“Baby Be Mine” Playdate: Party Hearty

Mirror Mirror on the wall – which is the sweetest of them all?

When you think of Valentine’s Day parties, decadent desserts are normally at the top of this list.  And toddlers love sweets! But, if you are anything like me I try to limit the amount of sugar my little one eats.  I first had these home made granola bars on a play date, and my daughter requested a 3^rd serving. We’re making them heart-shaped for cupid’s day but you can easily make them any shape, as long as you have a cookie cutter!

Heart-Shaped Granola Bars

Ingredients:

• 2 cups rolled oats
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup wheat germ (I get this in bulk at sprouts)
• 1/4 cup ground flax
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cup dried cranberries (or whatever you want)
• 3/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Heat your oven to 350 degrees and grease 9X13 pan with butter.
2. You will first mix all of the dry ingredients, then add in the wet ingredients.  Once stirred, you will pat the mixture into a pan.
3. Bake the granola bars for 25 minutes, making sure to pull them out right when the edges start to brown.
4. Use heart shaped cookie cutters to cut them right when they get out of the oven.  The will be too hard to cut once they dry.  They will last for about a week in an airtight container.

For the moms at your party, chocolate fondue will be a hit.

Chocolate & Coffee Fondue

Ingredients:

• 32 ounces milk chocolate, grated
• 1 1/4 cups heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon instant coffee powder
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
•  1 teaspoon white sugar
•  1/3 cup hot water

Directions:

1. In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the chocolate with the heavy cream.  Mix in the instant coffee, vanilla extract, sugar, and hot water.
2. Continue to heat, stirring frequently, until the mixture is smooth.

I have a cute fondue pot I serve this in, but if you don’t have a fondue pot a small crock pot on warm setting will work well.  Serve this with cut up strawberries, blueberries, and bananas – on a plate in a heart shape of course!  This fruit will also double as a sweet and healthy snack for the toddlers, so make sure you cut up enough.

I hope this gives you some great heart-shaped sweets idea’s for your toddler’s Valentines Day party. Party hearty!

Cuisinista Kristi