I’m a total sucker for holidays. I love decorating, baking, and doing things as a family that reflect the happy spirit of whatever the holiday is for. Valentine’s Day always was THE Hallmark holiday to me, but now that I have kids, I have a whole new perspective on it and it’s even more fun celebrating love.

I’ve made more cookies and cakes over the years then I can count, so this year I wanted to do something a little different. Ruby-red blood oranges are in season, so I thought that it would be fun to come up with a recipe for them. Granitas are like shaved ice or snow cones, except these aren’t made with sugary corn syrup. Instead, they use the sweet juice of the blood oranges and just a touch of agave. In honor of the holiday, I served this batch up in the skins of the orange which I thought was pretty and fun for kids to eat from. Kenya loved taking his fork and scraping the granitas as the little crystals formed. It was so cute to watch and even more fun to eat with my Valentine.

Blood Orange Granita (Serves 4)

4 Cups Blood Orange Juice, reserve several of the orange peel “shells” for serving.
1/4 Cup Agave

1. Combine the blood orange juice and agave in a 8×8 inch Pyrex dish and whisk to combine.
2. Place in the freezer for 1 hour.
3. Remove from the freezer and scrape with a fork to break up pieces.
4. Place back in freezer for 1 hour.
5. Remove from the freezer and scrape with a fork to break up pieces.
6. Repeat this process over several hours until granita is similar to shaved ice.
7. Serve in orange peel “shells” or in bowls (cover the pan with tin foil to keep in the freezer).

We REALLY love muffins in our house. Not only do we eat them for breakfast, a snack or even dessert; also, they travel well AND you can freeze them to have any time you’re in the mood for a treat. These orange date muffins only take minutes to whip up, and they are really healthy. The flavors are so rich, but none of it comes from sugar, and they’re naturally sweet.

This is the perfect muffin to make at this time of year since dates and oranges are both in season. I even bought the walnuts for this recipe at the farmer’s market; they were so fresh, add a nice crunch and dash of protein to the muffins making them the perfect snack.

Orange Date Muffins (makes 12 muffins)

1/2 Cup Orange Juice
1 Egg
1/2 Cup Butter, melted
1/2 Cup Honey
1 Cup Flour
1/2 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
1 Tsp Baking Soda
1 Tsp Baking Powder
1/2 Tsp Salt
1/2 Cup Dates, chopped
1/2 Cup Walnuts, chopped

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Mix the first 4 ingredients in a bowl.
3. Sift the dry ingredients together into a separate bowl.
4. Combine the wet and dry ingredients with the dates and walnuts.
5. Divide the batter between 12 greased or paper lined muffin tins and bake for 15 minutes.
6. Cool and serve.

We used these to make this recipe:

KitchenAid Precision 24-cup Mini Muffin Pan

I’ve rarely met a kid (or an adult for that matter) that doesn’t like carrots. I couldn’t resist buying these adorable miniature stumpy carrots I found at the farmers’ market. You can use any type of carrot you find for this recipe, but I just thought these were so funny looking and had to try them.
Carrots are packed with fiber and beta-carotene which the body converts into vitamin A, necessary for healthy skin and vision. When the carrots are sauted with the sweet orange juice in this recipe, they become coated with a delicious, sweet glaze and no sugar is needed. These
are perfect for a quick and easy holiday dish or any time of the year for that matter.

Orange Glazed Carrots (Makes 6 Big Kid Servings)

1 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
1 Lb Carrots, peeled and chopped
3/4 Cup Orange Juice
1/2 Tsp Orange Zest
1 Inch Piece Ginger, grated
Sea or Kosher Salt, to taste

1. Heat oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add the carrots and cook for 3 minutes.
2. Add the orange juice, orange zest and ginger.
3. Bring mixture to a boil, cover and reduce heat to a simmer for 15 minutes.
4. Cook until carrots are tender and orange juice mixture becomes a glaze.
5. Serve.

Some people look forward to Thanksgiving and to eat turkey for the stuffing or the gravy. Not me. I’m a total cranberry sauce girl. Since we’ve been on a roll roasting turkeys every week this month testing holiday recipes, Kenya’s has acquired a real taste for it, too. He’s just like his mommy — he wants some turkey and a pound of the sauce to go with it.
That’s part of the reason I started making this sauce with agave nectar. Most cranberry sauces call for a cup of sugar for each bag of cranberries. It makes my teeth feel like they are going to rot just thinking about it. Granted, cranberries are uber sour, so they do need something to sweeten them up and agave does the trick. I also love adding oranges and orange juice to add not only citrus flavor, but also their natural sugars.
Cranberries are packed with the antioxidant vitamin C, which helps protects kids against infection, and antibacterial substances that can help prevent digestive and urinary infections.
We sat down for lunch last week and I’m not kidding when I tell you that Kenya kept pouring the sauce on his plate and eating spoon after spoonful. He loved it and hopefully so will your family this Thanksgiving.

Cranberr-Wee-Sauce (Makes 2 1/2 Cups)

1 Bag of Cranberries, washed and bruised cranberries discarded
2/3 Cup Orange Juice and or the orange pulp, removing the seeds and sections between the pulp
1/3 Cup Agave
1 Cinnamon Stick

1. Place all the ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil.
2. When they reach a boil, turn the heat to a simmer and cook for
10-15 minutes or until the berries start to pop.
3. Turn off heat and cool. Remove the cinnamon stick.
4. Serve warm or chilled.

*Allow to cool, place in appropriate container or ziploc bag, label and freeze.

I’ve been munching on these tasty fruit and veggie treats for years. When I used to travel for work non-stop and knew there weren’t going to be many healthy snack choices where I was going, I would toss a container of these in my bag. The different varieties they have are endless!
Just Fruit sells salad, corn, cherries, mixed veggies, bananas, peas and soon. This is another one of my favorite on-the-go snacks because they don’t make a mess, they don’t spoil like fresh fruit and veggies do and their packed solely with what they advertise, “just fruit” (and vegetables). Some fruits and veggies are crunchy and some are squishy, but their deliciously intense taste comes from the concentration of the natural flavors during the dehydration process.
When I was trying to photograph them for the picture above, Kenya almost had a conniption fit waiting for me to finish so we could dig into them. We sat on the floor and opened the containers one by one tasting each flavor. He was so funny commenting on each one. Thank goodness for stores like Whole Foods and our local health food store which carry
these yummy yummies!