Join us for Breakfast!

If you've never listened to the Vicky and Jen What Really Matters radio podcast, be sure to tune in. We recently "met" this dynamic duo of the podcast world when they invited us to be guests on their weekly show. Lucky for us, Vicky and Jen (two moms dedicated to making lifer easier for everyone) included us in three podcasts. The first, Breakfast in a Jiffy, features lots of our Meal Makeover Mom advice as well as a few recipes your kids will definitely love (including Banana Blueberry Pancakes --a perennial favorite with Liz's boys).

To hear our two additional interviews on snacks and lunch, cruise on over to Vicky and Jen's website, and while you're there, listen to their other 100 episodes on topics ranging from organizing your kitchen to traveling on a budget!

Our First "Live" Podcast Guest

"Cousin Andrea," perhaps one of our biggest fans out there, was the first "live" guest on Cooking with the Moms this week (www.MealMakeoverMoms.com). Ever since our weekly radio podcast launched back in May, 12-year old Andrea (Liz's niece) has been a devoted listener. In fact, every Wednesday when we post a new show to iTunes and our website, Andrea rushes home from school (or camp), runs straight to her computer, and listens to the show.

This summer, Andrea spent two weeks at Camp Medolark (www.Medolark.com) near Camden, Maine. On her way back to Connecticut, she stopped by the Moms' "studio" and sat in on our Frozen Treats show. You'll love hearing her talk about her adventures at camp (she got to take cooking classes!) and her thoughts on our Trio of Pops.

We hope you'll listen in each week just like Andrea does! In the meantime, here's a recipe for Watermelon Pomegranate Pops to whet your appetite for our August 6th podcast

Watermelon Pomegranate Pops
Makes 4 Servings

1 1/2 cups cubed seedless watermelon
1/2 cup Pomegranate blueberry juice

Combine the watermelon and juice in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into four 3-ounce popsicle molds and freeze until firm, about 3 hours. To remove the pops from the molds, run under warm water to loosen. If you don’t have popsicle molds, divide t he liquid between four paper cups. Cover each cup with foil, insert one craft stick through the center of each foil, and freeze.

* We like Minute Made Enhanced Pomegranate Blueberry Juice

Nutrition Information per Serving: 30 calories, 0g fat (0g saturated), 0mg sodium, 9g carbohydrate, 0g fiber, 0g protein, 15% vitamin C

The Biggest Bean Ever

Last week, Liz traveled to Chicago for a nutrition conference on the benefits of beans (yes, we know, as dietitians we get all the perks). Before heading back to the airport, she took a walk over to Millenium Park where she was greeted by what looked like the world's largest bean! Turns out the 110-ton sculpture is not a bean at all but rather an abstract structure called Cloud Gate designed to reflect the city's famous skyline and the clouds above.


Beans were clearly the theme of Liz's trip to Chicago. Here are a few things she learned:

* Beans wear two hats: They're rich in protein -- like beef, chicken, and eggs -- so are listed on the government's MyPyramid in the meat & beans category. They're also categorized as a vegetable. In fact, beans have more protein and fiber than any other vegetable out there!

* Black beans, pinto beans, chickpeas, canellini beans and the hundreds of other bean varieties are incredibly versatile and are found in almost every cuisine from around the world.

* If you visit VegetableWithMore.com, you'll find over 1,000 bean recipes as well as info on the Moms And Kids Panel where families can test and rate bean recipes.

Speaking of vegetables, be sure to tune in to our Cooking with the Moms podcast this week as we chat about vegetable recipes kids love. And while you're at it, check out the May/June issue of Kiwi magazine and read our Veggie Love article!

Fruity Chicken Kebabs

Maureen M., a supermom of four boys from Massachusetts sent us an email with these adorable photos. As you can see, her kids were thrilled when she let them create their own fruit and chicken kebabs for lunch. The photos inspired us to feature our Fruit & Chicken Kebab recipe in this week's Cooking with the Moms radio podcast. Tune in and listen as we share recipes and ideas for lunch box makeovers.

Here's what Maureen had to say:

"Thank you Meal Makeover Moms! I tried the kabob idea that I saw on your website and it was a HUGE hit! My little men so enjoyed creating their "stick lunches" and gobbled them all up! I took pictures to share with you. You are Brilliant!"

We'd like to thank Maureen for getting in touch and sending photos. We hope more of you will do the same! To watch a video demo of this recipe click here.

Our New Podcast

Well, we finally did it! After months of planning and preparation, we launched our new podcast this week, Cooking with the Moms. This 20-minute podcast/radio show is packed with fast and healthy recipe ideas and helpful mealtime tips designed to help you and your family eat a more nutritious diet.

We have discovered that there is quite a learning curve when starting a podcast. The biggest challenge was figuring out the technology end of the podcasting and iTunes world. In fact, we are still trying to understand some of the finer points! However, we are forging ahead and hope you will listen to our podcast and let us know what you think.

You can either listen to Cooking with the Moms by clicking the "listen here" button on our site, or you can download it to your mp3 player and tune in while you are walking, commuting, or working out. Either way, we hope you’ll join us (or download us) each week as we share our kitchen creations and cooking insights with you.