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My amazing sister, Lisa, just sent me another cute children's heathly eating cookbook (just because she's nice and super thoughtful) that I love to read. And I've been thinking a lot lately about how I can improve the sugary cereal for breakfast situation that Blake is in without having to get up at 5 am with him. And this was the perfect solution. (Except there's kind of a lot of butter in this recipe, so I think I'll try to reduce it a little next time) So thanks, Lisa! Your book will not only help Ella in a couple of months, but it's helping Blake out now! And you should try this recipe out, too.
Cereal Fruit Cupcakes
makes 12
7 T butter
1/3 C honey
1-3/4 C rolled oats
1-3/4 C unsweetened crispy rice cereal
1 T white sesame seeds
1 C mixed dried fruit (I used dried cranberries and apples), chopped
1/3 C toasted cashews (or any other type of nut you want)
- Melt the butter and honey in a small pan over low heat.
- Mix the rolled oats, crispy rice, sesame seeds, dried fruit, and chopped nuts together in a bowl. Add the melted butter and honey, and stir to combine.
- Sponn into a muffin pan lined with peper liners and press down well. Place in the fridge for at least 6 hours.
For Easter dinner I made a Garlic Lemon and Rosemary Roasted Chicken with roasted veggies and caramelized green beans on the side. I think I ate too much ... or this food was super rich compared to what we've been eating lately because I feel a little heavy, but it was sure worth it! And it was so easy. Roasted chicken is such an inexpensive and easy way to make something fancy.
Garlic Lemon Rosemary Roasted Chicken with Root Vegetables.
1 whole chicken
2 whole lemons, cut into quarters
2 heads of garlic, cut in half height-wise
4 T butter, room temperature
zest of 1 lemon
3 cloves o garlic, minced very fine
1/2 t dried or 2 T fresh rosemary, chopped fine
salt and pepper to taste
3 carrots, scrubbed and cut into 1 inch pieces at an angle
3 Russet potatoes, cut into 1 inch chunks
1 large onion, cut into eighths
6 cloves garlic
1 T olive oil
salt and pepper to taste- Preheat the oven to 425°. Toss the potatoes, carrots, onions, salt and pepper, and olive oil together in a 9x13 metal baking pan. push them all to the sides to make room for the chicken. Place all of the garlic cloves in the middle to go under the chicken.
- Pat the chicken dry and place on a cutting board. (I line mine with paper towels to avoid any excess liquid from dripping anywhere) Season the cavity of the chicken with about 1 t salt and 1/4 t pepper. Place the lemon quarters and garlic heads into the cavity. Using some kitchen twine, tie the legs together. Tuck the wings under as well.
- In a small bowl, combine the butter, lemon zest, minced garlic, and rosemary. Rub all over the top of the bird. Place the chicken in the roasting pan with the vegetables, on top of the garlic cloves. Place in a 425° oven and cook for about 1 hour, until an instant read thermometer inserted at the thickest part of the thigh (avoiding the bone) reads 160°.
- Once the chicken is fully cooked, place it on a platter and cover with some foil. Mash up the garlic that was underneath. Toss the mashed garlic with the rest of the vegetables and place back in the oven for another 5~10 minutes.
Garlicky Green Beans
1~2 lbs green beans
3~4 coves garlic, smashed and peeled
1 T olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
- In a deep skillet, heat oil over medium heat until shimmering. Add green beans, garlic, salt and pepper. Cover and let cook for 10~15 minutes, shaking often, until some beans are caramelized and browned. The beans should still have a slight bite to them, but shouldn't be tender-crisp (this is the one vegetable I like pretty soft).
A couple of years ago I discovered that the $1 section at Target has little planters, so I bought one and ... it was definitely $1 quality since it didn't even sprout. My mom bought one, though, and had the hugest basil plant and I was super jealous. Anyway, this year I decided to give the mini green house plants a try, and my basil is sprouting! I have successfully planted a seed that grew! So I can't wait until I can start trimming basil leaves off of this little guy and eat lots and lots of tomatoes and basil this Summer. Mmmmm!
7 T butter
