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I’m off to the BlogHer conference tomorrow, and the kids will be off to their grandma’s later today. After my children’s escapades yesterday, I’m glad to get a break from them. You see, Nathan decided to spray PAM all over the kitchen floor while I was upstairs folding laundry and packing bags. Somehow Lucie didn’t witness his shenanigans either. What possesses an eight-year-old boy to do that is beyond me. I’m not sure he knows why he did it either or why his sister covered for him.

So I leave you with some things to read and a yummy recipe to make. Hopefully this will keep you busy enough so your son or daughter won’t cover your house in cooking spray.

To read:

• I Don’t Want to Go by Addie Meyer Sanders and published by Lobster Press. It’s about a little boy, Joey, who is scared to visit his grandparents on his own for the very first time. I’m lucky. My kids are thrilled to be staying at the old folks apartment where their grandmother lives. They’re even excited about going to church with her. If your child is afraid of any type of transition, this would be a good book for them since it shows a little boy overcoming his fears.
• Kersplatypus by Susan K. Mitchell from Sylvan Dell Publishing. A strange little creature appears out of nowhere after heavy rains Down Under. The other animals wonder what he could be. The For Creative Minds section provides more information on platypuses and other Australian animals.
• Some blog reading - Strengthen Your Family Ties by Believer in Balance and Simple Summer Fun from Seasonal Kids Activities. Both blogs are on the Sparkplugging blog network - Work at Home Resources & Community for the Web 2.0 Generation.

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Lobster Press is holding a snack contest to promote their book, YUM: Your Ultimate Manual for Good Nutrition. This would be a great summer project to do indoors when it’s too hot outside to play. To enter just click here to email them your ultimate healthy “YUM SUMMER SNACK” idea for the chance to win a free copy of YUM and four other Lobster Press books of your choice!

You’ll need to include your name, age, and mailing address along with the description of your healthy snack. Include any special ingredients and preparation instructions, too. Also, you’ll need to tell the folks at Lobster Press why your snack rules!

The winning “YUM SUMMER SNACK” idea will be posted on the Lobster Press website and on the Lobster Press Blog.

Also, children will need their parents’ permission before submitting their entry! Contest is open to Canadian and U.S. residents up to age 18. No purchase required. One grand prize winner will be drawn at random from all entries received and contacted by email to chose the books in their prize pack. Limit one entry per person.

Please email Lobster Press if you have any questions.

More from Lobster Press

• Click here for some sample recipes from the book. (It’s a PDF file, so you’ll need Adobe Reader to view.)
• Read a review of YUM: Your Ultimate Manual for Good Nutrition on the Lobster Press blog - Feature: Delicious Summers with Healthy Meals.
• Summer Reading Suggestions from Lobster Press

It’s a great time of year to make homemade popsicles. I was inspired by a recipe from Pops!: Icy Treats for Everyone by Krystina Castella that was in last week’s Denver Post:

Grape Pops

Makes eight 6-ounce pops.

Ingredients:

1. 1 1/2   cups seedless red grapes, halved
2. 4 1/2   cups white grape juice

Directions:

1. Divide the grape halves among the pop molds.
2. Pour in the grape juice and insert the sticks. Freeze for at least 6 hours.
3. Remove from the freezer; let stand at room temperature for 5 minutes before removing the pops from the molds.

Then I started researching popsicle molds online. Oh. My. Goodness. There are such cool ones out there like the Tovolo Green Shooting Star Pop Molds, the Tovolo Blue Rocket Pop Molds, and the Tovolo Yellow Groovy Pop Molds. They’re only $7.99 each (and eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25 at Amazon).

Healthy, refreshing, and fun - what else could you want? Have a blast with some homemade popsicles!

Welcome to the Kids in the Summer Kitchen edition of the Carnival of the Recipes. Let’s see who’s joining us today - it’s quite a crowd!

• Jeff Tincher presents Homemade Spaghetti Sauce | Two Tongues Up posted at Two Tongues Up. Nothing better than making your own sauce, especially if you use tomatoes from your garden!
• Miss Jocelyn presents A Pondering Heart » Blog Archive » Brownie Pancakes, Anyone? Coookin’ up a storm… posted at A Pondering Heart.
• Tea Party Girl presents How to Make Inexpensive Iced Tea that Wows Your Friends | Tea Party Girl posted at Tea Party Girl. Summer time is the best time for a tea party!
• Bobby presents Pineapple Meatballs Recipe posted at Free Online Recipes.
• A Cowboy’s Wife presents Carne Guisada | My Wooden Spoon posted at My Wooden Spoon.
• Steve Bainbridge presents Grilled quail over warm lentil salad, with poached egg, garlic cream, frisee, and bacon posted at Professor Bainbridge on Wine. If you have no idea where to find quail in your area, check your local Asian market. They’ll carry it in the freezer case.
• Expat Chef presents The Expatriate’s Kitchen: Mac and Cheese (and Broccoli) posted at The Expatriate’s Kitchen.

• Stephanie presents Cherry Cobbler posted at Stop the Ride! I love cobbler!
• Chicken Recipes presents Baked Almond Chicken posted at Healthy Chicken Recipes.

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To go along with my post Have a berrylicious summer with Sylvan Dell Publishing and some berry recipes, here’s another fabulous blackberry recipe to nosh on while you’re reading Blackberry Banquet.

The recipe for Blackberry Cake was submitted by Elsie Cumpton of Worthington, KY to American Profile magazine. She remembers sending this moist cake by mail to her husband when he was stationed in Germany in the US Army back in the ’50s.

It would probably be a great cake to mail to our service people overseas, too. If this is something that appeals to you (it would be a wonderful activity to do with your kids) check out The Soldier’s Angels - Angel Bakers project.

Try baking the cake in the morning with your young early risers when it’s still cool out. If you have kids like my son, Nathan who wakes up at 6 a.m. or earlier, this will keep them busy for awhile. (And I won’t give you a dirty look if you decide to have a small slice for breakfast.)

Later in the day, take a few slices with you on a picnic or a bike trip to the park or beach. I’m guessing it’s so moist that you can eat it with your fingers like sponge cake.

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Another sign of summer are all the recipes I keep seeing for berry dishes. From the Denver Post food section  to Sunset and Bon Appetit magazines, there have been some terrific new takes on what to do with the summer berry harvest. Best of all, they’re very kid friendly, so I’ll be sharing the recipes (and some good books to go with them) in the next few weeks.

First, to get us in a berry good mood, from Sylvan Dell Publishing comes Blackberry Banquet for children ages four to eight . Author Terry Pierce tells the story of forest animals squeaking, tweeting, slurping, yipping, and chomping over the sweet, plump fruit of a wild blackberry bush. When a bear arrives to take part in the feast, chaos strikes.

Like all Sylvan Dell books, the last few pages feature a “For Creative Minds” educational section with fun facts and other activities.  (You can also view it online on their website along with Teaching Activities, quizzes: Reading / FCM / Math, and Learning Links.) I learned that even foxes like to eat berries - who knew?

Terry got the idea for her newest picture book while vacationing in Oregon. “Blackberry Banquet came to me one day when I was approaching my favorite wild blackberry bush to pick berries for making a pie,” she explains. “As I neared the bush, a flurry of animals fled from it, and it made me start thinking about how we’re not the only animals who enjoy such a sweet treat!” (You can read an interview with Terry on the Sylvan Dell site.)

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Elizabeth Kennedy at About.com’s Children’s Books is recommending the Simply in Season Children’s Cookbook as “one of the most visually appealing cookbooks [she has] ever seen.”

Simply in Season Children’s Cookbook is an imaginative, active way to invite kids of all ages - especially 6 to 12 year olds - to get in touch with real food, to see where it comes from, to take responsibility for preparing it, and to have fun in the process.

With summer farmer’s markets in full swing, this is a great time to use such a cookbook. Another great resource is the Internet, of course, and one great website for summertime recipes comes from the National Watermelon Promotion Board. They have some great kid friendly and healthy, seasonal recipes. Here’s a small sample.

Watermelon Banana Split
A healthy twist to an old favorite - serves four

Ingredients:

1. 2 bananas
2. 1 medium watermelon
3. 1 cup fresh blueberries
4. 1 cup diced fresh pineapple
5. 1 cup sliced fresh strawberries
6. 1/4 cup caramel fruit dip
7. 1/4 cup honey roasted almonds

Instructions:

Peel bananas and cut in half lengthwise then cut each piece in half. For each serving, lay 2 banana pieces against sides of shallow dish. Using an ice cream scooper, place three watermelon “scoops” in between each banana in each dish. Remove seeds if necessary. Top each watermelon “scoop” with a different fruit topping. Drizzle caramel fruit dip over all. Sprinkle with almonds.

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