Fairy Bread Butter Board

 If you've been anywhere near social media in the past month you've likely seen one of the latest crazy food trends. I'm talking about butter boards! 

If you haven't been on social media and have no idea what I'd talking about, butter boards are basically a charcuterie board consisting of butter and sandwich toppings with bread on the side for scooping up all the deliciousness. I've seen all sorts of butter boards being shared with a good mix of sweet and savory options, but one thing I hadn't seen shared was the good old classic Aussie fairy bread! I mean, what could be easier than a butter board made up of nothing but butter and sprinkles?

So, today I thought I'd share just that: a fairy bread butter board!

This butter board is perfect for kids' birthday parties, picnics, afternoon snacks, breakfast... Basically any occasion that calls for fairy bread is the perfect occasion for a fairy bread butter board. 

 

It feels a little weird calling this a recipe seeing as there are really only three ingredients and absolutely no cooking or baking involved, but I guess anything that involves mixing ingredients together to make a new food is a recipe, right? 

Ok, let's get to it...

What you'll need:

Bread board/chopping block

Block of unsalted butter (softened)

Sprinkles (the round ones are best for fairy bread authenticity)

White fluffy bread (cut into triangles for fairy bread authenticity)

Step 1

Spread the softened butter across the bread board until you have a thin even layer.

Step 2

Sprinkle the sprinkles on top until the butter is completely covered. 

Step 3

Serve with white bread cut into triangles and your favorite Aussie treats on the side. 

Step 4

Use the white bread to scoop up the butter and sprinkles. 

Step 5

Enjoy!

See... wasn't that super simple? So simple in fact that half of the steps I included aren't even really recipe steps! 

Have you made a butter board before? Let me know if you give this one a try!

Cheesy Pesto Scrolls

Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by Moms Meet and Barilla. I received product and compensation in exchange for my honest opinions. 

The new school year is well and truly under way for most families by now, and one of the (many!) stresses for us parents is working out what to pack our kids for lunch every day. Do they seriously have to eat every day? Ha! Ok, of course they do, but trying to come up with something beyond regular sandwiches can get a little tricky, especially when you're limited by foods that can be eaten in limited time (lunch break is always too short) and don't need to be reheated.

One of my favorite things to make for the kids (and myself) is cheesy pesto scrolls. Made simply with store bought puff pastry, pesto and cheese, these scrolls are super simple to make, are perfect for lunch boxes, can be eaten hot or cold, and they're packed full of Italian flavor thanks to Barilla.  

Today I'm sharing my simple recipe for these tasty scrolls. This is my favorite sort of recipe because you can add as little or as much of each ingredient as you like, and you can totally customize it with your favorite ingredients. Creamy pesto, mozzarella and parmesan are my go to ingredients, but you can use any sort of cheese that you like and even add things like salami, sundried tomatoes, mushrooms or pine nuts for extra flavor. 

Honey Crackles Recipe

For Mathilde's recent bee themed birthday party I made honey crackles; a classic Australian treat found at kids' birthday parties all over the country. The honey crackles fit in perfectly with the bee theme and they reminded me of my own childhood. They're one of those party treats that I loved as a kid but had kind of forgotten about seeing as they're not common here in the US. 

I had actually never made honey crackles myself before, or at least not as an adult, but they're super easy to make and they're delicious so I thought I'd share the recipe with you today. 

So just what is a honey crackle, I hear you ask. Think of a rice krispies treat, but instead of rice krispies and marshmallow they're made with corn flakes and honey. Instead of being made in a flat shape they're baked in cupcake liners. Fun aside, cupcake liners are known pattypans in Australia and I actually didn't know that the word wasn't used here in the US until I looked it up to check for this post and found that a "pattypan" in the US is apparently a type of small squash. You learn something new every day!

Another thing that I learned, is that in some parts of Australia people call honey crackles "honey joys". I've never heard that name before, but apparently it's a thing. It's wrong, but it's a thing. Ha! 

Anyway... onto the recipe!

Pikachu Marshmallows

At Mathilde's little Pokémon birthday party last weekend we made Pikachu marshmallows. They're super easy to make, taste yummy, and the kids really enjoyed making them. 

I had originally planned to make the Pikachu marshmallows in advance to serve up as a party food (as I had done for Ava's Pokémon themed 10th birthday party years ago) but then I figured that seeing as we were at home with access to a kitchen, it would be fun to make them as a party activity. And I was right! It was fun!

These little Pikachus are super simple to make and only need a few ingredients.

Here's how we made them...

Quick & Easy Meals: Tuna Mornay

With so many people looking for economical meals that can be made from pantry staples at the moment, I thought today would be a good day to share one of my go to meals for the family: Tuna Mornay. Now, if you're Australian, you're probably pretty familiar with tuna mornay. It's one of those meals that you rarely see on a menu, but every family has their own recipe.

Tuna mornay was a regular meal growing up and it is a regular meal for my family too. My kids love it and would happily eat it several times a week - which they usually end up doing as there are always left overs. If you're not Australian, there's a good chance that you have no idea what tuna mornay is. I just presumed it was a recipe known around the world until I moved to the US and discovered that my American friends had no idea what it was. I then figured it must be a commonwealth thing, but unlike most Australian foods that are actually really British, it turns out that my British friends aren't familiar with tuna mornay either. Nor are my German, Italian and Russian friends. Only my Australian friends seem to be familiar with it, and they all claim that their family's recipe is the best. But they're lying, because my Mum's recipe is the best!

You're in luck, because today I'm sharing my Mum's tuna mornay recipe with you. It's a recipe that I've thought about sharing here many times over the years, but never have for two reasons. First of all, it's one of those recipes that I've been making for so long that I actually don't have a recipe. The ingredients always stay the same, but I just wing it when it comes to the amounts. My Mum has always done the same, so when she gave me the recipe years ago, it was just a list of ingredients. Sharing my recipe here meant paying attention to the amounts I use, and I never think of that until after I've made it! The other reason I've never shared my tuna mornay recipe is that as delicious as it tastes, it's not a particularly photogenic food! You'll see! It's definitely one of those "tastes much better than it looks" meals!

Here's what you'll need:
1 onion, finely sliced
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons plain flour
1/4 - 1/2 cup milk
2 9oz tins chunk tuna in water (in brine is better if you can find it)
1 tin corn (drained) or 1 cup frozen corn
1/2 cup shredded cheese (cheddar works best but I used a Mexican blend here)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 cups pasta (I like penne or spriali)

Snow Cream

How's the social distancing going for you? We had a snow storm at the end of last week which made staying inside all day and away from other people much easier! 

It also meant that the kids got to have a little snow fun in the backyard. While Mathilde threw snowballs at Yetta, Lola and I made snow cream for the first time. I can't believe it's taken us this long to make snow cream before, but judging by how much the kids (and I) loved it, it won't be the last time.

Have you ever had snow cream before? Are you wondering what it is? If, like me, you grew up somewhere with no snow then it's probably something you're not familiar with, but trust me you'll want to try it!

As you can probably guess from the name, and the pictures below, snow cream is ice cream made from fresh snow. It tastes so good and its super easy to make.

Got snow and want to make snow cream for yourself? It's super easy and it only requires three ingredient - two of which you can find in your pantry and one in your backyard! 

Irish Potato Candies

Yesterday was St Patrick's Day.

Unlike previous years, there was no celebrating with a big parade, there was no catching up with friends and there were no celebrations at school. The kids did wear green though and insisted on pinching me every chance they got - until I outsmarted them by changing into a green dress they didn't know I owned! Ha!

Mathilde got into the spirit by making lots of drawings of leprechauns, rainbows and four leaf clovers - which then became five, six, seven and even eleven leaf clovers. Extra luck, right?

Usually I'd make some sort of Irish inspired meal for dinner, but with supermarkets kind of crazy at the moment, getting the ingredients for shepherd's pie or corned beef was a little tricky. What I did have the ingredients for in my pantry, however, was Irish Potato Candy.

"What's Irish Potato Candy?" I hear you ask. Delicious, that's what!

Do you remember the potato themed birthday party that I threw for Lola back in October? A potato party? Yep, she's weird! Anyway, for her birthday party I made all sorts of potato themed foods, but the problem was that as much as she likes potatoes as an item, she doesn't like eating them. Not even as fries! Remember, I said she's weird! While trying to come up with non-potato potato themed foods I remembered a candy that my grandma used to make when I was a kid. Small misshapen balls of coconut fudge covered in cocoa that looked like mini potatoes. I hadn't eaten one of these Irish Potatoes, as we called them, since I was a kid, but I knew right away that they would be perfect. And they were!

They were also perfect for St Patrick's Day so yesterday I raided the pantry for all the ingredients and got to work making them. And this time I took photos so I could share the recipe here with you.

Valentine's Day Round Up

January is finally over - and that means that Valentine's Day is almost here!

Today I'm sharing a round up of some of the past Valentine's Day goodies that the kids and I have made for their classmates. We've made all sorts of fun things in the past, some food related and some not, so if you're looking for ideas for this Valentine's Day you're sure to find something here. Best of all, they're all easy-peasy to make! Just click the bold and underlined title for each for the DIY.

Let's take a look...

Strawberry Meringue Hearts for Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is sneaking up on us again so I figured it was about time I shared the treats that the girls gave out to their classmates last Valentine's Day. I know, I know... always on time!

For her 8th birthday Lola had an emoji themed birthday party (which you can see here) and one of the biggest hits with the kids were the poop emoji chocolate meringues that I made. I totally need to share THAT recipe here too. I'll get there! Anyway, I made up an extra batch of the poop emoji chocolate meringues to hand out to her classmates to celebrate her birthday at school and they LOVED them. I'm talking kids coming up to me every day at drop off asking if I had more of them to hand out. Kids love sugar!

Anyway, when it came time to work on Valentine's treats for Lola's class I just knew that we had to modify the poop emoji meringue recipe into something a little more fitting for the day. What could be more fitting than pink love hearts? With cutesy eyes, of course! Needless to say, they went down a treat. In fact, Lola is keen to make them again this year for her new class.

These tasty little treats are super easy to make and look the part for Valentine's Day, so today I'm sharing the recipe with you.

Rotisserie Chicken Tacos with a Zesty Cream Sauce

Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by CAULIPOWER Cauliflower Tortilla but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

Growing up in rural Australia, Mexican food wasn't something we ate very often. In fact, I only knew Mexican food as crunchy taco shells filled with beef, tomato, lettuce and cheddar cheese. Tasty, but not particularly exciting. I had no idea that Mexican food was so much more until I was in my early 20s and stared going out to restaurants with my friends. But even then, Mexican food in Australia was pretty much Tex-Mex with one flavor - spicy! I was yet to discover the subtle, fresh flavors that have since become my favorite when it comes to Mexican food.

In stark contrast to my limited childhood culinary experiences, I love that my kids are growing up in a more global world where cuisines from other cultures have become every day foods for them.

Having spent the past eight years living in California Mexican food has become somewhat of a staple in our home. Tacos, burritos, quesadillas, nachos, fajitas... they're all a hit with the kids - and the adults too! It's an easy cuisine to throw my own spin on and can be such a quick meal to make at home, with every family member adding as much or as little as each ingredient as they like.

I recently discovered CAULIPOWER Cauliflower Tortillas and they've become my new go to for tacos and quesadillas. As the name suggests, they're made with cauliflower. In fact, it's the first ingredient. It's a great way to sneak a little extra veggies into the kids diet! Trust me, they taste just like regular tortillas so the kids don't even notice that they're eating something healthier!

CAULIPOWER Cauliflower Tortillas are vegan, and free of dairy, gluten, wheat and preservatives so they're great for those with food allergies or sensitivities, or anyone wanting a healthier option. My favorite thing is that they come frozen and can be heated up in the microwave or on a skillet without defrosting. This means I can grab a tortilla from the freezer and have a snack ready in no time. Plus, unlike when I freeze regular tortillas, they don't stick together. Super convenient!

Today I'm sharing one of my favorite Mexican inspired meals to make for the family: Chicken tacos, made with left over rotisserie chicken and CAULIPOWER Cauliflower Tortillas. They're super easy to put together and a great way to use up left overs - and we always have a lot of left overs when we have rotisserie chicken for dinner. Just a few simple ingredients come together to make a really tasty meal. This recipe is easy to adapt to make as many or as little as you'd like so I haven't included precise measurements. It all really comes down to personal taste. The creamy sauce is so delicious that I make up a lot more than I'll need for our tacos as it's great for dipping. Tortilla chips, bell pepper, carrots... It goes great with everything and has a tangy, zesty flavor with just a little heat.

What you'll need:
CAULIPOWER Cauliflower Tortillas (frozen)
Rotisserie chicken (shredded)
Bell pepper (sliced)
Red cabbage (shredded)
Fresh cilantro
Sour cream
Refried beans
Sweet chili sauce
Minced garlic
Lime juice

A Fun Toast Snack for Minecraft Obsessed Kids

Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by Little Northern Bakehouse.

Do your kids like eating toast?

My kids love it, and while I always stick with a healthy, heart-friendly whole grain bread for their toast, they tend to want sugary sweet toppings on it, like jam, cookie spread or Nutella. I get it - these are all super yummy, but they're not the healthiest toppings around.

In a bid to get the kids eating something on top of their toast that's as healthy as the toast itself, I came up with this fun Minecraft inspired snack. All three of my kids, like so many others, are kind of obsessed when it comes to Minecraft (You may remember Ava's Creeper costume from Halloween), so turning their toast into a Creeper character was a hit. And the best part, it's super simple to make!

While the kids were at karate class today I whipped up some healthy Creeper toast as an after karate snack. They're always hungry after their class and I knew that they'd want to fill up on junk if I didn't have something healthy ready on hand. This fun toast is so simple to make and you'll only need three ingredients: bread, avocado and either blackberries or black beans depending on what your kid prefers. 

 

My favorite bread for the whole family is Little Northern Bakehouse. Their products are made from gluten free, non-GMO whole food ingredients so I know I'm giving the kids a healthy choice when it comes to their sandwiches and toast - no matter what they top it with! Unlike other gluten free options we've tried in the past, Little Northern Bakehouse products have all the softness of regular grain bread, and some of the products, including the Sprouted 7 Grain bread (my favorite) are 100% plant based and egg free. This means that Little Northern Bakehouse products are suitable for a wide range of diets without sacrificing taste or texture. It's a win-win!

Roasted Vegetable Red Lentil Pasta Bake

This post is sponsored by Barilla but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

Last week I shared all about my new favorite pasta from Barilla.

Barilla's Red Lentil pasta range is my new go to pasta for the family. It has the taste and texture of regular wheat pasta, but it's made from only one ingredient - red lentils. No gluten, no grains, no GMOs... just high fibre, vegetarian and vegan friendly red lentils.

Today I'm sharing another recipe that's perfect for the cooler days that we've been having lately. This pasta bake is packed full of veggies and tasty mozzarella cheese. It's hearty, but not heavy. Pasta comfort food!

Sun Dried Tomato & Red Lentil Rotini

This post is sponsored by Barilla but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

Our family eats a lot of pasta. Like, lots of pasta! It's pretty much a staple food in our home. If I ask the kids what they want for dinner, the answer is almost always some sort of pasta dish.

I've always been a big fan of pasta, but all those carbs really aren't the best thing to be eating so often. In recent years there have been all sorts of healthy pasta alternatives hitting the market, but like so many "healthier" options, a lot of them have been lacking when it comes to taste or the texture hasn't felt quite right.

Barilla, one of my all time favorite pasta brands, has the solution to this with their Red Lentil pasta made from just one ingredient. You guessed it... red lentils! The texture feels just the same as regular wheat pasta when cooked. The pasta keeps its shape and there is no mushiness like I've experienced with other grain free pasta options. The taste is great too and the red color, well, that just makes it a little more fun, right?

We put Barilla Red Lentil Rotini to the test with a recipe that Ava came up with by herself and the results were delicious!

A little while back Ava wanted to pasta for dinner for the family and she came up with her own recipe for the sauce. It's so good we've been making it for lunches and dinners ever since. It's pretty simple and only contains a few ingredients, but it packs of ton of flavor. It's a really flexible recipe too. I never really measure the ingredients, so the amounts I've listed below are an approximation of what I usually use. You can add as much or as little of each ingredient as you like.

Here's how to make Ava's Sun Dried Tomato & Red Lentil Rotini...

3 Ingredient Creamy Fruit Dip

This post is sponsored by Real California Milk but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

Now that the kids are back at school, after school snacks have become a big thing in our home again. It can be so tempting to grab a pack of chips or a cookie, but I like to make sure that my kids eat something healthy after school. Of course, healthy doesn't have to mean boring!

My kids already eat a lot of fruit after school and they don't need much tempting to choose an apple or strawberries as their snack option, but sometimes it's nice to make it a little more fun for them, while still keeping it healthy. Fun, tasty and healthy!

Today on the blog I'm sharing a simple recipe for a sweet creamy dip to make snacking on fruit just a little more tasty. It's also a great source of protein which gives kids the energy they need. It's great for after school snacks at home but can easily be taken to after school activities or even in a lunch box for a lunch time treat. It would even make a great party dish!

Best of all? It's super easy to make and only require three ingredients! The kids can even help.

Sounds great, right? Let's take a look at how to make it...

What you'll need:
8oz light cream cheese
8oz light vanilla yogurt
1 Tablespoon agave syrup
Plus fruit for dipping eg. strawberries, blueberries, apple slices, mandarin, banana and grapes

Place the cream cheese in a large bowl and mix until smooth.

Add the yogurt and mix together until smooth.

Add the agave syrup and mix together. Give it a taste and if it's not quite sweet enough for your liking add a little more agave syrup.

Place the dip in the fridge to chill while you prepare the fruit.

Cut the fruit to your liking and place on a large platter with a small bowl in the center.

Add the creamy dip to the bowl and voila, it's ready to eat!

My kids like to use their fingers to hold apple slices, mandarin pieces and strawberries, but for smaller fruit like grapes and blueberries (or squishy fruit like banana) they like to use a toothpick.

For on the go snacks, I like to place the fruit into a bento box with a small dip container, but any container will do. This recipe makes such a great snack to take along to after school activities or picnics and is great for sharing with friends. Mathilde took this along to karate class in the park this week and the sweet creamy dip was a hit with all her friends - although she was pretty keen to eat it all herself!

I love that this simple recipe combines two of my kids' favorite (and my favorite!) food groups - dairy and fruit. We eat a lot of both in our home, not only because they taste good, but because they're great for fueling active bodies. My kids are so busy with school followed by swim team or karate class every day that they need the vitamins, minerals and protein that dairy provides. Of course, it doesn't hurt when it tastes this good!

When it comes to dairy products, I like to make sure I'm buying products that are produced with local Californian milk. I love knowing that not only am I helping to support local dairy farmers, but my purchase is helping local communities. To make sure I'm buying products made with local milk I keep an eye out for the Real California Milk seal.

To find out more about Real California Milk and to find your local stockist click here.

3 Ingredient Chocolate Ice Cream

It's National Ice Cream Day today!

To celebrate I'm sharing a super simple, yet super scrumptious ice cream recipe that Ava made a while back. It only takes three ingredients and you don't even need an ice cream maker. It really doesn't get any easier!

Most of these photos Ava actually took herself with my camera set up on a tripod as she planned to make a video to share on her YouTube channel. She hasn't gotten around to making the video yet so I'm hijacking them for my blog for now. I'll make sure to share her video when she gets around to finishing it.

As I mentioned, this recipe if super simple and only needs three ingredients - which you may have in your kitchen right now. This recipe is for chocolate ice cream, but you could always switch out the chocolate for any other flavor you might like to add. I'm not normally a fan of chocolate ice cream, but this is so good. It's seriously one of the best chocolate ice creams I've ever eaten!

Home Made Sparkling Jello

This post is sponsored by Sparkling ICE but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

Now that Summer is upon us the warmer weather has got me craving cold refreshing drinks. It can be so tempting to grab something sugary like soda, but we all know that isn't the best option, especially not for the kids. The kids drink an awful lot of water, which is great, but sometimes it's nice to be able to give them a sweet treat instead. This is where Sparkling Ice saves the day! All natural fruity flavors, vitamins, antioxidants and no sugar. It's flavored sparkling water at its best! With the new mystery flavor added to the range, it's also fun!

Everything is better when it's fun!

The kids were pretty keen to put their taste buds to the test and work out just what the Sparkling Ice mystery flavor might be. With no color and no clues on the label, the girls were stumped when it came to guessing the flavor, so we moved straight onto the best bit: tasting it.

Well, all three girls had completely different ideas about what they thought the mystery flavor was after tasting it, but there was one thing they all agreed on. It was delicious! Ava decided that it tasted like blue raspberry flavor. Lola said it tastes like "fake cherry, but a really good fake cherry. Not like medicine". Mathilde declared that it tastes like "strawberry mixed up in lemon, but it's too bubbly for me". Ha! To be honest, I feel like I could taste all those flavors when I tried it. The girls are onto something! Make sure to keep reading to the end for your chance to take a guess at the Sparkling Ice mystery flavor and win big.