Cuddles and Crumbs

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Bento Lunchbox Menu October 9-13

Published by Abigail

I was reviewing my posts this morning and realized that I missed posting two weeks worth of our lunchbox menu. Totally blaming my multiple dose of anesthesia and lazy bug.

School Lunch menu for October 9-13 below

Sunday – October 9: BBQ Chicken Drumsticks with”puppy” shaped rice because Vierte was missing his dogs in the Philippines

Monday – October 10: Quinoa Beef Meatballs with rice and biscuits.

Tuesday – October 11: Beef tapa with rice, tomatoes and carrots. A hearty protein meal because V has try-outs for sports day.

Wednesday – October 12: Chicken dumplings with carrots

Thursday – October 13: Quinoa beef meatballs makes a repeat because Mama woke up late.

#LetsMakeLunchFun and Healthy for our family.

Join in the fun of lunch box packing and use #LetsMakeLunchFun tag on your IG posts.

Inspiring Happier and Healthier Kids with Al Islami Kids Club

Published by Abigail

I am so happy and honored to be part of Al Islami Kid’s Club campaign to inspire kids and their families to make healthier food choices.

Who would have thought that from the first project I worked with them which was to showcase simple and fun bento box, it has now become a social awareness. Al Islami’s very own teen Chef Bella has been busy visiting schools in the UAE to inspire kids to live a happy, healthy and active lifestyle. As of the moment they have reached out to more than 3000 students across the United Arab Emirates.

Al Islami Kid’s Club will be officially launched on October 28 at Arabian Centre. Kids participating in the competition will have a chance to win 10,000 AED, an iPad and be featured in the next campaign.

It will be a whole day of fun and learning on how to make healthier choices. Entrance is free and you will get a chance to participate in a kids cooking class hosted by SCAFA, arts and crafts activities, a photo and selfie booth and a talk to Chef Bella at the nutrition hub.

For those joining the Lunchbox Making Competition you are in for a treat! I will be posting some lunchbox inspiration like the one below to give you ideas how to prepare one. Make sure you follow our accounts on Instagram – @cuddlesandcrumbs and @alislamikidsclub for more ideas.

Better yet post your packed lunch box with the hashtag #LetsMakeLunchFun

See you on October 28 at Arabian Centre. Program starts from 10 am until 10 pm.

Visit Al Islami Kids Club website and page for more details.

Family Friday Brunch at Sufra (Hyatt Regency Dubai Creek Heights)

Published by Abigail

I was hinting the night before that I want to go to a Friday brunch, found myself searching for Entertainer deals and was happy to see that Sufra of Hyatt Regency Dubai Creek Heights was on the list.

The first time we had brunch at Sufra was during the media lunch of their Family Friday Brunch. It was our first time in the hotel then and I fell in love with the relaxing ambience as you enter the lobby and all that natural light was just so beautiful. My husband and I agreed that we should go back and try out their brunch without strings attached.

Sufra’s Friday Brunch serve different cuisines from the Middle Eastern, Mediterranean, Indian and Western specialties, wide range of seafood options and specials from the in house La Tablita Mexican restaurant.

One of the memorable dishes during our first visit was served by La Tablita – I can’t get enough of their empenadas even the kids enjoy them. The tamarind drink was also soo good. We are planning to dine at the Mexican restaurant soon.

They also have something to cater seafood lovers – oysters, lobster, shrimps and salmon to name a few. My boys kept going back to get perfectly grilled lamb chops and Peking duck wraps.

And much to my children’s delight a wide selection of dessert to satisfy their sweet tooth. Can you see how relaxing the natural lights is in the lobby?

One dish that I miss in the dessert section is kunafa, they served fresh kunafa for the guest’s to enjoy. I spoke to one of the chef’s to express my disappointment (hehehe). They also offer a variety of fruits for those who want to cut a high sugar intake.

Both kids kept themselves busy making crafts at the kids area. This is located outside the restaurants main seating area, so if you have kids you might want to request a table close where you can have a glimpse of the little ones. During our visit one lady was assisting kids with crafts and making sure they were nice to each other.

We highly recommend Sufra’s Friday brunch if you are looking to spend a relaxing weekend brunch for your family. Menu change every week so you will surely have something new to enjoy each visit. Good food and beautiful ambience.

Sufra Restaurant is located at the lobby area of Hyatt Regency Dubai Creek Heights (Dubai Healthcare City). Friday brunch costs 189 AED per person that includes soft beverages, runs from 12:30 pm to 4:00 pm.

*This is not a sponsored post.

Lunch Box Recipe: Carrot and Apple Oat Cookies

Published by Abigail

My children are not big fans of eating vegetables and fresh fruits. One of the creative ways to make them consume fruits and vegetables is by making smoothie, ice cream or hiding them in some dish.

Sometimes, knowing that some vegetables are part of a dish I prepare turns them off. Besides giving dish funny names, sneaking in vegetables is one of the best ways to get them eat something they swore to hate.

Chloe swore that apples makes her sick and oatmeal looks yucky. So when I found the recipe that would disguise two food she dislikes, I just needed to give it a go. It is like chocolate chip cookies only healthier.

I slightly change the original recipe from Super Healthy Kids because I ran out of honey and my bunch are not big fans of coconut oil smell.

This is a soft cookie so would be perfect for your toddlers as well. I have been packing them as a treat for the kids, definitely going to be staple healthy snack in our house.

#LetsMakeLunchFun and healthy for our family. Join in the fun and use the hashtag in all your Instagram lunchbox photos.

Carrot & Apple Oat Cookies

Difficulty: easy
Print

carrot-apple-oat-cookies-coverphoto

Ingredients

· 2 cups All Purpose Flour

· 1 cup Quick cooking Oat

· 1/2 tsp Baking Powder

· 1/4 tsp Baking Soda

· 1/2 tsp Nutmeg

· 1/2 tsp Cinnamon

· 1 large Egg

· 1/3 cup Butter, melted

· 1/4 cup Brown Sugar

· 1 tsp Vanilla Extract

· 1 cup Carrots, grated

· 1 cup Apple, grated *I use red apples

· 1 banana, mashed

· 1/3 cup Chocolate chips

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. In a large bowl mix together all dry ingredients: flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, nutmeg and cinnamon.

3. In another bowl mix all wet ingredients: beaten eggs, melted butter and vanilla extract and stir well. Add this mixture to the bowl with dry ingredients and mix until well combined.

4. Now add grated carrot, grated apple, mashed banana and chocolate chips on dough mix, stir until everything is well mixed together.

5. Use ice cream scooper to make similar size cookies or two tablespoons to shape cookie dough into 1 inch sized balls. I also made slightly smaller balls to fit in our lunch boxes. Place each on the baking sheet and press slightly with a fork.

6. Bake in the oven for 13-15 minutes. Allow to cool on a wire rack.

Science is Fun at Caboodle

Published by Abigail

We found ourselves spending a fun weekend at Caboodle, first was at Dubai Mall branch for Freaky Friday.

Caboodle’s Freaky Friday is a monthly themed activity where children ages 18 months to 8 years old gets the opportunity to explore and discover a topic thru play. For the month of October it is all about science themed crafts and activities.

Under the supervision of a friendly Caboodle staff, kids got to work on fun science experiments – How to make slime, Lava lamp and Ocean bottle.

Mo of Curiosity Lab showed more fun science activities much to the kids delight. LittleMiss Chloe was so interested that she volunteered!

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Science activities with Curiosity Lab was the highlight that Friday night.

For more information on Caboodle’s future events, click here.

* We were guest’s of Caboodle, Dubai Mall for this event.

Bento Lunchbox Menu – October 3 to 6

Published by Abigail

Hooray for Thursday!

We had another long weekend this week to celebrate Islamic New Year. It was nice to have an extra day to just spend time with my bunch. I was having a rough week being a Mama, making some changes now to improve things around the house.

Here is what I pack for the kids school lunch.

October is Kuya V’s birthday month so I am packing something extra special for him this month. This week though I forgot to take photos of Chloe’s box.

Monday – October 3: Chicken garlic tikka for our mains with rice and fruits. I will post a recipe next week.

Tuesday – October 4: Vegetable Hakka noodles, siomai and Carrot Apple Oat Cookies.

Wednesday – October 5: Chloe’s class has “healthy Wednesday’s” where teachers ask parents to pack a specific food, it was cheese sandwich for them this week. We have chicken lettuce sandwich for Vierte.

Thursday – October 6: Something quick and healthy today for both kids, banana roll-ups packed with fruits on the side.

I am inviting you to use #LetsMakeLunchFun hashtag on Instagram

Let’s pack healthier lunch food for our family.

Bento Lunchbox Recipe: Potato Fish Cakes

Published by Abigail

I absolutely do not like wasting food, any left-overs no mater how small is stored on the fridge for future use. This is exactly what made up most of the ingredients for our Potato Fish Cake which the kids get to have for school lunch at school.

In case you are wondering what I do with all the left-over cut outs from the vegetable and fruit cut outs, I gather all bits then store them in the fridge and add them to our meatballs, soup, pasta and salad. No waste, right?!

Here’s how I packed fish cakes for the kids lunchbox.

Use #LetsMakeLunchFun on all your lunch box posts and join in the fun of packing healthy meals for our family.

Let me know if you give this recipe a go.

Potato Fish Cakes

Difficulty: easy
Print

Ingredients

· 2 cups Mashed Potato

· 1 cup Fish, cooked and shredded

· ¼ cup Carrots, grated

· 1 tbsp Spring onions, chopped

· 1 Egg

· 1 tbsp Flour

· 1 tsp salt

· 1 tsp pepper

Procedure

To make mashed potatoes: Prepare a pot filled half way through with salted water, once boiling add peeled and chop potatoes. Bring pot to boil again till potatoes are cooked. Drain potatoes on a colander and place back on the pot to let steam dry off. Mash potatoes and set aside.

Prepare left-over fish: shred fish meat and discard any bones. Alternatively you can steam fish fillets.

In a separate bowl, combine mashed potato, shredded fish, carrots, spring onions, flour, salt and pepper. Beat egg and add to the mixture. Mix well.

Dust you table and hands with flour. Use an ice cream scooper to scoop a mix, shape with your hand and slightly flatten with your palm. Chill patties in the fridge for 30 minutes. If you plan to freeze them, you can do so this time by wrapping them in a cling film.

Heat oil in a pan over medium heat. When the oil is hot, fry your fish cakes about 3-4 minutes on each side until crispy. Drain oil on a colander then transfer to a plate lined with paper towels. Make sure fish cakes are at room temperature before you pack them in your lunch box.

Unlimited fun at FabyLand

Published by Abigail

We had a fun Thursday afternoon at the launch of the newest indoor attraction to open at Dubai Festival City – FabyLand.

The new FabyLand offers ‘Futuristic’ fun for all the family with an array of amusement rides, attractions and games to play on with friends and family. Offering the latest technology across 75,000 sq ft, the entertainment centre has 15 major rides, a MyTown area for kids to play and learn and more than 100 game machines, making it one of the largest family entertainment centre in Dubai for children aged three and up.

Vierte has set his eyes on the claw machines and won several toys for his sister. He has been long obsessed to beat the game to Chloe’s delight which is his biggest fan. LittleDude is his latest recruit, who did well and won several toys as well.

Fabyland has something fun for every one with over 15 fun rides, novelty game machines and soft play area. They can offer discounted rates for school trips and four party packages for more unlimited fun.

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The place is so big that it does not feel crowded at all. Family with strollers have enough space to move around, they have a snack bar and sitting area for tired parents.

We are definitely going back for more family fun.

Thank you for a fun day, FabyLand!

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Latest Posts

Bento Lunchbox Menu October 9-13

Inspiring Happier and Healthier Kids with Al Islami Kids Club

Family Friday Brunch at Sufra (Hyatt Regency Dubai Creek Heights)

Science is Fun at Caboodle

Bento Lunchbox Menu – October 3 to 6

Bento Lunchbox Recipe: Potato Fish Cakes

Potato Fish Cakes

Unlimited fun at FabyLand