Go Get Grubby!Getting today's children and families outdoors and active again.

Ingredients
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar, divided in half
• 1 large egg, with egg-white and yolk separated
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup whole-wheat flour
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons AND 1/4 cup ground flax seeds (or flax meal) divided
• 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup fig preserves

Directions
1. Preheat your oven to 350°F. It is best to line your baking sheet with parchment paper or a non-stick baking mat.
2. In mixer, begin beating butter and 1/4 cup brown sugar in a medium bowl on medium/high speed until mixture has creamed.
3. Add egg yolk and vanilla and beat until combined.
4. In a separate bowl, mix flours, 2 tablespoons of the flax seed, cream of tartar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.
5. Begin, gradually adding the flour mixture to your mix containing the existing batter.
6. Continue to beat on low now until mixtures have combined. Don’t forget to scrape down the sides to mix in any excess.
7. Place the egg white in another separate bowl.
8. Then in another shallow bowl combine the remaining 1/4 cup of brown sugar and ground flax seeds.
9. Begin rolling roundish teaspoons of dough into balls. Then dip the ball first into the egg white and then roll it around in the sugar mixture.
10. Place completed cookie balls approximately 2 inches apart on your prepared baking sheet.
11. Use your thumb to make a reservoir-like imprint in the middle of the cookie ball so that you can add in approx 1/4 teaspoon of fig preserves into it.
12. Place in oven and bake until set, 15 to 18 minutes.
13. Place on wire rack to cool.

This healthy recipe is an easy one to make for your children during the winter months (or anytime of year) as not only is it a sweet treat but it’s also a healthy and robust fruit serving that makes a great snack or side dish.

Ingredients:

· 10 apples

· 1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

· 1 Tbsp. honey

· 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

· 1/4 tsp. cloves

· 1/4 tsp. salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

2. Peel, core and dice apples (pieces should be approximately 1 inch).

3. Simply toss apples with olive oil, honey, cinnamon, cloves and salt. Then place apples in an even layer on a baking sheet.

4. Place in oven for 10-12 minutes. Then remove and mix around and continue baking for another 10-15 minutes. You’ll know that the apples are ready when you can pretty much mash them.

5. Transfer apples to a dish and mash away!

The weather is getting cooler but a little snow on the ground shouldn’t stop us from getting outside with the kids. You may think it’s too cold for their little bodies but with high metabolisms children have no problem keeping warm as long as they are properly dressed and staying active. Looking for something to do the next time you go out? These three easy activities will put smiles on the faces of your little ones!

1. Snow Sculpture Outdoor Studio
This is a great way to promote children’s artistic talents and combine them with some good ol’ fashioned outdoor time. Whether children design their very own sculpture or work in teams, this activity can be assigned by providing children a theme to design around (such as: Santa’s Workshop, Winter Olympic Games). Allow children to create their own three dimensional world of snow and they’ll have just as much fun designing the sculptures as they will playing with them afterward.

2. Snowy Track & Field at the Park
Snowball Shot Put: Instead of a heavy ball, have children make a snowball that will be thrown and pushed as far as the children can throw the ball.
Snow Hurdles: Have children build up snow embankments that will act as “hurdles” for them to run and jump over during the hurdle race.
Bobsledding: Take this traditional Olympic sport and simplify it by bringing the sleds to your local park that has a slope and have children race down the slope one at a time on the sled while timing them. Ensure that no roads or obstructions pose an issue to where the sled could potentially travel during the race.

3. Biggest Snow Ball
Have children begin assembling a snowball and encourage them to keep rolling and building the largest snowball possible. The child with the largest snowball wins at the end of the game!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 3 large free-range eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup canned pumpkin (do not use Pumpkin Pie filling)
• 1 3/4 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon each: cinnamon, ground ginger, ground nutmeg
• 1/3 cup Organic milk
• 3/4 cup raisins
• 3/4 cup chopped walnuts (or pecans are fine too)

Directions:

1.      Line a 9- by 5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper (or grease and flour it).

2.      Heat the oven to 350º F.

3.      Using an electric mixer, cream butter in the bowl, then slowly add sugar.

4.      Add eggs, one at a time, allowing for each egg to be mixed in before adding the next.

5.      Add the vanilla extract.

6.      Add in the pumpkin.

7.      In a separate bowl, sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ground ginger, and ground nutmeg.

8.      Blend about a third of the flour mixture into the butter mixture.

9.      Add half the milk.

10.  Keep alternating the remaining flour mixture and the milk, blending well each time.

11.  Fold in the raisins and nuts.

12.  Pour the batter into your prepared pan.

13.  Bake on the center oven rack for an hour or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the bread comes out clean.

14.  Allow to cool for at least 15 minutes in the pan.

15.  Remove the loaf from the pan and place it on cooling rack to finish cooling.

Every year when we carve our pumpkins, we’re always careful to save the seeds as they make a delicious and healthy snack for the family when baked in the oven (even my pickiest eater, a 3 and half year old, chomps down on them!)   Here are a few simple steps to follow:

1.  When scooping out the inner pumpkin try to salvage as many of the seeds as possible in a separate bowl (don’t worry about having pumpkin pieces still attached to the seeds at this point).

2.  Once finished with your carved pumpkins, preheat the oven to 325 degrees.  Then take the bowl of seeds and begin to separate the pumpkin “goo” from the seeds as best as you can by squeezing the seeds loose of the pumpkin strings, etc.

3.  Place the seeds in a colander and rinse more thoroughly.  Allow seeds to dry somewhat in the colander or take a paper towel and begin manually grabbing bunches of seeds to dry them more quickly before shaking them back in with the rest of the seeds.

4.  Grease a cookie sheet thoroughly with olive oil.  Spread seeds out in an even layer across the cookie sheet and drizzle olive oil around the sheet (about 2-3 tablespoons total).

5.  Dust lightly with sea salt, seasoning salt or your favorite savory seasoning over the entire sheet of seeds.

6. Place in oven for 40 minutes, then broil for 3-5 minutes for an extra crunch (watch out for popping that may occur when removing seeds).

7.  Remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes before serving…enjoy!

Yummy!

Our amazing sponsor and favorite family body care product line, G.B. Proudfoot’s Humble Organics, is now available at Arizona’s highest volume health food store, Healthy Habit Health Foods in Phoenix, Arizona!

Many children and their parents alike brown-bag it when it comes to their lunch during the school or work week. It can feel drab at times and pretty much what you pack, is what you get; but there ARE easy ways to jazz up your family’s packed lunches so that they are both healthy and enjoyable!
1. Choose artisan/fresh baked/or different bread options (such as a bagel) for your sandwich.
2. Use other veggies to dress up a sandwich instead of the standard piece of lettuce. Try alternatives such as red or green peppers, sprouts, cucumbers, or avocados.
3. Instead of tossing in a bag of greasy potato chips, opt for pita chips and a small container of hummous.
4. Make sure to pack milk or water as the beverage instead of soda.
5. Instead of candy, throw in pre-washed fresh berries, a ripened peach or whatever delicious fruit is in season. A box of raisins can always do the trick too!
6. And last but not least, don’t forget to provide proper refrigeration methods for your healthfully, delectable lunch throughout the course of the day so that all items are safe to eat when you or your child is ready for chow down!

Go Get Grubby is proud to announce our new sponsorship from the organic body care line of…

G.B. Proudfoot’s Humble Organics

We don’t think they should be so “humble” since their product line is amazing and really perfect for friends and families!

Check ‘em out for yourself!

www.gbproudfoots.com

Thanks for your support G.B. Proudfoot’s!

I don’t know how the idea came to me for my Original Polka-Dot Pizza?  It was probably a combination of my desperation to liven up my twins’ lunch time and also to satisfy their cravings for “More string cheese Mom!“.  This cute recipe will put a smile on your child’s face while filling their belly with a more nutritious and fun version of the popular kids’ favorite…pizza!

• Whole Wheat Pita Bread, or a Whole Wheat Sliced Bagel/English Muffin
• Pizza/Tomato Sauce
• All Natural Mozzarella String Cheese
• Any other vegetable or meat toppings your child wishes to add

1.  Spread tomato/pizza sauce on the pita bread (bagel or english muffin).

2.  Slice string cheese (not length-wise) so that each slice looks like a small dot.

3.  Place dots randomly around the pizza so that a polka-dot effect appears.

4.  Place pizza in oven on broil until cheese has melted and pizza is warm.

HERE ARE TWO SIMPLE GAMES THAT THE WHOLE FAMILY CAN PLAY TOGETHER THIS SUMMER.  THESE GAMES ARE BOTH EASY TO LEARN AND THE ROUNDS GO BY QUICKLY SO EVERYONE STAYS INVOLVED!

Momma Bear and Her Cub (3+ players).

1.  Select one player to be the “Momma Bear”.

2.  Have Momma Bear sit on the ground with their back to the other players about 10 paces away.

3.  Place a teddy bear behind Momma Bear and pretend that it is her bear cub.

4.  Have the other players take turns trying to sneak up behind Momma Bear to try to steal the cub.

5.  If the Momma Bear hears the person sneaking up it can growl to warn the player or it can turn around and try to tag that player. If Momma Bear has tagged the player, then the caught player now becomes Momma Bear.

Find the King (3+ players)

1.  Select 1 player to be the “King”.

2.  Instruct the rest of the players to close their eyes and count to 30 out loud while the King goes and hides.

3. Once counting is up, have everyone start to look for the King.  When a player spots the King, they shouldn’t tell anyone, but instead when the rest of the players aren’t looking, they sneak in and hide with the King.

4.  Ultimately, all of the players begin to disappear, and when it gets down to one, everyone can jump out and surprise the last player.

5.  The first player who found the King, gets to be the King in the next round.