I have fond memories of baking with my mom. Especially memorable are those days we ended up covered in flour on purpose. My brother had even more of a cooking-knack and soon started making "no recipe cakes," which initially tasted okay, but some of his more adventurous versions were rather disgusting. Still, we ate them up with glee because he had made them with such pride. He later took cooking classes and is now an excellent chef in addition to his computer-related day job.

Although we've baked Christmas cookies, I don't do much baking with my kids. They enjoy trips to Grandma's for that (Splig recently helped her make lemon-milk sherbet) and beg Daddy to let them help him with his kitchen creations. Yes, Husband logs more cooking time than I do.

Thanks to Mom Central and Kellogg's Snacktivate! Ideas, my kids and I just spent part of the afternoon creating a version of "Sassy Sun-pops." The original recipe calls for almonds, but since the Cat follows Feingold and almonds aren't allowed on Stage One, I created one pan of the cookies with cashews instead. Also, I didn't actually make the cookies "pops" with candy sticks, although perhaps I'll give that a try next time!

The boys had a blast making these cookies. The Cat counted out the 60 mini-wheats necessary for the recipe, and Spliggle enjoyed crushing them. (Surprisingly, mini-wheats do not contain BHA, BHT, or artificial flavors that we avoid on Feingold, although there is BHA in the packaging itself. For those concerned, there are other mini-wheat-like cereals out there that can be used in this recipe.)

Splig helped me measure ingredients, and both boys enjoyed decorating the cookies. The Cat created a smiley-face which Splig then replicated. I gave them each a "big cookie" to decorate in their own style.

These cookies are definitely more healthful than the ordinary cookie. I'd bet they would pass our school district's "wellness policy." Of course because they contain peanut butter and include nuts on the top as decoration, they are not safe for those with nut allergies; however, Snacktivate! has plenty of recipes which do not contain nuts, such as the Butterfly Quesadillas that I hope to try next.

As for the taste of the cookies we made? Well, Splig immediately gave the thumbs up with an enthusiastic "Yummy!" I thought they tasted fantastic and am trying to think of other ways of sneaking in flaxseed to my meals (I didn't realize I actually like the taste!) The Cat, who fears novel things, said "It tastes kind of weird," but then he hid a smile. I think he wants to make sure it isn't too easy to introduce new foods to him.

We had a fun afternoon. The kids enjoyed creating what they later ate, and I didn't worry about them having another cookie since they aren't of the high-caloric, heavy frosting variety. Check out Snacktivate! to find some fun and healthful recipes for your own family.