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little boy blueberries
My little girl Hannah loves blueberries. My son on the other hand, not so much. With July being National Blueberry Month I thought it would be fun to come up with as many blueberry-loving ideas as I could. After all, what’s not to love about this indigenous flowering plant? Here are 12 kid-friendly ideas for all things blueberry.
1. Blueberry Pickin’ Patch. Kids love anything hands-on. Look on the Internet or visit your local Chamber of Commerce to find out where the nearest blueberry patches are. Set a date, load the kids in the car, and show them first-hand where to get this delicious fruit.
2. Blueberry Pancakes. It’s Sunday morning and your family is waking up to the smell of delicious blueberry pancakes sizzling on the griddle. If they want to help, drop the batter on the griddle and let your kiddos plop blueberries in the batter (with supervision, of course). This healthy, yummy breakfast will be sure to satisfy everyone’s appetites.
3. Teething Secret. Do you have a little one? A great tip for teething tots is to freeze a container of blueberries and put in a netted teether for instant relief.
4. Flavored Water. Add a little oomph to your water and throw in a couple of blueberries for more flavor.
5. Smoothies. Add fresh blueberries to your smoothie for added antioxidants or better yet, add frozen blueberries with or without ice to get that extra icy texture.
6. Rainbow Platter. Assemble a cute fruit tray and arrange different pieces of fruit by their colors to make a rainbow. Blueberries can be the ‘blue’ ray in the rainbow and the kids will love that you’ve recreated something so cool!
7. Connect the Blueberries. Get a pint of blueberries and arrange them one-by-one on a piece of construction paper to create a shape (example: circle). Have your son eat the blueberries as he picks them up to draw a line where the blueberry was. When all of the blueberries are gone, your child has had a healthy snack and he’s learned how to create art out of something edible.
8. Growth. Plant a blueberry bush with your children. This will be a great way to teach them how to get their hands dirty while seeing the fruits of their labor for years to come.
9. Ice Cubes. Fill up your ice cube tray and let your daughter put one or two blueberries in each cubicle. Put them in the freezer and voila! Throw them in your next glass of water and now you have a pretty and yummy drink.
10. Jam. Who doesn’t love jam? Find an old family recipe or scope one out on the Internet. Do most of the leg work but let your kids get involved in the kitchen by having them ‘measure’ out the blueberries to put in the pot for boiling down with sugar and water.
11. Road Race. Let your son line up blueberries on the floor or table to make ‘roads’ where his matchbox cars can drive along. He’ll love the idea of building his own racetrack and you’ll love the extra time to get things done around the house!
12. Fun Facts. Let school-aged children get on the computer and see how many facts they can find about blueberries. This is a great way to teach them about taking something from the environment and picking it up apart to learn all that they can.
Be sure to try some of these ideas for National Blueberry Month. Your kids will have a blast learning about all things blueberries and you’ll feel good knowing that they’re eating a healthy and nutritious fruit.
Simple and Delicious Blueberry Recipes to Make With Your Kids
Banana and Blueberry “Ice Cream”
Recipe by The Bon Appétit Test Kitchen, from www.bonappetit.com
4 firm ripe bananas, cut into chunks, frozen overnight
1 cup blueberries
Pinch of kosher salt
Purée bananas, blueberries, and salt in a food processor, scraping down sides as needed, until smooth and creamy. Ice cream can be made 5 days ahead. Cover and freeze. Let sit at room temperature 10 minutes before serving.
Blueberry-Chia Ice Pops
Recipe by Nicole Rucker, from www.bonappetit.com
1 cup blueberry–chia seed jam
3⁄4 cup coconut water
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
Pinch of kosher salt
1⁄2 cup fresh (or frozen, thawed) blueberries
Special Equipment: Six 4-ounce ice-pop molds
Purée jam, coconut water, lime juice, and salt in a blender until smooth. Add blueberries and pulse just to break up some of the berries. Pour into ice- pop molds, insert sticks, and freeze until solid, at least 3 hours. Run under hot water for several seconds to unmold. Can be made 1 week ahead.
Quick and Easy Blueberry Muffins Recipe
Recipe by Adam and Joanne Gallagher, from www.inspiredtaste.net
11⁄2 cups all-purpose flour
3⁄4 cup granulated sugar, plus 1 tablespoon for muffin tops
1⁄2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1⁄3 cup neutral flavored oil
1 large egg
1⁄3 – 1⁄2 cup milk; dairy and non-dairy both work
1 1⁄2 teaspoons vanilla extract
6-8 ounces (about 1 cup) fresh or frozen blueberries
Heat oven to 400 degrees F. For big-topped muffins, line 8 standard-size muffin cups with paper liners. For standard-size muffins, line 10 muffin cups. Fill the remaining cups with 1-2 tablespoons of water to help the muffins bake evenly. Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Add oil to a measuring cup that holds at least 1 cup. Add the egg then fill the jug to the 1-cup line with milk (1/3 to 1/2 cup milk). Add vanilla and whisk to combine. Add milk mixture to the bowl with dry ingredients then use a fork to combine. Do not over mix. (The muffin batter will be quite thick — see note below for more details). Fold in the blueber- ries. Divide the batter between muffin cups. Sprinkle a little sugar on top of each muffin. Bake muffins 15-20 minutes or until tops are no longer wet and a toothpick inserted into the middle of a muffin comes out with crumbs, not wet batter. Transfer to a cooling rack. To store, place them in a plastic bag, seal, and store at room temperature for 2 to 3 days. To freeze, wrap them tightly in aluminum foil or place them in freezer bags. Freeze for up to 3 months.