I came across this recipe on pinterest and decided to give it a try.  Not only is it a great dairy-free snack, it also fits right in to our Olympic Cooking plans since churros very popular in Mexico.


To make churros, you need:
1 cup water
2 1/2 TBSP white sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 TBSP vegetable oil
1 cup all-purpose flour
~2 quarts oil for frying
1/2 cup white sugar, or to taste
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

To make the dough, heat water over medium heat.  Add sugar, salt, and oil and heat until boiling.  Remove from heat.  Stir in flour.  Dough will start to form a giant clump.  Allow the dough to cool for a few minutes.  Use a piping bag or make one out of parchment paper.  Add the dough to the bag and gently squeeze out the dough into the shape you desire (in this case hearts).  These are about as thick as my thumb.  The dough should make 4-5 hearts, depending on the size and thickness of your piping.


Remove the churros from the oil and allow to cool on a plate lined with paper towel.  Once they have cooled a bit, combine the sugar and cinnamon on a plate.  One at a time, take the churros and roll them around in the sugar.  It should easily stick.  Sprinkle over areas that cannot be reached by rolling.  These are best served warm.

I am really appreciating the cooler weather that we've been experiencing the last few days!  I love summer but it's nice to have a break from the heat.  The kids love to play outside but when the temps are in the 90s or higher, they have to keep cool somehow. 

We've had fun making all sorts of cool snack creations this summer.  I know, I know.  I should have posted about them as we made them.  I tried but time just gets away from me.  Now that my eldest two are in school again, I find that I have a few moments to post about a couple of them. So, if it interests you, file these ideas away for the next blazing hot day.

Frozen Grapes!  According to Boo, these taste like little bursts of cool sugar.  They have been a hit all summer long, both for the kids and for me.  Nothing better than a sweet healthy snack instead of that bowl of ice cream I keep craving at night.

We use our jelly bean Jello mold to freeze the grapes.  You can just put them in a bowl and freeze them that way too, just make sure that the grapes aren't still damp when you put them in or they will get frozen to each other.  Leave them in for a few hours and then enjoy.  They will keep in the freezer for about two weeks.




Another cool treat is to make fruity ice cubes.  We served these in lemonade, water and, on the rare special occasion, in Sprite!

 To make these, just fill your ice cube tray with water and add some clean, freshly cut fruit.  Here we used strawberries, blueberries, red grapes and green grapes but you could use pineapple or kiwi or whatever you'd like.  Freeze them until solid and enjoy!


Finally, Chip and I have been making orange strawberry slushies since I was pregnant with Boo.  This summer I made some popscicles out of some for the kids.  They've repeatedly asked me for them so they must have been a hit!

To make these, use 1/2 quart of fresh strawberries (or frozen if you must), 1/2 a can of frozen orange juice concentrate, some sugar (to taste - I usually use about 2 TBSP) and a cup of water.  Put them all in the blender and blend.

If you are going to drink it as a slush, add more water to get the consistency you prefer.  I like mine very thick so I sometimes add ice.  If you are making popscicles, just pour it into the mold and freeze.


I hope these concoctions are helpful for you.  They are nice healthy snacks to keep cool in the hot summer sun.

To kick off our Olympic celebration, I made rice crispy treat torches - both regular and mini-sized. We will be enjoying them during the opening ceremonies tonight!


To make these, you'll need a bag of marshmallows, some ice cream cones (whatever kind you'd like - I used green ones and child cones), red food coloring, and yellow & orange sugar crystals. Make rice rispie treats following the linked recipe. Add a bit of red food coloring while you are melting the marshmallows. Remember that you can always add more color, but you can't really take it out once you've put it in! Finish the recipe as directed. Let the mixture cool for a few minutes and then push it into the cone, gently twisting the top into a flame-like shape. Roll in yellow and orange sugar crystals or sprinkles and let cool. Enjoy!

Tonight was our last t-ball game of the season. Chip is on a camping trip so I thought I'd try to make it a special night by making some home-made ice cream sandwiches for dessert before the game.


I used some refrigerated mint chocolate chip cookie dough to make 6 cookies and some vanilla ice cream for the filling. Success! The kids loved them!


Little did I know that the snack after the game would be ice cream sandwiches! Oh well.

It's fall and I'm finally beginning to get in the mood for Halloween. For the kids snack today, I made oreo cookie spiders. Bug asked me why the "eerios" were orange and I thought that was a fitting name for Halloween oreos.


Anyway, for a quick, easy (aka no baking!) Halloween cookie treat, use Oreos, craisins and black licorice.



Cut the licorice in half lengthwise and width wise. Open the Oreo and gently push the licorice into the filling. Dab a little of the filling in the center onto 2 craisins and place the craisins on the top cookie. Put the top back on the cookie and there you have it! Eerio cookies!

Well, it's my birthday and since I wanted a fun dessert, I decided to make myself a frozen yogurt pie. This is one of my all time favorites and has got to be one of the easiest recipes ever!


To make your own frozen yogurt pie, you'll need:



2 cartons of flavored yogurt (pick your favorite)
some fresh or frozen fruit that will go with the flavor of your yogurt
1/2 carton of whipped cream
a pre-made graham pie crust


Mix the yogurt, fruit and whipped cream together in a large mixing bowl. (Sorry for the crappy picture)



Pour into pie crust. (You can decorate the top with some leftover fruit if you'd like)

Freeze for about 8 hours (or overnight for best results).

Set out for about an hour before you want to cut it if it is frozen solid.




And, with the leftover fruit, I made these graham cracker sandwiches for the kids for after school snacks. Graham crackers, whipped cream and berries. Yummy!!!