Cooking with the Moms

What's your favorite meal of the day? If it's breakfast, you're in luck. On a recent trip to Napa, CA, we ate a spectacular breakfast at the Boon Fly Café. The dishes we devoured inspired us to create two family-friendly breakfast recipes that you can enjoy at any meal. The first recipe for Green Eggs & Bacon Pizza is sure to please every child at your table. Made with eggs, a few slices of all-natural bacon, baby spinach, and reduced-fat cheese, it's hearty and healthy, and all of our kids loved it. Our second recipe for B.L.T. with More is a classic B.L.T. topped with a surprise ingredient: an egg.

What's your favorite meal of the day? If it's breakfast, you're in luck. On a recent trip to Napa, CA, we ate a spectacular breakfast at the Boon Fly Café. The dishes we devoured inspired us to create two family-friendly breakfast recipes that you can enjoy at any meal. The first recipe for Green Eggs & Bacon Pizza is sure to please every child at your table. Made with eggs, a few slices of all-natural bacon, baby spinach, and reduced-fat cheese, it's hearty and healthy, and all of our kids loved it. Our second recipe for B.L.T. with More is a classic B.L.T. topped with a surprise ingredient: an egg.

This week, we toured ten lovely kitchens in Melrose, MA (that's where Janice lives). The kitchen tour was part of a local fundraiser, and we decided to bring Janice's mom along as well as Liz's mother-in-law, who was visiting from England. After the tour, we invited the moms back to our studio to record a podcast on all of our kitchens from the past as well as our kitchens of the present (with a few dreams for the future mixed in). We had lots of laughs and learned about the challenges past generations faced when it came to getting a healthy, square meal on the table (let's just say there were no Sub Zero refrigerators back then)!

This week, we toured ten lovely kitchens in Melrose, MA (that's where Janice lives). The kitchen tour was part of a local fundraiser, and we decided to bring Janice's mom along as well as Liz's mother-in-law, who was visiting from England. After the tour, we invited the moms back to our studio to record a podcast on all of our kitchens from the past as well as our kitchens of the present (with a few dreams for the future mixed in). We had lots of laughs and learned about the challenges past generations faced when it came to getting a healthy, square meal on the table (let's just say there were no Sub Zero refrigerators back then)!

On this week's show, we're talking turkey with two family-pleasing recipes! Clearly we're not the only ones with turkey on our minds. According to the National Turkey Federation, every year, Americans consume an estimated 46 million turkeys on Thanksgiving Day alone. Our first recipe for Golden Mashed Party Potatoes calls for Yukon Gold potatoes, which have a naturally creamy and buttery flavor, and sweet potatoes, packed with immune-boosting vitamin A. The fat and calories in this simple side dish are considerably less than most traditional mashed potato recipes -- typically made with beaucoup butter -- because we get away with just one tablespoon. For our second recipe, we cooked up a turkey leftover recipe from the November, 2009 issue of Bon Appétit magazine for Barbecue Pulled-Turkey Sandwiches. The sandwiches were tasty, filling, and best of all, kid friendly!

On this week's show, we're talking turkey with two family-pleasing recipes! Clearly we're not the only ones with turkey on our minds. According to the National Turkey Federation, every year, Americans consume an estimated 46 million turkeys on Thanksgiving Day alone. Our first recipe for Golden Mashed Party Potatoes calls for Yukon Gold potatoes, which have a naturally creamy and buttery flavor, and sweet potatoes, packed with immune-boosting vitamin A. The fat and calories in this simple side dish are considerably less than most traditional mashed potato recipes -- typically made with beaucoup butter -- because we get away with just one tablespoon. For our second recipe, we cooked up a turkey leftover recipe from the November, 2009 issue of Bon Appétit magazine for Barbecue Pulled-Turkey Sandwiches. The sandwiches were tasty, filling, and best of all, kid friendly!

On a recent trip to Napa, CA for the Manic Mommies annual Escape, we cooked up a fabulous new recipe for Quick Apple Sausage Quesadillas. All the moms at the Escape loved the recipe because it's easy, versatile (you could use any kind of meat or veggie in the quesadillas), and after trying it, many agreed even the pickiest of eaters would be willing to try it. In this week's show, we also dish about the amazing restaurants we enjoyed during our trip to San Francisco and Napa: Chez Panisse, Ubuntu, and Pica Pica, and Bottega.

On a recent trip to Napa, CA for the Manic Mommies annual Escape, we cooked up a fabulous new recipe for Quick Apple Sausage Quesadillas. All the moms at the Escape loved the recipe because it's easy, versatile (you could use any kind of meat or veggie in the quesadillas), and after trying it, many agreed even the pickiest of eaters would be willing to try it. In this week's show, we also dish about the amazing restaurants we enjoyed during our trip to San Francisco and Napa: Chez Panisse, Ubuntu, and Pica Pica, and Bottega.

Kids between the ages of 3 to 11 prefer pizza over all other food groups for lunch and for dinner. Pizza is a quintessential family favorite, but it can also be a nutritional nightmare when topped with things like pepperoni, sausage, and gobs of full-fat cheese. To lighten things up, we created two new pizza recipes guaranteed to keep the troops happy. Our first recipe for Buffalo Chicken Pizza Pies uses whole wheat English muffins as the base. For the topping, we sauté diced chicken and bell peppers with hot & spicy buffalo sauce and blue cheese dressing. Part-skim mozzarella cheese is the final topping. Our second recipe for Sausage, Mushroom & Cannellini Pesto Pizza is packed with great flavor, and the "sauce" will surely surprise you. Tune in for lots of pizza trivia and our brand new, super-yummy recipes.

Kids between the ages of 3 to 11 prefer pizza over all other food groups for lunch and for dinner. Pizza is a quintessential family favorite, but it can also be a nutritional nightmare when topped with things like pepperoni, sausage, and gobs of full-fat cheese. To lighten things up, we created two new pizza recipes guaranteed to keep the troops happy. Our first recipe for Buffalo Chicken Pizza Pies uses whole wheat English muffins as the base. For the topping, we sauté diced chicken and bell peppers with hot & spicy buffalo sauce and blue cheese dressing. Part-skim mozzarella cheese is the final topping. Our second recipe for Sausage, Mushroom & Cannellini Pesto Pizza is packed with great flavor, and the "sauce" will surely surprise you. Tune in for lots of pizza trivia and our brand new, super-yummy recipes.

During our trip to Denver for the annual meeting of the American Dietetic Association last month, we dined our way around The Mile High City in style. Liz feasted on local favorites like buffalo and rattlesnake at The Fort, savored fine Mediterranean cuisine at Rioja, and enjoyed local/sustainable cooking at Root Down. Janice took a cool cooking class at Cook Street School of Fine Cooking, tried the local beer at Wynkoop Brewery, and hob knobbed with friends from Johnson & Wales (a culinary school in Providence, RI) at Venice, a yummy Italian restaurant. We concluded that the food scene in Denver rocks!

During our trip to Denver for the annual meeting of the American Dietetic Association last month, we dined our way around The Mile High City in style. Liz feasted on local favorites like buffalo and rattlesnake at The Fort, savored fine Mediterranean cuisine at Rioja, and enjoyed local/sustainable cooking at Root Down. Janice took a cool cooking class at Cook Street School of Fine Cooking, tried the local beer at Wynkoop Brewery, and hob knobbed with friends from Johnson & Wales (a culinary school in Providence, RI) at Venice, a yummy Italian restaurant. We concluded that the food scene in Denver rocks!

Every year, we attend the annual meeting of the American Dietetic Association. It's called FNCE (Food & Nutrition Conference and Exposition). This year, we had an opportunity to sample a wide array of healthy new food products, sure to appear in a supermarket near you. Some of our favorite new foods included Chobani Greek yogurt for kids, Larabar (we like their new PB&J flavor), barramundi, a sustainably raised farmed fish, and Welch's 100% grape juice with fiber.

Every year, we attend the annual meeting of the American Dietetic Association. It's called FNCE (Food & Nutrition Conference and Exposition). This year, we had an opportunity to sample a wide array of healthy new food products, sure to appear in a supermarket near you. Some of our favorite new foods included Chobani Greek yogurt for kids, Larabar (we like their new PB&J flavor), barramundi, a sustainably raised farmed fish, and Welch's 100% grape juice with fiber.

Halloween is one of our kids' favorite days of the year. But let's face it: All that candy can be a bit much. If you're looking for a healthy "treat" for your little ghosts and goblins, try our Carrot Camouflage Cupcakes. They're made with healthy ingredients like carrots, whole wheat flour, and canola oil, and they're perfect for a neighborhood party or as something special when the kids get home from school. In addition to the recipe, on this week's show, we also share some scary stories about the food mistakes we've made this year. Be sure to visit our Flickr page for photos of our food faux pas.