PLAYING WITH FOOD for Valentine's Day

I'm going to give you permission to play with your food. Especially if you have kids, but it is not required.

With Valentine's Day, just around the corner here are some easy, creative things you can do with ordinary foods for some very fun snacks.

Using the photo as a guide, if you cut hot dog ends at an angle, and skewer them along with with bits of cheese in triangle shapes, they instantly become cupid's arrow through a heart.

Next, why not try cutting your strawberries in half to reveal a heart shape.

 They are easily speared onto skewers and make a fun dipper for chocolate pudding, or melted chocolate. Why not dip them into flaked coconut after that? Yum! 

Last, but not least, why not take the title of 'coolest Mom' when your child takes this amazing heart embellished apple out of their lunchbox. If you are a fun-loving adult, bring it to the office cafeteria and watch the eyes widen as you take a bite from this beauty. The How-To? Simple. Just cut a small portion from a red apple, with a small,heart shaped cookie cutter. Use the same cutter to outline the shape on the green apple. Carefully scrape out the shape and make it deep enough to hold the red heart piece. Press in gently until it rests flush with the green apple. 

Of course there are many ways to decorate for Happy Hearts Day, but they need not be difficult or pricey. Everyone has glass cylinders for candles, right? Pour in some conversation hearts, nestle a white or pink votive candle into the center, and you have some lighting worth talking about.

Most of all, find some creative ways to make the day more fun. It's all about love, whether you celebrate with a sweetheart, your kids, your beloved pets or some much needed ME time. Celebrate the love around you, and Happy Valentine's Day!

12 Random Food Facts !

You may wonder why I have a photo of sliced cheese and foil....well, now that I have your attention, here are 12 random interesting facts about food. You will pick up at LEAST one tip you didn't know. Ready? here we go:

1. Store your opened chunks of cheese in aluminum foil. It will stay fresh much longer and no mold.

Bamboo Cheese Tools Case and Cutting Board

2. Peel a banana from the bottom and you won't have to pick the little "stringy things" off of it. Thanks how the primates do it.

3. Take your bananas apart when you bring them home from the store. If you leave them connected at the stem, they ripen faster. (unless you want them to)

Palmer Wholesale - Banana Slicer Safely cut perfect pieces

4. Bell peppers with 3 bumps on the bottom are sweeter and better for eating. Peppers with 4 bumps on the bottom are firmer and better for cooking.

5. Add a teaspoon of water when frying ground beef. It will help pull the grease away from the meat while cooking.

6. To really make scrambled eggs or omelets rich, add a couple of spoonfuls of sour cream, cream cheese, or heavy cream and then whisk thoroughly.

7. For a nice brownie treat, make brownies as directed. Melt Andes mints in double broiler and pour over warm brownies. Let set for a wonderful minty topping.

8. Add garlic immediately to a recipe if you want a light taste of garlic and at the end of the recipe if you want a stronger garlic taste.

Norpro 1064 Garlic Baker/Tortilla Warmer

9. Leftover Snickers bars from Halloween treats make a delicious dessert. Simply chop them up . Peel core and slice a few apples. Place them in a baking dish and sprinkle the chopped candy bars over the apples. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes. Serve alone or a la mode.

10. Reheating pizza; Heat up leftover pizza in a nonstick skillet on top of the stove, set heat to med-low and heat till warm. This keeps the crust crispy. No soggy micro-pizza.

Pizza: More than 60 Recipes for Delicious Homemade Pizza

11. Reheating refridgerated bread; To warm biscuits, pancakes, or muffins that were refridgerated, place them in a microwave with a cup of water. The increased moisture will keep the food moist and help it reheat faster.

12.  Goodbye fruit flies !! To get rid of pesky fruit flies, take a small glass, put in 1/2 inch of apple cider vinegar and 2 drops of dish washing liquid, mix well. You will find those flies can't  resist, and then they are "gone". 

Next post will be back to your previously scheduled sweets and recipes.

Making your life a little sweeter,

Liz

The Party Hostess Diva

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