Cheesy Sweet Potato (Camote) Balls

I'm always up for a healthy, easy-to-make recipe for my picky toddler. I'm not sure how he had become picky, but since I'm sure he would outgrow it anyway, I just focus on letting him try new foods all the time.

I first learned about this recipe from the Facebook page for BLW or Baby-Led Weaning Philippines. Actually, the recipe called for potatoes, but since we also have sweet potatoes (camote), and they're much healthier anyway, I decided to use them. Here are the ingredients:

The Daily Quesadilla

People who know me know I don't cook. I can cook to save a life, but I prefer not to. It's not like I don't like being in the kitchen - I do! But why don't I like cooking?

You see, our stove used to be broken. It's very usable, but one needs to use matches to light it up. MATCHES! I'm pyrophobic (it's still a wonder how I managed to chain-smoke for 2 years in college) and I don't like being so close to fire. That's it, my only reason. #sissy

Until one day, it was finally repaired! Finally!

Homemade Peanut Butter - Chocolate Granola Bars

Even if I'm such a novice in the kitchen, and even if we don't have a properly functioning oven, I still prefer making Yuri's snacks rather than buying them from the grocery. That means a lot because I love grocery-shopping. While I do have grocery-bought snacks for emergency purposes, it's quite scary buying snacks for a young toddler especially when you can't even pronounce their ingredients!

To minimize Yuri's exposure to preservatives, chemicals, unnecessary sugars, and many other stuff I don't have any idea of, I roll up my sleeves and try to search Google for recipes I can easily create.

I especially like creating granola bars because not only are they healthy (well, depending on the ingredients you use) but also require virtually no special equipment. I've been wanting to make another batch of granola bars again (our go-to snacks), so I looked for an easy recipe, which I found here. Here's my re-creation of the yummy peanut butter-chocolate granola bars.

Ingredients:
Rolled Oats (I used Bob's Red Mill 5-Grain Rolled Cereal.)
Peanut Butter (I used a local brand, Dane's. It not only is cheap but also contains just three ingredients: peanuts, sugar, and butter.)
Chocolate Chips (I used generic baking chocolate chips from the grocery.)
Milk (Soyfresh chocolate soy milk was what I had, so I used it. You can use any milk!)

Optional add-ons:
Marshmallows (I have a lot of mini-marshmallows which I planned to use to make rice crispy treats, so I added some to the granola mixture.)
Chocolate chips (Since you already have them, why don't you add more?)
Rice crispies (I still have one more box of Breakfast Choice rice crispies from last month.)
Nuts (You can use nuts, but I prefer not to use them because Yuri doesn't like nuts yet.)
Raisins I would love to use raisins; unfortunately, I forgot to buy some during my last trip to the grocery!

(I didn't have measurements because I didn't measure any of them. I just poured what "looks" right and then adjusted if the resulting mixture was too runny. You will need to create a mixture that is relatively dry, so if the mixture was too runny, I added more cereal. If it was too dry, I added more milk or peanut butter.)

Procedure:

1. Mix the peanut butter, chocolate chips, and milk. You can either melt them in the saucepan or in the microwave.

2. Melt them until you form a smooth (luscious) mixture like the one below:

Easy and Delish Five-Minute Quiche

We all love bread. I think I like all sorts of bread. Plain, flavored, with filling, hard bread, soft rolls, freshly baked, one-day old: as long as it's bread, there's a big chance that I will eat it.

Because I live in a household where everyone likes bread, more often than not, we have leftover bread in the pantry or in the fridge. Because bread has a limited lifestyle, it's either we eat them right away (dunk in mainit na kape or Milo), make a pudding, or turn them into French Toast.

One time, thought, I got inspired to try something new. Rather than make the usual sweets I used to make, I was in the mood for something savory. So out of the old bread we had, I made a five-minute quiche. 

Of course, it's not like the regular, oven-baked quiche. This is more of a single-serve quiche, which can totally fulfill your cravings if you need something fast - and easy. I think what I made is a success because my little sister and my little toddler were fighting over the last piece... Without much ado, here's what I did:

(This recipe is loosely based on the recipe here.)

What you need: 
Bread, 1 egg, 1-2 tablespoons of milk (depending on how much bread you use), 1 tablespoon of butter, cheese, your meat of choice (optional), and your veggies of choice

1. Pull bread apart and tear them into bite-sized pieces. You can use freshly baked bread or old bread like what I did. Just don't use bread that is too hard or you'll end up with a hard quiche.

2. Melt butter in a small microwaveable bowl (or mug).

3. Crack an egg in a separate container (always crack egg in a separate container so that if it happens to be rotten, you don't have to throw the entire mixture away) and mix it with the melted butter.

4. Add in the milk.

5. You can add salt and pepper to taste, but I nixed this step. Whether you add seasoning or not, the next step is to whisk the mixture together.

6. Add the pieces of torn bread and make sure they're soaked in the mixture. Leave a few pieces of bread for later use.

7. Put in your add-ons of meat and veggies. I used sliced ham, carrots, red and green bell peppers, mushroom, and cheese.

8. Place remaining bread over these add-ons to make something pie-like.

9. Grate cheese over the bread.

10. Microwave on High setting for 1 and a half minute. That's it!

I wasn't able to take pretty photos (I didn't have my camera yet during this time), but the young ones like the quiche because it tastes like pizza (yes it does!) while I like it because Yuri can get all food groups in just one bite!

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Of Playdates and French Toasts

My camera has finally died after two years of service. Yes, it died out too quickly! This must be the result of taking hundreds of photos every day... Anyway, yesterday, I took out the memory card and saw that I was able to take blog-worthy photos in the last minute. Yay!

Last Tuesday, Yuri woke up a bit late at around 8am. Actually, I had to wake him up so we could go down for breakfast (and I was, like, holding my pee since forever). He finally woke up and I got to prepare our breakfast downstairs (everybody else was already finished eating). In less than five minutes since we went down, our neighbor arrived bringing with her her half-American son.

Everybody, meet Gabe:

He's our friendly 6-year old neighbor who gave Yuri this Tigger stuffed toy last Christmas:

He brought with him a toy car (also an army tank) along with a Pokemon toy and a Mario figure. It's Mario's son daw. Yuri was very curious to see what his kuya Gabe was doing. What's up with boys and tanks?

Well, they did not play together, but they did play side by side.

Funny anecdote (I was preparing Yuri's breakfast):

Me: Gabe, do you want cereal, too?
Gabe: No, I don't want cereal.
Me: What would you like to have?
Gabe: I would like to have pahn-duh-sahl.

If you didn't get it, pandesal daw! Tutyal!

The next day, we were in the mood to make some French Toast. Actually, we have been planning to make some for a few days now, but there's always aberya. For example, one day, we were ready to make French Toast, and when we opened the fridge, wala palang itlog. That day, despite remembering that we were already out of cinnamon, we still decided to push through to satisfy our craving. Also, nakakailang loaf bread na kami. Haha!

Again, we didn't have cinnamon, so we made the most basic of French toasts. Here are the ingredients:

We used only two eggs para hindi masyadong ma-cholesterol. First, combine the milk and the eggs in a bowl and whisk them together. Then, add a capful of vanilla and a pinch of salt to taste.

A Day in the Life of a Work-at-Home Mom: Toddler Edition

6:30 am: The sunlight is already streaming through the window, rousing me from a good night's sleep. I grab my phone to check the time and utter a morning prayer. Yuri is still blissfully sleeping beside me (we co-sleep).

6:35 pm: I read the Bible (on my phone) and my verse of the day.

6:45 am: After praying, I read articles in my Pocket app. I hold my pee while waiting for Yuri to wake up.

6:40 am: Job wakes up and sends me a message. He usually wakes up before me, but I woke up extra early today. We talk. A lot. Yuri also finds his way to my breasts for a pre-breakfast snack. (He nurses while asleep.)

7 am: Yuri finally tosses and turns, a signal that he's almost awake. I give him a few minutes to rub his eyes, stretch, and adjust. Then, we read a book. Currently, we're reading Pig's Egg.

Photo: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17284564-pig-s-egg

7:15 am: We go downstairs for breakfast. Breakfast today is bread, eggs, and sausages, but Yuri prefers to eat cereal. We eat together.

7:25 am: I'm done eating. (Somehow, ever since I became a mom, I've never had time for leisure eating.) I get up and wash my plate (and cup and spoon and fork). Yuri remains in the high-chair as he's still eating. I always sing a nursery rhyme for Yuri from the kitchen; my current song choice is 10 Green Bottles.

View from the kitchen. Don't worry; it's not as dark as it looks. It's just the effect of the backlight. :-)

7:40 am: Yuri is finally done eating! I remove his bib, take him out of the high-chair, and wash his hands and mouth at the sink. I pass him to his yaya (stay-in nanny) while I wash Yuri's utensils and clean his tray and chair.

7:45 am: I get Yuri from the yaya and ask her to heat some water for Yuri's bath. Yes,we don't have hot water in the bathroom. I prepare the bathroom and undress the excited little boy.

7:50 - 8 am: I give Yuri a bath. Yuri loves taking a bath so much that he doesn't want it to end. Luckily, today, he doesn't fight me when I saw bathtime's over.

8 - 8:15 am: I dress Yuri up in thin, comfortable clothes. We also cuddle a bit while breastfeeding.

8:15 am: I pass Yuri to his yaya. They go outside the house to play and look at insects. I sit down at my desk to work.

9:00am: They go back inside to play and wreak havoc.

8:30 - 11:45 am: Work, work, work

11:45 am: I prepare Yuri's and my lunch. Today's lunch is turkey burgers, which are bland, but Yuri loves them.

12 nn: Yuri and I eat together. Honey can eat whenever she wants to, but she prefers waiting for us to finish. I finish eating before Yuri and wash my plates while he eats. When he's done, his yaya takes him so that I can wash his plates and clean his chair.

12:30 - 1 pm: Cuddle time! Yuri and I will usually read a book but this time, we quietly watch Stuart Little. He nurses again and eventually falls asleep. I switch channels and watch Life of Pi.

1:15 pm: I give a sleeping Yuri back to his yaya. He stirs but falls asleep again.

1:30 - 4:45 pm: Work, work, work

3:30 pm: Yuri wakes up from his nap and resumes playing - and wreaking havoc.

4 pm: I give Yuri merienda. Today's merienda is a bowl of macaroni salad.

5 pm: I get Yuri from his yaya and he nurses a bit. Then, the sun has not set yet, we go outside to play. We watch cars, birds, and basically anything that move. I also get out a Christmas book (this was during Christmas vacation) and I read it to him. We are reading Karen Katz's Where is Baby's Christmas Present. Yuri loves saying the "No" part!

5:30 pm: I take golden-hour photos. But of course.

Easy-Peasy Breakfast Ideas (A Round-Up)

Good morning and happy Thursday! It is Thursday na, right? Oh Mommy Brain is real; I can't keep track of the days anymore, and I'm only 23!

Anyway, to offer you a measly excuse, it is still before 9 in the morning. Mornings are the most hectic part of my days. And when I say "hectic," just believe me that it is. I barely sit from 7-9, and the only times I get to sit are (one) while feeding Yuri (which is a hectic experience by itself) and (two) while working. Okay. Friends with no children: you'll never know what busy is until you have children!

That's not to say that I don't enjoy motherhood. I am! However, when mornings become too hectic, it's not difficult to become super stressed. Lalo na ngayon that we're having a new struggle. You see, I always let Yuri sleep in. It doesn't matter what time he gets up because I believe sleep is crucial to growth. So it's not rare that he sleeps until 7:30 in the morning - and even if I do get a bit stressed (I calculate the time left for me to prepare breakfast, etc.), I let him be.

However, recently, even after getting up and nursing a bit, he refuses to get up. As in he was like me when I was a child. He would go back to lying down and would say, "tuyog," even if he's not the least bit sleepy. So imagine how even more stressed I become!

 Of course, it is hard to stay stressed when I see this face.

The solution, for me, to lessen the hecticness of the hustle-and-bustle of my mornings is to create breakfast the night before. If I get busy in the evening, which is inevitable, I have "backup 5-minute" recipes to make. Here's a round-up of some of the breakfasts I have made for Yuri in the past:

1. Mango Frozen Yogurt

Preparation Time: 2 Minutes
Blending Time: 2 Minutes
Ingredients: 1 whole manggo, 1 cup yogurt, 2 tablespoons fresh milk, and 2 tablespoons honey

2. Banana-Peanut Butter "Ice Cream"

Prep time: 3 minutes
Blending time: 5 minutes or more (depending on your blender's power)
Ingredients: SEE HERE

3. 5-Minute Peanut Butter-Chocolate Chip Cake

Prep time: 3 minutes
"Baking" time: Around 5 minutes
Ingredients: SEE HERE

4. 5-Minute Banana Oatmeal Cookies

Prep time: 2 minutes
"Baking" time: N/A
Ingredients: SEE HERE

5. "Imbento" Brownies

Toddler-Approved: Peanut-Butter Chocolate Oatmeal Bars

I have two jars of peanut butter, a bag of oats, and, of course, milk. We always have fresh milk. I was getting tired of preparing peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, so I scoured Google for easy-to-do (as usual!) recipes that use peanut butter, oatmeal, and milk. I was able to find several recipes, but they required more ingredients than what I like to use. Finally, I saw this 3-minute recipe from Averie Cooks.

Her recipe's primary ingredients are peanut butter, chocolate chips, oats, and milk. Perfect! The optional ingredients include vanilla extract, sweetener, and dry add-ons (i.e. raisins and coconut flakes). I originally planned to add vanilla extract and raisins, but I decided against it so that I know how the recipe tastes like plain. To cut the long story short, here are the ingredients I used:

Place the chocolate chips, milk, and peanut butter in a microwave-safe bowl and melt them together in the microwave. If you don't like using the microwave, you can melt these in a saucepan. 

We only have very few chocolate chips left in the fridge, so the mixture isn't as chocolatey. I did provide more peanut-butter. Actually, I didn't follow the recipe for the amount of ingredients. I guess it's up to you on how much you want to use.

After melting milk, peanut butter, and chocolate together, it would form a paste like this.

Mix the oats and your optional dry ingredients into the paste. Like what is said in Averie Cooks, the mixture should be fairly dry, so you need to add more oats as necessary.

Averie's recipe called for old-fashioned or rolled oats, but I didn't have any, so I just used ordinary instant oats.

Press the mixture in a container and place it inside the fridge. 

After the mixture has hardened, slice them any way you want. You can also eat the entire piece by yourself! :-) 

Sayang, I didn't get to take a photo of Yuri eating the bars. That's because by the time I remembered to fetch the camera, malapit ng maubos ang bars! Also, my dad who isn't fond of eating sweets found the bars yummy. Yes, it's delicious! Delicious + easy + nutritious = toddler and mommy approved!

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Yogurt-Gelatin Pops!

Happy manic Monday!

I'm running on a kinda hectic busy schedule today (don't we all?), and I thank my lucky stars that I made a batch of easy-peasy yogurt-gelatin pops during my (one-day) vacay last week.

What are yogurt-gelatin pops? Basically, these are popsicles made from two ingredients: yogurt and gelatin! This dessert can be made breakfast because of its high nutritional value. Also, it's sugar-free! (You can add sugar if you want to, though). Plus, like the rest of my lazy recipes, it only takes minutes to make!

I actually copied the recipe from here, and since I wanted to make use of the unused popsicle mold in the kitchen, I made them into messy popsicles instead. First, the ingredients:

If you're wondering why the yogurt looks too big, that's actually a pack of 4 cups. I used two cups of yogurt and one pack of gelatin (the only "menudo" brand I can find in SM)

Just mix the two ingredients together!

Important: Mix the two ingredients in a microwaveable bowl because you have to microwave the mixture. After mixing, microwave on High for 2 minutes. Mix it again and microwave it for another 2-3 minutes. 

Freshly-sterilized popsicle molds!

The job is messy but fun!

Here it is! Not picture-perfect but delish nonetheless!

And that's it, folks! It looks like Jelly Tongue pala, no? Kid-friendly, nutritious, and easy-peasy! Messy but fun to eat! I even ate one haha!

PS: On hindsight, I should have used smooth yogurt rather than yogurt with fruit bits. On the other hand, Yuri likes eating the bits!

*Sorry, I had to use my cellphone's camera to take the photos (save for the last one).

PPS: I was finally able to take a decent photo!

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