Tasty Treats

TASTYTREATS frosty nutrition

to the amazement and delight of some village children one Christmas, Frosty the Snowman came to life. Laughing and playing, he led the youngsters through a day of fun. Could Frosty’s secret energy have something to do with his snacking habits and not just his magical top hat? Let your kids try out some frosty and festive empowering snacks that might be a favorite of that magical snowman!

Snowman Cakes This snack provides your kids with whole grains, which are the best complex carbohydrate source needed for energy.

Ingredients

• Rice cakes • Cream cheese • Raisins • Red and orange pepper (or alternatives such as carrots or apples)

Directions

1. Spread your cream cheese on the rice cakes and add snowman features. “My kids enjoy assembling this snack themselves,” says Catherine, an Overland Park mother of two young daughters. Festive

Candy Canes Potassium and vitamin C fill these festive canes with the nutrients needed for a strong heartbeat and immune system.

Ingredients

• 2 bananas • 8 strawberries

Directions

1. Slice fruit 2. Arrange on platter or plate alternating a strawberry slice with a banana slice to make the candy cane effect. “This is a great way to get my teens to eat more fruit,” says Mary, a mom of three teenage boys from Olathe. Green & Red

Christmas Trees These trees are especially loaded with fiber from all the great ingredients. Fiber will keep your KC kids fuller longer.

Ingredients

• Cucumbers • Cherry tomatoes • Carrots • Whole grain crackers • Ranch dressing (for dipping)

Directions

1. Slice cucumbers into rounds and stack in pyramid formation. 2. Cut carrots into desired shapes. 3. Decorate with veggie ornaments. 4. Add a stack of whole grain crackers for the trunk. 5. Serve with ranch dressing. “We serve this snack at holiday parties, and all the kids dive in,” says Donald, a Lee’s Summit father of three children.

Amy Hundley is a registered dietitian nutritionist, licensed in both Kansas and Missouri, and a published freelance nutrition writer. She is currently practicing as a clinical RD and has been a resident of Olathe since early childhood. Amy can be contacted at AmyHundley05@gmail.com.

Shortcuts to Sanity (Avoiding a Mommy Meltdown)

If you’d rather not ask for personal help, take the opportunity to hire it out! If it’s within your means, hop on those swap sites or ask around for who makes the best gingerbread cookies, pies, etc., and help support local businesses and families trying to make some extra cash this season. I t’s that magical time of year where, somehow, we have to make all the magic happen! Each year I feel the weight of the holidays fall on my shoulders thanks to the season’s mad rush, social media comparison and my own weird pressure I put on myself to make all the things happen in a festive manner. And each year, I’m exhausted by the never-ending to-do list I’ve created for myself. This year let’s put our heads together to share some shortcuts to sanity and ways to avoid a mommy meltdown.

It’s no surprise I would reference a book or podcast, and this time I have both! Kendra Adachi is known online as the Lazy Genius and has a podcast called The Lazy Genius Podcast, as well as a new book this year called The Lazy Genius Way. Both of these are amazing resources throughout the year but especially during this chaotic season as we shut down 2020. Adachi’s mantra is simple: “Be a genius about the things that matter and lazy about the things that don’t.” So first we need to name what matters during the holidays, build a plan around those things, and find some shortcuts for how to make it all happen while keeping a festive air about us.

The key is to sit down with your family before the Polar Express hauls us toward the holidays and the end of the year (finally!) and schedule what you

know and what you would like happen. This could include company holiday parties, family gatherings, the annual ugly sweater party or the weekend you bake Christmas cookies with all your sisters. One thing that I consistently want more of each Christmas, is downtime to read my beautiful Advent books. I always start and make it about halfway through before the practice inevitably falls by the wayside because everything becomes so frantic. So maybe that means I set aside Wednesday evenings to catch up on reading by the Christmas tree. I look forward to the quietness of the holiday season when I take a minute to soak it all up.

Another lens for viewing and planning some sanity savers is to honestly ask yourself what you enjoy during this time of year. What do your family and friends enjoy? Perhaps you enjoy different aspects of the season and could swap services? One of my very favorite part-time jobs while in college was wrapping gifts at our campus bookstore. I listened to holiday music overhead and chatted with customers while I wrapped their packages in perfect boxes in gorgeous paper. On the other hand, making sugar cookies and gingerbread houses with my children is not one of my favorite things. So perhaps I could swap with a friend, and she could bake for my family while I wrap her gifts. Another idea would be to have one friend make some freezer meals while the other bakes holiday treats. Then you can swap. This could make a fun girls night idea too. Also, have the freedom to drop some items off your list, such as those gingerbread houses. If they don’t matter to your family, skip them and use that time to do something you enjoy more, like visiting the Paulie’s Penguin Playground in Olathe. Kristen Krogmeier, mother of two, says, “I start shopping Oct. 1 with a goal of being completely done shopping by Thanksgiving. I also host a cookie exchange with good friends to lighten the baking load and to keep me from having too many in my home.”

Do you host holiday gatherings? Even if you enjoy hosting, say yes to any help offered. Scoot your hospitality pride aside and let your friends and family bring an appetizer, side, dessert, drinks or even paper plates. There’s no need to be a holiday hero, and you may be a happier host with some additional hands on deck. If you’re particular about how you’d like your gathering to be or which food you’d prefer, ask for specific help such as, “It would be great if you could bring a vegetable tray” or “I had in mind a nice loaf of bread from the Corner Bakery Cafe to go along with the soup.”

If you’d rather not ask for personal help, take the opportunity to hire it out! If it’s within your means, hop on those swap sites or ask around for who makes the best gingerbread cookies, pies, etc., and help support local businesses and families trying to make some extra cash this season. We have actually moved away from all our family right before Thanksgiving, so because we were still unpacking, we ordered our entire Thanksgiving dinner from Hy-Vee. It was pretty amazing! We still had our traditional meal without the stress of making the magic happen. (Another year we moved on Christmas Eve too!)

Another Lazy Genius tip is to “decide once.” This could pertain to deciding once on what all teacher gifts will be for the year or even every year. You could decide once on which side you always bring (it could even be purchased instead of prepared at home!) This idea has been around for a while now, but even giving children “something you want, something you need, something you wear and something to read” can help narrow down your choices in a sea of possibilities. Choose one festive outfit that’s your go-to for this year’s gatherings so you have a plan and don’t have to fret over what to wear last minute.

Other sanity savers include stocking up and keeping baking and cooking staples on hand for when you have a moment and inspiration to make something. Also, utilize your freezers and make and freeze all your cookie doughs, pie crusts, parts of sides and dinner or complete freezer meals to save you in the coming weeks. Kristen Krogmeier, mother of two, says, “I start shopping Oct. 1 with a goal of being completely done shopping by Thanksgiving. I also host a cookie exchange with good friends to lighten the baking load and to keep me from having too many in my home.”

As you go through the next few weeks, keep a note handy to write down or type things and ideas that helped or would help next year so each year becomes easier and easier.

Stephanie Loux is the mother of Layla, 10, Mason, 8, and Slade, 5, and loves all the traditions and memory-making of the holidays but wishes for more space in between to savor the season.