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Real Solutions for Real Parents by Autumn Rose Reo

Celebrate Halloween & Dia de los Muertos with NEW SPOOKtacular Gluten-Free Halloween Desserts Cookbook {Recipe}

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I love Halloween. 

 However, with two little ones in a bilingual school, the shift of candy, horror films and slimy gore has turned into understanding the culture and history of Dia de los Muertos or “Day of the Dead.” 
In Latin America, on Dia de los Muertos, Nov. 1, the lives of the deceased are celebrated with food, drink, parties, and activities the dead enjoyed in life.  The most familiar symbol of Dia de los Muertos are the calacas and calaveras (skeletons and skulls), that are often seen symbolizing the holiday. 

 Not always able to find ways to help my kids learn about Dia de los Muertos, I was excited to find this recipe in a new organic cookbook SPOOKtacular Gluten-Free Halloween Desserts.  A marriage made in heaven, this cookbook by Kanta and Vitura Barrios, also celebrates both Halloween and Dia de los Muertos through food with an added healthy bonus of gluten-free and dairy-free cooking. 


So I’m sharing the recipe the Barrios family has given my permission to share in hopes you too will appreciate and enjoy just one part of a beautiful, cultural event, Dia de los Muertos. 

MEXICAN CATRINAS & CALAVERAS (PECAN COOKIES)
(4 or 5 Catrinas and 6 Calaveras) 
INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup raw coconut oil or butter, softened
3/4 cup raw sugar (coconut or demerara sugar), pulverized
1 large egg
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
2 ½ cups quinoa flour (plus extra flour for rolling the dough)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon cinnamon powder
3/4 cup finely ground pecans (pecan meal)
Skull Template and Catrina Template and a gingerbread lady cookie cutter of a similar size
(for decorating)
2 batches Royal Icing (see page 6)
Food coloring in white, red, orange
Green, yellow, and black edible ink pen
Icing piping bags with #2 and #3 tips, 1 for white and another for the other colors
Edible orange sugar sparkles (plus any other color you like) a steady hand
ROYAL ICING (covers 6 – 8 cookies)
1 large egg white (could be pasteurized)
1½ cups powdered sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
  • Using an electric mixer, beat the egg white for a few seconds before adding the sugar and half of the lemon juice.
  • The icing’s consistency should be smooth and heavy cream-like.
  • Add the remaining lemon juice (and more if you feel it’s needed) one drop at a time. You may also add more sugar to suit your liking.
  • Just a few drops of liquid, more or less, will alter the icing’s consistency. 
  • We recommend a thicker icing for outlining the cookie, and thinner icing for filling out the inside.
  • Line a baking tray with parchment paper.
  • In a mixing bowl, beat the oil, sugar, egg, and vanilla until the mixture is a creamy consistency.
  • In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, and ground pecans.
  • Add the dry mixture to the oil mixture and beat well.
  • Transfer the mixture to a board, and knead it just enough to make it a dough. 
  • Sprinkle some flour on the counter, and roll the dough to ¼-inch thickness. If you are making skulls, cut out the shape using the template provided.
  • For the Catrinas, follow the template provided or find a gingerbread lady cookie cutter of a similar size.
  • Place the cookies on the lined baking tray and bake for 10 to 15 minutes. 
  • Let the cookies cool completely before icing and decorating.


 To Decorate

For the Catrinas, divide 1 batch of Royal Icing, and color it white, red, green, yellow, and black. 
You decide how much of each color you want to have. You have a couple of options for decorating this cookie. The first involves using the Catrina stencil and the writing pen. In the final Catrina, the background behind the skeleton will be the cookie itself. 

  • Start by drawing the outline of the Catrina with her skirt, hat, bones, and head straight onto the cookie.
  • Pick a color for the Royal Icing (red, green, or yellow) and use that color icing in a piping bag with a #3 tip to outline the skirt and hat. Once the icing sets, fill in the skirt and hat with the same color. Let the icing set. 
  • Using white icing in the piping bag with a #3 tip, outline the skull, vertebrae, ribs, bone arms, and fingers.
  • Fill the eyes, nose, and mouth with the black icing, using a #2 tip.
  • Finish with design details on the skirt, hat, and earrings using another color or colors and the #2 tip.
If you are looking for further materials and ways to teach your kids about Dia de los Muertos, check out this site at National Geographic! 



Best Pumpkin Recipes on Pinterest Put to the Test on TV

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When someone gives me a challenge, I take it. Head on. This time it’s the best pumpkin recipes on Pinterest. And I accepted gladly.

 


And when it has to do with Pumpkin + Pinterest, we’ll that’s the best kind of challenge, right?

This morning I put together three recipes I found on Pinterest to the test on WFAA’s Good Morning Texas for their Pumpkin-Palooza! Check out what I made and best of all, the recipes are here, too!

 

 

 

Three Ingredient Pumpkin Doughnuts

Inspired from http://sugarinhertea.blogspot.com/2013/09/three-ingredient-pumpkin-dooughnuts.html

 
 
Ingredients
1 box of spice cake mix (just the powder) 
1 15 oz can of pumpkin 
3 tablespoons of water

 Instructions

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees, and spray your doughnut pan. 
Mix the three ingredients in a large bowl, and that’s it!! 
If the mixture seems a little dry, add a bit more water. 
Spoon the mixture into your pan and bake for 13 minutes. 

Optional:
Maple Glaze Recipe:
1 cup powdered sugar 
2 tablespoons maple syrup 
3 tablespoons milk

Pumpkin Pie Fudge with Nutella & Marshmallow Cream Swirl
 

Ingredients
1 bag Pumpkin Spice Hershey Kisses
1 cup White Chocolate Chips or White Melting Chocolate
1 can Sweetened Condensed Milk
1/4 c. Nutella
1/4 c. Marshmallow Cream

 
Instructions
  • Place chocolate in a medium sauce pot, pour sweetened condensed milk over top. Over LOW heat, melt the sweetened condensed milk and chocolate together, stirring constantly until smooth and pulling away from the edges of the pot.
  • Pour into a wax paper lined 8×8 baking dish (I usually lightly grease the wax paper too).
  • Use zip top baggies to pipe the nutella and marshmallow cream over top of the fudge. Swirl in with a knife.
  • Chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour to set.
 

Pumpkin Better Than… Cake
 

Ingredients
1 box yellow cake mix
14 oz pumpkin puree (NOT PUMPKIN PIE FILLING)
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
8 oz. tub cool whip
1/2 bag Heath Bits
Caramel Sundae Sauce
 
 
Instructions
  • Mix together the cake mix, the pumpkin puree (DO NOT add the other ingredients on the cake mix box), and the pumpkin pie spice until a batter forms. 
  • Using the 14 oz. can of pumpkin puree will yield a thicker batter. You can add up to 1 cup more pumpkin if you’d like a thinner batter (which will yield a slightly fluffier cake).
  • Pour batter into a well greased 9×9 (9×13 if you added more pumpkin) baking dish. Bake at 350º for 35-45 minutes until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
  • Let cool completely after baking. 
  • Using the bottom of a wooden spoon, poke holes all over the top of the cake.
  • Pour the sweetened condensed milk over the cake, aiming to fill the holes. 
  • Refrigerate for 60 minutes or until the sweetened condensed milk has soaked into the cake.
  • Spread the cool whip over the top of the cake. 
  • Sprinkle on the heath bits, and drizzle caramel over top (just to your liking). 
  • Refrigerate for 3-4 hours, or overnight (best).
Do you love or hate pumpkin?
 
 
 
 

 

Autumn Does Autumn Tablescapes on TV (with A LOT of help from GiggleGalore.net)

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Who better else to talk about autumn than Autumn, right? 

Actually, when I was asked to do two segment on Autumn tablescapes, I knew I need to bring in some “reinforcements” to show viewers it is possible to create functional, beautiful displays that aren’t just pretty, but memory making as well.  So I rang up one of the most amazing local DFW event goddesses and bloggers, Mariah from GigglesGalore.net, to put together a segment that would make Pottery Barn jealous. 

 Take a look at what we did for a kids’ table, every day dining, brunch with the girls and a formal dining experience that can take your fall from drab to fab – with things you can find in your house, your backyard and your local craft store. 

I think you can agree to say, she outdid herself with these perfect expressions of fall. 


Why We Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month

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Food Fridays: 

I’m not a very good Mexican. 


While I may be half, I don’t speak Spanish and much to my hubby’s dismay, I don’t make tortillas or a mean batch of tamales. I don’t celebrate Mexican Independence Day and there was no quinceanera for me growing up. However, it was during college working for the office of equity and diversity and a job that allowed me to recognize individuals at the University of North Texas who had impacted diversity efforts, I began to understand the importance of embracing everything about you – including the part of me that I didn’t recognize much. 

Now as a parent, while I have not celebrated my ethnic heritage, I felt it was very important my kids were exposed of the Hispanic culture and also to attempt to learn the language to make them more rounded individuals, especially in Texas when almost 40% of the population is of Hispanic descent. That’s why I enrolled my kids in a bilingual school called Spanish Schoolhouse that actually teaches the Spanish language along with other preschool – kindergarden skills. It never ceases to amaze me when I hear my 5-year-old speak converse in Spanish with native speakers without any issues or help! Now he not only is he learning to communicate with others, but we are enabling the opportunity to communicate in another language. 


So this week as we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, several activities at school have had us busy this week like dress day and our first big project, a report on Venezuela. Of course that also meant we wanted to make it fun, so I went off to find arepas, a traditional Venezuelan “bun” made of cornmeal and filled with meats like pollo (chicken), bistec (steak) and basically anything else you want.

Since mama was busy for work with a huge week of events, that meant I needed to find a place that made arepas instead of attempt to learn how. I had no idea how hard that request would be! But I was able to track down a place that had them, order them from a woman who doesn’t speak English and here’s what we have ready for our special presentation! 

Overall, I feel I’m providing an opportunity and a chance for my children to be more successful that I have been in my lifetime by being a good communicator. Additionally, I’m helping them to be more rounded individuals to learn other cultures and histories so they can be respectful of people that may seem different, but in actuality are just like them or in their case, just like their mom. 








Chicken Dance or Polka Prance But Don’t Get Up on the Table: Addison Oktoberfest Songs

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I’ve been going to the Addison Oktoberfest for several years now…perhaps it’s because I help to promote the event, but honestly, I would even if I didn’t get paid to (yes, it’s that fun.) It’s actually considered one of my perks for the year (along with Taste Addison, the Dallas Chocolate Conference & Festival and several other fun & tasty events and organizations I get the pleasure of promoting the good word for throughout DFW.) However, I will admit my first year at Oktoberfest, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. And even seven years later, I still wonder the same thing:)

Since “induction” is part of the job, I do my best to help describe for others what they should expect for their “first time.” While I think there’s nothing like diving in headfirst into this event – dances, dirndls and all, I figured I would share at least the words to a few of the songs that will probably be heard at least 100 times while you are in the Schloss Addison Tent (aka Main Tent.) If you are having a good time, you’ll probably have a stein of Paulaner in hand and then suddenly the crowd will go wild with one of these little numbers:

“No Beer in Heaven” 

 No Beer in Heaven
In Heaven, there is no beer
That’s why we drink it here.
And when we’re gone from here, Our friends will be drinking all the beer!

And let’s not forget my personal favorite:

“Ein Pro-sit”

Ein Prosit, Ein Prosit, der gemiitlichkeit
Ein Prosit, Ein Prosit, der gemiitlichkeit
(Cheer!) Eins, zwei, Drei g’suffa!
Zicke, zacke, zicke, zacke, hoi, hoi, hoi,
Zicke, zacke, zicke, zacke, hoi, hoi, hoi,
Prosit

Don’t worry you really don’t need to learn them. The fun of this event is that after a few minutes you feel like you are just hanging with around 2000 of your best friends in Addison for a good time singing your alma mater. Just do me a favor, please try to overcome the need to jump on the table…

You’ll understand once you’re there. 




Make Your Own Fireworks Fun with Monthly Kids Craft Program Kiwi Crate

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I received a free product for the purposes of the review. No compensation was provided. All the comments are my own. 

 Are you one of those moms that is totally crafty and makes all kinds of cute things for the holidays and then posts a how-to video on YouTube? 

 

Well I’m so excited you are,  because I’m not. I wish I was, but at this juncture in life all I can say is Thank goodness for Pinterest! 

And thank goodness for Kiwi Crate! Launched in 2011 by executives from eBay, PayPal, YouTube and BabyCenter, Kiwi Crate sends you fun, hands-on projects for kids ages 3-7 monthly.  Kiwi Crate’s arts, crafts and science projects are developed by parents, reviewed by child development experts and tested by kids.  Projects are created around themes like gardens, space or colors, and designed to encourage creativity, exploration and discovery and conveniently in this cute little box. 


I was so happy to share craft time with son when all the thinking was out of it with my Rocket Party Pack from Kiwi Crate. Celebrating Independence Day, the simple packet gave us everything we needed to make 10 rockets that my kiddo could blast off in the air by just blowing on the straw. Best of all, I didn’t have to research a craft idea, get all the materials together and figure out how to do it. It was all in the box and we just opened it and went straight to having fun! 


 
Kiwi Crate has received multiple awards honoring quality and creativity, including a Gold Seal Best Toy Award from Stephanie Oppenheim’s prestigious Toy Portfolio, the Parents’ Choice Gold Award, and Academic’s Choice award. Kiwi Crate was also named by Dr. Toy as a “Ten Best Creative Product” and “100 Best Children’s Products” of 2012.

Kiwi Crate’s monthly subscription service available at www.kiwicrate.com, starts at $16.95 per month with free shipping.  Kiwi Crate also offers single crates available without a subscription for $19.95 each; as well as party favors and activities, starting at $5 each at www.kiwicrate.com/shop.  Additionally, Kiwi Crate offers a collection of over 1,500 free hands-on project ideas at www.kiwicrate.com/diy.

Go Red, White and Blue with Kenny’s Blue Cheese Potato Salad {Recipe}

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Food Fridays:

 One of the great things about my job is that I get to work with some pretty amazing chefs and restaurants. This means most the time I’ve gotten to sample their menu or at least several different offerings. However, it doesn’t mean that I’ve tasted it all. So this week I was elated to finally get my hands on menu items I’ve described at Kenny’s Smoke House, in Plano but never had my taste buds get in on the fun. 

I will admit – BBQ is not my first food pick. I can enjoy it, but I don’t normally crave for it. But my hubs does, so we make our rounds to the BBQ joints. But I will tell you that after biting into one of the juicy brisket slices, I was pretty well on my way to BBQ heaven. It was good, flavorful, juicy and just the perfect amount of fat and meat. And it smelled SO good. 


 But I had to move on to try more- the smoked turkey. Unfortunately by the time I got to the turkey, there wasn’t any left. (I had two kiddos chow down and finish it in a matter of minutes.) While I was dissapointed, I still had one more thing to bite into – Blue Cheese Potato Salad. 



 A great play on the classic recipe, this was my kind of potato salad, featuring the pungent flavor of blue cheese, bacon and red potatoes. Just looking at the bowl, it screamed “this is July 4th.”  And did I mention I took down the whole bowl? 

 So using my “insider connections,” I was able to get the recipe. Which is good because I needed to make more of this stuff and being that next week is Independence Day, now was the perfect time. And now I’m sharing it with you. 


Kenny’s Smoke House Blue Cheese Potato Salad

4 Lbs Red Skin Potatoes (Chopped, 1/2 Inch)
2-1/2 Cups Blue Cheese Dressing (Favorite)
1 Tsp Salt
1 Tbs White Sugar
Pinch Cayenne Pepper
2 Tbs White Vinegar
1 Cup Bacon, Cooked, Chopped
1 Cup Blue Cheese Crumbles

 Place cut potatoes in boiling water and boil until soft (approx 15 minutes).

 Drain potatoes and let cool.

 In a separate bowl, combine all other ingredients except bacon and blue cheese to make dressing. Mix well with whisk.

When potatoes have cooled to where they can be touched (still warm) combine with dressing and mix well. Crush some potatoes so that it comes together and is not too soupy.

Refrigerate until chilled.

Garnish with bacon and blue cheese.

Enjoy! 

The Cost of Being a Mom

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Happy Mother’s Day!
Hopefully you’re enjoying Mother’s Day with brunch, relaxation and a little mommy love. However, but as moms we know that being a mom is normally not a glamourous or rewarding job, but it’s someone’s got to do it. (And when you see your babies’ faces, then you know exactly why you do it!

Easter Basket Idea: Hatch & Grow Your Own Easter Bunny, Chick or Duck!

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DISCLAIMER: I received one or more of the mentioned products for the sole purpose of this review. No other compensating was given and all opinions expressed are 100 percent my own. (Accordance with FTC’s 16 CFR Part 255, “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”)
I’m all about creating a memorable holiday for my kids, but with a two kiddos under 4, the thought of creating an Easter basket, full of candy, just doesn’t seem like a good idea! However, neither are stuffed animals or just more of the junk they already have. But when these Hide ‘Em & Hatch ‘Ems landed in my mailbox, I knew that I had to hide them from my kids because there was no one way they would be able to wait if they saw them! 

These pastel-colored eggs are great for hiding or filling the Easter basket…but here’s the twist: simply soak them in water overnight and out will “hatch” some new friends…a duck, chick or bunny!

Kids will be amazed and parents will delight in the fact that there’s no candy involved.

Hatch ’ems were the #1 Easter product on Amazon.com, but you can still score yours now – just in time for Easter!



During our first hatch, it took several days for the chick to hatch, so I want to share tips to ensure your egg hatches within just one day!
Instructions for the Best Experience with the Hide ’em & Hatch ’em Eggs!

1.  Place the eggs in ROOM TEMPERATURE water (this is critical to the grow process!)  Make sure the eggs are completely submerged.

2.  In 6 – 12 hours you will see small cracks in the shell.  At this point you can help your little friend out by cracking the shell (just like a mamma might need to do for her hatchling) or you can change the water and let it continue to grow.

3.  You will notice the water (and the baby) will be slippery.  This is the material that allows it to grow – it is necessary to change the water so your new friend can grow completely.

4.  Continue to change the water daily until your animal hatches on its own or until the animal is done growing.

5.  Enjoy your new friend – Once removed from the water shrinkage will probably occur but the animal will harden and is fun to play with! (Our little friend went on a train ride once he hatched!)

We hatched a chick our first-round, but we can’t wait to see what we hatch next! 

I’d love to see your photos of your little friends! Please share! 

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