Following is an idea for a quick and fun organic holiday breakfast menu.

Homemade organic cinnamon rolls with orange icing – any old cinnamon roll recipe will work, below is the one I use though… Start the mix on Christmas eve day, then bake the next day.

• 4 to 4 1/2 cups all-purpose organic flour
• 1 package dry yeast
• 1 cup organic milk
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup organic butter
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 organic eggs

In a mixing bowl combine 2 cups flour + yeast. In a saucepan heat your milk gently with the sugar, butter, and salt til just warm. Add the milk mix plus eggs to the flour and yeast and mix well. I usually beat the mix about three minutes.

Grab a big wooden spoon and mix in as much of the rest of the flour as you can. Knead the dough til it’s smooth and elastic-like. Shape dough into a ball, place in a lightly greased bowl, then let it sit for about an hour til it doubles in size.

Punch dough down, divide in half, cover and let it rest 10 minutes.

While it rests make your cinnamon mix. Mix 1/2 cup sugar with 2 teaspoons cinnamon.

Roll the dough portions into two 12×8 rectangle, brush 3 tablespoons melted butter over the two rectangles, then sprinkle half the cinnamon mix onto each portion. Roll up your rectangles like a jelly roll. Seal the end seams of the rolls then cut each roll into 12 equal pieces. Place into 2 greased 9 inch baking pans, cover loosely with plastic wrap (I use a cloth because I don’t own plastic wrap) and pop them into the fridge.

On Christmas morning take the rolls out of the fridge and let them sit for 30 minutes then bake for 20-25 minutes in a 375 oven. Cool, remove from pans and drizzle with icing.

For icing just mix 1 cup sifted powdered sugar with 1/4 teaspoon vanilla and 1 tablespoon orange juice. If it’s not drizzly enough add more juice (one tablespoon at a time).

Quick organic fruit salad

Really I just tend to use whatever organic fruit I see that looks good at my local grocer. I usually do grab some organic frozen blueberries and raspberries plus a can of organic mandarin oranges too though because my son likes them.  Also if I use organic apples, I drizzle some lemon juice over the entire fruit salad so it doesn’t look all brown.

We have the rolls, fruit salad and some fair trade hot chocolate and we’re good to go. The rolls aren’t too sweet either, which is nice. Oh and if you don’t like, or can’t have orange juice, use organic milk for the icing instead.

[image via stock.xchng]

Post from: Blisstree

A Fast & Organic Christmas Breakfast

Five Great Green Gifts for Kids

1. $9.35 – The New 50 Simple Things Kids Can Do to Save the Earth: This is an excellent book for kids with few cons. Part of the book was written with help from actual kids and the book is printed on recycled paper with soy inks too! Read my full review.
2. $20.00 – Eco Playdough: All natural art medium for crafty kids made with plant, fruit and veggie extracts. No chemicals, artificial dyes or metals and the containers are made from cornstarch and are 100% compostable. I saw this dough recently at the PDX green fair and it comes in totally brilliant and lovely colors of orange, yellow, green, and pink plus the containers are adorable. Note – the Bamboo Rolling Pin is sold separately.
3. $24.99 – idbids:  These soft toys come in three different styles – Scout the Cloud, Lola the Flower or Waverly the bright blue water drop. Each is handcrafted with 100% organic Egyptian cotton and colored with natural organic dyes. With the purchase of each kit, a child can enter an online code that will help protect the habitats of animal friends through The Nature Conservancy’s Plant A Billion Trees campaign, Adopt an Acre, or Rescue the Reef programs. Each kit comes with an organic cinch sack for the child to wear, a storybook printed on recycled paper with eco-friendly inks and a field guide.
4. $25.00 Wooden Giraffe Block Set: Adorable 16 piece block set in a giraffe drawn wagon. This toy is eco-cute, made with sustainably harvested wood, and finished with non-toxic linseed oil.
5. About $25 or less - Green Toys are made of eco-friendly recycled milk cartons, packaged in recycled cardboard, and provide hours of fun for both boys and girls. Most come in at under $25 a pop too, such as the Eco-Friendly Tea Set (shown above), Tool Kit, Dish Set, Chef Set and Recycling Truck.

Five Lovely Green Gifts for the Ladies

1. $16.00 – Lavender Caramel (6-piece)! Chocolate and lavender; way too girly and neat. Pretty little gift box of organic lavender infused caramels with Fleur du Sel salt.
2. $16.95 - My most favorite lovely reusable water bottles – Earthlust Water Bottles – oh so pretty 20 oz stainless steel bottles that won’t leach chemicals into water and cut down on plastic waste.
3. $24.00 - I’m totally obsessed with the Recycled Glass Pendants by Fanisong. In fact I blog about these often because they’re not only pretty but so unique and eco-friendly. Each handcrafted piece is made from 100% RECYCLED glass and a nature photo. The original photo is fused into the glass, then finished with sterling silver plated bail & ribbon cord. Amazing. The piece shown above is Look up to the Sky but there are many other cool designs available; another good one is Infinite Sphere.
4. $24.99 – Mini-Blossom Hummingbird Feeders: Pretty little feeder made with recycled blown-glass vessels with Flower Feeding Tubes in red glass. These look great in the garden and attract adorable hummingbirds with 4 oz of space for hummingbird nectar. Stakes included for mounting. Plus this purchase helps to support the National Wildlife Federation.
5. $12.21 -Big Green Purse: Use Your Spending Power to Create a Cleaner, Greener World: Great book covering lots of juicy green topics that matter to women. Teaches women how their actions, and how they spend their cash can make an eco-difference. Printed on recycled paper. I like this book a lot, but haven’t written a full review. My friend Peggy however has – read her review.

Five Handy Green Gifts for Guys

1. $20.00 – Vintage Record Coasters for the hipster guy in your life. Made with real recycled vinyl records but sealed so moisture won’t seep through to the surface. Comes in a set of six.
2. $19.79 – Whole Green Catalog: 1000 Best Things for You and the Earth: One of the best green living guides I’ve read in a LONG time. Packed with facts for everyone, but especially cool is the focus on green living for both genders. Many of the green books I read are geared toward women. Women will like this book too, but this one has facts for the guys as well. Read my full review.
3. $20.00 – Stonees All Natural Building Blocks: These rocks are meant to be a child’s building toy, but they’re also fun stress relief for adults when placed in a workspace. Build peaceful structures with these rock blocks made from crushed North American rocks and all-natural non-toxic pigments. Stonees are organic and smooth, and come in fun stacking shapes – square, triangular and cylindrical. Great for a workday break and good conversation starter too.
4. $14.99 – Wilson Rebound Fade-Green Basketball: This ball is Wilson’s first “green” product made from 40% Recycled Rubber and comes in a box made with 80% pre and post consumer board. Not bad on the eco scale and gets your guy outside and keeps him in shape.
5. $12.50 each – Green Family Kitchen Tools: A fun set of kitchen tools for a guy who loves to cook. All of these green family tools are made with a recycled plastic and wood blend for an attractive, functional, and eco-friendly design. At the end of a tool’s life-cycle, it can be recycled too. Way more fun than typical kitchen tools.

Five Cool Green Gifts for Co-Workers, Pals, or Family

1. $5.72 – NRDC: Simple Steps Deck: A Healthy Home. A Healthy Planet. 50 Easy Actions:  This handy little deck of green living cards fits perfectly into a stocking and is printed on recycled paper. Great for folks new to green living. Read my full review.
2. $8.75 – Down To Earth Cookie Cutter Set – Celestial: Great hostess gift or last minute gift for a baker. BPA-free set of ten cute planetary-inspired foodgrade stainless steel cookie cutters that can be used for kid’s playdough or for real cookie dough. Sturdy and log-lasting plus comes in a compact storage tin.
3. $18.95 – “I Am Not A Paper Cup” – Thermal Porcelain Mug: Funny  and the perfect green gift for a co-worker or pal who loves organic coffee.
4. $24.00 - Beeswax Holiday Glass Gift Set: Pretty little candles made with natural beeswax and essential oils. three 3 oz votive glass candles included in the set (each burns for 24 hours) in holiday scents of Spice (Sweet Orange, Cinnamon & Clove Bud), Pine (Rosewood, Spruce & Fir) and Mint (Peppermint & Birch).
5. $25.00 - Plantable Seed Calendar 2010: This is the perfect green co-worker gift; handmade pages embedded with wildflower seeds so after each month the recipient can plant away with no paper waste. Comes in a reusable tin as well.

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20 Last Minute Green Gifts Under $25!

The EKORRE Rocking Moose from Ikea is made of eco-friendly rubberwood and birch but at just $$39.99, this toy costs much less than most rubberwood toys. Of course rocking is one of those great developmental skills for kids – working both their sense of balance and allows them to sort out sensory impressions. Plus rocking is soothing for many kids.

This toy is not available online though. If you’d like this cheerful red moose for the holidays check at your local Ikea store.

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Eco-friendly EKORRE Rocking Moose

$10-$30 – Sprig toys are battery-free, eco-friendly, paint-free, kid-powered toys made with Sprigwood, a child-safe bio-composite of recycled wood and reclaimed plastic that smells like pine and has visible wood flecks. Sprig makes adventure play sets, trucks, sand and water toys, and much more. AND only one item they sell clocks in at over $40 – all other products can be had from about $10-$30.

$28.99 – Eco-Friendly Tea Set from Green Toys – made with recycled milk cartons AND comes gift ready wrapped for free.

$25.00 – Organic Joobles from Fair Indigo are made of soft organic yarns and eco-friendly dyes and come in many adorable characters from penguins to bears to lions and more.

$20.00 – Eco Playdough all natural, made with plant, fruit and veggie extracts with no chemicals, artificial dyes or metals. Containers are made from cornstarch and are 100% compostable and colors include orange, yellow, green, and pink.

$19.99 – Imaginarium Green Triangle Activity Center – made with eco-friendly rubberwood and non-toxic paint.

$25.00 – Eco-Friendly Tool Set – made by Green Toys with recycled milk cartons.

$24.99 – Cardboard treehouse – totally creative, fun, and 100% recyclable. Comes in unpainted cardboard so kids can paint it however they like.

$38.90 - Plan Toys – Water Blocks made with eco-friendly rubberwood and non-toxic finishes.

$24.95 – Earth-opoly is a game made with all easily recyclable paper, soy inks, and game pieces are made made by nature or completely recyclable. Plus this game celebrates the Earth one turn at a time. “Players buy properties, collect Carbon Credits and trade them for Clean Air. As they travel the board visiting each impressive land form, they will learn about the planet and pick up Go Green tips from each deed card. Learn about Earth and how to care for it as you play. There is Traditional Play or One Hour Version.“

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Nine inexpensive green gifts for kids

For your mom: You don’t always talk to your mom about green living, so the Change Starter Kit is a great place to start. The set starts with a reusable grocery tote that comes packed with green-minded goodies – a great intro to green living.

For your dad: Knobstoppers Golf Ball Wine Stopper – made with an actual vintage golf ball; a great way to stop up that organic wine for the holidays.

For your best guy friend: If your best guy friend likes to grill the natural World Flavor Gift Set will help him grill better. Recycled packaging too.

For your grandma: Recycled Paper Candy Dish – Made from 100% recycled paper and hand crafted by Artisans.

For your active pal: The new water bottle that’s all the rage – The hydration vessel, by Kor Water, features an ergonomically designed spout and a pop top lid for easy opening with one hand. Made with totally BPA-free plastic and is perfectly hip for folks with an active lifestyle. Proceeds from the sale of the Green vessel will benefit the Wetlands Initiative. Comes in four color choices.

For the party host: Bamboo Grow Box Gift – Chocolate Amaryllis – beauty and sustainable. Components of the lovely bulb grow boxes unite contemporary design with good stewardship of the earth’s resources. Each box is hand-crafted and full-on usable. The lacquered lid elegantly becomes the drainage saucer for the leak-proof reusable grow box. Lacquer is hand-applied and  all-natural. Even the ribbon is sustainable, made from recycled plastic bottles. There’s also a paperwhite version.

For your best girlfriend: Flip-Top Clutch made with all recycled soda pop tabs. Fun.

For your female significant other:: Literally anything from FaniSong Jewelry – a gorgeous eco-friendly store with amazing recycled glass nature photo jewelry. This is one of my favorite online eco-jewelers and really inexpensive too.

For your male significant other: vedaDUDE Glide – Pretty much the best shaving gel ever created. Smells amazing and made with organic aloe leaf juice, bilberry extract and organic orange fruit extract.

For your sexy significant other: A great holiday deal romantically wrapped in a starry organza bag …with organic rosebuds and a sprinkling of tissue hearts on Yes certified organic lubricants. In fact this is such a great deal that you could throw in a sexy organic soy Love Machine candle from Dirt, and STILL the whole gift would come in at under $40. Nice.

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Ten Green & Inexpensive Holiday Gifts

Some options…

1. 100% USDA Certified Organic Maple Candy – in fact this candy ONLY contains organic maple syrup.
2. Natural Popcorn Balls – contains just popcorn, salt, sunflower oil, sugar, vinegar, and lecithin (soy).
3. Lavender Caramel – great for an adult stocking made with organic chocolate lavender infused caramels with Fleur du Sel salt.
4. Organic Chocolate Santas
5. Yummy Earth Organic Lollipops
6. Organic Hard Candy Holiday Mix – a mix of Pure Fun organic hard candy with 1/8 pound each of Peppermint Swirls, Spearmint Swirls, Root Beer Float, Spicy Cinnamon, Raspberry Chocolate Filled, Lemon Slices, Lime Slices and Orange Slices Organic Candy.
7. Organic Candy Canes – vegan, minty, organic, and kosher!
8. Love the Planet Cookies – super adorable and great for younger tots who can’t have candy. You can wrap these individually for stockings. Includes 24 biscuit-crisp USDA Organic sugar cookies cut in symbol and animal shapes with sweet frosting.
9. Sjaak’s Organic Chocolate – 14 organic flavors to choose from.

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Eco-friendly Christmas Stocking Treats

Peggy over at Tree Hugging Family has some good green stocking stuffer up, but for more ideas…

1. Finger Puppets (Organic Cotton): $15.00 – but if split up between three kids a great deal.
2. Felt Ornaments: $6.99
3. Sustainable Jotters in all sorts of designs – $8.00
4. North Star Toys – Magic Wand: $7.90
5. Educo Little Auto Green: $5.95

1. Plan Toys – Mushroom Kaleidoscope: $ 4.90
2. Maple Landmark – Spinning Top just $ 1.20 a pop!
3. Under the Nile Organic Carrot or Under the Nile Organic Eggplant – for baby! $6.95
4. Automoblox Mini C9-P Sportscar – Pink: $9.95
5. Green Apple Natural Loofah Body Scrubber from Loofah Art: $4.99 (read my Loofah Art Review)
6. Crayon rocks: $4.75 (for eight) or $6.95 (for 16)
7. Snowman Game Ornament by Haba: $7.99

BONUS IDEA: Digital Dollhouse: $4.95

Oh, and by the way, if you still need an eco-friendly stocking to stuff, check out five green Christmas stockings plus some DIY ideas. Later on we’ll look at some eco-friendly candy minded stocking stuffers.

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Stuff an Eco-Friendly Christmas Stocking

The Arbor Day Foundation has many cool eco-friendly gift ideas. You can give a pal a tree for planting. Trees come in several different types of redwoods, pines, or spruces, and they’re packaged in totally recyclable packaging that can be turned into a cute bird feeder.

Make a donation to Habitat for Humanity in your loved one’s name and your gift will go to a low-flow toilets and other home building supplies to help a family in need. Habitat not only uses sustainable, energy efficient building methods when possible, but these house improve the local community and improve the lives of families in need.

Vegan friendly TOMS slippers are made from a blend of recycled products, faux suede insoles and rubber outsoles. and for each pair you purchase, TOMS will give a pair of new shoes to a child in need. TOMS also carries some other eco-friendly styles, such as canvas.

The Rainforest Site carries tons of eco-friendly products and each item you buy helps fund habitat preservation. The shop carries plenty of goodies like Organic Aromatherapy Body Soap, Antique Sari Cell Phone Cases, Recycled Soda Bottle Soy Candle, and more.

When you purchase special holiday goodies from Dancing Deer Baking Co. “Sweet Home” cake & cookie gifts line the company donates 35% of the retail price to scholarship programs through One Family Inc. to help homeless and at risk mothers further their education.

For more ideas on green gifts that give back visit Gaiam or Oprah’s Magazine.

[image via the Arbor Day Foundation]

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Green Holiday Gifts that Give Back

Forget the greetings: Greeting cards are highly overrated in my opinion. Yes, some are special, but they tend to end up in drawers, and take up way more time and money than they’re worth. Nowadays you can send a green e-card for any occasion and in many cases send them for FREE! It’s a time and money saver. If you must have paper greetings, go with recycled paper cards, plantable paper, or some cute sustainable birch cards that won’t sit in a drawer like the nesting bird card from Night Owl Paper Goods (shown above).

Plan for greener wrap: You can use recycled content wrap, wrap you saved from last year, or even aim for wrap that is not just wrap, but a gift too like a reusable bag, basket, or a clever hide box.

Choose the greenest Christmas tree you’re comfortable with: Not all families want to shun the tree just to stay green, and that’s totally fine. There are greener Christmas tree choices available for green families and individuals.

Use LED Christmas lights: LED holiday lights save lots more energy than traditional Christmas lights, and look clearer and brighter in my opinion as well. In fact, right now Home Depot is offering a trade-in program for old Christmas lights that give you a discount on new LED lights, but hurry the offer ends on November 15th.

Avoid one gift material: If all you do is avoid Christmas gifts made of virgin plastic this holiday season, well, that’s a big perk to your eco-footprint. Plastic is one of the big baddies when it comes to materials that goods are made with. It’s made with non-renewable resources (unless you buy recycled plastic goods), has a polluting manufacturing process, and is often full of toxic chemicals you don’t need. See how creative you can get this year and make it a virgin plastic-free holiday season.

If you need more tips for a fabulous green Christmas, take a look at the new book, I’m Dreaming of a Green Christmas – this book offers excellent tips and advice about keeping it green this season.

Coming up soon one HUGE way to keep your Christmas eco-friendly this year.

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Celebrate a Merry Green Christmas

The wines are from Boisset Family Estates and include…

Fog Mountain 2006 Merlot: Dark ruby color. Aromas of raspberry jam. Mouth-filling black cherry, dusty chocolate, and blackberry flavors finish soft with ripe plum notes.

Louis Bernard 2007 Bonus Passus Côtes du Rhône: Ruby red color. Red berry fruit flavors, lush mouthfeel, lovely balance, and a long finish. Great on its own or with barbeque! Blend: 80% Grenache, 12% Syrah, 8% Mourvèdre.

Yellow Jersey 2007 Pinot Noir 2007: Yellow Jersey Pinot Noir is a bright, fruity red wine from the South of France. Deep ruby red. Blackcurrant aromas add complexity and finesse. Soft tannins and perfect fruit balance, with a silky finish. Perfect with grilled fish or veal.

Today, all of the Boisset Family Estates throughout France, Canada, and California are certified organic or are on the path to achieving certification. All of these wines have other eco-perks, including PET recyclable bottles which offer a 50% lower carbon footprint than traditional glass and are lightweight and unbreakable.The trio comes in a 100% recycled and recyclable gift box.

Additionally, 10% of this product’s retail price goes to the EarthEra Renewable Energy Trust and the carbon footprint of shipping this trip is balanced by EarthEra. Bonus; the Eco Wine Trio is a gift steal at just $30.

[image via Wine.com]

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Wine.com Debuts Eco Wine Trio