UltimateMama and her kids had a fun time berry picking at 7 Ponds Farm in Water Mill, NY last week!  With so many berries we brainstormed recipe ideas but ultimately came up with one of our own.  A quick and easy Three Berry Pie that pleases everyone – recipe as follows:

2 Deep dish pie shells (approximately 9 inches each)

For the filling:

2 Cups of blueberries

2 Cups of blackberries

2 Cups of raspberries

2/3 Cups of sugar

1 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla

3 Tablespoons cornstarch

For the topping:

1 Cup brown sugar

1/2 Cup of white flour

1 Cup of oats (we used old fashioned oatmeal)

1/2 cup melted, unsalted butter

Instructions

Preheat oven to 370

Use a big mixing bowl and a wooden spoon and mix all the topping ingredients together.

On the stove top in a medium to large pot cook all the filling ingredients on medium heat.

Pour filling into the 2 pie crusts.

Use a wooden spoon and gently put the topping on top of the filling in the pies.

Bake in the oven on the middle rack for approximately 35 minutes.

Cool or serve warm.

Store in refrigerator.

UltimateMama knows summertime is just as chaotic as the rest of the year so she’s happy when she can involve her kids in creating a meal with “leftovers”.  Soft tacos are an easy, appetizing meal to make with leftover kebobs!  All you need is the following:

– Corn or flour tortillas

– Leftover vegetables, meat, or seafood from kebobs (cut into strips or bite size pieces from the kebobs)

– Cheese (cheddar, mozzarella, or monterey jack)

– Olives and/or salsa (if desired)

To do:  Heat up your vegetables, seafood, and meat.  Have your child grab a tortilla and fill it with the heated vegetables, seafood, and meat. Sprinkle some cheese.  Add olives or salsa if desired!  Also, if you want to melt the contents of your tortilla it is easy to do just that on a stovetop, in an oven, or on a grill but be careful it doesn’t  burn!

UltimateMama loves to involve her two kids in making dinner.  Not only is it good for kids to learn the importance of healthy cooking at a young age but also it offers immediate gratification.  Now that we are in the thick of summer, UltimateMama wanted to share her quick, easy kabob creation with you.  Steps are as follows:

– Preheat your grill (UltimateMama uses charcoal as the taste can’t be beat — always remember to be careful with kids around grills)

– Grab a bunch of wooden skewers (Roland Foods Bamboo skewers work well)

– Precut vegetables into cubes (green zucchini, yellow zucchini), square pieces (red peppers, green peppers, yellow peppers, orange peppers, onions), or remove stems (mushrooms)

– For Chicken Kabobs:  Dice the chicken

– For Shrimp Kabobs:  peel and devein the shrimp

** (always tell your children to be careful with handling uncooked meat and seafood–wash hands thoroughly both before and after)

– Create an assembly line and have each child grab a skewer and assemble it as they wish

– Grill until thoroughly cooked!

– Enjoy!