Monday, October 31, 2011 at 07:07 AM
Happy Halloween everybody! Are you ready for tonight’s festivities? I am! This is one of my favorite holidays. Here are a few things that I do to keep it healthy – and make it memorable. And now my kids tell me, these little things have become a tradition.
Halloween Dinner: Venus Soup
We are lucky in that my parents live only 30 minutes away and they join us every Halloween. A few years ago, I started making one of our favorite family recipes for dinner on this night: Venus Soup.
Why Venus Soup? Well, I can make it in about 15 minutes flat and it only needs to simmer for about 45 minutes. You could even put this in the crock pot before leaving for work. It’s relatively healthy. I make it with lean ground turkey (NuVal score of 33), red kidney beans (NuVal score of 82 for low-sodium red kidney beans), and no salt added stewed tomatoes (NuVal score of 69 for Big Y No Salt Added Stewed tomatoes). And it warms everyone up before heading out for trick-or-treating. Better than take-out pizza, right?
Candy
I do buy my candy ahead of time. But I do not open it until Halloween night. So, no one is eating it until 10/31. That means that until Halloween, our Halloween bowl…
is filled with oranges.
Oranges, by the way, get a NuVal score of 100.
And then at 6 pm on Halloween, I fill it with candy.
This year, we’re giving away the following:
Snickers: NuVal score of 2
Skittles: NuVal score of 1
Three Musketeers: NuVal score of 2
Milky Way: NuVal score of 1
Reeses Peanut Butter Cups: NuVal score of 3
I know that a lot of people bring their leftover Halloween candy into the workplace, but I try not to do that to my co-workers! Instead, when the last trick-or-treater rings our doorbell at 8 pm, I unload what is left in the bowl right into their bag. Yup! That Trick-or-Treater hits the jackpot. By the way - my kids love this tradition. They always want to see who the Jackpot Trick-or-Treater is and the look on that child’s face when I dump the whole bowl in! This year, we may run out of candy before 8 pm, however. The town next door to us is out of power thanks to this past weekend’s snowstorm. And so trick-or-treating was cancelled in that neighboring town. So, I suspect there will be an influx of trick-or-treaters from the town next door and we will welcome them with open arms!
Making Memories
My kids are always asking me to tell them what costumes they wore for Halloween from birth to now. That was easy for me to remember when they were four or five years old. But now that they are six and eight, it’s hard for me to remember it all. So this year, both of my kids made a little scrapbook to remember their costumes each year, beginning when they were infants.
My Son's Halloween Scrapbook
- My Daughter’s Halloween Scrapbook
By the way, I really can’t take credit for this idea. My kids both attended a Halloween Art Class given by my friend and neighbor on Columbus Day. She teaches art at our elementary school and she gives some wonderful art classes at her home too!
They made all the scrapbook pages at the art class. And then we filled them with one photo from each year, beginning when they were infants.
- My Son, the Chili Pepper
My daughter, as a pig - with Grandma
And as toddlers…
My son, as a scarecrow
As pre-schoolers…
My son as James the Red Engine
My daughter as the scarecrow and my son as Woody
This was the best idea. We had so much fun putting it together. I’m so glad we did, because before you know it, the kids look like this:
My son as Obi Wan Kenobi and my daughter as Supergirl
If you haven’t made a little Halloween costume scrapbook with your kids, you really should! It was so much fun and now all we need to do is add one photo every year. I will treasure them always.
Well, we’re off to make some more Halloween memories tonight. As for me, I’ll indulge in my once-a-year Reeses Peanut Butter cup. NuVal score of 3!
Enjoy!
Question of the Day
What will you do to make it a healthy or memorable Halloween?
Posted by: Melissa
Posted in: Halloween
Tags: candy, Halloween, Venus Soup
Friday, October 28, 2011 at 07:13 AM
Happy Halloween Weekend! I know that the big day is not until Monday, but it seems like the big celebration gets underway beginning tonight. I know that we had three different family Halloween events to choose from tonight! We settled on Halloween Costume Bingo at my daughter’s school. In fact, the entire weekend is jam-packed with parties, our town’s big Halloween parade, pumpkin-carving – oh my! I’m wondering if the costumes will be in one piece by Halloween Monday. And if my kids will have any energy left for the actual holiday.
So, I’m planning some downtime for my family this weekend. What’s better for that than a good family Halloween movie! And of course, we’ll pair it with some popcorn – real popcorn, not microwave. Have you seen the difference in NuVal scores between regular ole’ popcorn and the microwave kind? If not, check out my Retro Popcorn post. It’s incredible.
But back to the movies. Now that the kids are getting a little bigger (they’re 8 and 6), we’ve been having fun introducing them to some of our favorite movies that aren’t animated and don’t have princesses in them. Things like Back to the Future (they loved it!) My husband and kids and I have been watching some of the 13 nights of Halloween on ABC Family, and we have these recommendations for those of you who are looking for a good family Halloween flick this weekend:
It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown!
Well, Great Pumpkin isn’t a movie, but we’ve actually been watching this classic for years. We’re huge Snoopy fans. I love the music, the 1966-ness of it, Lucy! My kids roar with laughter every time Charlie Brown gets a rock. A word of warning to parents of young children – there are many utterances of “stupid” and “blockhead”. But I must tell you that my kids have been watching this movie for years and they know that those words are unacceptable and they don’t use them. I recently found a book on the making of this television classic (at Five Below, for only $3) and I bought it for my husband, since he is about as close to a Charles Schulz historian as they get. He is loving the book. Did you know that Fergie of the Black Eyed Peas is one of the voices?
Ghostbusters
Somehow, I escaped the 80s without ever seeing Ghostbusters. But my husband was well-versed in this movie. Good thing, because he had to keep his finger on the mute button. He knew exactly when I needed to distract our 6-year-old from the ghost in the library scene. And like I said, Sigourney Weaver gets a bit racy for young kids a little later on. But no nightmares after this one. It got a two thumbs up all around.
The Addams Family
I’ve always loved this movie. What a great message. This family is so different and a little scary. Yet, through the movie you come to understand them and learn to love them. Acceptance. This was everyone’s favorite this year at our house. My kids can’t stop talking about the Addams Family and their cool house! They loved the moving bookcase, the slide, Wednesday, Cousin It and Uncle Fester. I love Morticia. My husband and I were Morticia and Gomez one Halloween (along with Thing). It was so good that we DVR’d…
Addams Family Values
Well, it was a good thing that I previewed Addams Family Values. In the first five minutes, Wednesday starts talking birds and bees. Eeeek! So, we pretended that there was a DVR mis-hap. And then we actually ‘fessed up with the kids and told them that Addams Family Values is for older kids. Maybe in a few years.
Really, what I’m hoping for this weekend, is a little downtime sans kids! Every Halloween, it is my tradition to curl up on the couch with a glass of red wine and Practical Magic.
I love everything about this movie: Sandra Bullock, Nicole Kidman, the house, the aunts (Stockard Channing and Dianne Wiest), the children, the story, the book, the soundtrack. I love the Practical Magic kitchen:
Gorgeous!
Enjoy your Halloween weekend, no matter what your plans, and see you back here on Halloween Monday!
Question of the Day
What other Halloween movies (Family, Chick Flick, Horror) do you love?
Posted by: Melissa
Posted in: Halloween
Tags: Addams Family, Ghostbusters, Great Pumpkin, Practical Magic
Friday, October 29, 2010 at 06:55 AM
Welcome to the Halloween edition of Cooking with Catherine Katz! Catherine is the wife of Dr. David Katz, the founder of ONQI, the algorithm which fuels NuVal scores. Together, she and David have created a collection of healthy recipes in a cookbook titled The Flavor Full Diet. About a year ago or so, I discovered that Catherine was a fan of A Better Bag of Groceries and we’ve been collaborating on the blog ever since. We have a lot of fun!
This past week, both of our families got ready for the big holiday this weekend. I am happy to unveil the beautiful pumpkins that the Katz family carved at their annual Pumpkin Carving party in Connecticut.
Gorgeous! Just like the Katz family!
Meanwhile, back in Massachusetts, my 5-year-old and 7-year-old were preparing for the big Halloween weekend. In our new neighborhood, we were “ghosted“. So, one evening, our doorbell rang, and when we answered it there was no one there, but there was a bag of Halloween treats left on the doorstep (all non-edible actually). So, we then “ghosted” a different family in the neighborhood. Very fun!
Now that the Big Weekend is upon us, I need to get my energy up. Here’s what’s on the agenda:
- Halloween Costume Bingo Party at School
- Wear your Costume to Ballet Class
- Karate Graduation
- My Sister’s Halloween Costume Party for Grown-Ups
- Teach Church School
- Town Halloween Costume Parade
- Neighborhood Block Party (Costumes, Of Course!)
- Trick or Treating
Whew! I’m wondering if the costumes will be in one piece by the time we get to trick-or-treating. I know I’m not alone with this hectic weekend schedule.
With all that going on, I need a good energy boost, so I turned to Catherine’s Pumpkin-Allspice Smoothie for a real pick-me-up.
Ingredients
1/4 cup canned pumpkin (NuVal score of 94)
1/4 cup fat-free vanilla yogurt (NuVal score of 73 for Chobani)
1/4 cup nonfat dry milk (NuVal score of 91 for Organic Valley non-fat dry milk)
3/4 cup fat-free milk (NuVal score of 91)
1/2 cup crushed ice
Pinch of ground allspice
Directions
Measure ingredients.
Place the pumpkin, yogurt, dry milk, fat-free milk, ice, and allspice in a blender and process until smooth.
Yum! This was so delicious. I just might bring them to the neighborhood block party for all the other moms who will be sure to need an energy boost. Much better than a candy bar!
Catherine’s secret ingredient is the non-fat powdered milk.
Catherine says, “I use fat-free powdered milk to sweeten this smoothie without adding more sugar. The lactose in the milk is a natural sugar that does the trick without adding all those empty calories and adds calcium to boost!” Remember that before you reach into your child’s Halloween bag, OK?
Happy Halloween everybody! Enjoy!
Posted by: Melissa
Posted in: Cooking with Catherine Katz, Halloween, Pumpkin, smoothies
Tags: energy, Halloween, Pumpkin, smoothie, smoothies
Wednesday, October 27, 2010 at 08:10 AM
Welcome to Cooking With Catherine Katz, a frequent feature here at A Better Bag of Groceries. Catherine, who is married to Dr. David Katz, the founder of ONQI, the algorithm that fuels NuVal scores, is a fantastic chef and she and I have a blast collaborating on the blog. This week is really fun because Catherine and I both love all things Halloween. So, even though we live a state apart and our children are different ages, we are having a little Pumpkin Carving Cook-off between our two households.
Over at the Katz’s house in Connecticut, Catherine and David held their annual Pumpkin Carving party with their teenagers.
Catherine tells me that it is a tradition in the Katz household to hold a marathon pumpkin carving party every Halloween season. “There was pumpkin and goo all over the dining room table,” says Catherine. “Afterwards we made a bonfire and had yummy soup and homemade bread for dinner. It was such a special evening!”
Meanwhile, in Massachusetts, my sister, Pilates Julie (you met her yesterday in the Almond Milk giveaway) gave me this beautiful pumpkin soup tureen for a housewarming gift.
It was the perfect thing for my new kitchen!
As soon as she gave it to me, I just had to find a recipe for pumpkin soup. I was flipping through Dr. Katz’s cookbook, The Flavor-Full Diet, working on another recipe for the blog, when I discovered that he and Catherine had a Pumpkin Soup recipe in the book. Who knew?
The first line of the recipe reads, “This soup takes 8 minutes to make from opening the cans to putting it on the table.” That’s my kind of soup!
So, I gathered my kids:
and the ingredients:
and together we made Pumpkin Soup.
I love how the kids get to practice measuring when they cook!
And for the record – my kids made a mess in the kitchen too!
The amazing thing about this soup? Not that it only took 8 minutes and yes, it is dinner party material. Not just dinner party – you could serve it at Thanksgiving Dinner and feel proud. The amazing thing about this soup was that my kids gobbled it up!!! They loved it. I’m not sure if they thought it was cool that they were eating pumpkin or they were just so proud that they had made it, but they really loved it.
Recipe for Catherine’s Pumpkin Soup
Ingredients:
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil (NuVal score of 11)
1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger or garlic (NuVal score of 87 for ginger and 91 for garlic)
4 cans (15 ounces each) pumpkin (no added salt or sugar) (NuVal score of 94)
3 cups fat-free vegetable or chicken broth (NuVal score of 2)
2 cups fat-free buttermilk (NuVal score of 36 for Hood Fat Free Buttermilk)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup light unsweetened coconut milk (NuVal score of 30 for So Delicious Coconut Milk)
Directions:
- Heat the oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the ginger or garlic and saute for 1 minute.
- Add the pumpkin, broth, buttermilk, and salt and stir. Simmer for 5 to 7 minutes, or until hot.
- To serve, ladle the soup into 4 bowls and drizzle a swirl of coconut milk on top of each.
Yesterday’s Giveaway
Congratulations to Commenter #61 Ellen! You’ve won the Almond, Soy and Rice Milk Giveaway. Please send me an email at abetterbagofgroceries@gmail.com so that I can mail your prize to you. Thank you to everyone who entered!
Posted by: Melissa
Posted in: Cooking with Catherine Katz, Halloween, Pumpkin
Tags: Halloween, Pumpkin, Pumpkin Soup
Friday, October 15, 2010 at 07:13 AM
Good Morning Blog Friends! It’s October 15th. There’s still a good 16 days to go until Halloween. So what’s in your candy bowl?
OK, not to get all preachy here, but I hope it’s not candy.
The NuVal scores for non-chocolate candy range from 1 – 23 and the average score is a 2. And, sorry chocolate lovers, but chocolate only does marginally better. Chocolate candy ranges from 1 – 25 and the average score is a 5.
Well, what did you expect? Like fruit and vegetable scores?
So, while I don’t like to fill my Halloween candy bowl until the very last minute (really, I don’t even buy the stuff until the very, very last minute), I do like to decorate early. Thankfully, as we moved into our house on October 1st, I spied our Halloween decoration boxes coming into the house and I grabbed them.
My friends who have come to visit have said, “Wow! You already have your Halloween decorations up.” Really, it was not a big deal. It was my way of making the kids feel at home. They love seeing the decorations come out year after year.
And then, of course, if you can’t find your Halloween decorations you can always just buy some gourds. I always put some colorful gourds on our mantel.
So, yes, I’ve decorated for Halloween. And I have put out the Candy Bowl. But what did I put in my Candy Bowl?
Oranges of course! They matched! And they get a fantastic NuVal score of 100!
Happy Weekend Everyone!
Posted by: Melissa
Posted in: Halloween
Tags: candy, Halloween
