SUGAR COOKIES

We decorated cookies with the kids yesterday. What fun! :)

Before I show you all the pictures (taken on my phone by the way,) I'll show you the recipe. I found it on Mel's Kitchen Cafe. Great website with a ton of recipes! You should go check it out. I just changed a couple things. I didn't add almond extract (Sammy's allergic) and I didn't add lemon zest (we didn't have any lemons.) So if you want to see the original recipe click here. Here is the recipe that I used.

Sugar Cookies

All You Need Is (LOVE):

• 1 1/2 cups butter, softened to cool room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 5 cups flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt

What to Do:

1. Preheat oven to 400˚F
2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugars for 3-4 minutes until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each egg. Add vanilla extract and mix. Add two cups of flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix. Add remaining flour and mix until flour is incorporated and the dough is soft and smooth.
3. Dust a counter with powdered sugar or flour and roll the dough to desired thickness. 1/4 inch works well. Cut the dough into shapes. Place the cookies on a lightly greased baking sheet. Bake for 7-8 minutes. The cookies will not be brown. Don't over bake them.
4. Cool completely before frosting.

Before I Go:

I didn't cut them into shapes. I just spooned them onto the cookie sheets. I made little cookies with half the dough and one giant cookie with the rest of the dough. The giant cookie took approximately 15 minutes. I kept checking the oven to make sure that it fully cooked and didn't over bake. And it turned out perfectly. The kids laughed at seeing such a big cookie. These cookies are excellent for frosting. They are so soft that they melt in your mouth. They aren't that sweet, so they aren't "stand alone" sugar cookies to me. But they are perfect with frosting on top. We used Confetti Funfetti frosting because Sammy's not allergic to it. It has no milk. I split it up and added food coloring as shown below. Blue, green, and yellow. We had five types of sprinkles. The confetti sprinkles that came with the frosting, along with a set of four different sprinkles (Carnival sprinkles, star mix, sequins, and dinosaurs) I bought at Sur La Table (LOVE that store!) They had so much fun decorating their own cookies. Sammy quickly ate hers. Kai kept adding more sprinkles. Kona just liked decorating it. He didn't actually eat his, haha. Silly boy. Here are some pictures from our adventures in cookie decorating. Sammy (age 5), Kai (age 4), Kona (age 2).

Supplies are ready:

Ready to decorate sugar cookies

Five types of sprinkles

Blue, green and yellow frosting

Let's decorate!

Finished products :)

Sammy

Kai

Kona

Wait... Take a few bites, add more sprinkles...

A little more... Yes! Hooray! SPRINKLES!!!

I made a GIANT cookie!

And a little "mini-me" cookie.

Yum.

Please leave any questions or comments below. Happy cookie-ing! Thanks for stopping by!

Have a great day!

♥ K i K O ♥

KATNISS-APPROVED PUFFY BUTTERMILK BISCUITS

Here is another recipe from The Unofficial Hunger Games Cookbook. This recipe is called Katniss-Approved Puffy Buttermilk Biscuits. In Chapter 6 of The Hunger Games, Katniss orders this dish along with a side of goose liver in her Capitol living quarters. I just posted a recipe for Katniss's Favorite Lamb Stew with Dried Plums. I made these biscuits to eat with the stew. Such a simple recipe for tasty biscuits.

Katniss-Approved Puffy Buttermilk Biscuits

All You Need is (LOVE):

• 3 cups flour
• 3 Tbsp white sugar
• 4 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 cup (2 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 1 1/4 cups buttermilk

What to Do:

1. Preheat oven to 425˚ F.
2. Blend flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in a large bowl.
3. Using fingertips, rub chilled butter into dry ingredients until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add buttermilk and stir until evenly moistened.
4. Using 1/4 cup of dough for each biscuit, drop biscuits onto a well-greased baking sheet, spacing about 2 inches apart. Using a spoon, flatten top of each biscuit. Bake until biscuits are golden brown on top, about 15 minutes. Cool slightly. Serve warm.

Before I Go:

This is just a really simple and easy buttermilk biscuit recipe. So give it a try. It is so tasty with strawberry jam. Yum! They also go well with stews and chili. Please leave any comments or questions below. Thank you for stopping by!

Have a great day!

♥ K i K O ♥

KATNISS'S FAVORITE LAMB STEW WITH DRIED PLUMS

The Hunger Games movie finally arrived in theaters this past weekend. Hooray!!! So in honor of this momentous occasion, I decided to cook Katniss's favorite dish from the Capitol. Lamb Stew with Dried Plums. In Chapter 9 of The Hunger Games, when Caesar Flickerman asks Katniss in her interview, "What's impressed you most since you arrived here?" Katniss honestly answers, "The lamb stew." So there you go. I found this recipe in The Unofficial Hunger Games Cookbook. You should definitely check out this cookbook. It is truly amazing. Thank you Emily Baines. There are more than 150 recipes inspired by The Hunger Games Trilogy. I am so excited just thinking about it. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins is my favorite book ever. Here's what the cookbook looks like. So cool, right? I know!

Katniss's Favorite Lamb Stew with Dried Plums

All You Need Is (LOVE):

• 5 lbs of lamb fillet, shoulder or leg, cut into 2" pieces
• 2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup flour
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup water
• 4 cups beef broth
• 2 tsp white sugar
• 3 tsp brown sugar
• 3 cups diced carrots
• 1 cups diced zucchini
• 1 1/2 cups diced celery
• 2 large onions, diced
• 3 potatoes, cubed
• 5 cups dried plums
• 2 tsp dried thyme
• 3 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
• 2 tsp chopped fresh basil
• 1 tsp chopped fresh parsley
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 cups ginger ale

What to Do:

1. Place lamb, salt, pepper, and flour in a large mixing bowl. Toss to coat meat evenly.
2. Heat olive oil in a large pan and brown the meat, working in batches if you have to.
3. Remove lamb to a side plate. Pour off fat, leaving 1/4 cup in the pan.  Add the garlic and onion and sauté until the onion becomes golden. Deglaze frying pan with the 1/2 cup water, taking care to scrape the bottom of the pan to stir up all of the tasty bits of meat and onion.  Cook to reduce liquid slightly, then remove from heat.
4. Place the lamb and garlic-onion mixture in a large stockpot. Add beef stock and sugars, stirring until sugars are dissolved.  Bring mixture to a boil, cover, reduce to low heat and simmer for 1 1/2 hours.
5. Add the vegetables, dried plums, herbs, and ginger ale to the pot. Simmer for 30-45 minuted, or until meat and vegetables pierce easily with a fork.

Before I Go:

The recipe in the cookbook calls for 5 pounds of lamb and yields 8-10 servings. Due to the fact that I was cooking for three kids and two nannies, I just used one pound of lamb. Therefore, I only made a quarter of the recipe I just showed you. But I halved the amount of beef stock instead of quartering it so that it would be more stew-ish. I also did not add in any herbs. This stew is very rich. The plums give it great taste, but also make it very sweet. Serving with rice helps decrease the impact of this rich Capitol stew. I also made one other thing from the cookbook to go along with it. Shown in the picture above are Katniss-Approved Puffy Buttermilk Biscuits. They are extremely delicious as well.

Curious as to what the inside of this cookbook looks like? Take a peek at this stew recipe by clicking on the images below. Thank you for stopping by. I hope you enjoy this recipe. Let me know in the comments below if you try this recipe and how it turns out for you. Don't worry, it's not as scary as it looks. It's actually fairly easy if you follow the steps. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to leave them in the comment section below. Oh, and have you read The Hunger Games Trilogy? Do you absolutely love it? I sure do! I got Phylicia hooked on the books as well. If you have not read them, read them now. Before you make the stew. Get hooked too! Haha. Thank you for stopping by!

Have a great day!

♥ K i K O ♥

A Picnic!

The other day, I was talking to Kai (the four-year old boy) and he said, "Kiko, do you know what's a picnic?" "What's a picnic, Kai?" I asked. "A picnic is where you get food and a blanket and you put the blanket on a hill and you eat on a hill!" he excitedly answered. So I said, "Well, we need to go on a picnic sometime then, huh?" "Yeah!"

The weather has been so beautiful for the past few days. So when I picked up Kai and Kona from school yesterday, I decided to surprise them with a picnic. Phylicia got home as I was preparing the picnic, so I asked if she'd like to join us. She said yes of course. 2 Nannies! Whoohoo! So Phylicia, Kai, Kona, and I went to a surprise hill for a picnic. Kai was so excited!  I thought I'd share some of the pictures I'd taken on my phone of our somewhat impromptu picnic.

Kai (4) & Kona (2)

2 Nannies & 2 Boys

 Kai posing behind his art

Kai and Kona created this piece of art for our picnic

Have a great day!

♥ K i K O ♥

Kiko & Phylicia Weight Loss Competition

Hello, to the people! Kiko and Phylicia are having a weight loss competition with each other. Curious as to what this means or entails? Check out our "Weight Loss Competition Contract" from Round One. Here's kinda what it looked like (we used "X" and "Y" to represent our weight because really, y'all ain't need to know all that! Haha.)

Weight Loss Competition Contract

Kiko is to do Weight Watchers program starting August 1, 2011

Phylicia is to do Naturally Thin "program/book" starting August 1, 2011

Whoever meets their goal weight first is the winner and is to receive a prize from the other player.

No stopping the program. No changing goal weight, unless changing to a lower goal weight. No unhealthy means of weight loss!

Goal weight and starting weight must be put into writing. Proof of achievement of goal weight must be shown to the other player on the scale.

Prize to be determined by players.

Phylicia's starting weight is X

Phylicia's goal weight is X-30

Kiko's starting weight is Y

Kiko's goal weight is Y-55

Signatures at the bottom

Kiko won Round One. "Whoohoo!" she cheers. However, she realized that she still has a lot more to loose to get to be where she wants to be. Hence, Round Two. Oh, and if you are wondering, we still don't know what the "prize" will be. Silly girls.

This is round two. Round one took place from August 1, 2011 - March 2, 2012, when Kiko reached her goal weight of Y-55 pounds. And here is our revised contract:

Kiko & Phylicia Weight Loss Competition Contract: Round Two

Kiko is to do Weight Watchers program

Phylicia is to do Naturally Thin "program/book"

Whoever meets their goal weight first is the winner and is to receive a prize from the other player.

No stopping the program. No changing goal weight, unless changing to a lower goal weight. No unhealthy means of weight loss!

Goal weight and starting weight must be put into writing. Proof of achievement of goal weight must be shown to the other player on the scale.

Prize to be determined by players.

Phylicia's starting weight is X

Phylicia's goal weight is X-30

Kiko's starting weight is Y

Kiko's goal weight is Y-30

Signatures at the bottom

So stay tuned because we are going to be posting about our progress, along with tips, tricks, and other cool stuff each week. We thank you for stopping by and hope you have a happy day!

♥ K i K O  and  P H Y L i C i A ♥

S'MORES COOKIE BARS

Camping. That was one of my favorite things to do as a kid. Spending time with your family. Sleeping in tents. Seeing all of the stars at night. Swimming in the ocean. Sitting next to a cozy campfire. But of course, the thing that I most looked forward to when going camping were the... S'MORES! Graham crackers, chocolate and roasted marshmallows, yes please! Oh how I love to reminisce. Now on to the recipe! I found this recipe for S'mores Cookie Bars on one of my favorite blogs. Definitely go and check out Lovin' From The Oven. She's great and has tons of delicious recipes.


S'mores Cookie Bars

All You Need Is (LOVE):

• 1/2 cup butter (room temperature)
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
• 3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 King-sized Hershey's Bars
• 1 1/2 cups marshmallow fluff/creme

What to Do:

1. Preheat oven to 350˚F. Grease an 8-inch square baking pan.
2. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light. Beat in the egg and vanilla. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder and salt. Add to butter mixture and mix at a low speed until combines.
3. Divide the dough in half and press one half of the dough into an even layer on the bottom of the prepared pan. Place the two chocolate bars side by side over the dough. Spread the marshmallow fluff on top of the chocolate. Place the rest of the dough on top by flattening it into little pieces and laying it over so that the marshmallow layer is completely covered. Then press the dough together so the top layer of cookie is nicely meshed together.
4. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until lightly browned. Cool completely before cutting into bars.

Before I Go:

These are so delicious so be careful not to eat them all at once. Share some with the kids! These taste best when warm. If they don't completely disappear and actually make it into the refrigerator, just heat it up in the microwave for 10 to 15 seconds to warm them up before eating. Still so tasty. Please leave any questions or comments below. I'd love to know if you try these and how they tasted to you. Thank you for stopping by!

Have a great day!

♥ K i K O ♥

NO BAKE ENERGY BITES

So I'm definitely cheating on this post in several ways! I'm going to share a recipe with you however, I did not make it for the kids!! Sammy the 5 year old has a severe allergy to peanuts and tree nuts and a most recent allergy to oats! 2 of the main ingredients in this recipe :( However, I have been wanting to try out this recipe forever and never have! Anyway, I want to share this with you because for those without these allergies it makes for an awesome snack. For kids, it's a good after school snack, healthy dessert, or even an "Ah, were late for school" breakfast! Feel free to store away just for you (Hey! A nanny has got to eat!) Speaking of nanny's eating, i shared these with Kiko and she liked them as much as me!! So here is the original recipe for No Bake Energy Bites..I didn't follow this recipe (I don't know why i cant seem to follow recipes!) so here's my yummy yummy version.

Here's the recipe:
1 c uncooked oats
1/2c Peanut Butter
1/3 c honey
1/4 c crushed walnuts
1 TBSof coco powder
1/2 c chocolate chips
1 tsp vanilla

I first combined the oats, the peanut butter, and the honey and mixed them together. I then combined the walnuts (I just "crushed" them with my hands), coco powder, and the chocolate chips into the oat mixture and mix all together. Lastly , add the vanilla and mix! I took a tablespoon and plopped (very technical cooking term) it into my hand to form a little ball. My batch makes anywhere from 10-16 depending how big I make the balls. Put them into the fridge for just a half and hour and YAY eat up! Love an easy recipe!

Let me know what version you come up with, check the original recipe for all the yummy substitutions you can do also! Questions, concerns, and  comments are always welcome! Thanks and enjoy!
-Phylicia