Showing posts with label snacks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label snacks. Show all posts

Thursday, April 14, 2022

HAPPY EASTER NUT FREE GIFT TOWER

nut free easter gift ideas

It is always nice to get a sweet treat on a holiday! For some people though that isn't easy as it would seem. Food allergies can make it difficult for some people to participate in holiday traditions like trick-or-treating or searching for Easter baskets without extra effort to make sure goodies given out are safe to eat. So, this dad of kids who are allergic to peanuts and tree nuts appreciates that gourmetgiftbaskets.com includes in their menu of offerings a Gluten & Nut Free Gift Tower selection.

They've created a festively decorated 10.5" tall tower. It consists of three Easter-themed boxes filled with a bounty of treats that includes cotton candy, Sugar Babies, Skittles, PEEPS®, jelly beans, Starburst, and Swedish Fish! Who wouldn't be GEEKED to get this!

gourmet gift baskets

They absolutely earn a Geek Daddy nod of approval for making an effort to cater to people with food allergies. All of the items in their Gluten & Nut Free Gift Tower are candies we feel safe in letting our kids enjoy. A really nice Easter surprise for those who need to avoid gluten and nuts!

When looking for a surprise or gift whether it is to make a day extra special for someone or celebrating a special moment, gourmetgiftbaskets.com has great selections to choose from that are available throughout the year. Around the World Beer Buckets for birthday presents, a College Survival Kit for high school graduates heading off to school, Belgian chocolate covered Oreos for a birthday present and much more are available from gourmetgiftbaskets.com. Looking to put a smile on someone's face? Now you know where to go to have a wonderful treat delivered that is sure to make someone's day extra special.

Thursday, October 7, 2021

LEKKCO

LEKKCO

What is the first thing that comes to mind when Halloween approaches? Costumes, ghost stories, jack-o-lanterns? For me it is ... CHOCOLATE!

So this is a perfect time to talk about a favorite brand of mine → LEKKCO. This is a Belgian chocolate spread with all natural ingredients that is nut-free, gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan. It has only 4 grams of sugar and 60 calories per serving. And it tastes GREAT earning a Geek Daddy nod of approval!

The LEKKCO name is a blending of the Flemish words Lekker "something delicious" and Co "chocolate" tied to the Belgium originations of the brand's products. There are four flavors of LEKKCO to choose from: Dark Chocolate, Caramel & Sea Salt, Coconut and Caribbean Banana. It is available at over 2,500 retail locations including Kroger and Fred Meyer as well as online at amazon.com. 

belgian chocolate

I love to dip pretzel sticks in LEKKCO to snack on while watching weekend football games and Halloween season horror movies. It also makes snacking on fruit like strawberries and blueberries extra tasty! I'll admit I've even included this Belgian chocolate spread into my breakfasts occasionally coating a toasted bagel with it. If you want to be creative, consider using it as an ingredient in a panini sandwich or a s'more-style desert. Oh so tasty!

chocolate spread

Like my own daughter, the founders of LEKKCO have a child with dyslexia. I appreciate that they have decided that topic will be the company's focus for its charitable commitments. The brand's font is a variation of the dyslexie font which is designed to make it easier for dyslexic individual's to read. They've pledged to dedicate a portion of profits to support providing resources for public schools to assist kids with dyslexia. That is appreciated because we've found that the public schools my children have attended really honestly don't give a shit about helping kids with this learning disorder. There are many school aged children and their parents struggling with this disability so thank you LEKKCO for bringing attention and some resources to address this topic.

Buy a jar of LEKKCO using a Geek Daddy affiliate link and this dad blogger will receive a small commission at no additional expense to your purchase. Your support of ageekdaddy.com is appreciated! For more information, visit lekkco.com

Spreading the love 

Tuesday, January 19, 2016

Enjoy some Halloween fun anytime of the year with a Hotel Transylvania 2 Family Movie Night

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias and its advertiser.  All opinions are mine alone. #MakeItAMovieNight #CollectiveBias

Halloween is such a great time of the year with all its spooky fun and treats.  That fun doesn't have to be limited to October with the January 12, 2016 release of HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA 2 on Blu-ray and DVD. Show your Halloween spirit anytime of the year by enjoying a Hotel Transylvania 2 Family Movie Night.

My kids just adored Hotel Transylvania 2 when we saw it last year at the movie theater so my wife and I didn't hesitate picking up the film as soon as it was available to add to our family's home entertainment video library.  With its cast of monsters that really are more silly and wacky than horrific and frightening making this a great family friendly comedy parents and kids can spend an evening howling in laughter at together.  We always like to have a special snack that ties into a movie we will be watching so we made our favorite Halloween treat, caramel apples, for our Hotel Transylvania 2 Family Movie Night.


We drove over to our local Walmart to purchase Hotel Transylvania 2.  Of course you need popcorn for any family movie night so we grabbed a six pack of Orville Redenbacher Movie Theater Popcorn.  I always enjoy drinking an ice cold refreshing Coca-Cola and munching on M&M'S® Chocolate Candies so we stocked up on them as well during our visit to Walmart.



Walmart has a nice deal that if you purchase one of each of the four products I just mentioned together in one purchase between now and 2/2/16 you can get a $10 Vudu movie code by email.* To redeem just snap a picture of your receipt with a smart phone and visit uploadreceipt.com/movienight to submit your photo by 2/9/16. To make sure you are purchasing the right items to qualify you for the Vudu deal CLICK HERE for a list of products along with their UPC numbers that you can print out and take along with you on your shopping trip. For more details on this offer visit http://cbi.as/1fihg

*While supplies last. Limit 1 per person




As I mentioned, in addition to snacking on Orville Redenbacher Movie Theater Popcorn during our Hotel Transylvania 2 family movie night we made ourselves some caramel apples.  They actually are pretty easy to make and here is a recipe so you can do it yourself too:

 A Geek Daddy's Awesomely Scrumptious Caramel Apples

Ingredients:

4 apples;
1 package of caramel bits (11 oz);
2 Tbsp of water;
4 wooden popsicle sticks;
 **Optional** Mars M&M'S® Chocolate Candies  3.4oz Theater Size Box

Directions:

Take the number of apples you want to candy and wash them. Then thoroughly dry them.  For our demonstration we took two large Red Delicious apples for my wife and I to eat and made two caramel apples out of smaller Granny Smith ones for our kids.


Insert wooden popsicle stick into the stem end  of each apple.  Cover a plate with waxed paper.  Spritz the wax paper with cooking spray to avoid the apples sticking to the plate when covered with caramel.


Place your caramel bits into a microwave safe bowl.  Add two tablespoons of water.  Place in microwave for 2 minutes on HIGH.  Remove the bowl from the microwave and stir until caramel bits are completely melted.

Alternatively, you can also place the caramel bits in a medium saucepan and use a stove instead.  Add the two tablespoons of water and place the saucepan on a burner set at medium-low heat for 3 minutes.  Stir the caramel bits constantly until they are completely melted.

Next before the caramel cools dip the apples into it.  Use a spoon to evenly coat the apples and make sure their entire surface is covered with caramel.  Allow excess caramel to drip off back into your bowl or saucepan. Handle with care as the caramel should be very hot.

 
To make your caramel apples extra special smash up some Mars Chocolate M&M'S® Chocolate Candies in a plastic sealable snack bag.


Spread the Mars M&M'S® Chocolate Candies on a plate and roll your apples while the caramel is hot across them.  This will coat your Caramel Apple with a delicious crunchy covering.


Place the caramel covered apples on your wax paper covered plate(s).  Refrigerate for at least one hour.  Remove your caramel apples from your refrigerator 15 minutes before serving.


Voila! there you have it a tasty Halloween themed treat to enjoy during your Hotel Transylvania 2 Family Movie Night.  Or as my kids would say mimicking me "Blah-Blah-Blah-Blah-Blah."  We grabbed a pop up bowl of Orville Redenbacher Movie Theater Popcorn and our caramel apples to snack on while we enjoyed our show.


My wife and kids stuck with the plain caramel apples while I scarfed down the one coated with M&M'S® Chocolate Candies and drank a bottle of Coca-Cola.  We had a very good time enjoying our snacks while watching Hotel Transylvania 2.

CLICK HERE to find more fun snack ideas for when you want to #MakeItAMovieNight


#HotelTransylvania2

Tuesday, July 7, 2015

Join me 4 a Fantastic twitter party

I have been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser to promote & serve as a host for the #TysonAndAMovie Twitter Party. 


Friday nights  are always board game night or family movie night at our house.  A time to unwind, spend some quality time with our kids, and tune out the rest of the world for an evening.  A Geek Daddy blog readers know that our family likes to have a blast with our movie nights adding special activities, games, and snacks themed to the feature film we've selected to make the evening extra entertaining.  Join me along with @dentistmel, @theCouponista & @ourhomemadelife for a Twitter Party on Thursday, July 9 2015 @ 3pm EST where we'll be discussing how Tyson Any'Tizers® are a fantastic treat for any family movie night.

We'll be randomly giving out more than $500 in Walmart gift cards during the #TysonAndAMovie Twitter Party to participants.  Plus since Tyson has a special promotion that using Any'Tizers® as snacks during your family movie night can get you some free tickets to go see the FANTASTIC FOUR when it arrives in theaters we'll be talking about that new movie too!

To be eligible for prizes you need to RSVP: 


Here's what you need to take advantage of the Tyson Any'Tizers® FANTASTIC FOUR deal:
  • Step 1: Buy – Buy 2 participating Tyson® Any’Tizers® products at Walmart between 6/15/15 and 8/15/15.
  • Step 2: Snap – Snap a picture of your receipt and text or email it to tyson@drvsusa.com by 11:59pm PST on 8/15/15.
  • Step 3: Get – Receive a code redeemable for a movie ticket to see FANTASTIC FOUR while in theaters. Code must be redeemed by 9/30/15 on tysonmovieoffer.com
Looking forward to tweeting with you all on 7/9 from 3 to 4pm EST as a co-host during the  TysonAndAMovie Twitter Party. We're going to be clobberin tips for having a great family movie night at home, burning through FANTASTIC FOUR trivia, discussing how to stretch your grocery shopping dollar, and proving that you don't need to be invisible to get into a movie theater for free.

Thursday, July 2, 2015

Create Your Own Personalized INSIDE OUT Movie Poster

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone.  #InsideOutEmotions #CollectiveBias


It was a dreary summer day and the radar showed a series of storms was going to be rolling in and out of our neighborhood all afternoon and evening.  During a break in the rain, I dragged my kids out of the house as we headed to the bank, post office and Walmart getting some errands taken care of before the next bout of bad weather began.  As we were out and about, I was trying to think of something for the kids to do when we returned home that would keep them amused inside while it was storming outside.

As we passed a toy section in Walmart for the movie INSIDE OUT, I jokingly thought to myself how fun it might be to create movie posters that were customized to feature the Emotions (Joy, Sadness, Anger, Disgust, Fear) actually pictured inside my kids' very own heads. Hey wait a moment we could actually do that and keep them amused for the rest of the afternoon.  Everything we needed was right here at Walmart! So before heading to the cash register we grabbed some construction paper, poster board, and glue sticks to use in constructing our very own movie posters, some #InsideOut toys for inspiration, and Kellogg's fruit snacks to keep us fueled and energized to get this project accomplished.  Walmart has a nice selection of plush Emotions from the movie that are nicely priced at $8.88 and are exclusive to the retailer.  My son picked out Fear and my daughter Joy to take home with them.



Once we got home I broke out a few Tomy Inside Out toys that we had also picked up while at Walmart and used them as a teachable moment with my children to talk about some of the Emotions that may be in their heads and how they may at times take control of how the kids act.  I mentioned how they may feel Angry or Disgust over something and those were a healthy part of coping with things in life, but like in the movie if they let those Emotions control their actions bad things could happen.  My daughter then mentioned that like in the movie we need to feel sadness, fear, anger, or disgust so that based on circumstances in life that may bring out those Emotions we'll be brought back to feeling Joy.  Sometimes those other Emotions protect us or balance our mental state during the rocky moments in life.  I then told my kids we were going to make silhouettes of the Emotions inside their own heads and they got pretty excited.


Here's an easy tutorial on how you can make your own personalized Inside Out movie posters featuring the silhouette of a child's head.

SUPPLIES:
Computer & Printer;
Scissors;
Glue Stick;
White or Colored Construction Paper for the Background;
Black Poster Board for the Silhouette;
Inside Out Printable to add Emotions to the Silhouette - preferably printed with color ink on a see through printable clear plastic sheet though standard white multipurpose paper will work fine too.


DIRECTIONS:
1.  Take a profile style picture of your son or daughter;
2. Print it out on a piece of white multipurpose paper in grey scale sized so that the picture takes up most of an 8.5" x 11" space;
3. Cut out the child's profile from the paper;
4.  Place the profile on top of your black construction paper, trace it, and cut out the shape carefully;
5. Print out the Printable of the Inside Out Emotions;
6. Cut out the Emotions so you can add them to the silhouette;
7. Find a black & white Inside Out movie logo on the Internet, download it, and print it on your white or colored construction paper.  Another option is to print the logo on multipurpose paper, cut it out, and glue to your background piece of construction paper;
8.  Glue down the black poster board silhouette of your child's profile onto the construction paper background for your movie poster;
9.  Select the cut out Emotion(s) to add within the silhouette and glue them on;
10. Voila! You have a personalized INSIDE OUT movie poster!


My kids were really amused to see the INSIDE OUT Emotion characters inside their own heads.  Once we wrapped up this craft project, the kids enjoyed those Kellogg's fruit snacks we'd bought at Walmart then spent some time playing with the Inside Out toys we brought home with us.  Next thing you know a few hours had gone by, the storms were gone and my kids had some time to go outside and play.


Dealing with emotions can be tough for kids which is the theme of the Disney PIXAR movie Inside Out.  The movie is an emotional journey within the mind of an 11 year old tween named Riley. How have you discussed emotions and how to handle them with the children in your life?  

Sometimes it takes a little imagination to get through to children.  That's why I believe Bing Bong was one of my family's favorite parts of Inside Out.  Bing Bong is the"Imaginary Friend" Riley had as a preschooler who is part elephant, chesire cat, teddy bear and dolphin made of cotton candy with a nougat filled center - how can you not love that!  Bing Bong turns out to be the hero that saves the day in this animated film and helps the emotions learn through their journey that joy and sadness are two sides of the same coin when it comes to helping steer Riley through the memorable moments in life.  Engaging in imaginative play with the exclusive Walmart Inside Out plush dolls along with the Tomy Inside Out musical Bing Bong toy and Emotions action figures and control board playset was a nice way to have a productive conversation with my children about emotions while keeping them amused and busy on a rainy day.  Combining that with a fun craft really sparked some productive yet lighthearted conversation on what can be a serious topic.


Thursday, April 10, 2014

THE CUPCAKE CONUNDRUM

I'm coaching my second season of youth soccer this Spring and have to admit that my feelings were a little hurt when the parents of one of the players from last season specifically asked the league to place their child on another team.  I worried they felt their child hadn't played enough, I'd done something to offend them, or they thought I was a bad coach.  Fortunately, none of those are the case.  The real reason they demanded a change though has left me somewhat perplexed.

The parents' requested the move because of my team's snack policy.  Each game a player is responsible to bring a team snack to help keep the kids energized and focused during half-time.  To keep it simple for parents, plus safe and healthy for the players, I've established a rule that the snacks need to be either sliced apples or oranges along with either water or juice boxes for the team.  Severe food allergies are a growing problem with children, my daughter who plays on the team can't eat or be exposed to peanuts for example, and there are plenty of other dietary restrictions that may be based on medical, religious, or parenting preference reasons.  Childhood obesity is also a growing problem in our nation that had an impact on my decision.   

The child that was pulled from my team had been upset because the player had noticed other teams enjoying cookies, candy, doughnuts, and cup cakes as snacks during the games.  To appease their child the parents choose junk food over healthy snacks.  I  respect those parents prerogative to make that decision for their child though I completely disagree with it.  On the other hand, allowing a child to easily switch a team though because they don't like the snack time treats provided really is a horrible precedent for a youth sports organization to set. 

According to Sally Kuzemchak R.D. in a 2013 article for Parenting Magazine, childhood snacking has become an "epidemic" with kids sports becoming "overrun with chips, cookies and other snacks being served from the sidelines." She cites research from the University of Minnesota School of Public Health that demonstrates how snacking can have an adverse impact even on active kids participating in sports.  These researchers found that "an 8 year old burns about 150 calories in an average soccer game - yet the typical postgame snack has between 300 and 500 calories." In her article Kuzemchak interviews one of the researchers, Toben Nelson, Sc.D. who says "It's so strange that sports have become associated with sweets...are parents are practically competing with each other to see who can bring the 'best' snack."

Some people may say it is just about FUN and snacks are part of the game time fun.  I wonder though why people need to associate food with fun.  Kids can have fun without eating a snack.  In fact, increasing the number of snacks , even if they are just small ones, may be contributing to obesity with  children.  Kuzemchak points out in her Parenting Magazine article that according to research from both Harvard and Columbia universities "childhood obesity is driven by as little as 165 extra calories for kids ages 2 to 7." 

According the the United States Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC)  has more than doubled in children and quadrupled in adolescents during the past 30 years (that would be from the time I was a 10 year old "kid" myself playing soccer and our only snacks were apple and orange slices during games).  According to the CDC, 70% of obese youth had at least one risk of cardiovascular disease, and were more likely to have prediabetes, bone & joint problems, sleep apnea, and social/psychological problems.  The CDC's best recommendation for countering obesity in youth: Healthy lifestyle habits, including physical activity and HEALTHY EATING.

Another issue to be concerned about as a coach and parent when it comes to game snacks are children with food allergies.  I know that problem unfortunately too well myself from our family's struggles with our daughters life-threatening food allergies [The Scariest Moment of My Life: The Day my Daughter went into Anaphylactic Shock]  The CDC acknowledges that food allergies is a growing food safety and public health concern for children in the United States.  They've provided guidelines for how schools should deal with food allergies that I believe youth sports leagues and coaches should be familiar with as well.  CLICK HERE to view these CDC guidelines.  Limiting the types of snacks at sporting games not only addresses obesity issues but food allergy safety ones as well.

I believe in my snack policy and don't plan to abandon it as long as I'm the one volunteering my valuable time at games and practices to coach and mentor these kids.  I just hope that my team doesn't abandon me to go play on other teams that provide them with sweet treats.

So what is your opinion on the Cupcake Conundrum?  As parents and coaches should we make a more concerted effort to enforce healthy snacks with the teams our kids play on or is snacking on cookies and cakes a childhood ritual that players should be able to enjoy?