Toddler-friendly restaurants in the Salt Lake Valley

Eating out with a toddler is no small feat. If your little one is like mine, you have a short amount of time to gobble down your meal before he or she makes it known to the entire eating establishment that he is finished eating and can no longer sit still.
We love going out, especially with our little guy but enjoying a meal is out of the question for us at this stage in life, unless, there is a play place!
Restaurants with a play area are a life-saver! So, I've compiled a list of places around the Salt Lake Valley where we can enjoy a meal and let our little one play after he eats.

Various McDonald's: Probably the #1 restaurant that comes to mind but don't limit yourself just to Big Macs.

Del Taco at 6876 So. Redwood Rd., West Jordan: This play area is separated from the main eating area and it's cheap!

Burger King at 1590 W. 9000 So., West Jordan: Newly remodeled and the perfect place for toddlers.

Various Chick-fil-A's: Sandy, Taylorsville and West Jordan have playgrounds. Check their website for other locations.

Carl's Jr at 10475 So. State Street, Sandy: Has a fairly large play area

Joe's Crab Shack at 65 E. 9400 So., Sandy & 7277 So. Plaza Center Dr., West Jordan: I haven't personally checked this one out but from what I gather it's an indoor play area.

Simple Baked Alaska

My hubby and I took an Alaska cruise for our five year anniversary in 2009. Five years later, I finished scrapbooking the pictures and memories we created on our awesome trip. So, to celebrate that I finally got it done, I made my first ever baked Alaska! I've scoured the internet for recipes and there are a few versions out there. I'm all about simple and easy so this is recipe I created with help from others. It turned out so well and didn't take too long.

You will need:
1 9-inch frozen pie crust
Neapolitan ice cream
3 egg whites
1/4 tsp cream of tarter
1/2 tsp vanilla
6 Tbsp sugar

Thaw the frozen pie crust for 10 minutes on the counter.
Pierce the sides and bottom of the crust with a fork.
Bake at 400 degrees for 10-12 minutes until golden brown. Let cool.
Scoop the Neapolitan ice cream into the cooled pie crust. Add as much as you want, just don't over pack. Level it out and place in the freezer for about 2 hours or until firm.
To make the meringue, use an electric mixer and beat three egg whites and cream of tarter until foamy.
Add the sugar 1 Tbsp at a time until stiff and glossy.
Beat in the vanilla.
Gently spoon over the ice cream. Be sure to cover to the edge of the pie crust.
Bake at 475 degrees for 2-4 minutes until lightly brown on top.
Serve immediately or cover and freeze up to 48 hours.

Peanut Butter Brownie Trifle aka Heaven in a Bowl

This is an easy, yummy trifle recipe for chocolate and peanut butter lovers! I whipped this up for a girl's night and it was a hit!

1 fudge brownie mix (13-inch x 9-inch pan size)
1 package (13 ounces) miniature peanut butter cups 
4 cups cold 2% milk 
2 packages (5.1 ounces each) instant vanilla pudding mix
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cartons (8 ounces each) frozen whipped topping, thawed 

Prepare brownie batter according to package directions. Bake in a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking pan at 350° for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out with moist crumbs (do not over bake!). Cool on a wire rack; cut into 3/4-in. pieces. 
Cut peanut butter cups in half; set aside 1/3 cup for garnish. In a large bowl, whisk milk and pudding mixes for 2 minutes (mixture will be thick). Add peanut butter and vanilla; mix well. Fold in 1 carton of whipped topping. Place a third of the brownies in a 5-qt. glass bowl; top with a third of the remaining peanut butter cups. Spoon a third of the pudding mixture over the top. Repeat layers twice. 
Cover with whipped topping; garnish with reserved peanut butter cups. Refrigerate until chilled. Enjoy!

Easy and delicious Key Lime Pie!

Here is an easy and fool-proof recipe for Key Lime Pie! I added two drops of green food coloring for our St. Paddy's Day dinner. The husband loved it! It's the perfect pie for spring and summer parties, get-together's or just because. The recipe is from Nellie and Joe's. It's tried and true!

1 9 inch graham cracker crust
1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
3 eggs yolks (no egg whites)
1/2 cup key lime juice (I use Nellie and Joe's)

Combine milk, egg yolks and lime juice. Blend until smooth. Pour filling into pie crust and bake at 350º for 15 minutes. Allow to stand 10 minutes before refrigerating. Top with whipped cream and garnish with lime slices just before serving. Enjoy! 

 

Tomato Pesto Chicken for two

Here's an easy and delicious chicken dinner recipe using pesto and tomatoes. It's the perfect meal for summer when basil, tomatoes and garlic are in season and ready to harvest. I can't take all the credit... this recipe comes from my "Cooking Light: Fresh food superfast" cookbook. I made a few changes, so here's my version. Bon Appetit!

 You will need:
2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1 large tomato, diced
pesto: basil, garlic, olive oil, Parmesan cheese
2 TBSP softened cream cheese
fresh ground pepper (to taste)
salt (to taste)

Heat a large skillet pan over medium heat. Use olive oil or cooking spray to coat the pan. Cut chicken into strips and add to pan. Cook until done and keep warm.

Add diced tomatoes to another skillet. Saute for 4-5 minutes or until tomatoes soften and release juices. Make your own pesto or use store bought. I use 2-3 cloves of garlic, a handful of basil leaves, Parmesan cheese and oil to taste mixed in a food processor. Add pesto to the tomatoes. Add the softened cream cheese, pepper and salt. Stir until smooth.

Spoon tomato pesto mixture over chicken strips and serve with rice.

No-bake desserts

It's time to get creative! We can't have fires at girl's camp this year so I'm looking for no-bake recipes. It is hard trying to find recipes that don't require a campfire! I've found a few so far and they seem pretty good... feel free to share any other recipes you may have. We only need to plan for three nights. Luckily, the stake is handling the food so it's just treats, yum!

Graham Treats

Here's a simple treat that the kids will love. These can be messy in hot weather, so be ready to lick some fingers.

Ingredients:

• chocolate covered graham crackers
• peanut butter
• bananas

Preparation:

Slice bananas. Put peanut butter on one graham cracker. Put sliced bananas on top of peanut butter. Cover with second graham cracker.

Servings: As needed

Dirt Dessert

Kids love this stuff.

Ingredients:

• Oreo cookies
• Cool Whip
• Gummie Worms
• Gummie Critters

Preparation:

Crush Oreos and mix with Cool Whip and Gummie Critters. Serve chilled.

Servings: Varies

No-bake Chocolate Crackles

Indulge your sweet tooth with this fast, no-bake recipe for chocolate cookies.

Ingredients:

• 3 ounce(s) semisweet chocolate
• 2 cups crispy rice cereal
• Graham crackers, broken into small pieces

Preparation:

 Line cookie sheet with waxed paper. In 2-quart microwave-safe bowl, heat chocolate in microwave oven on High 1 to 1 1/2 minutes or until melted, stirring once. Add cereal and crackers; stir until coated.

Drop mixture by 1/3 cups onto lined cookie sheet. With fingertips, shape mixture to form rounded mound if necessary. Refrigerate cookies 30 minutes to set. Store cookies in tightly covered container at room temperature.

Servings: 9 cookies

Twitter quote

I heard this quote in YW on Sunday and tried to find it on the internet. I couldn't find it anywhere, so I created my own simple handout. I think it's such a cute quote!