One particularly good low-cost way to escape the "same old, same old" of modern life is to dig out a box of food coloring from the recesses of your kitchen cabinet. Most people have a box of the stuff somewhere, but it's usually only used to color cookie frosting around the holidays. Rather than sitting forgotten in a pantry, we believe its rightful place might be right next to the salt and pepper shakers that get used every day. I fell in love with the stuff during my first ever attempt at the Escape Plan. I made myself some green eggs (thanks for the inspiration, Dr. Seuss!), red orange …
Food & Recipes
Chocolate Chip Cookies That Won’t Make You (Very) Fat
In our recent tournament, chocolate chip cookies were declared the All Time Greatest Childhood Food. Of course, you want to enjoy these treats as adults, but they are not so friendly on the waist line. I guess we aren't burning as many calories now, compared to when we were seven years old. Give this healthy recipe a try and don't forget to dip 'em in milk. Ingredients: 1 cup all-purpose flour 1/2 tsp. baking soda 1/2 tsp. baking powder 1/2 cup butter or trans fat-free margarine, softened 1/4 cup sugar 1/3 cup firmly-packed brown sugar 1 large egg 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract 1 cup …
[Read more...] about Chocolate Chip Cookies That Won’t Make You (Very) Fat
Banana Splits Without The Guilt
Banana splits were a real treat from childhood. They certainly weren't an everyday snack. Turn them into smoothies, however, and you can have one every day and it transforms into a healthy choice. Woo hoo! Ingredients: • 2 bananas • 8 oz. crushed pineapple, drained • 1 1/4 cup of milk • 1/2 cup of unsweetened strawberries (frozen or fresh) • 2 tbs. honey • 6 ice cubes Garnish whipped topping chocolate syrup maraschino cherries Preparation Combine bananas, pineapple, milk, strawberries and honey in a blender. Blend until smooth, no lumps. Start adding ice slowly and blending …
9 Fun Super Bowl Celebrations
As we move into February, which tends to be a hard month for people living in the colder regions of the country, it's time to get serious about not taking yourself too seriously... seriously! Adultitis is rampant this time of year! An easy way to fight this deadly disease is to celebrate the Super Bowl. It's just five days away, leaving you plenty of time to come up with a fun strategy to have some super fun this weekend. There are countless ways to celebrate the Super Bowl and enjoy the game (or in my case, the commercials). Here are some ideas to get you started... 1. Host an appetizer …
Ugly Sweets
One of my favorite parts of this time of year is the sweets... Christmas cookies, fudge.. mmm! My very thoughtful sister-in-law brought over some of our favorites, knowing that I wasn't going to get any made this year (with Lucy's arrival and all). Some of my best childhood memories involve making and decorating cut-out cookies with my family. I'm sure the finished products weren't always the most appetizing (think LOTS of sprinkles), but my dad always seemed excited to eat them and proud that we worked so hard. (What a great dad!) We recently got a message from Terry and Terry Estness, a …
Kick Start Cake
Thanks to Tinye Harding for sharing yet another fun story and recipe from childhood! Tinye wrote… When my brother and I were kids I remember my mom making a cake called Coca Cola Cake. As a child, that amazed me that an adult would come up with such a wonderful cake. To my childlike imagination it sounded like something from Willie Wonka's Chocolate Factory! Recently I found a Paula Dean version of a similar cake called Mt. Dew Cake. My sons love it. Mt. Dew is their favorite "kick start" beverage, much like my first cup of coffee in the morning. Having that soda and the sugar from the …
Gil’s Tips for Thanksgiving on the Cheap
So this dude known only to us as "Gil" sent us a video with some tips for escaping adulthood this Thanksgiving. He mostly focuses on saving money, which is certainly a cause of great stress for many people these days. While we don't endorse all of his ideas, we can certainly get behind his desire to help you remember what's really important this Thanksgiving. Let us know what you think of Gil's tips. [flv:http://www.kimandjason.dreamhosters.com/clubkj_stuff/misc_videos/gil/gil-thanksgiving.flv 450 338] iPod Version (61.8 MB) …
[Read more...] about Gil’s Tips for Thanksgiving on the Cheap
Almonds and Joy
A big thanks to Tinye Harding for sharing this story and recipe from childhood! Tinye wrote... Every year for our birthday's my brother and I try to out do each other with gifts that remind us of our childhood. Last year I gave him a recipe notebook and included some of our childhood favorite's. Here is one of them. Funny story: My mom fixed this almost EVERY Sunday for lunch when my brother and I were kids. I got so tired of it. Now my boys love it. It is a tradition that she burn at least the first pan of almonds because she'd get distracted with the rest of the meal. If we have family …
Potato Mashers and Masks
Jason and I spent the week in Northern VA, putting on a number of speaking programs. Two nights were at the same venue. We love doing two-night programs! The second night is always filled with surprises. Last night was no exception. When the crowd started filing in, we were met by these two Adultitis-free spirits. Yes, they wore their disguises for most of the evening. The reminded me that we are definitely in the permission business! After the program "Groucho Marx" came to our table and shared something that him and his wife would do with their kids, to liven up the family dinner …
Cheesy Comfort
Burr. It's getting chilly here in Madison these days. I've been wearing my hat (which I DO love) on my morning walks. Even though it bums me to think about bundling up until at least March, I am delighting in the little things that come along with the cooler weather... like comfort foods! I wrote an article for our last magazine (which you can download here) for the Yum section about comfort foods and how they are connected with our childhood memories, specifically highlighting one of my all time favorites- mac 'n cheese. Eliz Greene contributed a fantastic recipe for "Fancy Mac and Cheese" …