I’ve been thinking a lot about my sister lately.

My younger sibling, whom I adore (despite early indications to the contrary) loves coffee almost as much as I dislike it.

This week, with my sibling on my mind, I decided to do a little experimenting with our family’s favorite banana bread recipe. I gave our traditional loaf a younger, hipper, more interesting sister.

The recipe calls for lots of chocolate, a bit of coffee and a dash of cayenne pepper. I call it Hot Mocha Banana Bread, but I could have called it, I’m Going To Miss That Kid This Christmas Bread.

Usually this time of year, we are quintupling our banana bread recipe to give out mini loaves for the holidays. This year, half of those loaves will have a few secret ingredients, including a bit of one of these, which my mom often leaves at our house after a visit.

See how much I dislike coffee? My poor mother has to bring her own. No wonder she ‘s always liked my sister better …

Traditional Banana Bread

1 1/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 /2 tsp salt

2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp grated nutmeg

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup evaporated cane juice

1 egg

1/4 cup applesauce

1/4 cup extra light olive oil

the scrapings of one vanilla bean (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)

1 cup mashed bananas

1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, mix dry ingredients until combined. In a separate bowl, blend bananas, sugars, egg, applesauce, vanilla bean and oil. Add wet to dry and mix until just combined. Fold in chocolate chips.

Bake in a well-oiled pan for 55 minutes to one hour, or in a cupcake tin for about 22 minutes.

Hot Mocha Banana Bread

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1/4 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 /2 tsp salt

2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

2 tsp instant coffee

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup evaporated cane juice

1 egg

1/4 cup applesauce

1/4 cup extra light olive oil

the scrapings of one vanilla bean (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)

1 cup mashed bananas

1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, mix dry ingredients until combined. In a separate bowl, blend bananas, sugars, egg, applesauce, vanilla bean and oil. Add wet to dry and mix until just combined. Fold in chocolate chips and walnuts.

Bake in a well-oiled pan for 55 minutes to one hour, or in a cupcake tin for about 22 minutes.

Merry Christmas to my Nashville family. Love you guys!!

I know what you are thinking. That is some headline.

But I had to choose something that showed my excitement at discovering the BEST recipe ever for colorful and festive natural decorating icing.

Until now, I have been at a loss when it comes to cool icing for holiday cookies. The only products out there have trans fat or artificial colors … it’s an organic nightmare.

But recently, I tried the simplest recipe ever — just three ingredients. Ready?

• Organic confectioner’s sugar
• Organic cream
• Natural food coloring (this product always seemed a little pricey to me, but you need such small amounts, that it lasts a long time. Also, the colors are MUCH more vibrant that other natural food colorings I have used!)

And guess what?! We have bright green trees, pink snowmen, and all sorts of other fun cookies. The icing tastes great and “dries,” so the cookies can be stored and shared.

I start with two cups of sugar and add a few tablespoons of cream. I keep adding cream until it gets thin enough that all the sugar is incorporated, and it is easily spreadable. I then separate small amounts into small bowls and add coloring according to package directions to make lots of beautiful colors!

Happy Decorating!!

During the really cold weeks of winter when we can’t get out much, I like to make sure to have some sensory things to add to our play here. I think it really helps all of us balance out that too-much energy equation.

One of my kids’ favorite activities is play dough, and I am always looking for new ways to make it more interesting.

So this week we made a batch of Snowy Day Play Dough.

We started with the basic ingredients for the old school homemade play dough, plus almond and vanilla extracts. (peppermint could be fun for winter too!)

Then we added the secret ingredient:

I made the basic recipe on the stove and added the extracts and glitter at the very end, right before kneading.

And there you have it — Snowy Day PlayDough. You can’t see much glitter? I think a little got in there. Much of it also got on the counter, the floor, the table …

Snowy Day Play Dough Recipe

1 cup flour (spelt flour works well if you are looking to make it wheat-free)

1/2 cup salt

2 teaspoons of oil

1 tablespoon cream of tartar

1 cup water

2 tsp of pure extract like almond, vanilla, peppermint or a mix

glitter

Add flour, salt, oil, cream of tartar and water to an old cooking pot. Cook over medium-high heat stirring frequently until the dough starts to form a ball and pull away from the sides of the pot. Remove dough. Make a little thumprint dip in the playdough and add extracts. Knead on waxed paper or parchment to prevent sticking. Add glitter and continue to knead until dough forms a nice smooth ball.

Store in an air-tight container for up to a week.

Happy Snowy Day!

How do you keep your little ones busy when the weather gets really cold?

I am the worst vegetarian.

I have been at this for 20 years, and I am still discovering all these things I could have done along the way to make veggie-eating easier.

Like roasting vegetables. A lot of vegetables.

I should have totally done that in the past.

BUT, I am doing it now. To go along with my bulk grains and slow-cooker beans, (don’t forget to add kombu!)I have started making huge batches of roasted veggies once a week.

It is SO easy. I make a batch on Sunday to go with our meal, and there is plenty left over for lunches the next few days. Roasted veggies are also great on salads (think potatoes and asparagus) and in soups.

My favorite veggies to roast are mushrooms, Brussels sprouts, peppers, potatoes, cauliflower, carrots, parsnips, sweet potatoes, broccoli and asparagus. But pretty much ANY veggie is great when it gets all carmelized and delicious in a hot oven.

I cut any veggies we have into bite-size pieces and toss them with olive oil, salt, pepper and herbs like thyme, basil, rosemary or oregano. Then I cook them for 35 to 34 minutes in a 475-degree oven.

They are great over brown rice, and delicious heated up for the next few days!

Around here, we give a lot of handmade gifts.

This helps us to stay within our budget, but it also feels really good to give something homemade to people that we care about.

This year, we are making potholders and vanilla extract.

But here are a few other ideas for handmade holiday gifts that show a little love:

• Shimmery Peppermint Lip Balm
• Wool Baby/Toddler Pants
• Felted Ornaments
• Aromatherapy Pillow Spray
• Cranberry Hazelnutty Granola
• Cinnamon Roasted Nuts
• Homemade Deodorant (nothin’ personal, Uncle Mike!)
• Herbal Kitchen Spray
• Homemade Laundry Soap
• Lavender-Peppermint Bath Salts
• Pancake Mix
• Lemony Sugar Scrub
• Birdseed Ornaments
• Homemade Dog Treats
• Vanilla Sugar

What are you making this year?

As the temperature drops, my skin has been really suffering.

I was recently invited to one of those parties — you know the kind of parties — and tried out their moisturizing skin scrub. I’m sure it works just fine. But the ingredient list left me a little uncomfortable.

That’s when I remembered my favorite scrub recipe — shared with me by my friend Laura.

This scrub is amazing! It smooths dry elbows and knees, and leaves skin baby soft. It also smells great!

Give it a try — your skin will thank you!

Psst! This scrub also makes a GREAT homemade Christmas gift!

Lemony Sugar Scrub

(fills 3 1.5-ounce containers; I halved the original recipe)

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup coconut oil

3 vitamin e capsules (cut open and squeeze out oil)

3/4 tbsp aloe gel

3/4 tbsp cocoa butter

4 drops lemon essential oil ( you can substitute lavender or rose)

In a small pan, mix coconut oil and cocoa butter and melt over medium heat until liquefied. Pour into a glass bowl and add sugar, vitamin e, aloe gel and essential oil. Mix well to combine. Store in airtight containers. 

Scrub, scrub, scrub!

Every year, I look for ideas for small things to make for friends and family.

We give a lot of homemade gifts, and I really enjoy having something small and handmade to give to people who have made our year better — friends from the library, co-workers, neighbors.

A few years ago, I heard about making vanilla extract. But I could never seem to start it early enough. Homemade vanilla extract takes about 2 months to steep, which means that ideally, to be a Christmas gift, it should be started around Halloween.

And I am just not thinking about Christmas at Halloween.

But this year, a friend gave me a great idea — make the extract now, transfer it to small glass bottles and label it: “Do not use until Feb. 1, 2012.”

Easy-peasy, right? This year is finally the year!

In researching this process, I have learned that homemade vanilla extract basically has two ingredients: vanilla beans and alcohol. The alcohol is most commonly vodka, though I have found recipes that use rum. Apparently, the cheap stuff works fine. I used some more expensive vodka because it has been sitting in my freezer for two years looking for a home. I also bought some super cheap stuff, so I could make a lot of vanilla.

The process is simple: Split 6 vanilla beans lengthwise, put them in a mason jar, and add 2 cups of vodka. Shake, and leave it alone. Putting it in a dark place is probably a good idea. Closer to Christmas, transfer it to small bottles.

A nice bonus of making your own vanilla is that many commercial brands contain corn syrup, so this is one way to avoid the stuff. Plus, the rumor is that you can continue making vanilla from the same beans several times by adding new liquor to a little bit of vanilla extract left in the bottom of your bottle. (I’ll give it a shot in a few months and let you know.)

My vanilla has only been steeping for a few days (it darkens a little each day), and already, it smells wonderful. I can’t wait to package it up and share it with the bakers in my life, and so many people who have made this year a little sweeter.

I love cooking with my kids. It is one of my favorite activities.

But I really, really love combining cooking with our favorite books.

During the next few months, I am looking to share some of our favorite books and corresponding recipes here. These are simple ideas for helping favorite books come to life, and sharing healthy food with kids. I’d love it if you shared some of your favorite books and the recipes that go with as well!

This first book is a long-time favorite around here. We love Maurice Sendak, and for years we have read Chicken Soup with Rice, a book about the months and how chicken soup is always appropriate.

From the book: “I’ve told you once, I’ve told you twice, All seasons of the year are nice, For eating chicken soup with rice.”

We read this book when we make our favorite chicken stock. As we read, the kids chop onions, celery, carrots and parsley. Rice boils on the stove.

When we finish the book, the vegetables go into the pot with a little oil to soften. We add the stock, one cracked clove of garlic, salt, pepper, and the cooked rice, bring it all to a boil and then lower the heat, cooking until everything is tender and the flavors have combined.

Although “all seasons of the year are nice, for eating chicken soup with rice,” we especially like it this time of year.

Do you have a favorite recipe for sharing with kids?

So I have a few people in my life who occasionally tease me about my organic ways.

They are just joking, of course, and I don’t really take it seriously.

But recently, someone made a joke about me making my own butter.

I hadn’t ever tried it, but you know how these things work — it wasn’t long until I found an opportunity. (Coincidentally we made it in a pre-school co-op class I am co-teaching. It. Was. AWESOME.)

So now, it’s sort of a new obsession around here. Not only is homemade butter very easy (you don’t have to buy a churn, I don’t care what the Internet says), the kids love making it, and we are finding all kinds of different versions and uses for the stuff.

This past weekend we made garlic-herb butter for homemade garlic bread.

We also love to make cinnamon-butter to go with homemade bread. I know. I am getting a little Little House on the Prairie with all this. But I promise, try it once, and if you don’t find yourself making batches and batches of butter, you are a stronger pioneer than I am.

Homemade Butter

This is more of a process than a recipe. Homemade butter only contains only two ingredients: heavy cream and a bit of salt. We favor Organic Valley’s heavy cream if you can find it. The salt really makes a difference, but we literally add just a pinch.

We make butter by putting about a half-cup of cream into a small jar. We add just a few grains of sea salt.

Then the fun begins. We shake, rattle and roll that little jar until the magic happens. Shaking is great, but when little arms get tired, it sure is fun to roll it back and forth across the floor.

In just a few minutes, the cream starts to thicken, and eventually achieves a whipped consistency. This is perfect for bread and a great way to covert margarine-lovers who think that the spreadability of that stuff negates the uckiness of the ingredients.

If you shake a little more, the butter will thicken and the solids will seperate from the whey or butter-milk. (Buttermilk is great stuff and has lots of uses!)

We keep our butter in the fridge for a few days. We usually make pretty small batches, and make it often.

Variations:

• To make cinnamon-butter, add a just a shake of ground cinnamon to the cream before shaking.
• To make garlic-herb butter, mix in minced garlic and finely chopped herbs when the butter reaches the whipped stage and stir carefully.
• To make honey butter, add about a tablespoon of honey to the cream and shake like crazy.
• To make citrus-butter, add minced orange or lemon zest to the cream before shaking.

Go ahead and give butter-making a try. And if anyone teases you about your efforts, offer them a bite. They will pretty quickly declare a take-back.

The kids and I are big fans of green smoothies. We all them frog guts, and we are in a special club called the “Frog Guts Club.”

You can join. It is open enrollment right now.

I know green smoothies seem a little scary. If you haven’t tried one yet, you probably don’t buy it when people talk about how “they don’t taste like death,” and “they really don’t make you gag at all. Promise.”

But it’s true. Close your eyes. Take a sip. It will be OK. 

This is a recipe for my new favorite green smoothie. I am drinking one this morning, as part of my squirt whipped cream and too much cranberry bread detox plan!

I promise this smoothie is delicious. If you are nervous, just add a little bit of kale the first time.

Tropical Green Smoothie

One banana

3/4 cup crushed pineapple

1/2 cup coconut milk (or more, depending on the consistency you need to get it going)

A few handfuls of kale or other greens

Throw everything in a blender and take it for a spin!

Yum!
No really … Yum!