When I was 6 months pregnant with Kenya, my husband and I went to Paris for some work as well as some much needed R and R. I had actually lived in Paris for years when I was younger so I was excited to walk all over the city showing him my favorite neighborhoods and old haunts. There’s nothing like being pregnant in the most romantic city in the world and walking by patisseries and bistros all day. It’s an automatic excuse to eat a lot. As a result, we didn’t take one form of public transportation the entire trip, since I didn’t want to miss a single culinary delight and we needed to walk our multiple meals off!
One of my favorite treats are crepes. These heavenly, light, little pancakes are the perfect base for all types of fillings like mashed bananas, almond butter, fruit preserves and, dare I suggest, Nutella (very common in France).
I made these for Kenya and myself for breakfast and he loved them. I covered them with apple butter and rolled them into little cigar-shaped cylinders which he held and ate at his leisure. When the rest of the batch was cool, I just wrapped them up and put them in the fridge so we could still eat them for a few days.

Crepes (Makes 14 Crepes)

2 Eggs
1 Cup Flour
3/4 Milk
1/2 Cup Water
1/2 Tsp Vanilla
2-3 Tbsp Butter, melted

1. Place all the ingredients in a blender and puree.
2. Refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight (this helps the bubbles to settle and the crepes not to tear).
3. Grease a saute pan or crepe pan with butter. Pour in 2 tbsp of batter and swirl to cover the pan.
4. Cook for 1 minutes, flip and continue to cook another 30 seconds or until just starting to become golden.
5. Remove to a plate and continue to make remaining crepes.
6. Spread with apple butter, almond butter, mashed bananas, fruit preserves or any other favorite filling.
7. Roll into a cigar shape.
7. Serve.

I fell in love with The Handstand Cookbook series the first time I saw it. It’s the perfect gift for budding little chefs and parents who want to cook with their kids. There’s a Mexican cookbook kit, an Italian kit and Chinese on the way. The books are even arranged by levels of difficulty for each recipe so you know when you should give a little extra help.
I talked to the founder of the company, Yvette Garfield, about testing one of her recipes, but giving it a weelicious twist. I salivated from the first time I read her recipe for “Lasagna into Chilaquiles”. It reminded me of a dish that my Mexican “mother” made for me when I was an exchange student living in Toluca, Mexico, so I knew had to recreate it.
By adding baked blue corn chips instead of regular fried tortilla chips and adding a little milk to make the eggs even fluffier, it lightened the dish up a bit, but kept all of the intended yummy flavor. I made these for me, Kenya and a friend for breakfast and we all sat as happy as clams devouring our perfect chilaquiles. Ole!


Chilaquiles with a Weelicious Twist (Serves 4)

1 Small Onion, diced
1 Tbsp Oil
4 Cups Baked Blue Corn Chips (I used Guiltless Gourmet)
6 Eggs, beaten
1/4 Cup Milk
1 1/2 Cups Mild Salsa (I used Pace Chunky Salsa)
1 Cup Monterrey Jack Cheese, shredded
Sour Cream, optional
Guacamole, optional

1. Heat a large saute pan over low/medium heat. Saute onions until soft and translucent.
2. Whisk the eggs and milk together in a bowl.
3. Add the corn chips to the pan.
3. Pour the egg mixture over the corn chips and stir over low/medium heat for 1 minute.
4. Add the salsa and cheese and cook for 3-4 minutes, continually stirring the mixture until cheese is melted. .
5. Garnish with guacamole and sour cream and serve.

The inspiration for this recipe came from some gorgeous, uber-ripe Bartlett pears I found last week at the farmer’s market. At first thought I would make Kenya some pear puree or just slice them for a snack, but then I remembered I had some canned organic pumpkin at home and wondered if that combination would work.
I’ve never seen pumpkin-pear bread, but it sounded like something yummy to eat in the autumn. The pears were so ripe, all I did was peel and mash them before adding to the recipe.
QUICK TIP: if you don’t have ripe pears you could place them next to bananas in a fruit bowl and they will ripen faster.
I’m usually not a fan of any type of canned fruit or veggie, but canned pumpkin really is a life saver. It’s really a pain to make pumpkin puree, even when you roast it, the flavors never quite become as rich and sweet as the canned variety. So, this is one of those times that I give into convenience.
When Kenya woke up from his nap, the smell of fresh bread was all through the house. After it cooled we sat and tried it with all kinds of yummy spreads like pumpkin butter, apple butter, honey and just plain butter.
Mmmm… fall really is here!

Pumpkin-Pear Bread (makes 1 9×5 inch loaf or 6 small loaves)

1/4 Cup Agave Nectar
1/4 Cup Butter
1/2 Cup Pumpkin Puree, preferably organic
1 Ripe Pear, peeled and mashed (it’s ok if there are small chunks) or a little over 1/2 cup pear puree
2 Large Eggs
2 Cups Flour
2 Tsp Baking Powder
1 Tsp Cinnamon
1/2 Tsp Ginger
1/2 Tsp Baking Soda
1/2 Tsp Salt
1/2 Tsp Nutmeg

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Cream the butter and agave with a standing or handheld mixer.
3. Add the pumpkin and pear purees.
4. Beat in the eggs one at a time.
5. In a separate bowl sift the flour and remaining ingredients.
6. Add the flour mixture to the pumpkin mixture a little at a time until combined. Do not overly mix or beat the mixture.
7. Place in a 6 individual greased loaf pans or in one 9×5 inch greased loaf pan.
8. Bake for 20 minutes for small loaf pans or 1 hour for single loaf.
9. Cool for 10 minutes and then run a knife around the loaf pan to help release on to a cooling rack.
10. Cool and serve.

*A regular weelicious Mommy made muffins instead of the bread which cooked for 15-20 minutes and replaced maple syrup for the agave. She said they were delicious!

Everyday I try to visit different message boards on the web to see what moms are talking about. Lately, I can’t get over the one common obsession that moms are asking about everywhere: How to cook a pumpkin! For a country obsessed with Halloween and pumpkins, it’s kind of ironic that we rarely cook with them, unless its using pumpkin out of a can on Thanksgiving.
Now, I admit it’s something of a mantra at weelicious that I don’t like using canned foods in general, but canned pumpkin is an exception to the rule. I once read Martha Stewart say that you shouldn’t waste your time cooking fresh pumpkin when making pumpkin desserts (because it’s very hard to get the exact flavor you want) and I believe she’s correct, but roast pumpkin on its own with a touch of cinnamon and maple syrup is heavenly.
When I was living in Australia years ago, I ate pumpkin every few days. Pumpkin is as common to cook there as sweet potatoes are in the States. The pumpkin down under was so sweet and creamy, I wanted to try and replicate the flavors that I remembered. There are several types of pumpkins this time of year at my farmer’s market, so it’s kind of hard to tell which one to buy, but I’ve found you can’t really go wrong no matter what you choose. I bought several varieties last weekend such as “autumn gold” and “sugar”, which are both high in vitamin A. The cooking time will vary a bit depending on the size of the pumpkin you buy, but whatever you get, with this recipe it will be tender and delicious.

Roast Pumpkin & Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

1 Pumpkin
1 Tbsp Maple Syrup
1/8 Tsp Cinnamon
Vegetable Oil Spray
Sea Salt to taste

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Carefully cut a hole in the top of the pumpkin using a knife, about 2 in x 2 in. Remove the “top”.
3. Using you hands or a spoon, remove the seeds and rinse with water in a colander. Remove any of the stringy pulp pieces that stick to the seeds.
4. Lay the seeds on a towel to let dry.
5. Pour the maple syrup into the pumpkin and swirl it around coating flesh.
6. Sprinkle cinnamon inside.
7. Place on a cookie sheet and bake for 40 minutes.
8. Place the top on the pumpkin and continue to cook for additional 20
minutes or until tender (the cooking time will vary depending on the
size of the pumpkin. Take a fork and pierces the inside to the flesh every 10 minutes towards the end of the cooking
time to see if it’s tender). Uncover the pumpkin and cool.
9. Spray another cookie sheet with a think coating of vegetable oil and evenly place the pumpkin seeds on the sheet. Lightly sprinkle pumpkin seeds with salt.
10. Bake the seeds 20-30 minutes or until the start to turn a golden color.
11. Cool and serve.
*If you’re making baby food puree, you can leave out the maple syrup

Again, I have to praise Trader Joe’s for another affordable snack that kids love. Whenever Kenya sees a bag of these fruit bars sitting out, he looks at me at say “Mo!” (translation: more). They’re made from a mix of fruit pulp such as apples, boysenberry, blackberry, nectarine, cherry, passion fruit and more so there sweet, but also a bit tangy. They’re also totally unsweetened with no added sugar. Another good thing is they don’t make a mess, so they’re a good travel snack on the days that you don’t feel like dragging around fruit slices in a ziplock that end up getting stinky after a few hours. This is a perfect choice no matter if your child is vegetarian, eating a gluten free diet or you’re just just looking to give them something easy and delicious.

OK, seriously, who doesn’t like a potato chip? Left to my own devices I could devour an entire bagful in one sitting. However, your average store-bought bag of chips is laden with saturated fat and calories that I don’t want or need, and while I don’t want to deprive Kenya of the great treat of chips, I certainly want to keep him away from bad fats and mega-doses of sodium. Sure, most chip makers offer “healthy” versions, but they’re still not great for you and why spend the extra money when you can make even better ones on your own for a huge fraction of the price?
I’ve been making these “potato chips” for me and my husband for years and now Kenya gets to be part of the fun. You can make them with almost any kind of potato (the sweet potato version is AMAZING and loaded with vitamins and minerals). They only take minutes to prepare and are a fantastic snack for kids’ lunch boxes too.

“Potato Chips” (Makes 2-3 Cups of Chips)

2 Potatoes, unpeeled (sweet and/or Idaho/Russet Potatoes)
1 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
Sea or Kosher Salt to taste
Vegetable Oil Spray

1. Slice the potato into “chips” using a knife or a mandolin, about 1/8 inch thick.
2. Combine the potatoes, oil and salt in a bowl or resealable bag and coat the potato chips.
3. Spray 2 cookie sheets with a thin coating of vegetable spray and make one layer of potato chips on the cookie sheet.
4. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until chips start to turn golden. Turn the chips to the other side and continue to cook 15 more minutes (some of the chips may turn golden before others, so make sure to keep an eye on them and remove them when their crisp).
5. Cool and serve.

Some moms make their kids sugar cookies, some make them pound cakes. My mom made cheese wafers. I’m not talking about a tins worth, I’m literally talking pounds and pounds!). You would have thought she was starting her own cheese 
wafer business with the amount of cracker barrel cheese kept in our 
refrigerator. I remember standing by her salivating as she made them. 
Really they’re THAT good. She placed a perfect pecan on top of each one and added 
a touch of paprika for a little zip.
For my cheese wafers, I removed the zip and decided to roll and cut them into 
fun shapes for Halloween and Thanksgiving. I don’t know if any kid 
will accept cheese wafers instead of candy, but I know that if you 
offer these over those pre-packaged, oily goldfish snacks, they’ll not only beg for more but they’ll also avoid ingesting all those nasty preservatives, artificial flavors and dyes, too.


Kenya kept popping these in his mouth and crunching away so fast, I 
had to hide them from him. Now the only trouble is that I know where they are and I may eat the entire tin!

Cheese Wafers (Makes 3-4 dozen depending on the size of your cookie cutters)

1/2 Lb Sharp Cheddar Cheese
5 Tbsp Butter
1 Cup Flour plus additional for sprinkling

1. Combine all the ingredients in a food processor and combine (dough may be a bit crumbly, but it will stick together).
2. Remove all the dough to a piece of parchment or waxed paper and shape into a thick flat circle. Cover with waxed paper and refrigerate for one hour or overnight.
3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
4. Open waxed paper and roll out dough on it into a 1/4 inch-thick piece.
5. Take small cookie cutters and cut out into shapes (you could also take an empty plastic medicine bottle to make circle shaped crackers. Just make sure you clean out the bottle thoroughly first.).
6. Place on a cookie sheet (preferably lined with a silpat or parchment paper) and bake for 12-15 minutes. Let cool on sheet for 2 minutes before removing.
7. Serve.

I don’t know a kid or adult that doesn’t like string cheese (maybe I have to stop hanging out with all those people from the National Dairy Association). I’m sure to most of you this is one of those obvious snacks for kids, but for those of you who are just getting into the snack game, string cheese should be a staple in your fridge.
This is one of Kenya’s favorites. When he hasn’t had enough calcium or protein in his day, I give him one or two of these and it fulfills both requirements. I know if I let him, he would subsist on cheese sticks alone. Babies and toddlers get so used to us breaking and cutting their food into tiny pieces for them, so when they get a food they can actually hold and control in their tiny hands they’re usually elated.
There are many different brands and types of string cheese sticks on the market, but two of my favorite are Horizon’s Organic Mozzarella String Cheese (6 individually wrapped sticks to a pack) and Trader Joe’s Organic String Cheese (9 individually wrapped sticks to a pack). You definitely pay a higher price for the organic, but I think it’s worth it. When you know the product your child is eating is produced without antibiotics, added growth hormones or dangerous pesticides, it puts your mind at ease.