ML Interest Tag: till

5 Ingredient Pasta al Pastore

by writerredtri

This recipe for Pasta al Pastore courtesy of our friends at A Little Yumminess almost makes itself. Store bought, well-made Italian sausage (chicken, turkey or traditional pork) is the key to this easy dish. Well-seasoned sausage takes away the need to add your own seasonings and when possible we suggest using good ricotta.

Ingredients
4 hot (or mild for kids) Italian sausages
1 lb package rigatoni or pasta of choice
1/2 lb fresh ricotta
2 tablespoons olive oil
Grated pecorino/parmesan cheese (optional)

Method
1. Boil well salted water in a large pot. Add pasta and cook till al dente.

2. In a skillet, add oil, heat and then add sausage meat. You can crumble it with the back of the wooden spoon. Saute till cooked – 5-7 minutes.

3. Reserving 2-3 ladles of pasta water, remove pasta from water and add to sausage in skillet.

4. Add the reserved pasta water. Cook for a minute or so. Turn off heat.

5. Stir in ricotta and if using sprinkle with pecorino/parmesan.

For more easy, kid-friendly recipes click HERE

Tell us if you adapt this recipe at all to suit your kids’ taste buds. Fill us in below!

This is a guest post from our friends Simran and Stacie at a Little Yumminess. Be sure to visit their blog for more fab, kid-friendly recipes!

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Just Add Fun! The Best Activities & Gear for Sunny Days

by rtsarahgreene

Stash away the winter coats and boots, summer is on the horizon! Before you know it, your little water bugs will be begging for the chance to log hours of pool time and play outdoors till the crickets chirp. Get prepped with gear for activities that love summer as much as the kiddos: kites, pool noodles and the ultimate in cool treats are only a few. Scroll through the flip book below for the scoop on stuff promising to put major smiles on the minis—and making you a superstar source of summer joy.

Cruise the Hood

When there’s a long and lazy afternoon on the horizon, your kids can cruise the hood’ California style on a longboard scooter. The handles offer up extra balance for new riders while the classic SoCal look will keep em’ laid back. After all, “it’s summa-summa-summa-time and the livin’s easy.”

Available at Razorama.com, $79.99.

Photo: VoxEfx via flickr creative commons

What’s your favorite summer activity? Share with us in the Comments!

—Sarah Greene

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You’ll Get on the Soapbox Over These Natural Bath Products

by rtsusanbanchek

After a day of don’t-stop-till-I-drop play, it’s a serious task to scrub those tiny fingers and toes to squeaky-clean perfection. If you think the list of stuff in the average bathtime products sounds scarier than what’s in a can of cheese whiz, opt to keep it simple with naturally produced products (no sulfates, no phthalates, no-nothing-ates!) to get the job done. We searched high and low for everything from bubble baths to tear-free shampoos and found our new favorites. Browse through the slideshow below to find out exactly what made a splash.

Honest Co. Healing Balm

Grease up eczema-prone areas and dry spots with this extra thick ointment. We dig the subtle herbal scent and organic ingredients so much that we’ve probably used half the tube on our own chapped hands and elbows.

Available at Amazon.com$12.98.

What is your favorite natural bath time product for kids? Share with us in the comments!

—Susan Banchek

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Fall Flings: The Coolest Local Hayrides

by Ayren Jackson-Cannady

News flash: Fall is here! In celebration of the festive season full of pumpkins, apple cider, and cozy sweaters, we’ve rounded up some of the best places to take the little ones on a fun-loving, sweet-smelling, totally chill hay-filled adventure. Read on to learn about the best hayrides this side of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

The classic ride: Homestead Farm
Fans of a more simple way to celebrate Fall should hop in the car and visit Homestead Farm. They offer hayrides straight to a pick your own pumpkin patch where little ones can toddle around trying to find the roundest pumpkin to take home and carve. Apple lovers will also rejoice as Homestead offers Enterprise, Suncrisp, Cameo, and Sun Fuji trees that kiddos can pick till their heart’s content. For a weekend school lesson, have the kids guess when the farm was started. Hint: George Washington wasn’t even President yet (1763)!

Cost: $3; produce by the pound
Open: Sat-Sun (October)
15600 Sugarland Rd. (Poolesville, Md)
Online: homestead-farm.net

The “gourd-geous” ride: Pumpkin Village
Families who love the county fair, but don’t quite get to partake because of city living, can get their fix at Leesburg’s Pumpkin Village. Wagon rides, kid’s maze, ponies, moon bounces and a massive spider web crawl are just some of the activities to keep the little ones mesmerized all day long. We guarantee they’ll be so tuckered out from all the fall fun that you might just get to sneak some of their apple cider for yourself when they pass out in the hay!

Cost: $9.95-$14.95
Open: Daily, 9 am-5 pm (through Nov. 4)
19270 James Madison Hwy. (Leesburg, Va)
Online: pumpkinfestleesburg.com

The fairytale ride: Butler’s Orchard
Mini farmers will love a trip to Butler’s Orchard’s Pumpkin Festival because they can traipse around the farm, check out the animals, and get their face painted all in preparation for a hayride out to the pumpkin patch. Once the kiddos have picked out the biggest, orangest, ripest pumpkin for their Halloween Jack-O-Lantern, the hayride will take them back to the festival where they can jump in the hayloft, ride in a pumpkin coach (hello Cinderella fans!), and even try their hands at the Magic Straw Maize. Bonus: On October 18 & 19, there will be a Pumpkin Cannon at the farm!

Cost: $11; Free/2 and under; produce by the pound
Open: Sat-Sun, 10 am-5 pm (October, plus Columbus Day)
22200 Davis Mill Rd. (Germantown, Md)
Online: butlersorchard.com

The hay-heavy ride: Montpelier Farms
Pulled by a genuine John Deere tractor, Montpelier Farms’ hay rides showcase a working farm, including some amazing hand-made straw animals (not your typical livestock), picturesque round hay bales, and a “hay-n-play” area where little ones can run, jump, lounge and tag each other amongst a ton of hay.

Cost: $10; $8/kids 3-12; Free/under 2
Open: Fri, 5 pm-11 pm; Sat, 10 am-11 pm; Sun, 11 am-7 pm (through Nov. 2)
1720 Crain Hwy. (Upper Marlborough, Md)
Online: montpelierfarms.com

The pre-campfire ride: Dick and Jane’s Farm
Kiddos who love to camp, but have parents who aren’t the outdoorsy type should run to Dick and Jane’s farm. Not only do they offer amazing hayrides that come complete with a pumpkin, and an apple, but you can schedule campfires! So Junior can roast marshmallows till his belly is full, while Mom and Dad still sleep in the comfort of their own bed. The hayride will drop you off to a fully prepped fire while you bring your supplies (read: food) to have the perfect outdoor family fun night. Win win!

Cost: $7 per child, $4 accompanying adult; campfires extra
Open: Mon-Sat, 9 am-6 pm; Sun. 10 am-4 pm
4362 Solomon’s Island Rd. (Harwood, Md)
Online: dickandjanesfarm.com

Where else can we catch a cool hayride? Tell us in the comments section below. 

—Hilary Riedemann

Photos courtesy of Butler’s Orchard via Facebook, Homestead Farm, Leesburg Animal Park via Facebook, Montpelier Farms, Dick and Jane’s Farm

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Vine and Dandy: U-Pick Muscadine & Scuppernong Farms

by Phebe Wahl

You might have heard through the grapevine that muscadines are in season. September and October are prime months for picking this southern grape. Muscadines have an intense sweetness like a Concord grape, but yet tougher, plum-like skins and larger seeds. Scuppernongs are a greenish variety of muscadine. Combine the fun of self-serve harvesting with the sweet taste of this Georgia native fruit at these Atlanta-area farms.

Backyard Figs and Muscadines
As the name implies, Backyard Figs and Muscadines isn’t exactly a farm. It’s more of an acre yard with 3 fig trees, a muscadine vine and a few apple, pecan, and hickory trees that produce more than the family can eat. They don’t use pesticides, and they’re open every day by appointment from 8 am to dark.

455 Railroad Avenue, Flovilla, GA 30216
Cost: $5/gallon
Contact: 770-504-1729 or paulhale@mail.com

Bank’s Vineyard
Bank’s Vineyard boasts 15 acres with 20 vines of muscadines and scuppernongs. They’re open daily from 9 to 7. You don’t need an appointment, but you may want to call to make sure the fruit is ripe; they generally aren’t ready till September.

290 Banks Road, Fayetteville, GA
Cost: $1.50/pound
Contact: 770-633-9990

Brown’s Muscadine Farm
If you’re looking for a place to spend all day in the muscadine vineyard, Brown’s is the place to go. Their fields include toilets and picnic tables, so bring a lunch (or at least a sandwich or cheese and crackers to eat along with your grapes) and make a day of it. They use no pesticides, and they’re open from late August through October.

4853 Evans Drive, Union City, GA 30291
Cost: $8/gallon; $1.25/pound
Contact: 770-964-5304

Dacula Briarpatch
It’s a small homestead farm, but Dacula Briarpatch offers plenty for families, from restrooms and picnic tables to group tours. The main crops are blueberries and blackberries, but fall harvest includes apples and pears as well as muscadines. Your kids will enjoy the $5/person tour, which includes a show-and-tell of nature objects, from deer bones to birds nests.

2503 Cammie Wages Road, Dacula, GA 30019
Cost: Call for pricing
Contact: 770-962-4990

Weaver’s Berryland Farm
Weaver’s grows blueberries, blackberries, raspberries and vegetables as well as muscadines. This family farm gives a glimpse of what farming was like a generation ago, with 50 year old tractors and an historic barn. Your kids will also enjoy chickens and peacocks, as well as the 70 muscadine vines.

2252 Hiway 16 West, Jackson, GA 30233
Cost: $8/gallon
Contact: 770-595-8303

Waits Farm
The farm covers fewer than 5 acres, but Waits Farm packs a lot of grapes in a small space. The farm boasts 220 vines and 12 different kinds of muscadines and scuppernongs. They’ll be ripe from late August to mid-October.

3779 Old Braswell Road, Monroe, GA 30650
Cost: $4.50/gallon
Contact: 770-207-6910

What is your family’s favorite southern delicacy? Tell us in the comments section below!

–Lisa Baker

Photo courtesy of  Paul Hale of Backyard Figs and Muscadines, Creative Commons via Flickr and Bank’s Vineyard via Facebook

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