Let Your Kids Cook For You

By: Jessica Keeton

Happy Sunday everyone!

I wanted to share a recipe that I tried out last night with help from Bryn. Before I let you know what it is, if you are on a diet or looking to lose weight, scroll past this very quickly. It is humanly impossible to eat just one and you don’t want to be that person that waits until everyone is asleep to sneak in the kitchen to grab one.

There is no official name for them that I know of but I call them Cinnamon Cream Cheese Rolls. What’s great about these treats is that you probably already have all the ingredients in your house. I hate finding a great recipe and I have only one of the ingredients, forcing me to run all the way to the BIG grocery store because the little ones around the corner won’t have what I need. With this recipe, if you don’t have everything, don’t worry about driving all the way to the grocery store, you can pick all the items up at your local dollar store, corner store, or whatever is closest to you.

I know most times I make a dessert, my kids start off helping me, but after they’ve licked the cake batter off the spoon, I’m left alone to finish everything. This recipe keeps your kids involved the entire time and without a big mess to cleanup.

Because there was a possibility of a spoon being licked, Bryn decided she would help. 

Ingredients:
1 loaf of white bread (16 ounces) with crusts removed
1 Package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
¾ cup confectioners sugar
1 cup sugar
1 ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¾ cup butter (stick or spread) melted
1 Tablecloth (extra) (if kids are involved)

Steps:

1. In a bowl, combine cream cheese and confectioners’ sugar. Set Aside

It is up to you whether you want to use 

a spoon to mix a mixer.
We decided to go with 

the mixer because it's more fun.

In another bowl, combine sugar and cinnamon; set aside. 

(Tip for parents: Let the kids mix it first,
when they aren'tlooking, make sure both
 sugar and cinnamon are mixed well) 

Cut off crusts of bread then
flatten bread with a rolling-pin. 

Parents tip: I let Bryn roll one side of the bread,
flip it over and I would roll the other side. 
The thinner you get each piece of bread,
the easier it is to roll up.)

Spread about 1 tablespoon of 
cheese mixture on each slice of bread. 

Roll up, jelly roll style.

Try and roll as tight as possible.

(The thinner you make the pieces of bread, the better you will be able to roll them up) 

 

Dip in melted butter. Roll around and make sure it is completely covered. Shake off any excess. 

After you shake off excess butter, place in bowl with cinnamon sugar. You can either roll it around with your fingers or take a spoon and sprinkle sugar on top.

Bryn and I found a great technique. We placed it in there and took the bowl and shook it left to right. It seemed to cover the roll the best, more evenly then the other options.

You can either place on an ungreased baking sheet or do what we did and use foil. It helps when it comes to cleaning the pan, you won't be left scrubbing baked sugar off the pan. It makes cleanup quick.

Bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until golden brown. 
Yield: 16-20 roll-ups. Taste great warm or cold. 

These treats are sure to be a hit with your family, so make sure to involve your kids. 

Next time your in the mood for something delicious, bake up some Cinnamon Cream Cheese Rolls!

Extra Family Tips:
*Great to-go snacks for the playground, park, picnic, etc.
*Let your kids serve you for a change.
*Talk about what they learned, ingredients, what was their favorite part, etc.

Feel free to share your pictures and/or comments on how your treat turned out or other favorite family recipes.

Happy Baking!

The Amusement Park Of Family Life

By: Jessica Keeton

After slowly making my way into the wading pool of blogs, I figured I had to just dive head first into the deep end of mommy blogging.............

When it comes to our everyday experiences with our family, we can feel everything from passion and excitement to anger and frustration, and as parents, having somewhere we can go to talk about these experiences is sometimes just what we need. I wanted a place where I could come and not only tell of my adventures, but also invite others to share their family experiences as well, and so The Dish on Parenting was created.

 I look at my family life as an amusement park, waking up every day and purchasing a ticket, not knowing what rides I’ll be going on yet. As a family we decide which roller coasters we’ll be trying out that day and by the end of our trip, we know what rides were fun and what we never want to go on again.

 All parents are familiar with these roller coasters; they include the rides we love so much such as laughter, hugs and kisses (cuddling included), good behavior, good behavior in PUBLIC, birthday parties, movie nights, and quality time together.

Don’t be fooled though,  amusement parks also have the rides we don’t like so much, you know, the ones that make your kids sick, but you can’t talk them out of getting back on them time and time again. These rough roller coasters involve temper tantrums, sibling fighting, skipping naps, and picky eaters.

I set up The Dish on Parenting to show you how to navigate through the daily amusement park of family life. I’ll be providing creative parenting tips, art projects and meals the whole family can join in making, as well as contests, reviews, polls and giveaways. Commenting and Guest posting is always welcomed.

 I hope you join me on this roller coaster ride they call parenting.

 My two beautiful daughters: Brynley and Addyson