This summer, many families and friends will celebrate special occasions like birthdays or graduations, and some will just spend a few hours together after a long absence due to COVID-19. We asked the Northeast Ohio Parent bloggers (northeastohioparent.com/bloggers) to provide some recipes and crafts for the kids to try during these gatherings.
Bring Your Own Milk Jug…
Aisha Taylor of FNPhenomenal shares Milk Jug Bird Feeder “This is one I (shared) with
my twins,” she says.
Here’s what you need: One clean plastic gallon milk jug
(keep the top on)
Here’s what you do: Cut the circles on the side of the milk jug open. Try to do this so the cutouts are smooth. Paint the milk jug. To hang it up, either poke two holes in the lid or on the sides near the top of the jug. Thread a strong string in between the two holes and fasten the string together. Fill the bottom with bird seed.
Have Kids Learn STEM…
Kristen Antosh of “Momgineering the Future” shares her Color Changing Butterfly Pea Tea
“This delicious, beautiful, color changing sweet tea is sure to be the highlight of your kid party this summer. Butterfly pea flowers have a special property that makes them great pH indicators. The flowers pigment changes color depending on the pH of whatever it is mixed with. You can make this sweetened tea up to three days in advance.”
Here’s what you need:
4 cups of water
Small handful of dried butterfly
pea flowers
1/2 cup of sugar
4 – 16 ounce glasses filled with ice
Juice from 2 lemons
(1/2 lemon for each glass of tea)
Here’s what you do: Boil 4 cups of water (we used a teapot). Transfer the boiling water to a pyrex or heat resistant bowl or measuring cup. Add the dried butterfly pea flowers to the hot water. Let the flowers steep for about 5 minutes. The longer it steeps the darker blue the tea will become. Remove the flowers. To sweeten it up, add the sugar to the hot butterfly pea tea. Mix the sugar so that it dissolves fully. If you do not plan to serve it immediately, place the sweetened tea in the refrigerator. When you are ready to serve, pour the sweetened tea in each ice filled glass. This is where the magic happens! Let children pour the lemon juice into their glass of butterfly tea. The lemon juice will change the tea’s color from dark blue to a beautiful purple because
of its high acid level. Drink and enjoy.
Makes four 16 ounce iced filled glasses of tea.
Bonus:
To create a more dramatic color change, first pour the light yellow lemon juice into the glass, and then pour the dark blue sweetened butterfly pea tea over top. Watch as the colors change from yellow to purple almost instantly.
Morning Fun……
Melissa Koski Carney, Northeast Ohio Parent blogger of “I Crashed the Web”, shares her Healthy-ish Banana Zucchini Muffins
“I’m always looking for healthy-ish snacks and new ways to get my kids to eat veggies,” she says. ”Zucchini is so plentiful in the summer, and if we’re lucky, we
grow enough in our garden to bake these muffins several times.”
Here’s what you need:
1/2 cup honey
1/3 cup avocado oil
2 eggs
2 large bananas, mashed
1 small zucchini, grated – pat with a
paper towel to remove excess
moisture
1/4 cup milk (you can use almond
or regular)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 ¾ cups white whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup blueberries or
another add-in, optional
Here’s what you do: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a muffin tin with baking cups. In a large bowl, mix honey, avocado oil, and eggs. Add in the mashed bananas, grated zucchini, milk, and vanilla extract. Mix well. On the side, combine the dry ingredients — the cinnamon, flour, salt, baking soda. Add into the wet mixture and mix until just combined. DO NOT overmix. Optional: add in blueberries or other add-ins. Suggestions include dried cherries or chocolate chips. I added blueberries to a few, but not all, of the muffins. Divide the batter evenly among 12 muffin cups. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the muffin comes out clean. Mine took about 24 minutes. Cool muffins and then enjoy. I like to keep six out and then freeze six, so I have individual muffins ready to go whenever.
Nighttime Treats…
Leah Artman of NEOhio Frugal Living shares her S’mores Bars signature recipe from
Leah’s Baked Goods, based in Columbia Station, Ohio, leahsbakedgoods.com
Here’s what you need:
1/2 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup light brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup fine graham cracker
crumbs
1 cup marshmallow cream
1/2 cup milk chocolate chips
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Here’s what you do: Preheat the oven to 350º F, and line an 8”x8” baking dish with parchment paper or foil. In a medium bowl, mix the baking soda, salt, flour, and graham cracker crumbs. Set aside.
In a large bowl or stand mixer, beat together the butter and brown sugar, then mix in the egg and vanilla until light and fluffy. Add dry mixture to wet mixture, and mix until dough forms. Press three-quarters of the dough into the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Spread marshmallow cream over top of dough with a spatula sprayed with cooking spray (to prevent too much sticking). Sprinkle the chocolate chips over the marshmallow cream, then press remaining cookie dough over top of the chocolate chips. Bake for 20 minutes, and let cool before cutting and serving.
Prep Time: 20 min
Cook Time: 20 min
Total Time: 40 min
Makes 9 servings