Cooking With The Walnut | The Talking Walnut

v-day giveaway: sweetyhigh.com

Feb 022012

My 13-year-old niece loves to bake, and I like to think that over the years, we’ve helped cultivate her passion. When she was in elementary school, we gave her a recipe box filled with kid-friendly dishes. And this past Christmas, she was tasked with the honor of making individual cakes for dessert. If you know a tween who knows her way around the kitchen, encourage her to dust off her apron and roll up her sleeves. Sweetyhigh.com, a new social networking site for young girls, has offered The Talking Walnut a special Valentine’s Day giveaway. One lucky winner will be awarded a special baking kit that contains the following:

2 Heart Shaped Plates

1 Petite Pie Mold with Heart-shaped cut-out

1 Set of Valentine’s themed confections

1 Heart-shaped cookie cutter

2 Heart embroidered kitchen towels

1 Spatula

Whether she wants to whip up a special dessert for her Valentine or just for Dear Ol’ Dad, this kit will definitely let her capture his heart, not to mention his appetite! SweetyHigh.com members can also enter to win future contests, including a grand prize baking kit, by becoming a friend on Facebook or following SweetyHigh.com on Twitter .

In a Nutshell: To enter your chance to win this kit, contact The Talking Walnut and let us know who you’ll be baking for this year and why your Valentine is so special to you. We’ll select one random winner and post the results on Valentine’s Day. This contest closes on Friday, February 10, 2012 at 5 pm EST, and is open to U.S. residents only. Happy Valentine’s Day!

Tags: free baking kit, product giveaway, social networking sites for tweens, social networking sites for young girls, sweetyhigh.com, Valentine's Day, Valentine's Day baking kit

mommy’s comfort food

Cooking With the Walnut, Feeding the Little Walnuts

Oct 192011

To your average kid, milk and cookies is the ideal cure for the rainy day blues. Sinking one’s teeth into a chocolate chip-studded little number, washed down by a tall glass of ice-cold milk, can be just the thing to erase the pain of a forgotten library book or a silly spat with a friend. For grown-ups like me, my idea of comfort food at 3 p.m. doesn’t stray so far from the kid version, but I do like to think that my taste is a bit more refined than the store-bought variety (no offense, Keebler Elf). I admit that I’m not a tremendous connoisseur when it comes to cookies and other baked goods, so when I do choose to indulge, it needs to be the good stuff. Well, I think that I have finally found heaven in a bakery bag: homemade cookies from bakeshop. When I dove into a bag on this wet, dreary fall afternoon, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, but the packaging alone piqued my appetite. Freshly baked cookies beckoned at me through the see-through window of a brown bag tied with–what else–bakery string (I relish details!). As I waited for my tea kettle to boil, I perused the back of the bag containing lemon butter cookies: nothing but all-fresh ingredients and a stamped date to let me know when they had been baked (2 days ago! I’d better get snacking…). With a steaming mug of tea in hand, I was ready to experiment. Suffice it to say I don’t know which part of me loved these mouthwatering cookies more: my salivary glands or my very satisfied tummy. They are unbelievably delectable with just the right amount of sweetness. Because every bag of bakeshop cookies is handmade in small batches, they taste like they just came out of the oven. On top of the lemon butter cookies, there are plenty of other varieties–from waffle cookies to whoopie pies–along with brownies, marshmallows and sea salt caramels. And don’t even get us started on the Cookie of the Month club. We may just have to send that one to ourselves…Take that, rainy day!

In a Nutshell: With goodies from bakeshop, you can now say the words “cookies” and “grown-up” in the same sentence. And, if your kids play nice, maybe you’ll even share some with them.

take me to your eater

Cooking With the Walnut, Feeding the Little Walnuts

Oct 032011

My 7-year-old came home from the school the other day, raving about a fellow second grader’s in-class birthday party. “Mom, guess what everyone got?,” she enthused, salivating as she managed to get the words out. “Their own smoothie! Isn’t that awesome?” Yes, if you feel you can’t quite keep up with the Joneses when it comes to birthday celebrations for the kiddies, now you can really feel like your Mom of the Year award should be plucked down off the mantel. C’mon now, do you still bake those Duncan Hines brownies for class birthdays or, worse yet, pick up Munchkins on the way home from the office? For shame! Regardless of whether you work or stay at home with your kids, every mom likes to feel like a superhero in her kid’s eyes when it comes to their birthday. I say, if you can make your own culinary creation stand out from the masses, then go for it. I’m no whiz in the kitchen, but I do like to add a personal touch to whatever I’m cooking or baking. It’s why we love the new Edible Icing Cupcake Toppers from Hello Hanna . They come in thin sheets of decorative, gluten-free designs (safe for classmates with food allergies) that peel off and press right on. Just bake and frost your signature cupcakes like usual, and add these as a fun way to top things off. They come in plenty of designs and styles to appeal to everyone from princess-loving preschoolers, to robot enthusiasts of any age. So fun and festive. Plus, you get to add a candle and let the birthday kid make a wish. With a smoothie? Not so much…

In a Nutshell: Punch up ho-hum birthday treats with ever-so-memorable cupcake toppers that will have the kids vying for seconds.

Tags: birthday party treats, edible cupcake toppers, gluten-free desserts, Hello Hanna

what’s for dinner?

Cooking With the Walnut, Feeding the Little Walnuts

Jul 292011

It’s the age-old question for moms across the world–and one that never seems to produce a satisfactory response unless it’s “pizza,” “Chinese” or some form of take-out. Some nights, it takes all the strength you can muster just to open up a can of soup or microwave a frozen dinner. But when a sandwich just won’t cut the mustard in your house (as is the case in mine!), it’s time to scour the cupboard and rummage up whatever staple can be made into a meal. That’s when childhood comfort foods like Chef Boyardee come in handy. Believe it or not, a can of this stuff is a starter ingredient for an entirely new bunch of dinnertime recipes like Taco-roni, Ravioli Lasagna (shown here) and Cheeseburger-roni . To help you get started in the kitchen, The Talking Walnut is offering a Chef Boyardee giveaway: a lunchbag containing 2 cans of Beefaroni and recipe cards (valued at $15). We will select one random winner between now and 5 p.m. EST on August 1, 2011. Enter now to win. Bon appetit!

In a Nutshell: A kiddie food favorite is all grown-up with a handful of new recipes. Hats off to the Chef!

Tags: Chef Boyardee, dinner recipes, free stuff, kid-friendly recipes, product giveaway

hot dog!

Cooking With the Walnut, Feeding the Little Walnuts

May 312011

Memorial Day weekend just can’t be complete without a good, old fashioned BBQ. Whether you played chef in your own backyard or were a guest at a friend’s or family’s gathering this weekend, you hopefully enjoyed what will be the first of many meals centered around the grill. And if there’s ever an American staple during a summertime feast, it’s the hotdog. We can’t seem to go to a ballgame without sampling one, and it’s always a favorite among the kiddies. In the spirit of the season, The Talking Walnut is holding a Hebrew National giveaway this week. We’ll be awarding 2 lucky winners 4 sets of coupons, each good for a free package of hot dogs. It’s a great excuse to stock up on plenty of dogs to get you through those impromptu, “it’s too hot to kick indoors, let’s grill” nights, or for any BBQ you have planned over the next few months. To whet your appetite, here’s a delish recipe for franks and beans that you can bring to a potluck dinner.

In a Nutshell: Fire up the grill and enter to win these tasty dogs by e-mailing The Talking Walnut. Don’t forget the mustard and relish!

Tags: family BBQ recipes, giveaway, Hebrew National, hotdogs

cupcakes for wee folk

Cooking With the Walnut

Mar 102011

With St. Patty’s Day fast approaching, it’s time to whip up a feast of corned beef and cabbage–and don’t forget the Irish soda bread. But even if you’re not a culinary wonder, you can get still get your Irish up and make a festive treat to bring to the class party. Cupcake Cuties takes the otherwise vanilla task of cranking out yet another two-dozen cupcakes and gives it personality. These themed cupcake decorating kits contain all the trimmings you’ll need to make an unforgettable batch, including 24 decorative wrappers, pastry bag and plenty of toppings. We’re tickled “green” over the St. Patty’s Day kit, with its shamrock candy confetti and laughing leprechaun holders. Be sure to check out the innovative sushi roll and popcorn kits, too. No matter the holiday or special occasion, there’s a Cupcake Cuties kit that will have everyone smiling…just like those Irish eyes.

In a Nutshell: You won’t need to count on the luck of the Irish to pull off a savory St. Patty’s Day treat, thanks to this line of cupcake kits.

Tags: cupcake baking kits, Cupcake Cuties, St. Patrick's Day, St. Patrick's Day cupcakes, St. Patty's Day

let’s eat

Cooking With the Walnut

Jan 042011

Every mother has her least favorite time of day with the kids and for me, that would be dinnertime, hands down. Maybe it’s because I can’t quite keep up with the ever-changing demands of my toddler who once had a penchant for vegetables and now will hardly eat a crust of bread. My 6-year-old is no bargain either, although she is venturing outside the fish sticks realm and into real (gasp!) fried flounder. I proudly claim to be one of those moms who makes a home-cooked meal almost every school night (barring Pizza Night on Thursdays). I figure since I work from home, I should be able to pull off dinner that doesn’t come from a take-out bag, right? Plus, I secretly relish the fact that my kids are learning to eat “grown-up food” since they started solids. But like any Chef Mom, I can always use some inspiration. That’s why I am savoring the Time for Dinner cookbook that I recently received as a Christmas gift. Written by a trio of moms who are the former editors of Cookie magazine, this book speaks to me like a friend walking alongside me as I cruise the aisles of Stop ‘n Shop. They know the lingo that speaks to harried moms looking to get food on the table (“bribery booty”), and have innovative ideas for experimenting with future foodies (ice-cube-tray-sushi, anyone?). One chapter I’m aspiring to addresses my greatest desire: “I Want to Have a Family Dinner Where We All Eat the Same Meal.” But for now, I think I’ll settle for a meal made from scratch…even if I do have to get up to refill milk glasses for the umpteenth time.

In a Nutshell: Make a New Year’s resolution to yourself and your family and break out the dinnertime rut. This book will tell you how, even if you don’t know your way around a blender.

Tags: Alanna Stang, Chronicle Books, Cookie magazine, Jenny Rosenstrach, picky eaters, Pilar Guzman, Time for Dinner

thankful for gluten-free treats

Cooking With the Walnut, The Healthy Walnut

Nov 012010

Just one day past Halloween and my sweet tooth has kicked into overdrive. Between now and January 1st, my 1st grader’s “social life” seems to be a steady endless stream of parties that include tasty treats. How fun it must all be….unless you’re a child with allergies. One of her classmates can’t have anything with gluten, and anytime there is a class party, he must trek down to the nurse’s office to retrieve one of his gluten-free cupcakes from the freezer. I can only imagine how tiresome that can get after a while. Maybe this is why Stacey J. Miller’s book, 101 Recipes for Gluten-Free Microwave Mug Cakes, caught my attention. It’s chock-full of delightful desserts that are simple as baking can be: baked inside a microwave and involving minimal ingredients. Check out Gingerbread Microwave Mug Cake, Pumpkin Cheesecake Microwave Mug Cake and, our favorite, Molasses Pudding Microwave Mud Cake. If your child or someone you know has a strict gluten-free diet, this cookbook may put a smile on their face–and keep it there through the new year.

In a Nutshell: Kids with gluten allergies can finally have their cake and eat it too, thanks to this yummy cookbook.

Tags: gluten-free desserts, microwave mug cakes, Stacey J. Miller

a meal served with love

Cooking With the Walnut, Feeding the Little Walnuts

Sep 102010

First week back to school and we’re already looking for a short-cuts. Because I’m a stay-at-home/work-at-home mom, I try to make dinner for my finicky family at least 5 nights a week–sometimes 6 if I’m really ambitious. I’ll admit I’m a creature of habit who often cooks the same tried-and-true meals over and over (hey, when you’ve got a 2-year-old who’ll only eat a piece of bread some days, your sense of adventure takes a backseat to practicality). But every so often, I break out of my routine and try something fun. This week, in honor of the U.S. Open 2010, we sat down a dinner of Racchette pasta and meatballs. The tennis racquet pastas are a whimsical shape you won’t find in every supermarket aisle, but we liked the noodles from De Cecco. The built-in handle on this firm noodle was perfect for my toddler who currently refuses to eat with utensils. My 6-year-old got a kick out of the meatballs acting as tennis balls, and I think my husband even appreciated the effort (ok, maybe he just felt sorry for me, but I’ll take whatever sympathy I can get.) Pass the grated cheese, please!

In a Nutshell: Make like Venus Williams and spread the love with a home-cooked meal that’s low on effort and cost, and big on taste.

Tags: De Cecco, U.S. Open Tennis

no reservations required

Cooking With the Walnut, Feeding the Little Walnuts, The Traveling Walnuts

May 182010

Ah, how I fondly remember the picnics in the park my husband and I had B.K. (before kids). Our house was a short walk from a park that held summer concerts, and we’d pack a light dinner and head out without a care in the world. Fast forward to the present, and a dinner outdoors with two little kids is hardly romantic. Our plastic wine glasses have been replaced with juiceboxes, and the comfy blanket we shared barely has room for the four of us. Maybe that’s why today, I can appreciate the Picnic Set from French Bull that is practical for my family, but whose style appeals to my grown-up sensibility. There’s service for four, including flatware, plates and ample sized cups that are (thankfully) aren’t breakable. And if we forget to pack a blanket, we’ve got a microfleece one inside the handy tote. A cutting board and bottle opener let the “bigger kids” enjoy wine and cheese with their meal…this way, I get to ignore the “whining” of another kind.

In a Nutshell: Eating outdoors with kids is certainly no picnic. But you can make it more to your liking with this all-encompassing, fashionable set.

Tags: family picnic set, outdoor eating

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The Talking Walnut

mommy’s comfort food

take me to your eater

what’s for dinner?

hot dog!

cupcakes for wee folk

thankful for gluten-free treats

a meal served with love

no reservations required

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