Through the Motions

Laura Smith is a writing & linguistics major at Georgia Southern University. She is also my former nanny, the daughter of one of my co-workers, an award winning equestrian, writing tutor, and world traveler (summer program in Madrid). I am proud to say that she can now add "published writer" to her long list of accomplishments! I've read her stories before and they are all gripping, heartwarming, and heartbreaking tales. I am constantly impressed at the worlds Laura creates. 

Her short story can be found in the Bangalore Review, June edition. You can follow the link {HERE}.
p.s. Have tissues ready!

Laura plans on continuing her education to earn a MFA in creative writing. You go, girl!

Blueberry Cobbler

Because we Phat Girls love our fans so much, we want you to have cobbler options! Melissa and I are givers that way. :)
Earlier this week, I posted Cherry Cobbler. It was delish. I enjoyed it immensely.

I decided to tweak the recipe, yet again, just for kicks and grins. I wanted to see if I could make it a little less jiggly. Same basic ingredients, different measurements.

2 cans pie filling (whatever you prefer)

1 cup oats (split into 1/2 cups)

2 cups Bisquick

1/2 cup brown sugar (plus one small handful)

1 stick butter- melted

bunt pan

cooking spray

*******************************************************

I'm basically constructing it like a cobbler lasagna. :)

1. Preheat oven to 375

2. Mix the pie fillings and the 2 cups of Bisquick lightly, just enough to make everything moist

3. Spray the bunt pan liberally with cooking spray.

4. Pour in half of the cobbler mixture into the bunt pan

5. Pour 1/2 cup of oats over the mixture in the pan, sprinkle a small handful of brown sugar on top

6. Pour the rest of the mixture into the  bunt pan

7. Pour the other 1/2 cup of oats on top

8. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of brown sugar on top of it all

9. Pour the stick of melted butter on top.

10. Bake at 375 for around 30 min.

Ooooooohhhh.... pretty. 

Don't forget to add some dairy to make it healthier! I prefer my dairy to be the creamy, frozen variety.

Cherry Cobbler

Melissa made a peach cobbler the other night and we had a mini brainstorm on how to change/ improve the recipe. Here's the original recipe for Peach Crunch. 

It was good, but I wasn't a fan of just dumping the dry ingredients and baking it. So, here's my attempt at changing things.

2 cans pie filling (your choice)

1 & 1/2 Cups Bisquick

1 Cup Oats

1/2 Cup Brown Sugar

1 Stick melted butter

bunt pan

cooking spray

*************************************************************

1. Preheat oven to 375

2. Spray bunt pan liberally with cooking spray

3. Lightly mix the 2 cans of pie filling with 1&1/2 Cups of Bisquick

4. Lightly mix in 1/2 cup of oats

5. Pour mix into bunt pan, sprinkle another 1/2 Cup of oats on top

6. Sprinkle 1/2 Cup of brown sugar on top

7. Pour 1 stick of melted butter on top

8. Bake at 375 for 30-35 min. Allow to cool.

It's not going to be solid like a cake, it's going to be kind of jiggly. The brown sugar and butter on top make it nice and crunchy.  Next time, I might use 1 whole cup of oats on top, not just a half.

I'm seeing many, many cobblers in my future... peach, apple, blueberry....Yum!

Fruity Muffins

I was feeling adventurous, and my bananas were about to expire, so I decided to make some muffins. Melissa showed me how to make banana bread using just bananas and a cake mix, so I took it a step further.

Fruity Muffins

 1 Orange Supreme cake mix

3 bananas (about to die)

5 strawberries (pureed)

I smooshed the bananas, pureed 5 strawberries, and mixed it together with the cake mix. That's it! No extra oil, eggs or anything!

I put the mix in muffin tins and baked them at 350 for 18 min. 

My kids liked them and my Hubby ate 2 before realizing that they had bananas in them. (He's not a fan of bananas) He did like them though!

Next time, I might bake them just a little longer. I might also try adding nuts or white chocolate chips.

What about you? What might you try?

Product Review: Awesomunch (Munch of Fun)

Welcome back to another Munch of Fun product review! To say that my kids were excited about opening another Special Box would be an understatement. When I told them that the living room had to be clean for them to open the Box, they ran around like crazies to get things clean. (Mostly they threw things on the train table in the corner, as you will see from the pictures)

Last time, my kids reviewed the Munch on Brunch box. You can check out that review {HERE}.

Today we are reviewing the Awesomunch Box. 

Just a reminder- Munch of Fun is dedicated to providing kids with healthy alternatives to typical snack foods. Their products are healthy, travel ready, and kid friendly. Let's get started!
( I didn't have my camera with me today so I used the iPad. Sorry the pics aren't great!)

Chips and Dip

Specialty chips and hummus bean dip

The Kid- liked the chips, but not the dip

The Girl- liked them both!

The Boy- liked them both!

The Mommy- ate the rest of the Kid's chips and dip. :)

Seriously, that hummus is good!

Pear Crisps

The Kid was convinced they were apple crisps, and I didn't want to tell him any different before he ate them. As it turns out, it didn't make a difference!

The Kid- Loved them! He ate his and his sister's!

The Girl- thought they were OK, but willingly let her brother finish them

The Boy- Liked them

Chicken Jerky

When my Hubby takes the kids on baseball trips, he always gets the kids beef jerky sticks. I knew for sure these would be a hit.

The Kid- thought it was OK. 

His sensitive palate required some water after a few bites. :)

The Girl- LOVED it! She ate all of hers and the rest of the Kid's. 

She doesn't believe in having a sensitive palate. 

The Boy- Liked it. He finished all of his, with a glass of water.

Cookies

Just look at this face. Can you feel the excitement?

 The Crew- LOVED IT!

Juice

The Crew- LOVED IT!

*BONUS*

As a token of her appreciation, Kristen sent us some popcorn!! Whoop-whoop!

Thanks, Kristen!

The Kid- loved it! Gobbled it up!

The Girl- thought it was OK

The Boy- ate his and his sister's

 Thanks for joining in to another Munch of Fun product review! Check out the website and see about doing some taste tests of your own! (They are totally worth it!)

Thank you for the card, Kristen! It made the kids feel very important!

Product Review: Munch of Fun

Hello again, Jocelyn here! Today we at Phat Girls are going to do our first ever Product Review!! I feel so important; like Oprah Winfrey, only less rich and famous. :)

Today's product for review is from the company Munch of Fun. This is a new company, started by a friend of mine, Kristen Griffiths.

Kristen's company began when she realized that Happy Meals weren't going to encourage her kids' eating habits to stay on the straight and narrow. Kids want fun. Kids want color. Kids want a toy prize for eating their food. Parents want their kids to stop whining. With 3 kids of my own, I completely understand this logic.

Kristen's goal is to show kids that healthy food IS happy food. And, if your kids are anything like mine, they're in it for the toy at the end; what they eat before the toy is inconsequential. If you look through her store, you'll see that her products are colorful, convenient, and completely healthy- perfect for road trips, ball games and practices, quick pick-me-ups, and getting your kids hungry whining out of your ear. ;)

So, I contacted Kristen and asked if I could have my kids be guinea pigs for Munch of Fun. She agreed (yea!) and sent me the Munch on Brunch and Fiber Favorite packs.

Munch on Brunch

Fiber Favorite

If you haven't met my kids, let me introduce you:

The Kid: age 7 

Hubby and I ruined this kid. Blame it on being first-time parents, but we just didn't force the eating uber healthy thing. If he likes something, he'll like it for life. This experiment is going to throw him for a loop.

The Girl: age 5 

Sassy as all get-out and willing to try anything. This girl's middle name is "Adventure" and she is her Daddy's girl. This experiment will be right up her alley. 

The Boy: age 5 

He's willing to try new things, when brother and sister are around. He is his Mother's son- not eager to step outside his comfort zone. This experiment might make him cry, until he realizes that he's having fun. :)

I told the kids we were doing a science experiment. We all had to try each of the items in the Special Box. After trying the different food we would judge using thumbs up (love), thumbs down (didn't like), and thumbs to the side (OK).
Ready? Here we go!

Munch on Brunch

Ready kids!

1. Pineapple Crisps

The Kid- Like (It's a miracle!!)

The Boy- Didn't like

The Girl- OK

2. Almonds

The Kid- Didn't like (no shock there)

The Boy- OK (he had more after the picture)

The Girl- Like (she finished the bag)

Granola

The Kid- OK (minor miracle)

The Boy- Like!

The Girl- Like!

The twins finished off the bag

Crackers and Chocolate/ Hazelnut Butter

The Kid- Liked the butter, not the cracker

The Boy- Liked it all!
The Girl- Liked the butter, not the cracker

We all agreed the butter would be great on whole wheat waffles.

Juice

Everyone liked it!

I count this "experiment" as a success! The kids had a great time, and I got the Kid to eat something other than chicken nuggets. Who says miracles don't happen anymore?
Thank you, Kristen for allowing us to be guinea pigs for you! I can safely say the kids will be looking forward to opening another special box from Munch of Fun!

p.s. You can follow Kristen's blog as well! She posts healthy, easy recipes for kids and busy moms!

p.p.s. The Fiber box is going to make it way to Melissa's house for her twin boys. We wanted to have a variety of ages!