Lori's Culinary Creations: kid friendly

Mini Egg Cups

I just love recipes that can get the whole family involved. Plus, having the hubby, kids etc helping out in the kitchen can not only make cooking fun, but when the kids/grandkids participate, they're much more likely to eat it without complaint. Now doesn't that sound awesome?

This recipe I like to call "egg cups with all the leftovers that need to be eaten" but that's a long title so we just call them "Egg Cups." The great thing about this is that you use a muffin time to bake them. Not only does that help keep portion sizes in check, but it also means that you can make a variety of cups sure to please everyone. This means the ingredient list is fairly short; 6 eggs, a variety of cheese, veggies, meats, your imagination and creativity is all that is needed.

Here is what I started with; 6 eggs, chopped mushrooms, bay shrimp, red onion, green chile's, cheddar cheese, a white tea infused cheese, goat cheese and chopped roma tomatoes.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Beat the eggs and set aside. Spray a 12-muffin tin with cooking spray. Since I also had leftover couscous, I pressed some into the bottom of each muffin cup to give it a "floor" so to speak. I also cooked up some bacon and used it to wrap around a few of the cups.

After that, I started dropping the meat, shrimp, cheese etc into the cups. Some were a Spanish Cups, some vegetarian, some for the serious carnivore. They are so versatile!

Next, pour in the egg evenly. When I beat the eggs, I also added ground black pepper and some Mrs. Dash table blend seasoning. I also added a bit of water which "fluffs" up the eggs a bit. My mom did that when I was growing up and I like the addition. I used a 1/4 cup measuring cup to make pouring less messy. When done, each cup contains 1/2 an egg.

Since some of mine had goat cheese and my hubby HATES goat cheese, I marked those with an olive on top so he wouldn't make the mistake of eating one. Gives it a nice decorative touch too. Bake the cups for 15 minutes at 350 degrees.

Check out these yummy and colorful cups! Baked to perfection and ready to eat. I served them with sliced bananas with a cinnamon sprinkling on top. With all the veggies, protein and the fruit, this is a healthy and delicious breakfast.

Cut in half to show the couscous "floor"

Kid Friendly Wrapped Polish Dogs

Need a quick meal idea? Here is one of my "on the fly" meals that is sure to please anyone. All you need is a can of Great Value Pizza Dough and four hot dogs (or polish dogs).

First, roll out the dough and cut it into four pieces. If you want a thinner crust or you are feeding more then four, roll the dough out with a rolling pin to make it go further.