Mommy Mondays - Cooking with Kids

I love to cook...in fact I could spend all day in my kitchen!  I know that my love of cooking is something I want to pass onto my girls!  They already have a play kitchen, and Lacie will spend all day mixing up recipes and "feeding" them to her sister, her dolls, and anyone else who comes over!

If I turn on the Food Network, she will stop what she's doing and watch carefully!  Then, she mimics what she sees!  So I try to bring her into the kitchen to help me cook from time to time.  Right now it is not all that often...she is only 2!  I don't trust her to handle things like raw meat or eggs.  She also can't touch a knife!  So I bring her in when I am making something simple - and today I made just about the easiest thing ever!

2 Ingredient Cake!!!!  Yes, only two ingredients!  Aside from being easy and fast, this cake is actually fat-free!  So you can enjoy a sweet treat while keeping those New Years Resolutions!  This is not my recipe...I learned about it back when I was doing Weight Watchers after Lacie was born!  It was so simple that I made it all the time, and it really took care of those sugar cravings!  Now I am sharing it with you!

Here's What You Need to Make the 2 Ingredient Cake:

• one box angel food cake mix
• one can crushed pineapple in pineapple juice

Even Blakely wanted to watch! 

Now Let's Make the 2 Ingredient Cake:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9x13 pan with nonstick spray (I used PAM)
2. Put the cake mix and the entire can of crushed pineapple - including the juice - into a large mixing bowl
3. Stir gently until incorporated - it should be light and fluffy
4. Pour into greased pan
   
5. Bake for 30 - 40 minutes until the top is golden brown and springy and the edges pull away from the pan
6. Remove from oven and cool in pan for 10 minutes before turning out onto a cooling rack to cool completely
7. Slice cake into 12 squares and store in an airtight container or wrap each piece individually to pack in school/work lunches 

This is what it looks like when you cut it open!  Crusty and golden brown on the outside...white and fluffy on the inside!  So so so good! 

Strawberry White Chocolate Bars

Christmas is over, and I'm okay with that because next up is Valentine's Day!  I love Valentine's Day for lots of reasons - it's a holiday that celebrates love and the relationships we have with the important people in our life...it's also a holiday where everything is PINK!  And what could be better than that?!?

Here's What You Need to Make the Strawberry White Chocolate Bars:

• 1 box strawberry cake mix (I used Pillsbury brand)
• 1 stick butter, melted
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 bag white chocolate chips
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• water or milk, 2-4 tsp

Now Let's Make the Strawberry White Chocolate Bars:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9x13 baking dish with butter or nonstick spray
2. In a mixing bowl, combine cake mix, melted butter, and 2 eggs until a soft dough is formed
3. Fold in the white chocolate chips
   
4. Press batter down into greased pan - spreading it out evenly
5. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes
6. Remove pan from oven and use the back of a spatula to press down on the surface of the bars making them even and flat
7. Return to oven for additional 5 minutes
8. Remove from oven and press down again if needed (tops of bars should be flat)
9. Cool completely in pan
10. Cut cookies into squares
11. Making icing by combining powdered sugar with milk or water one teaspoon at a time until a thick but spreadable consistency is reached
12. Place icing in a ziploc bag and use kitchen scissors to snip off a corner, creating a small hole
13. Squeezing the bag gently, pipe icing onto each cookie bar
14. Allow icing to harden before storing cookies in an airtight container

Come back every Friday from now until Valentine's Day for a new and holiday inspired dessert! 

#hiloskyeveryday2014 Week 2

#hiloskyeveryday2014 Week 2

So far so good!  2014 is off to a cold start, but that just means lots of time snuggling with my girls in the comfort of our cozy home!  I am having so much fun with the challenge of being intentional about taking at least one picture everyday!  To see the first week of my hiloskyeveryday2014 challenge (well the first two days at least) you can click here.  

If you don't want to wait until Thursdays...you can keep up with me everyday by following me @lindsayhilosky on Instagram! 

Day 3 - Dancing Sisters! 

 Day 4 - Sweet B at bath time! 

Day 5 - We all have sore throats so I treated myself to a nice coffee mug full of ice cream! 

Day 6 - We ventured out into the cold for a trip to Target! 

Day 7 - Lacie Jane will all of her BlaBla dolls!  I swear by these things as the secret to why my children sleep so well and the fact that they like bedtime! 

 Day 8 - We got our monthly shipment of k-cups...aka the happiest day of the month!  I may or may not have a slight coffee addiction! 

Day 9 - I finished this beautiful puzzle that I started working on one week ago! I love the Wizard of Oz and this may just be my favorite puzzle so far! 

Waffle Breakfast - Our Christmas Morning Tradition

I have always loved Christmas Morning!  The thrill of waking up and running downstairs to see piles of presents under the tree!  Growing up we would open presents while watching Christmas movies or the Christmas parade on television!  We were allowed to eat dessert for breakfast - usually left over cheesecake from Christmas Eve!

When I had Lacie, I knew I wanted to start a Christmas Morning tradition that would last through her childhood!  That is why for her first Christmas (2011) I decided to start a waffle breakfast tradition!

I make the waffles in my round Belgian Waffle Maker!  Then, I set up a toppings bar so that everyone can make their own waffle.  I put out the standard butter and real maple syrup.  Then, I also put out fresh fruit (usually sliced bananas and strawberries), homemade whipped cream, powdered sugar, ice cream, and mini chocolate chips.  If no one in your family has nut allergies, you can also put out nuts like pecans and walnuts!

We enjoyed these waffles so much on Christmas, that the girls have requested them a few times since!  I may be changing up our Saturday morning tradition of Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Pancakes from time to time so that we can enjoy these more than once a year!

Here's What You Need to Make the Christmas Morning Belgian Waffles:

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 3 tsp baking powder
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 cup milk (I used whole milk)
• 3 tbsp butter, melted
• 1 tsp vanilla extract 
• assorted waffle toppings

Now Let's Make the Christmas Morning Belgian Waffles

1. Preheat your waffle maker according to your brand's specific instructions
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, sugar, and salt
3. Add the beaten eggs, milk, melted butter, and vanilla extract to your dry mixture and whisk until just combined - do not over mix!  The batter will be thick! 
4. Pour the batter in your waffle maker, following your specific maker's instructions

This recipe will make 3 large, round belgian waffles in my specific waffle maker.  My exact waffle maker is no longer available, but this one is the most similar!

Caramel Gingerbread Bars

It's Friday and it's a snow day here in Jersey!  Unfortunately, when it snows John works super long hours.  I knew the girls would be missing him this morning, so I woke up early and made some yummy, healthy banana bread that the three of us could enjoy for breakfast!

You also know that when Friday comes, I try to share a new dessert recipe with you because, well, Fridays are just better with dessert!

Caramel Gingerbread Bars

These bars are fantastic - full of caramel, white chocolate, and gingerbread flavor!  They are also a Cake Mix Recipe...in other words...super super easy!  The flavor of these bars is perfect for a snowy, winter day!  

Here's What You Need to Make the Caramel Gingerbread Bars:

• 1 box Gingerbread Cake Mix (if you cannot find this, substitute Spice Cake Mix with 1-2 tsp of ginger added)
• 1 stick butter, softened or even slightly melted
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 bag caramel bits (you can find these right next to the chocolate chips in the baking aisle)
• 1/2 cup white chocolate chips

The Gingerbread Cake Mix that I used! 

Now Let's Make the Caramel Gingerbread Bars:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9x13 baking dish generously with non-stick spray (the caramel will make these stick more than other bars)
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the Gingerbread Cake Mix, butter, and eggs
3. Fold in the caramel bits and white chocolate chips
4. Press dough into greased pan
   
5. Bake for 20 minutes
6. Remove from oven and using the back of a greased spatula, press the bars down into the pan
7. Bake additional five minutes
8. Remove from oven and press down again if necessary to ensure a flat surface
9. Cool completely in pan before cutting and storing the bars in an airtight container

Yummy!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!!!

Welcome 2014!!!

I love ringing in the new year!  2013 was by far my favorite year yet, and I cannot wait to see what 2014 has in store! 

One of my goals for the New Year is to take a picture everyday!  I love love love capturing special moments of our everyday life.  I tend to take pictures everyday (usually just with my iPhone) but this year my goal is to be intentional about taking at least one picture everyday!  Then, every Thursday I will be sharing my week in pictures right here on Life Is Better In Pink! 

If you don't want to wait until Thursdays...you can keep up with me everyday by following me @lindsayhilosky on Instagram! 

#hiloskyeveryday2014

 Day 1 - Happy New Year! I know you're probably wondering (since I've posted pictures like this before) if they have their own cribs!  I can assure you that they do!  However, every morning Lacie asks me "Mommy Blakely in Lacie's Crib" or "Mommy Lacie in Blakely's Crib" as if spending the night in separate cribs - 3 feet away from one another - made her miss her sister so much that she immediately must be in the same crib! And so we spend some time like this! 

Day 2 - Lacie enjoying the very last Christmas Cookie!  She was so so excited...she waited all day for this cookie!  You can find the recipe for Lacie's Cookie Butter Kisses here.

Elf On The Shelf - Our Final Week and Goodbye

We truly loved having Cocoa, our Elf on the Shelf, as a part of our family this past month!  She brought with her tons of Christmas Cheer as well as some very good behavior from miss Lacie Jane! We will miss Cocoa a lot and look forward to her return next year!  Perhaps, she will bring another elf friend with her for 2014!  Let's look at our final week with Cocoa and see how Lacie and Blakely said "goodbye" to our special Elf Friend!

Cocoa reading Christmas stories to some of our stuffed animal friends! 

Cocoa watching a little late night TV! 

Cocoa didn't get to fly back to the North Pole, so she called Santa instead! 

 Just watching from the top of the tree! 

Cocoa needed to get clean...so she took a marshmallow bubble bath! 

Cocoa knows about the true meaning of Christmas! 

Cocoa doing a little zip lining from the china closet to the Christmas tree! She also hung her goodbye letter on the easel! 

Cocoa's Goodbye Letter, explaining that her magic would be lifted right before bedtime on Christmas Eve so that the girls could say goodbye! 

Goodbye Hugs and Kisses! 

After we said our "goodbyes" we placed Cocoa next to the milk and cookies so that Santa would know just where to pick up Cocoa! We can't wait for Cocoa to come back next year!