Gaylord National ICE--The Grinch

I hope you all had a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving.  I am thankful to have all of you in my blog world.  If you have not gotten into the Holiday mood yet, I am sure you will be shopping and decorating soon.  We started this weekend so I will keep you posted about the inexpensive ways to add touches to your home with items you probably have in your backyards or neighborhoods.

But first to start off this holiday season I wanted to share some photos and thoughts on our recent trip to The Gaylord National Hotel.  My daughter won a 2 night stay and ICE package. Well what is ICE you may be asking, oh just 2 million pounds of Ice, sculpted and colored in 10 different scenes in a 9 degree space.  This year was the Grinch Who Stole Christmas.  

 I had never heard of this event until she won the drawing at a Radio Disney event over Halloween weekend.  So we packed up the kids and went to DC for the weekend.  The kids excitement began just pulling up when my 4 year old screamed "they are Christmas".  Interpreted they are decorated for Christmas and yes they are.  You pull into a festival of trees and lights.  The lobby is wonderfully decorated and  the atrium filled with trees , lights, a colored water show, and snow twice nightly.

VIew from outside atrium

Sun Set on the Potomac

Snow flakes in Atrium

The kids were excited, I was a little overwhelmed by the number of people there, it was before thanksgiving even.  This is a large hotel with several amenities for children including a train, $5 a ride, we opted out of this, santa-free to sit with own camera, scavenger hunts and poolside movies (it was too packed and loud to actually hear the movie).    

We had the night to stroll around the Harbor which had some restaurants and shops, definitely on its way to expanding its choices.  I have never been to a PEEP store before! Also saw a sign that Disney was opening up a hotel at the Harbor.

The room was comfortable and modern.  A chocolate-covered PEEP on our pillows.  We enjoyed the buffet breakfast, part of our package normally $20 an adult.  Then set out in our warmest clothing for the ICE Show.

There is a skating rink when you walk in where you can skate all day for $10.  A better deal than at our local skate rink.  A gift shop area and of course the ice show.  Each person is given a large "meat locker" jacket to wear over your own jacket. (Hats and gloves a must)  I will not try to describe the ice I will just show you pictures to see for yourselves.

Tree Made out of PEEPS

Meat Locker jackets

I














In the middle there was an ice slide which the adults enjoyed as well.  We had to pull the kids out of this area as it was getting really cold by now.

It took about 30 minutes to get through the ice part.  Maybe longer for those of you coming from the Far North where 9 degrees is an early spring day!!

We spent the rest of our time in DC at the mall exploring museums as it was only a 15 minute drive.

This will definitely get you in the Holiday spirit if you live within driving distance.  The Gaylord has many packages if you chose to stay there, only one night is needed.  Also get an early am show if possible as we had no wait and those going at 5pm had an hour and 15 minute wait just to get into the ICE area.  (remember this was before Thanksgiving so the waits will only get longer)


READY TO SHOP CYBER MONDAY ClICK HERE FOR GREAT DEALS:

Edible Thanksgiving Placeholders or Party Favors

I am sure most of you have all you need at home already for these adorable and edible cornucopia place holders. (Especially if you kids acquired as much candy as our home on Halloween)

We will use the Turkeys we made last year for the adults, but since our numbers have grown I thought I would make something a little different for the kids.

All you need are the following:

1. Sugar Cones
2. Chocolate chips and sprinkles (optional)
3. Candy-ie Runts, skittles, M&M's, jawbreakers, starbursts etc.
4. Cellophane Bags
5. Paper for place cards

This first step is optional but thought it made them a little more decorative and festive.

Simply melt some chocolate in a microwave safe shallow bowl.  Twist the tops of the cones in the chocolate and then cover with sprinkles.  Allow to dry completely on a drying rack.

Fill with candy.-Runts would be adorable for this activity, we  just did not have any in our Halloween stash. Hershey Kisses and starbursts are great for fillers in the bottom of the cone.

Place in a cellophane bag and close the end with a card.

Also check out the Chocolate placeholders I made last year.

I did these without the kids around so they would not realize how much was taken from their stashes but this would be an easy activity for kids ages 3 and up.

I will try to blog one more time with my favorite pie recipe but if not Happy Thanksgiving!!

Here are some coupons to print for last minute shopping.
$1.00 off Glade Oil Candles decorative glass holder
$2.50 off 3 Life Savers/Starburst Sweet Storybooks
Buy Two Get One FREE DOVE Chocolate Singles Bar
$1.00 off TWO (2) pints of Starbucks Ice Cream
$2.00 off Any Neutrogena Men Product

Tasty Thanksgiving Treats for Kids Young and Old

I thought I would share this post of tasty treats to share with your kids this Thanksgiving.  Put out some frosting and candy and they may not even bother you after dinner!!

I feel that once Halloween is over, retailers skip right to Christmas.  Although my brain is racing with Christmas activities already going on the calender my kids and I had time last week during the non-stop rain to create some fun Thanksgiving sweets.  Pumpkin pie is great but sometime kids want something a little more familiar tasting and cute too.  These would be great for a class party or event as well.  I was thinking of having the kids make the flat turkey cookies as a project on thanksgiving day while the adults prepared dinner.

The first one is simple and you can use any sugar cookie recipe.  For convenience and taste I use the betty Crocker sugar cookie mix.  Make each cookie a little larger than suggested so you get a nice plump turkey.

We made this one in two versions, one in which you frost the entire cookie in frosting and then add the wings (candy Corn) or you can just put frosting on tip to hold the candy corn and eyes.

The second one was a little more tricky not only for the kids but for me too!!  I did not have double stuff oreos and imagine that would have made this project much easier.  Simply pull apart one oreo and place filling side up.  Place the second oreo on its side.  You can put a little extra frosting here if you don't have the double stuff.  Then stick in the sharp side of the candy corn to the top.  Use some frosting if you need to place a whopper for the head.  Cut off the sharp point of the candy corn and place a dab of frosting on the cut end and place on the whopper.  Use some cookie decorating gel to add eyes.

  

We can not forget the Pilgrims. These were more mommy hands on!  Melt some chocolate in a double boiler-I raided the Halloween stashes and cut up Hershey's bars.  I added a tsp of  shortening to the melted product to make it more smooth.


Place Fudge Stripe cookies face down on a cookie sheet.  ( I bought the generic brand at Kroger, $2.00 less.  I was not sure how they would taste but no complaints here.  However it has been a long time since I have had the original)

Skewer a large marshmallow and dip into the chocolate. Take the time to make it even as possible.  Place the marshmallow onto the middle of the cookie.

 Once you are done with all the cookies, place the cookie sheet into the fridge to cool completely.  Using frosting doodle make the hat clip.

This was my 3 year olds interpretation of the activity!

Ok, once I started with the chocolate and had some left over I wanted to try an experiment and make the chocolate pretzels treats into a thanksgiving theme.
 For the pilgram hats, coat a small marshmallow with chocolate and let cool.
Place a chocolate disc onto a square pretzel.  Place in a 200 degree oven for 3 to 5 minutes. Checking to see if the chocolate is melting.  Place the chocolate marshmallow into the middle of the disc.  Add a mini yellow M& M for the buckle.

For theTurkeys, Cut red, yellow and orange regular size M& M's in half.I found using a serrated knife was easiest.  Cut off the tips of candy corn for beaks.   Place 3 halves down on the melted disc for the feathers and a candy corn for the beak.
Happy Turkey baking!!

Tex Mex Lasagna

Based on the last two posts you can tell I enjoy Mexican Inspired meals.  Not only are they usually quick to prepare they are very flavorful.
Being Italian Lasagna has only meant Ricotta cheese and Tomato sauce and mild variations within that.

When I told the family I made Tex Mex Lasagna they weren't quite sure what was going to be served that night.  To my surprise even my pickiest eater, who won't eat Italian Lasagna finished his plate.

A few variations I made to this recipe:  I used the no cook lasagna noodles for a quicker meal.  I forgot what we had going on that afternoon, but I prepared the recipe up to baking it in the morning and just set it out on the counter while the oven was preheating that evening. Also I did not have any green onions but I am sure the kids did not miss them.

Something I might try next time would be instead of using black beans I may used refried black beans and spread them as one would ricotta cheese.  My kids are lest skeptical about eating beans that are mushed.  Let me know if you try it this way.

Also 2 days left to enter the Old El Paso Family Night Giveaway.  CLICK HERE TO ENTER.

Tex Mex Lasagna: adapted from Myrecipes.com

• 3/4  cup  bottled salsa--Mild for children
• 1 1/2  teaspoons  ground cumin
• 1  (14.5-ounce) can no salt-added diced tomatoes
• 1  (8-ounce) can no salt-added tomato sauce
• Cooking spray
• 6  precooked lasagna noodles (such as Barilla or Vigo) I used NO COOK Noodles
• 1  cup  frozen whole-kernel corn, thawed
• 1  (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 2  cups  (8 ounces) preshredded reduced-fat 4-cheese Mexican blend cheese
• 1/4  cup  chopped green onions

Based on the last two posts you can tell I enjoy Mexican Inspired meals.  Not only are they usually quick to prepare they are very flavorful.

Being Italian Lasagna has only meant Ricotta cheese and Tomato sauce and mild variations within that.

When I told the family I made Tex Mex Lasagna they weren't quite sure what was going to be served that night.  To my surprise even my pickiest eater, who won't eat Italian Lasagna finished his plate.

A few variations I made to this recipe:  I used the no cook lasagna noodles for a quicker meal.  I forgot what we had going on that afternoon, but I prepared the recipe up to baking it in the morning and just set it out on the counter while the oven was preheating that evening. Also I did not have any green onions but I am sure the kids did not miss them.

Something I might try next time would be instead of using black beans I may used refried black beans and spread them as one would ricotta cheese.  My kids are lest skeptical about eating beans that are mushed.  Let me know if you try it this way.

Also 2 days left to enter the Old El Paso Family Night Giveaway.  CLICK HERE TO ENTER.

• 3/4  cup  bottled salsa--Mild for children
• 1 1/2  teaspoons  ground cumin
• 1  (14.5-ounce) can no salt-added diced tomatoes
• 1  (8-ounce) can no salt-added tomato sauce
• Cooking spray
• 6  precooked lasagna noodles (such as Barilla or Vigo) I used NO COOK Noodles
• 1  cup  frozen whole-kernel corn, thawed
• 1  (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 2  cups  (8 ounces) preshredded reduced-fat 4-cheese Mexican blend cheese
• 1/4  cup  chopped green onions

Preparation Preheat oven to 450°. Combine first 4 ingredients; spread 2/3 cup sauce in bottom of an 8-inch square baking dish coated with cooking spray. Arrange 2 noodles over sauce; top with 1/2 cup corn and half of beans. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup cheese; top with 2/3 cup sauce. Repeat layers once; top with remaining 2 noodles. Spread remaining sauce over noodles. Sprinkle with remaining 1 cup cheese. Cover and bake at 450° for 30 minutes or until noodles are tender and sauce is bubbly. Let stand 15 minutes. Sprinkle with onions.

Old El Paso Taco Night Giveaway

So thrilled to be sponsoring my first MyBlogspark Giveaway for a family taco night
 One lucky winner will win A $10 gift card, Old el Paso taco seasonings and 4 festive plates.
  Due to advertising constrictions you can find this giveaway on CLOSE TO HOME Reviews:  Click here to read more: GIVEAWAY

Best Chocolate Chip Cookies-Plus check out my free canvas

Saw this recipe for Chocolate Cookies from My Recipes Cookie Countdown in my inbox this week and I am a sucker to try the best of something.

Well fortunately without even tasting these I decided to only bake a few for that evening's dessert and freeze the dough in balls for another occasion.   To see the best way to freeze cookies check out Freezing dough for another time post. 

WOW--I am glad I did or we would have probably have eaten the entire batch.  These are wonderful chocolate chip cookies, if you favor the soft and chewy variety.  We definitely all asked for a glass of cold milk for these decadent treats.

I also was a little worried because I realized half way into the recipe that I was out of All purpose flour and only had the King Arthur White Wheat flour.  No one knew the difference.  Guess that makes me feel less guilty about the abundance of chocolate chips in each cookie.

I also made them a little bigger than suggested by accident, so they took a little longer to bake but they were still so soft.

I printed this one  for my recipe notebook. I will definitely use it again and again.  

Not sure how long the frozen dough will last....

Also I wanted to show you all what I ordered from the Canvas People.  My photo does not give show the great quality of the canvas.  It looks painted.

Every new customer receives a free $55 credit towards their canvas. So the user gets a Free 8x10 Canvas.  I now wish I upgraded to a larger one because it is pretty cool and makes great art work.  You are able edit the pictures on their site before you buy it which makes for a wonderful picture.  

Get Your First Canvas on Us. Free 8x10 Canvas Print or $55 off Larger Sizes.

2 Add the image above to your blog post with the following text below it. 



 "Join the Virtual Cookie Recipe Exchange with Flour On My Face  Prizes donated by King Arthur Flour, St Martins Press / Robin L. Olson and Garnish."

Pumpkin Muffins or Quick Bread, a quick after school snack

Are you ever in the mood for quick bread and just don't have the hour to wait for it to bake?  It is easy to convert a loaf recipe to muffins.  You will make 24 muffins from the typical 2 loaf quick bread recipe.  Just reduce your cooking time to 20 to 25 minutes.

The kids were having playdates after school and I really did not have anything that great in the pantry, but did notice the can of pumpkin.  I did had recently received an email from My Recipes stating the Perfect Pumpkin Recipes.  I found this recipe for Pecan Topped Pumpkin Bread and decided to make it as muffins as my time was limited.  The ingredient list is a bit lengthy but well worth it.  I didn't use the egg substitute and doubled the spices for a little more flavor.

Try topped with low fat cream cheese for a more protein packed treat.

I covered only 1/2 in the nuts as I was not sure of allergies or the texture on a whole muffin top.  Next time I might consider adding a few chocolate chips for variety, it is a cooking light recipe.  The kids each had 2 muffins each so I would consider it a success.

Pull out the canned pumpkin before Thanksgiving this year and try these easy and tasty Pumpkin treats.

• 3 1/3  cups  all-purpose flour (i used 1/2 whole wheat flour)
• 1  tablespoon  baking powder
• 2  teaspoons  baking soda
• 1  teaspoon  salt
• 1  teaspoon  ground cinnamon
• 1  teaspoon  ground nutmeg
• 1/2  teaspoon  ground allspice
• 2  cups  granulated sugar
• 1/2  cup  egg substitute
• 1/2  cup  canola oil
• 1/2  cup  low-fat buttermilk
• 2  large eggs
• 2/3  cup  water
• 1  (15-ounce) can pumpkin
• Cooking spray
• 1/3  cup  chopped pecans

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour and next 6 ingredients (through allspice) in a bowl.

Place sugar, egg substitute, oil, buttermilk, and eggs in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed until well blended. Add 2/3 cup water and pumpkin, beating at low speed until blended. Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture, beating at low speed just until combined. Spoon batter into 2 (9 x 5-inch) loaf pans coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle pecans evenly over batter. Bake at 350° for 1 hour or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pans on a wire rack; remove from pans. Cool completely on wire rack.


ALSO GET A head start on your holiday cards with Vistaprint....20 cards just 1.99.
I need to get my photo ready and try this out myself

          

Split Pea Soup and How to Make it kid Friendly

Now that the weather has finally turned fall like and the rain has seemed to find joy in falling in the Southeast, my soup pot has come out once again.

Today's recipe is for Split Pea Soup which is my ultimate favorite soup to make.  My children have also started to enjoy it and I am not sure if it is because I blend the veggies, you can either use an inmersion blender or countertop blender,  so really it is just a green thick soup or the fact it is a little sweet.

This week I bought yellow peas for a change and when I blended the veggies,  it turned orange.  We made called it pumpkin pea soup!!

Instead of croutons, the kids used cheez-its to make faces in their bowls.  A fun thing to do for any meal they are not thrilled about.

The joy of this recipe is that split peas are quick cooking and the recipe can be done on the stove top or better yet the crock pot.  Enjoy this is my grandmother's recipe but I have often just made the recipe on the split pea package too.

SPLIT PEA SOUP

1 lb of Split Peas

Ham bone (optional)

1 Onion chopped

3-4 Cloves of Garlic chopped

4 Stalks of celery-chopped

4 Carrots, chopped

½ cup Rice (uncooked)

Water (maybe some chicken bouillon added for flavor)

Salt, pepper, Parsley to taste

Preparation:

Sort through split peas for any pebbles, etc.  Wash or rinse in water thoroughly.

Place in soup kettle with ham bone if using, and enough water to cover.  Bring to  a boil.  Simmer for 1 hr or so and then remove the bone.

Add carrots, celery, and seasonings and continue cooking for 15 minutes.  
Add rice and cook another 15 minutes. 

If soup is too thick, add more water or chicken broth.

(This can also be done in the crock pot just add all ingredients except rice and cook on low for 6 hrs.  Eliminate rice, and just use an immersion blender to make smooth and hide veggies from the kids!)

This is the immersion blender I have that comes with a little chopper, chopper used less then blender.  Worth it if you make a lot of soups, sauces that need to be blended.