water immediately after boiling and wait for 10 seconds. Finally, take the skin off like a boss.It is very … [Read more...]