Month: October 2010

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The Muppets Kitchen with Cat Cora

A couple of months ago I was thrilled to find the Muppet Show on Netflix. I thought it was finally time to introduce it to my kids. There’s so much good stuff, from Debbie Harry singing “Rainbow Connection” with Kermit the Frog to Kenny Rogers and the creepy-old-man-Muppets performing “The Gambler,” and of course Rita Moreno and Animal’s feisty “Fever.” I knew they would love it as much as I did.

“Turn it off,” my 5-year-old said. “I don’t like one minute of it,” my 6-year-old chimed in.

>How could they not like it? It has sarcastic, dry humor and 70s pop stars. And puppets. What is not to love?

I was going to do anything I could do to get them to love the Muppets. I still remember the night my mom woke me up to see Kermit the Frog guest host the Tonight Show. Well, all it took for the younger one was a viewing of the Muppets doing Bohemian Rhapsody. For the older one, it was Cat Cora.

When my invitation came to see The Muppets Kitchen with Cat Cora  last week I was very excited. I told my older son that just the two of us would go and the 5-year would be picked up from school by their dad. Well, my husband lets them play endless hours of Wii, takes them to In N’ Out, and gives them candy. “I want to go with Dad,” he said.

I explained how we were going to Disney Studios. How Cat Cora was making all the food. How there would be Muppets. Real live Muppets! “Why can’t I go with Dad?”

“Cupcakes,” I told him. “There will be cupcakes.”

That got him there, but he ended up really loving the show and, of course, the only female Iron Chef, Cat Cora.

The Muppets Kitchen with Cat Cora is a really cute web series (and I’m not saying this because I’m a geek who loves Muppets). Cat Cora and her Muppet assistants, Pepe the King Prawn and Muppet Chef Angelo, try to get kids excited about cooking and eating healthy. On Disney.com they do two shows, one called Hasty Tasty Cooking Tips and Muppets Kitchen.

We got to see Muppets Kitchen live where they made popcorn with nuts and dried fruit. It was tasty and so was Cat Cora’s watermelon gaspacho. They took questions from the audience and my 6-year-old asked, what is the fastest thing to make? I didn’t hear the answer because I was so impressed that my 1st grader asked a thoughtful question in a crowded room filled with adults and cameras.

After the show Cat signed copies of her new cookbook “Cat Cora’s Classics, With A Twist.” I think the first thing we’ll make is a gluten-free version of the roasted plum shortcakes.

We were given the book along with a bamboo recipe box filled with recipes and The Muppet Show Season 3. Say bye, bye to the Wii kids, our free time is going to be spent watching The Muppet Show. Guests include Loretta Lynn, Danny Kaye, and Liberace! I have the feeling the kids are going to be saying “We want to be with Dad,” a lot more.

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Stonyfield Yogurt and Whole Wheat Donut Recipe

One of my favorite places to get coffee or have lunch is Akasha in Culver City. The restaurant is beautiful, open and full of light. The food is delightful and interesting.

I recently went there for an event for Stonyfield Yogurt where chef and owner Akasha Richmond incorporated yogurt into all of the dishes. My favorite was the dessert, of course. It was a fig tart with homemade vanilla frozen yogurt. She also made hummus with yogurt and an orzo with Greek yogurt instead of feta. The food was all very good and so was the information from Stonyfield.

Green nutritionist Kate Geagan talked to the group about why organic is important and how to make family meals healthier by substituting yogurt.  I try to buy mostly organic, but it’s expensive so I pick and choose. I try to follow the Dirty Dozen, a list of foods that consumers should buy organic because of the amount of pesticides, plus I try to always purchase organic milk and yogurt.

Healthy isn’t just about organic. What really got my attention was the Stonyfield Yogurt Substitution Guide. I had recently made a Tres Leches pie for the Good Food Pie contest and tried to put out of my mind how much fat and calories it had. I tested it several times, which may explain the couple of pounds I’ve put on recently. Just by substituting whole milk yogurt for the heavy cream, I could have saved 200 calories. I think it would have tasted okay, too, and made it slightly tart, which is always nice.

Stonyfield gave out fabulous recipes that use yogurt, but my kids and I experimented and came up with our own. These “donuts” turned out well and my boys didn’t notice the substitutions or mind that they weren’t fried.

We needed a birthday present for one of their friends and bought this Wilton Mini Donut Pan and a donut mix. It was so cute (and only $10) that I also bought one for the kids (actually, me). This recipe is adapted from the Wilton donut recipe. I substituted whole wheat flour for cake flour and plain low-fat yogurt for buttermilk. (I usually make everything gluten-free, but my Celiac husband was out of town and we were out of xantham gum. I’ll post the gluten-free recipe soon).

Lemon Donuts

1 ¼ cup whole wheat flour
½ cup sugar
1 ¼ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon lemon zest
¾ teaspoon salt
½ cup plain lowfat yogurt
1 egg lightly beaten
1 ½ tablespoons melted butter

Preheat oven to 425. Spray donut or mini muffin pan with canola oil spray.
In mixing bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder, lemon zest, and salt. Add yogurt, egg, and melted butter to the dry mix and stir until just combined. Fill donut cup half full.
Bake for 4 to 6 minutes or until the donuts spring back when you touch them. Let them cool about 5 minutes
Once they are cool, top the donuts with this simple lemon glaze.

Simple Lemon Glaze

1 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Mix until smooth and glaze donuts immediately. If the glaze is too thick, add a little water.

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A Weekend in Tucson

After months of talking about it, I finally made a trip to Tucson to see my family. It was my aunt’s 80th birthday and I knew I couldn’t miss her party. She is one of my favorite relatives and one of the sharpest and funniest women in the family.

She’s hilarious and biting and I remember one time in particular when my mom’s flamboyantly dressed friend was over. This woman always wore bright lipstick, tight clothes, and high heels. But this time she was wearing a turtleneck and my aunt said to her, “Oh, I didn’t recognize you without seeing your breasts.” I always think of that when I see a low-cut shirt in a store.

I left the kids at home so it was a completely different trip than I had planned. The first day and night was spent with friends, some of whom I’ve known since the 2nd grade. We had dinner at a new restaurant, Contigo, and it was very good. We shared bacon wrapped dates stuffed with chorizo, mussels with saffron, shrimp with garlic, and this treat (below right) that was cold and tasted like creamy masa with green chilis.

The next day my sister arrived with her daughter and after talking her out of going for a run in the 103 degree heat we went to Zin Burger, my new favorite non-Mexican spot. We shared sweet potato fries, truffle fries (above left), a Zin Burger with manchego and carmelized onions, and a salad with bacon and tomatoes. What I really wanted was a chocolate sangria, but it seemed too hot for that.

After a lovely day with my nieces and my mom, we headed to the party. My cousin hired a group of high school students who played at the Tucson International Mariachi Conference to perform for my aunt. They were fabulous and my aunt seemed very happy.

The food until then in Tucson had been very good, but nothing could compare to the spread at the party. And it wasn’t catered. It was all made by my aunt’s cousin from Mexico. She made shredded beef with garlic and green olives, roasted vegetable salad, homemade tortillas, and beans so good you could smell the bacon.

I can’t believe that after all of the food (and tequila) on Saturday my sister and I were able to go on a hike the next morning. We went to the Linda Vista Trail and hiked for an hour or so. It’s a nice, moderate trail and it was unusually green.

Overall, it was a really nice mini-vacation and so wonderful to see everyone.I have an entire post worth of information about the upcoming Arizona election, but I’m saving that for another day.

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Giveaway Monday

In honor of week 2 of Giveaway Monday I have 2 games to give away. They were given to me at a Disney event a few months ago.

Alice in Wonderland, inspired by the Tim Burton film, is for NintendoWii and Split Second is for Xbox 360. Split Second says that it’s “A city created for speed and destruction.” They are both rated 10+.

Leave a comment below with your contact information and which game you would like to win and I will pick 2 winners on Friday, October 8. Thanks for playing.

And the winners are Meeyeehere and Cobol. Thank you everyone for entering.