Posted October 18, 2018 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 2 Comments
One of my favorite things about Scooby Doo is its distinctive ’60s aesthetic. Who can forget Fred and Shaggy’s bell bottoms or the Mystery Machine’s psychedelic paint job? Even the iconic color scheme associated with the show—orange, lime green, light blue, and purple—has a fun, hippy vibe to it. I wanted to capture that vibe in today’s side dish: a melon berry fruit salad that would look right at home at a 1960s-themed shindig. I cut cantaloupe, honeydew, and watermelon into flower shapes reminiscent of those found on the Mystery Machine and added some blueberries for extra color and flavor. To finish, I tossed it all in a homemade lemon honey dressing. The Little Mister was definitely a big fan of this recipe. Most of the watermelon and blueberries didn’t make it past the photo shoot! XD
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Posted September 20, 2018 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 0 Comments
When I was growing up, my mom liked to make soup, stew, and chili extra special by serving them in bread bowls. It made eating that much more fun for us kids, and mom loved that it cut down on dishes! 😉 When I started working on my Sarah Plain and Tall menu, it became clear to me early on that a nice hearty stew would be my entree. I’ve made a variety of soups, stews, and chowders here on the blog before, so when I tried to think of a way to make this one special, my mind immediately went to bread bowls. They get major nostalgia points from me, and they just contribute so well to the rustic prairie feel I wanted to create for this menu.
Store-bought bread bowls are great if you’re short on time (we always used the Panera sour dough rolls when I was a kid), but making your own can be lots of fun. I tracked down this quick recipe from Taste of Home, and it turned out great! The bread tastes delicious when you fill it with stew or thick soup, but I enjoy it sliced up with a spread of homemade farmer’s cheese too!
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Posted August 16, 2018 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 0 Comments
The winter story lines are some of my favorite Calvin and Hobbes comic strips. I love reading about Calvin’s crazy snowmen, toboggan trips, and resentful driveway shoveling. I also love how Calvin elevated the standard snowball fight to a high art. He made snow fortresses, packed gravel into some of his snowballs for extra sting, and even wrote a poem called The Snowball Prayer.
When I think of snowball-like food, I think of popcorn balls. So in honor of Calvin’s snowballs, I decided to make homemade popcorn balls in kid-approved flavors. Using a recipe for marshmallow popcorn balls I found on Creations by Kara, I created my own trio of flavors:
- Trail Mix: Peanuts, raisins, and M&Ms
- PB&J: Peanut butter, peanuts, and dried strawberries
- Blueberry Banana: Dried blueberries and banana chips
These were really fun and easy to throw together. The Mister brought them to a BBQ for work, and they were a big hit! I think the PB&J is my favorite, but the trail mix is a close second. So whip yourself up a batch the next time you’re craving a snack…or a snowball fight! 😉
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Posted July 19, 2018 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 0 Comments
I wanted to continue this month’s Wizard of Earthsea menu with a fun little item we hear about during Ged’s revelry with his friends at a festival on the wizards’ island, Roke. The boys are playing around with various spells, and as Ged’s friend Vetch causes the leftover chicken bones from his dinner to turn into owls and fly around, Ged uses magic to fashion breadcrumb arrows that he sends after the birds. I loved the idea of bread arrows, so I created a recipe for Parmesan garlic basil breadsticks using premade pizza dough and added arrowheads with some extra dough.
They turned out delicious! Everyone in our family loved them, especially the baby. He wouldn’t let me walk by the tupperware container I had them in without grunting and reaching for a piece. I’d say that’s a pretty rave review! 😉
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Posted June 21, 2018 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 0 Comments
Given the title of this post, you’re probably already wondering about the story behind this recipe. It all started with I started hunting through the Star Trek cookbook for any recipes I might want to include in my Voyager menu. I saw the Maquis Breakfast Bars and thought they looked delicious: homemade granola bars with rolled oats, dates, cranberries, dried apples, shredded coconut, and a bit of honey. I haven’t made anything like that before, so I whipped them up one morning. They turned out great…until it came time to cut them. When I tried to slice the giant sheet of baked granola it absolutely crumbled. There was no way I was going to get even a few bars out of it.
Disappointed, I began to nibble on the crumbled bits as I thought about what recipe I should make to replace it. I stopped short. The granola tasted A.MAZ.ING. I couldn’t stop eating it, and after I shared a handful with the Little Mister, he was hooked too. I crumbled up the remnants in the pan and turned it into loose granola, which the Little Mister and I have been eating with our breakfast every morning since (once it runs out, he may mutiny).
Since I loved the flavor so much, it seemed wrong to scrap the recipe in favor of something else. I didn’t want to risk adding more liquid, since it held together really well in the bowl and I didn’t want to risk soggy granola. Instead, I decided to present it here on the blog as granola bowls. I hope you all enjoy it as much as we did!
P.S. The original recipe calls for melted butter and honey to hold the granola together. For a healthier option, I think melted coconut oil would work equally well with the honey. I haven’t tried it yet, but I intend to. I’ll let you know how it turns out! 🙂
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Posted May 17, 2018 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 2 Comments
“A Short Cut to Mushrooms” is one of my favorite chapters in Fellowship. It’s when we get a really good look at the nature of hobbits. When Pippin first suggests crossing Farmer Maggot’s land, Frodo doesn’t want to because he was caught stealing mushrooms from Maggot as a child. However, we see a glimpse of hobbit-y good humor when Maggot laughingly remembers the thefts…and his wife later sends a basket of mushrooms with them just for Frodo! We also see the stout-heartedness of hobbits when Farmer Maggot volunteers to take the travelers to the ferry, even though he knows there are dangerous men out looking for Frodo. He stands up bravely to what they think is a Black Rider (but turns out to be Merry in the end). It pulls at my heart that the farmer is willing to risk himself for his neighbors when he owes them nothing.
Long story short: from the moment I first started planning this Lord of the Rings menu, I knew I HAD to have a mushroom recipe. I wanted something quick and easy with only a handful of ingredients—a literal short cut to mushrooms! This recipe is one of my favorites. I use it all the time at home. Just throw the ingredients in a bowl, stir, spread it on a baking sheet and roast for 10 minutes. It works well in a skillet on the stove top too!
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Posted April 19, 2018 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 4 Comments
When Matilda goes to visit her teacher, Miss Honey, she’s served a simple snack of brown bread with margarine and tea. It’s the first time Matilda visits her beloved teacher’s home, and she’s understandably distressed that Miss Honey lives in a bare-bones cottage with little food. However, the thing that stood out to me most wasn’t Miss Honey’s dire living situation; it was her reaction to it. She has no refrigerator or real stove but doesn’t seem to mind. She serves Matilda but eats nothing herself, cheerfully insisting she’s not hungry because she eats a large lunch at school every day.
This seems a little sad at first, as if she’s just putting on a brave face for Matilda’s sake, but when we learn what the cottage represents to her, we realize that it’s truly precious, even with its shortcomings. As she and Matilda have tea, Miss Honey explains that she rented the cottage to get away from her cruel aunt. We get the impression that her freedom is so important to her that her circumstances don’t bother her as much as they might. Deep down, she feels the pain of privation, but her current life is the first step into something better. In this moment, we see that Miss Honey is made of sterner stuff than we might have imagined, and it only makes us love her all the more. And at the end of the book when Miss Honey’s inheritance is finally returned to her, we see her and Matilda having tea—with real butter and jam on their bread!
Miss Honey’s bread is one of my favorite aspects of the book, because it’s used as a symbol of both difficulty and triumph. I knew it would be the perfect side dish for my Matilda menu. The bread in the book isn’t described in much detail (beyond being brown), so I decided to go with something simple and hearty with a touch of honey: this whole wheat honey oatmeal bread from Girl Versus Dough. It’s one of the easier breads I’ve made, and the hint of sweetness made it just right. Serve with butter and tea, and you’re all set! 🙂
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Posted March 15, 2018 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 5 Comments
At the Little Mister’s Where the Wild Things Are birthday party, fruit salad was my go-to side dish. It’s always easy to throw together for a party, and it’s a big kid-pleaser too! I assembled mine right before the party without any trouble, and it was a hit. I even had someone ask for the dressing recipe!
At the party I was sure to include the Little Mister’s favorite fruits (apples and grapes) in the salad, but for my blog version of the recipe, I decided to go with a tropical fruit salad. Tropical fruits make me think of the Land of the Wild Things, since so many of them have the whimsical look and juicy flavor of fruit you’d expect to find in an imaginary world. I chose dragon fruit, starfruit, and kiwi for my tropical flavors, then I added clementines and strawberries for some familiarity and extra color. Toss it all in my favorite lime dressing, and you’re set to go!
P.S. Don’t let those awesome, funky dragon fruit skins go to waste—use them as bowls to serve your salad!
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Posted February 15, 2018 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 3 Comments
The lowly, modest turnip. I’ll admit I rarely (if ever) give it a second glance in the produce section. I’m guilty of passing it up hundreds of times in favor of more attractive veggies like a bunch of fresh carrots or a head of bright green broccoli.
Yet when I saw that turnips are one of the few prominent side dishes in Wuthering Heights, I knew I needed to find a way to make them enjoyable. For me, this means ROASTING. I am a firm believer that if you’re having trouble getting yourself to eat your vegetables, a little olive oil and salt with some time in the oven goes a long way.
This recipe I found from Kalyn’s Kitchen takes it a step further and adds some balsamic vinegar for extra oomph. She suggests tossing the roasted turnips in a light coating of balsamic at the very end as well, and I highly recommend it. Turnips are mild little guys, so I think they benefit from just a bit of zing from the extra balsamic.
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Posted January 18, 2018 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 0 Comments
Time for our Little Red Riding Hood recipe! Unlike Rumpelstiltskin, which required me to get a little creative with finding a recipe, I knew from the beginning what I wanted to make for Red’s recipe: the bread she brings her grandmother! Of course, plain old white sandwich bread wouldn’t do. I wanted something different, something special. I decided to make 3 kinds of bread rolls—all of them German, since that’s the kind of bread the Brothers Grimm version of Red would be carrying. I gathered a list of traditional German breads and chose the three that I felt were the prettiest, most distinctive, and most iconic of the culture. Pretzels, cinnamon raisin braids, and kaiser rolls made the final cut! Kaiser rolls are technically Austrian, but since they’re served in Germany too, I decided to give them a pass. 😉 And since I was totally new to making pretzels, I used the baking instructions from Sally’s Baking Addiction as a guide.
When the idea occurred to me to make 3 kinds of bread, I was a little intimidated at first. That’s a lot to get done in one week. Still, I loooved the idea and didn’t want to abandon it. I decided the best way was to use frozen dough as a base for all 3 bread rolls and prepare the dough differently for each one. This would allow me to cut down on prep time and dishes, and as an added bonus, it would be a great way to showcase the versatility of a basic white dough.
I had a blast making these bread rolls, and they were a hit at our house (especially the pretzels!). The Little Mister loves bread in any form, and when he realized you could put raisins in it (one of his favorite snacks), the kid just about lost his mind. Maybe we’ll throw some in a basket and take them to grandma’s house this weekend!
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