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Fun Halloween Recipes and Ideas

Written by Audrey Okaneko | 0 Comments | Grab This Article Grab This Article

Halloween has always been a favorite time of year for me. Not only is it my birthday, but the air is clean and crisp, the leaves have turned colors and it’s just a very pretty time of year.

I’d like to share some fun Halloween ideas and recipes with you:

Halloween cookie cutters are a must. You can use these cookie cutters on bread to make Halloween sandwiches. Kids love jack-o-lantern shaped sandwiches. You can spread their favorite sandwich topping on the bread once it’s cut.

Purchase M&M’s from a store that sells specific colors. Buy orange and green M&M’s and then use them in your favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe substituting the M&M’s for the chocolate chips.

You can also put those same M&M’s in your favorite rice krispy treat recipe. It’s amazing how these two colors transform recipes into Halloween recipes.

Look for mini cookie cutters. They can often be found in kitchen specialty shops. If you find pumpkin mini cookie cutters, these work great on cheese. Buy sliced cheese. Cut the cheese with the mini cookie cutters and then put the slice of round cheese on a Ritz cracker.

Prepare your favorite brownie recipe and then top with candy corn pieces.

Make hamburgers and use your cookie cutters on full size slices of cheese. Serve open faced so that the pumpkin or ghost shaped cheese is on top.

Many stores sell spinach pasta. Green pasta with red sauce is very Halloween looking to kids.
Make english muffin pizzas. Add sauce and cheese and then cover with pepperoni slices. Use pineapple chunks to make eyes, nose and mouth.

What would Halloween be without pumpkin flavored items? Here are a few pumpkin recipes for you:

Pumpkin Dip

2 8-ounce packages cream cheese, softened
1 large 30-ounce can of pumpkin
4 cups powdered sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons ginger

Mix everything together and serve. Kids love to dip both fruit and cookies into this dip.

And what about pumpkin muffins? I love pumpkin muffins warmed with butter on them:

Pumpkin Muffins

3 1/3 cups flour
3 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1 cup oil
4 eggs
2/3 cup water
2 cups pumpkin

Mix all dry ingredients together in a bowl. Add the remaining ingredients and mix. Pour into muffin tins. Batter will rise, so only fill the muffin tins 2/3 of the way full. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes.
Decorating your table can be fun also. Use a combination of blacks and oranges. Use cat or witch shaped bowls. I have a friend who owns plates, creamers and tea pots in the shape of cats. You can also sprinkle your M&M’s and candy corn on the table. The kids can eat the decorations.

Enjoy Halloween with your kids and their friends at home with all of the above treats and ideas.

Article by:

Audrey’s mom always entertained when she was growing up. Audrey learned to prepare for large groups and has often entertained 15-30 people in her home at a time. You can find more great recipes at www.recipe-barn.com

 

 

Tips for Making Your Holiday Dinner a Success

Posted By Stephanie Martin On November 24, 2009 @ 5:04 pm In Christmas, Easter, Food and Drink, Halloween, Holidays, Home, Home Organization, Thanksgiving | No Comments

Everyone enjoys going getting together with family and friends for a big holiday meal, but sometimes the stress of preparation is almost too much to bear.  But, there are just a few simple things that you can do to help reduce and/or eliminate the stress.

Plan A Menu:

Since the meal itself is a vital part of your get together, make sure and plan your menu out at least a couple of weeks in advance.  This gives you time to sit down and think without being stressed out due to last minute planning.

Share The Load:

Ask everyone that is planning to attend to bring something.  This could be a food dish, ice, drinks, plates & cups, or even decorations!  This helps everyone to feel like they are really part of the preparations and dinner as well as helps to reduce the amount of work that you do as the host/hostess.

Make a Grocery List:

Sit down with all of the recipes that you will be using and make a list of ALL the ingredients that you will need to prepare all of your dishes, and then double check it.  Once you are sure that you have a list of everything that you will need, go shopping in your pantry first and see what you already have on hand and mark it off your list.  You are now ready to plan your trip to the store, but don’t forget to check the sales ads for really great deals around the holidays.  Stock up a bit for the next one if your budget allows.  Don’t forget to have extra essentials on hand such as coffee, tea, paper towels/napkins, plates, toilet paper, etc.

Prep Ahead:

Some dishes can be made several days or weeks in advance and kept in the freezer until the day before.  Others have to wait and be made the before or even the day of.  Make a list ahead of time starting with the dishes that can be made the farthest in advance, then plan when you will make these dishes.

Have a Plan In Place:

Make sure that you have a plan written down for the day before and the day of so that you don’t forget anything.   As you accomplish one task, mark it of your list and move onto the next.  I have found this to be very helpful in remembering all that needs to be done.  I find that I am much calmer and less stressed by having a plan in place than not having one.

Don’t Forget Your Family:

Don’t forget to include your husband/wife and children in all the preparations and decorating.   The memories that you make will be cherished for a life time, and your children will pass on these same traditions to their children.

Last, but not least, enjoy your time with family and friends!  When it comes down to it, isn’t that what it’s all about?

For more tips for helping make your dinner less stressful, please go to www.busy-moms-online.com [1] or www.mycountryhaven.blogspot.com

Traveling with Kids

Posted By Susanne Myers On June 10, 2008 @ 8:24 pm In Family Travel | No Comments

A little preparation will make a big difference in how enjoyable traveling with your kids can be. Use some of our tips and ideas below, whether you and your children are traveling by car or plane. After all, this is the time of the year when we are ready to relax and rejuvenate, not stress about how to get to our favorite vacation spot while listening to “Are we there yet?” every 10 minutes. Outlined below are some ways for you to make sure both you and your kids are comfortable while traveling.

Dress everyone in comfortable loose clothing and pack a spare outfit for everyone where you can easily reach it during your trip. Pack a small pillow and a light blanket for each of the kids, as well as their favorite stuffed toy or doll to snuggle up with at night or during naptime. These not only work great on the plane or in the car, but will also make your kids more comfortable once you arrive at your destination.

Whether you travel by car or by plane, pack some drinks and snacks for the kids, so you don’t have to rely on rest stops, kiosks at the airport or the meals that are served on the plane. We usually give our daughter only water in the car. It’s not nearly as messy as some of the fruit juice or sports drinks if it gets spilled. To make plain water a little more interesting and to keep it cool, fix an insulated zippy cup or sports bottle with ice water. And believe me, they will spill it sooner or later, even if the cup claims to be spill proof. Some good choices for not-so-messy snacks are trail mix, pretzels, teddy grahams, dried fruit, fresh apple slices (drizzle them with a little lemon or lime juice to keep them from turning brown), mini marshmallows, and baby carrots. Come up with some snacks that your kids love and put them in individual zip-lock bags.

The zip-lock bags also come in handy to pack up some crafts supplies like crayons, stickers, blunt scissors and glue sticks, for the artists in your family.

To keep your little one’s entertained, you may also want to pack some coloring books, picture books, or pack a child friendly novel, like the Harry Potter books to read aloud in the car. Audio books and music CDs or tapes also come in handy.

For some great travel games you and your family can play, take a look at Car Travel Activities for Kids.

If you are traveling by car, plan in frequent stops and let the kids run around. You may want to pack a jump robe, ball or Frisbee to make moving around more fun. If you are driving through the night, plan a longer stop an hour or two before bedtime so the kids can wear themselves out and release all this build up energy before going to sleep.

Instead of eating lunch at a fast food place or restaurant off of the interstate, try bringing a picnic. You can cater to your family members tastes and it is bound to be cheaper, better and more healthy than what you would be able to find fast food place. Your kids will appreciate not having to sit still again and the sunshine and fresh air will do wonders for all of you.

If you are traveling by plane, bring some small toys, picture books, coloring books etc, to entertain your child in the seat. Depending on your child’s age, bring some gum, hard candy, zippy cup, bottle or pacifier to have them suck or chew on something during take-off and landing to equalize the pressure in their ears. You may also want to pack a sweater for your child, since the air temperature in the plane can be quite chilly.

To keep your kids excited on longer trips, make up some small goodie bags for them. Collect some Kids Meal Toys for a few weeks, or purchase some inexpensive toys at the Dollar Store and put them individually in some small brown paper bags, or even wrap them. Tell your kids that as long as they are being good, they will get a new goodie bag every 2 hours or so. You’ll be amazed how well behaved they will be, and you will keep them from being too bored on a long trip by giving them something new to play with.

Article by:

Susanne Myers is the founder of www.kinderinfo.com [1] , the one-stop online children’s resource center. Sign up for our newsletter at www.kinderinfo.com/newsletter [2] for even more great tips and ideas to have fun with your kids this summer.