Chocolate Pomegranate Hearts

Chocolate Pomegranate Hearts

by | Feb 6, 2022 | Snack and Dessert Recipes

A number of years ago when our second daughter was about 5 years old, she and her best friend would often give each other sweet little gifts, from drawings to hand sewn dolls.  One day her friend gave her a beautiful pomegranate.  As pomegranates were not something we usually had on hand, we were not sure of the best way to use it.  As it was near Valentine’s Day, we eventually came up with the idea of making chocolate hearts and sprinkling them with pomegranate seeds.  They were delicious and really fun to make!

 

POMEGRANATE FUN FACTS

Pomegranates grow on trees that are found in many parts of the world. The word pomegranate comes from medieval Latin pōmum “apple” and grānātum “seeded.”  Pomegranates seeds are high in fiber and packed full of vitamins, like vitamin C.  You can find out more in this Wikipedia article.

pomegranate art
gluten-free valentine heart pizza

So the big question is, how do you get the seeds out of a pomegranate?  This is definitely the part of the recipe that will require the help of an adult.  Rather than explain it to our ourselves, we recommend you use this (or another) tutorial on how to open a pomegranate.

 

Let’s Make Chocolate Pomegranate Hearts!

pizza ingredients

Gather your ingredients:

  • Dark chocolate bar*
  • Pomegranate seeds

*We used 85% here, but if you want to make this refined sugar free, you can start with unsweetened baking chocolate and add a sweetener of your choice.

 

Gather your kitchen supplies:

  • a flat tray or baking sheet lined with parchment paper
  • 2 bowls (the one for the chocolate needs to be microwave safe)
  • 2 spoons
  • Also (not pictured) a knife and a cutting board to cut the pomegranate.

kitchen supplies bowl measuring cups

Time to melt and decorate!

flaxseed meal

Step 1

Cut the pomegranate and remove the seeds.  Place the seeds in a bowl.  Use the tutorial if this is new to you.

water one cup

Step 2

Break the chocolate bar into pieces and place the pieces into a microwave safe bowl.

flax pour

Step 3

Put the bowl of chocolate in the microwave.  Heat on high for 1 minute.  Check if the chocolate is melted.  If needed, add 30 more seconds at a time until the chocolate is melted.

flaxseed meal

Step 4

Stir the chocolate so that it is smooth.  Let it sit on the counter for about 10 minutes, so that it thickens a bit (this will make it easier to shape the hearts).

flaxseed meal

Step 5

Using a spoon, drizzle the chocolate onto the parchment paper, making heart shapes.

flaxseed meal

Step 6

Sprinkle pomegranate seeds onto the chocolate hearts.

flaxseed meal

Step 7

Place the tray with the chocolate hearts into the refrigerator.  Keep them in the refrigerator about 30 to 60 minutes, or until they are hard.  

flaxseed meal

Step 8

Remove the chocolate hearts from the refrigerator.  Place them on a pretty platter to serve.  Enjoy!  (Store any leftovers in the refrigerator.)

flaxseed meal

Optional method

Follow the above steps, but use a silicone mold, rather than a tray lined with parchment paper.

.
Valentine “Love is…” Banner

Valentine “Love is…” Banner

by | Feb 4, 2022 | Craft Tutorials

The lector at Mass last Sunday unknowingly inspired this craft.  She read the scipture passage from First Corinthians so slowly, peacefully and joyfully that I really kept thinking about it for the next few days… and soon enough it inspired this Valentine garland.  It’s a project the whole family can work on together.

To make the banner, simply cut hearts out of colored cardstock.  Then cut slightly smaller hearts out of white paper.  Write the key words about love from 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 on each heart.  Punch holes in the top corners of the colored hearts.  Then string the hearts together with ribbon or yarn.

You can either write the words yourself, or if you would like, a digital download of all of the hearts is available for purchase on Etsy.  (We also have a French version of the bannner.) Your purchase will help us to keep bringing you new craft and baking ideas.

cardstock heart pdf etsy
Love is patient, love is kind. It is not jealous, [love] is not pompous, it is not inflated, it is not rude, it does not seek its own interests, it is not quick-tempered, it does not brood over injury,
it does not rejoice over wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth.  It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.  Love never fails. 
supplies
decorate heart garland

Parents and older children might need to do most of the work of cutting out the hearts.  But the most fun part is letting even the youngest children decorate the hearts. 

And at sparklesandsprinkles.blog, of course…

WE ADD GLITTER!

glitter scripture heart garland

Happy Valentine’s Day!

P.S. If you would like to purchase the digital download of the scripture hearts, simply click here.

P.S.S.  We also have a French version of the banner because we love French, and you might too.

francais French heart banner
Unicorn Valentine

Unicorn Valentine

by | Feb 4, 2022 | Craft Tutorials

We are excited to share with you our first ever Youtube tutorial for this sweet little unicorn Valentine!  So gather up your supplies and come make a Valentine (or a bunch of them!) with us!

valentine supplies

Click on the Youtube video and have fun making Valentines!

Extra note:  Our oldest daughter has been working through a wonderful class from Film School For Teens.  The online classes are created by a Christian family with expertise in film and Youtube.  If you have a child interested in film, you can check it out here:  FS4T

Gluten-free Valentine Pizza

Gluten-free Valentine Pizza

by | Feb 2, 2022 | Lunch and Dinner Recipes, Main Dish Recipes

I grew up making whole wheat pizza crusts with my family, and when I had to stop eating gluten, I was determined to find a way to make a yummy, hearty, and healthy gluten-free pizza crust.  When, after many attempts, we finally came up with the one we are sharing with you here, the whole family loved it.  We think you will too!

One of our favorite combinations for making wholesome gluten-free baked goods is almond flour and light buckwheat flour.

Have you heard of LIGHT buckwheat flour?  It’s amazing!  We discovered it when traveling back from a trip to Canada, we stopped at a creperie in Vermont.  We ordered gluten-free buckwheat crepes.  The waiter came out with plates of crepes that looked suspiciously like white flour crepes… nothing like the dark buckwheat crepes we were expecting.  Needing to be sure they were really gluten-free, I asked the waiter about it.  He kindly brought out the light buckwheat flour package information.  I was still a little skeptical, but luckily it was true… they were really buckwheat, the were really gluten-free, and they were really yummy!

Since that time, we have been doing lots of baking with light buckwheat.  It has the look of white flour and has a very mild taste (nothing like the strong taste of dark buckwheat).  You can find Bouchard Family Farms Light Buckwheat on Amazon or you can buy it in larger quantities directly from the farm (it’s about half the per bag price if you buy 8 or more bags).

 

Fun fact:

Buckwheat flour is made from the seeds of buckwheat plants.  Buckwheat plants have beautiful flowers, shown in this photo (photo credit Goran Horvat at Pixabay).

gluten-free valentine heart pizza

Though this crust is “hearty,” you don’t have to make it in a heart shape.  But since Valentine’s Day is around the corner, we thought you might like to.  Celebrate and enjoy!

Oh, and one more thing… if you would like a free pizza-themed writing practice page to keep little ones busy while the pizza bakes, be sure to scroll to the bottom of the page to print it out.

 

 

Our children like to make coloring pages for each other, so we thought we would share them with you too.  Our 10 year old is busy making cute food coloring pages for you to enjoy.  Her first one for you is a heart-shaped pizza.  Click on the image to get the full size version of this cute heart pizza coloring page.

 

Let’s Make Pizza!

pizza ingredients

Gather your ingredients:

  • Salt
  • Olive oil
  • Baking powder
  • Light buckwheat flour
  • Almond flour
  • Flaxseed meal
  • Pizza sauce
  • Mozzarella cheese
  • Extra toppings of your choice

Gather your kitchen supplies:

  • Large mixing bowl
  • Liquid measuring cup (2 or more cups)
  • Large mixing spoons (1 or 2)
  • Measuring cups (1 cup and 1/2 cup)
  • Measuring spoons (1/2 tsp, 1 tsp, 1 Tbsp)
  • Parchment paper
  • Pizza pans or baking sheets (2)

kitchen supplies bowl measuring cups

Time to measure and mix!

flaxseed meal

Step 1

Measure 1/2 cup flaxmeal.

water one cup

Step 2

Measure 1 cup water into liquid measuring cup.

flax pour

Step 3

Pour the flaxseed meal into the water

flaxseed meal

Step 4

Stir together water and flax and set the mixture aside.

flaxseed meal

Step 5

Measure 2 cups almond flour and pour the almond flour into a large mixing bowl.

flaxseed meal

Step 6

Measure 1 cup light buckwheat flour and add the buckwheat to the almond flour.

flaxseed meal

Step 7

Measure 1 teaspoon baking powder and add to the flour mixture.

flaxseed meal

Step 8

Measure 1/2 tsp salt and add it to the flour mixture.

flaxseed meal

Step 9

Check that you have all of the dry ingredients in the bowl.

flaxseed meal

Step 10

Stir to mix all the dry ingredients together well.

flaxseed meal

Step 11

Make a “well” in the dry indgredients.

flaxseed meal

Step 12

Pour the flaxseed meal and water mixture into the well.

flaxseed meal

Step 13

Measure 4 Tbsp of olive oil and pour it into the mixture.

flaxseed meal

Step 14

Stir well to combine.

flaxseed meal

Step 15

(Optional) If the dough is too dry, add water 1 Tablespon at a time, and stir again.  The dough should be well combined, but not too sticky to the touch.

flaxseed meal

Step 16

Divide dough into 2 equal parts.  (If you are making mini pizzas rather that 2 big pizzas, you can divide the dough into 12 equal parts.)

Time to shape the dough and bake it!

flaxseed meal

Step 17

Prepare your pans by covering them with parchment paper.

Warning!:  Be sure no parchment paper hangs over the edge of the pan, or the parchment paper could burn while in the oven.  You can cut off the extra or fold it under to make it fit.

flaxseed meal

Step 18

Using your hands, spread the dough out into a heart shape (or the shape of your choice).  The dough should be about 1/8” to  1/4” thick.  Each part of the dough should be enough to completely fill a standard pizza pan.

Tip!:  If the dough sticks to your hands, you can pour a little olive oil on the dough or on your hands while you are spreading out the dough.

flaxseed meal

Step 18 - Options

If you are making individual pizzas, you can divide the dough into 12 equal parts and place them on 2 rectangular baking pans.

Or you could make one large pizza and 6 individual pizzas.

flaxseed meal

Step 19

Warning!  Ask an adult to help with the oven steps.

Bake the crust for 15 to 17 minutes at 425 degrees F.  The crust should be golden brown and feel hard when touched.  (If you do not bake the crust long enough, the crust will seem gooey once the toppings are added.)

flaxseed meal

Step 20

Remove the crust from the oven and place on the stove or a trivet.

flaxseed meal

Step 21

Spread on sauce, sprinkle with cheese and any other toppings of your choice.

flaxseed meal

Step 22

Return the pizzas to the oven and bake for about 10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted to your liking.

flaxseed meal

Step 23

Remove the pizzas from the oven.  Set them on stovetop or trivets.  Let cool for a few minutes.

mini heart pizza on placemat

Step 24

Serve and enjoy!

We would love to send you updates!

Please subscribe to our email update list, and we will send you a free pdf download of our pizza ingredient writing practice page.