School Lunches - The Plan

The day has finally come!!  I get to pack school lunches!  I realize I'm in the honeymoon phase with this and I'm sure I'll have the odd day that I'll wish I didn't have to pack a school lunch... I may even become like many of you who loathe this task.  But right now I'm going to enjoy this honeymoon phase.  I've been thinking A LOT about this for the last several weeks... and several years if I can be honest. 

I was a bit obsessive about what Marin ate for her first year when I was home with her.  To the extent that on her first birthday that vision of a one year old digging into a sugar laden, artificially colored cake was too much for me.  I made her an organic white cake and frosted it with cream cheese, sweetened with apple juice.  It was extremely cute, shaped and decorated to look like her beloved 'Spotty Dog', but ultimately a colossal fail!  I redeemed myself the following week with a chocolate cake and have the pictures to prove it. 

Cake #1 - didn't taste as good as it looked!

Take 2 - Success!

Shipping her off to daycare where I lost control of her snacks and lunch was also a big adjustment and caused a fair amount of anxiety at times.  I have since 'Let it Go!'... in fact, I let it go long before the Frozen craze.  But I must admit, I'm a little stoked to be getting some control back and I've come up with some strategies that I'm hoping can make packing school lunches the fun and easy breezy task I have envisioned.  (I hear you all snickering)


Here's my plan:
1) Have a go-to list - I am on the constant lookout for lunch/snack ideas and I have compiled multiple lists and have a Pinterest Board to keep track of ideas.  However, I was finding I had too many ideas and it was getting a bit mind boggling.  So I've made a master list of go-to lunch and snack ideas that I'm going to laminate and post on the fridge.  I know I won't stick strictly to this list but it's concise and contains foods that Marin is familiar with and I know she likes.

2) Document success - If I come up with a combo that's a success I'll save a picture of it.  I feel if I can come up with 10 hits, that's a fairly decent variety to rotate through.  My biggest challenge in the beginning will be packing the right amount of food, so having a visual of serving sizes will be a help.

Here's two from this week...

Couscous with soya sauce, cherry tomatoes and leftover chicken.  Vegetables, peach slices and Love Grown Cocoa Power O's and Pretzels

Pizza on Homemade Naan, Cherry Tomatoes, dried apricots and chocolate chips, juice pack and yogurt smoothie.

The pizza and smoothie lunch was the winner of the week.  I was immediately asked if she could have it again.

3) Pre-pack snacks - I have placed a bin in the fridge and pantry for easy to grab snacks.  Every 2-3 days I'll restock them.  This will be great for work snacks as well.

4) Stock the Freezer - Last year I did a freezer makeover and started to really see the value in using my freezer wisely.  I recently gave them another clean and I'm going to start restocking some of our basics like tortillas, naan and muffins. 

5) Get Marin Involved - Another benefit of taking pictures of lunches and using Pinterest for inspiration is that I can get Marin involved in meal planning by choosing a few ideas from a lunch 'menu'.  She's also old enough to help restock the snack bins and choose her own snacks.  I hope I can have her take over the majority of this task before I become a lunch packing hater!


Have a great school year!

Sandra

Week 46 - The Favorite Food Diet

Printable Version of Meal Plan

The "diet" plan continues.  And by "diet" I mean we're making a conscience effort to eat healthy food in healthy amounts.  The last few weeks have been a success... My favorite pants are fitting perfectly.  So we continue.  After a couple of flops last week, I've added in some of our favorites.  Success!  Dave says that compared to last week this week was like eating on a cruise ship.  hahaha. 

Recipe Quick Links

Easy Overnight Oats, Marin Mama Cooks
Slow Cooker Mexican Chicken, Budget Bytes
Chickpea Burgers, Marin Mama Cooks
Kale Salad, Marin Mama Cooks
Creamy Pasta Bake, Simple Balance
Feta Stuffed Chicken, Chatelaine
Applesauce Muffins, Weelicious
Primal Fudge, Practical Paleo

Week in Review

Easy Overnight Oats - My new morning obsession continues.  Will be trying some new flavor combinations in the next few weeks.  yummm.....

Overnight Oats

Slow Cooker Mexican Chicken - I know I throw around the word favorite a lot but this truly is a tried, tested and true favorite in our house.  I served it on a bed of romaine lettuce with our favorite fixin's.  Ok, confession... we used a few nacho chips for scooping but it was Sunday!  Totally allowed!  The next day we had it with brown rice for lunch.  Note: I replace all the spices in the recipe with 2 Tbsp of Mexican Spice Blend.  That's always premixed in my cupboard making this quite possibly the easiest thing I make.

Fish w/ Golden Beets and Arugula Salad - Fish is becoming another family favorite and it seems the plainer we cook it the better.  This week I simply baked it with lemon juice and salt and pepper.  On the side we had boiled golden beets (these are soooo good!) and arugula salad.  In case you've missed it this is just arugula, a drizzle of both lemon juice and olive oil, shredded or shaved Parmesan and pepper.  A ridiculously fast and easy weeknight supper.  Marin loves fish.  A kid hit every time.

Chickpea Burgers - I'm in love with all things chickpea so these burgers are a hit in my books.  I didn't dress them up, just had them along side a kale salad on the first day and leftover stir-fry and rice on the second day.  The Kale Salad on day one was what's become my regular kale salad (from Marin Mama Cooks) with some shredded purple cabbage, leftover beets and pumpkin seeds added in.  Some goat cheese would have been awesome... I even had some, not sure why that didn't happen.
 
Baked Tofu with Peanut Dipping Sauce and Stir-Fry -  I really enjoyed this tofu, but then again anything dipped in this peanut dipping sauce is going to be good.  I made an Asian marinade and soaked slices of the tofu before baking at 400 for about 25min.  I made the marinade up as I went, not really measuring anything but I'll give you my best estimates:

Asian Marinade

• 2 Tbsp Soya Sauce & Sesame Oil
• 1 Tbsp Rice Vinegar
• 1/2 Tbsp Honey & Lime Juice
• 1/2 tsp minced ginger (jarred)
• 1 tsp sesame seeds

The dipping sauce was a bit of a cheat but it was well worth it.  This accompanies a Recipe from the Life's on Fire Cookbook, but we use it for dipping our fingers various things:

Peanut Dipping Sauce (From the cookbook Life's on Fire)

• 1 1/2 Tbsp creamy Peanut Butter, softened in microwave for 20-30 seconds
• 1 tsp brown sugar (or honey)
• 1 Tbsp soya sauce
• 1/8 tsp cumin powder, cayenne pepper
•  Water to smooth

 
I tried to stick to an Asian theme for the stir-fry - purple cabbage, edamame (organic, frozen), onion, red pepper, mushrooms, zucchini, kale and the leftover marinade from the tofu.  Not sure if I've ever mentioned this but tofu was one of Marin's first foods.  I would just dice up firm tofu and toss it on her tray.  She loved it and still does.  I buy organic tofu - it's a little more expensive but still a cheap meal.

Creamy Pasta Bake - This is such an interesting combination of ingredients... pasta sauce, plain yogurt, peanut butter, nutritional yeast... I just had to try it.  And it was pretty darn tasty!  We had it for lunch twice but I wanted to try it out on Marin as well so she had it for supper on Thursday.  A big kid hit - she gobbled it up!  And I'm totally inspired by Wendy McCallum's story.  She left her job as a lawyer and went back to school to learn more about nutrition and real food.  She now has a successful blog, business and a cookbook (Real Food for Real Families) that I'm dying to check out.  Santa?  You listening?

Pork Tenderloin - I cooked two pork tenderloins at once and we had it two nights in a row.  Once with roasted vegetables and once with mashed (cauliflower, parsnip and golden beets).  I used the following marinade from the Crazy Plates cookbook.  The recipe says to marinate for 1 hour and bake at 350, uncovered for about 40 minutes.  I actually made only half the sauce and skipped the marinating step.  I would recommend marinating if you have the time but unless you want a lot of extra sauce I think cutting back works fine.

Marla's Maple Pork (from the cookbook Crazy Plates)

• 1/2 cup Maple Syrup
• 2 Tbsp each of Soya Sauce, Ketchup
• 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
• 2 tsp Orange Zest
• 1 1/2 tsp each of curry powder, ground coriander
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Feta Stuffed Chicken and Greek Salsa - A Friday treat without the cheat!  We love this meal.  It's really just a bonus that it's actually pretty healthy.  The Greek Salsa is super easy to make.   Finely chop tomato, cucumber, red onion and anything else you choose (eg. peppers, zucchini, olives).  Add feta and toss with the Greek Dressing found on my handy printout.  mmm, mmm, mmm!

Greek Salsa

My muffin fix this week was leftover Applesauce Muffins from the freezer.  I don't think I did these justice when I mentioned them last week.  These are really good!!  You'd never know they have no oil.  We were also treating on the end of the batch of freezer chocolates I made weeks ago!  The recipe says it makes 10 but I broke them into small pieces so that they could be just a little quilt free treat.  Note, I also added unsweetened shredded coconut.


Hope you all had a great week!

Sandra

Week 45 - Weight Loss Programs

Printable Version of Meal Plan

Last year around this time we dug out our Simply for Life meal plans and followed them pretty strictly for about 5 weeks.  That was what really got the wheels turning about making meal planning a priority and ultimately starting this blog.  I've been mentioning the last few weeks that we've been trying to lighten things up to lose those extra summer pounds.  I feel it's been working but thought I'd give the SFL menus another go.  Note, I made a number of substitutions and I'm not including any details on serving sizes (since this would differ by person anyway) so I wouldn't suggest this in place of actually joining if you were considering it.  If you were to join you would get customized meal plans, among other member benefits.

I debated even mentioning the SFL connection to this week at all because I don't think this plan sticks out as a "diet" or even looks much different than one of my normal weeks.  I know there are various opinions on weight loss programs out there.  I will just say this... we both had success with Simply for Life and Weight Watchers.  While we are not members of either anymore I always find that when I feel my clothes are getting snug or I'm just feeling blah that taking a few weeks to follow either plan helps to retrain my brain on things like what normal serving sizes are and how to snack wisely, until it becomes second nature again. 

Recipe Quick Links

Overnight Oats, Marin Mama Cooks
Apple & Havarti Quesadillas, Teach Eat Love
Whole Wheat Tortillas, 100 Days of Real Food
Kale Lentil Soup, A Spoonful of Sunshine
Kale Salad, Marin Mama Cooks
Fish Tacos, Canadian Living
Corn Tortillas, 100 Days of Real Food
Applesauce Muffins, Weelicious

Week in Review

Sunday - I don't always include what we ate on Sunday but since we knew that we were going to be getting a bit strict with our eating we decided to have a "Last Hurrah" day.  And I enjoyed every bite of every meal!  Overnight Oats with PB & Maple Syrup... ooey, gooey good!  Apple & Havarti Quesadillas on Homemade Whole Wheat Tortillas - well really... how could that be bad??  And then Marinated Sirloin Steaks, grilled to perfection served with a baked potato topped with butter and sour cream and a side of sauteed mushrooms.  I think we said 'mmm' after each bite.  This is one of Marin's favorites as well. You can find the marinade we use on the Favorites page.

Greek Quinoa Salad with Chicken - I LOVE this salad typically but there were a few problems... I made the dressing too tart, I forgot to defrost the chicken in advance (so I had to defrost in the microwave which always results in the edges starting to cook and throws the texture/taste off - yuck),  and the biggest problem... I skipped the feta.  I didn't think we'd miss it that much but we did.  Don't let my mistakes deter you, this is typically delicious!  Another enthusiastically kid approved meal as well.  And it's super easy to make.  Quinoa, veggies (tomato, cucumber, red onion), feta (NOT OPTIONAL!) and Greek Salad Dressing.

Greek Quinoa Salad

Pan-fried Haddock and Roasted Veggies - To pan-fry the haddock I simply mix flour and pepper and dredge the haddock through it.  Then I fry it with butter (I used only a small amount this week so they weren't overly greasy).  I roasted a medley of veggies, tossing in olive oil with a little salt and pepper.  Aren't they pretty?  Again, kid approved.  Marin loved the fish!

Roasting Veggies

Pasta Salad with Tuna.  On the SFL menu the dressing is Calorie Wise Italian.  I don't stock that anymore so I simply made some pasta, added veggies, a can of tuna and drizzled on some olive oil, lemon juice and dried dill.  It was fine, just too dry.  I'd suggest mixing up your favorite dressing to give this more flavor.

Tuna Pasta

Kale Lentil Soup.  I really liked this soup but on its own with no roll, biscuit or crackers it left me feeling a little like the meal was incomplete.  Dave was less than enthused and Marin said it was yummy but needed to be reminded about 100 times to continue eating and almost cried when I told her we were having it again the next night.  On night two I gave her just a small serving of the soup and made her pasta with butter and nutritional yeast and a slice of avocado.  I'm willing to bet if you served this soup with a side of garlic bread you would love it!

Shepperd's Pie - I have no recipe for this so it never turns out the same way twice.  This time I used ground turkey and it really killed it for me.  I like ground turkey in chili but there's something about the smell of it that really turns me off.  No amount of seasonings seem to help.  The topping was mashed cauliflower, sweet potato and parsnip which I do enjoy in place of mashed potatoes.

Chicken and Kale Salad - The plan was to bake the chicken but we needed to make this meal super speedy so I cut it into cutlets and cooked it in a pan with a little coconut oil.  The Kale Salad was quick because I had pre-washed and de-stemmed my kale on Sunday... an awesome tip from Marin Mama Cooks!  Marin looooved this meal (she also had a baked potato with sour cream).  This dialog actually happened at supper:

Marin:  Mmm... this salad it TOO good!

Me: I know... I really love it too!

Marin:  Good thing we're not having that soup again.

Funny, but again I stress... the soup was actually really good!  Just not Dave and Marin's "thing" apparently.

Chicken & Rice Salad w/ Creamy Asian Sesame Dressing - Really good, I love this dressing.  This was just extra chicken from supper diced up with a mix of fresh vegetables, black rice (soba noodles would be an excellent substitution in this dish) and Asian Sesame Dressing.  This dressing came from a Weelicious recipe - better than store-bought by far.  Dave rated this meal best of the week!  It was good but he was clearly not counting Sunday as part of the week.

Fish Tacos on Corn Tortillas - I wanted a fun Friday supper that would satisfy and make us feel like we were splurging without totally offsetting our efforts this week.  Fish Tacos fit the bill and I made another batch of corn tortillas (I remembered last weekend how much I liked them)

Corn Tortillas

Late Night Berry Snack - one of the biggest changes for me this week was not snacking in the evenings.  It makes me realize how I rarely snack in the evening because I'm hungry... it's simply habit.  So this week I was snacking on frozen blueberries and raspberries.  A small bowl takes a long time to eat because they're so cold but they're full of flavor and totally satisfying.

Applesauce Muffins - Marin wanted to hold a Monkey Birthday Party on the weekend so we HAD to make cake (or muffins!).  I've become a total baked good addict so we each had one warm out of the oven and then froze the rest so that we can make them a once or twice a week treat... as opposed to what was becoming daily.

Monkey blowing out the candles on his muffins

Happy Weekend!

Sandra

Week 44 - Cook Once, Eat Twice (or three or four times!)

Printable Version of Meal Plan

After a hectic week last week I was looking to relax.  So on Saturday night I put my feet up and without digging out the computer or magazines I made a meal plan with some food that's been on my mind lately.  The result was a laid back week with lots of "double duty" meals/sides that I was quite impressed with and anxious to dig into.  But once again for a variety of reasons we did quite a bit of juggling things around.  I'm posting the menu as I had planned it because I think the flow was better the way it was planned as opposed to how it was executed.  A few meals have been pushed off to the weekend but we have a long weekend coming up so this in fact worked out well for us.

Recipe Quick Links

Overnight Oats, Marin Mama Cooks
Spaghetti Squash Tacos, Marin Mama Cooks
Corn Tortillas, 100 Days of Real Food
Broccoli Lemon Pasta, Marin Mama Cooks
Chicken Meatballs, Chatelaine
Kale Chips, 100 Days of Real Food
Whole Wheat Tortillas, 100 Days of Real Food
Whole Wheat Pizza Dough, 100 Days of Real Food

Week in Review

Because we didn't follow the meal plan exactly I'll just highlight a few things...

Ham Dinner - We cooked up a HUGE ham this weekend and had some family over for supper.  For some reason I always forget how many servings we get from these ham!  I sent our guests away with leftovers and we still had plenty for the days ahead.  I'm all hammed out to say the least.  We've had it for breakfast, lunch and supper... with mashed potatoes, steamed veggies, salad, on sandwiches, and just to snack on.... This is a true cook once eat for a week meal!  My fave was a grilled ham and havarti sandwich.  Yum.

Pizza - This is on the menu for Friday but Dave and Marin had a special Daddy/Daughter day on Tuesday so I made up the dough Monday night to give them a fun meal to prepare together.  And supper was on the table when I got home - sweet!  And the leftovers were packed up for the lunches the next day so I had the night off - double sweet!  We're loving pizza these days and it's a great one to get the kids involved!

Personalized Pizzas

Overnight Oats - Nope, not my usual no-cook overnight oats.  It's getting chilly here so I gave "cooked" overnight oats a try.  I'm a fan of hot cereal so I might just have to shelf my cold oats for warm oats for the next few months.  I made enough for two mornings.  The first morning I reheated them in the pot, second morning in the microwave.  Microwave worked fine.  First morning was blueberry, banana and maple syrup.  Perfectly good, but predictable.  Second morning was a spoonful of peanut butter and a drizzle of maple syrup.  This was "you've got to try it" good!  The peanut butter melt and blends in and it becomes a creamy, peanuty bowl of deliciousness.  I've found my latest obsession.  Oats tend to just be a "me" thing in our house but I think my PB loving family will enjoy this version.

Overnight Oats with Blueberry, Banana and Maple Syrup

Brocolli Lemon Pasta - This is another one that got juggled around.  I ended up making enough for only one day since the mid-week salmon didn't happen.  But I think the plan of doubling this recipe and switching it up with a little leftover salmon is a good one!

Chicken Meatballs - I've been wanting to try this recipe for the last few weeks.  I had planned on this being a "prep ahead" meal but ended up making them during the suppertime rush.  They actually came together pretty quick.  A couple of short cut tips:

1. I read the recipe through earlier in the day so I was mentally prepared - that might sound silly but I do find that helps alot! 
2. I used my KitchenAid Stand Mixer for hands free mixing
3. I used a melon baller to scoop the chicken instead of rolling with my hands - they weren't perfect but that was ok by me.
4. I had two frying pans going so I could cook them all at once instead of in batches.

Dave liked these, I thought they were just ok.  Marin turned her nose up at them but after forcing her to take a bite she admitted they were good.  But then she went on to take about 1/2 hour to eat one meatball!  So you might have to try this one for yourself.

Chicken Meatballs

Spaghetti Squash - I substituted spaghetti squash for the pasta to have with the meatballs so to make sure the extra squash didn't go to waste I decided to put Spaghetti Squash Tacos on the menu.  This is one of the meals that got pushed off to the weekend so I can't review it but I'm excited to give it a try and really excited to make some corn tortillas.  They've been a bit overshadowed lately by the flour tortillas but they have not been forgotten!

We were also snacking on Pumpkin Buns which I highly recommend.  I substituted half of the white flour for whole wheat and couldn't tell the difference.  They're really moist and mild tasting and easy to make!  And this morning I pulled a couple of Spelt Pumpkin Muffins out of the freezer and they were just as good defrosted as they were fresh.  A well stocked freezer is a beautiful thing!


Happy Friday!

Sandra

Week 40 - Snack Time

Printable Version of Meal Plan

We celebrated our anniversary last weekend by going out to one of our favorite local Italian restaurants.  We shared a cheesy appetizer, I ordered a pasta with a buttery sauce and then we shared a super rich chocolate dessert.  It was all amazingly delicious but I rolled out of there and was in a state of fullness for the rest of the weekend.  It made meal planning a real challenge because I wasn't in the mood to eat anything.  Add to that that Dave's schedule for the week was very up in the air.  So I jotted down some ideas and a loose plan and decided it would be one of those weeks that we just make up as we go along.

By Monday evening my fullness level was almost back to normal and I was ready to eat again so I made up for my uninspired meal plan by filling in the blanks with lots of tasty snacks.  So I'm skipping the regular week in review to instead talk about what we were snacking on...

Snack Attack!

Chocolate Zucchini Muffins (Weelicious) - I had extra zucchini to use up so I found this recipe for Zucchini loaf and adapted it a bit.  I replaced the oil with apple sauce, used 1/3 cup of honey instead of 1/2 cup, added chocolate chips and made them into muffins instead of a loaf (they cooked in 20 minutes).  They made a dense and not overly sweet muffin which was fine by me.  My little taste tester approved too!  If you want to make them a little sweeter I'm sure an extra banana wouldn't hurt.

Chocolate Zucchini Muffins

Hmmm... where did that muffin go??

Happy little taste tester.

Almond Milk (Oh She Glows) - I raved about almond milk when I started making it earlier this year and after taking the summer off I'm back in a groove, making at least one batch a week.  Once you make it a couple of times it really becomes something you can do with your eyes closed.  And it makes me happy to look in the fridge and see a jar of the frothy goodness.

Ricotta & Almond Spread w/ Fruit - If you start making almond milk you'll quickly realize you have to get creative with using all that pulp!  I love to mix it with ricotta cheese (roughly equal amounts) and a little maple syrup to use it as a dip for apples or pears or to spread on an English Muffin.  Yum is all I can say about that.  If you don't have almond pulp, almond butter (or peanut butter) are equally as good.

Veggies & Ranch Dip (100 Days of Real Food) - I'm trying to make veggies a daily snack (0 Weight Watchers points so eat up!)  I can eat raw veggies straight up but a little dip gives them some pizazz and our favorite at the moment is Ranch.  I premix the spices so it's a breeze to mix up little containers for lunches.  I'm also trying to get into a routine of cutting veggies early in the week so that they can be an easy grab and go snack any time.

Cheddar Crackers (Weelicious) -  We all love these cheddar crackers.  Must see if I can find a little pumpkin cookie cutter to add a little fun to the next batch.  Although I will say using a cookie cutter adds a great amount of time.  I typically just roll out the dough and then use a knife to cut them into squares.

Cheddar Crackers

Freezer Coconut Chocolates (Practical Paleo) - I made these on the weekend with a couple of simple modifications.  I added unsweetened shredded coconut and instead of making them using molds I lined a cookie sheet with parchment and froze the chocolate as one big square.  When it was fully frozen I used my hands to break it into small pieces which I'm storing in a bag in the freezer.  I find one piece the perfect little something when you want a sweet treat.

Roasted Chickpeas (Rachelleb.com) - I had extra chickpeas from my salad on Wednesday so I roasted them and seasoned with a little salt & cumin.  Yummy alternative to chips.  I like this recipe because it's the basic formula and then you can season them however you want.  These would be great tossed in a salad too!

Roasted Chickpeas

Roasted Squash - this was an accidental snack.  I had chopped my (buttercup) squash into small bite size pieces to roast for my salad on Wednesday... and then popped one in my mouth and realized it tasted like candy! 

Apple Chia Seed Jam (Oh She Glows) - I made a batch to mix in with my overnight oats and the extra I ate just as is.  So good.  I love everything apple this time of year.

Chocolate Chip Granola Bars (Weelicous) - I actually made this recipe the weekend before last and we're just finishing them up.  Which is my main reason for being in love with this recipe.  They were easy to make, made a huge batch and last for up to two weeks.  And they were a hit with everyone in the family. 


Some of my other favorites that I've either recently made or are on my mind....

Pretzels and Tzatziki -  Pretzels had fallen off my radar for a long time so this was a treat last week.

Apple Chips - I loved these!!  They're easy to make but take a long time to cook so load up the oven with as much as you can.  I plan to get a batch of these in the oven for the weekend.

Apple Chips

Apple Sandwiches - I've taken a bit of a break from this one but have it on the brain again.  I typically do a nut-butter filling but if that's an issue for school this Nut-free "Nutella" (again... Weelicious.  Am I gushing??) would probably make a kid very happy!

Apple Sandwich

Potato Chips (Canadian Family) (or use other veggies such as sweet potato or beets) - guilt free chips, what's not to love!?  I want to try beet chips next week.

Roasted Edamame - I actually like eating just thawed edamame with a little salt but roasting kicks it up a notch.

Popcorn - We had two standard popcorn versions - Cheesy (butter and nutritional yeast) or Sweet & Salty (butter and honey with a sprinkle of salt).  I'm feeling the need to experiment with new seasonings.

Smoothies - Marin is feeling the smoothie love these days, I think because I typically give her creative control (within reason).  Last week we made a strawberry, chocolate (I mixed cocoa powder with maple syrup) and coconut blend that was awesome!  She also usually wants to add a green which is also awesome.  Smoothie packs and pops (make a smoothie and pour it into Popsicle molds) are great to have on a hand for a quick morning or afternoon smoothie fix.


And here's my helpful tip for the weekend... if you prepare a slow cooker meal before you head out for the day make sure you plug slow cooker in! 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Sandra

Week 38 - From Freezer to Table

Printable Version of Meal Plan

Happy Birthday to me, Happy Birthday to me!  Some people like to avoid their birthday, I on the other hand like to advertise it.  It's the one day of the year that's all about me... what's to avoid?  In fact I love my birthday so much I typically try to stretch it into a week.  So I've pretty much taken this week off.  We were out of town until Monday, Tuesday was my birthday and Wednesday I had a work function that provided breakfast and lunch.  So I thought what a great week to use some of the awesome food I've been stowing away in my newly cleaned and organized freezers.  As a result this was the ultimate easy week and my grocery bill was a grand total of $60!

Recipe Quick Links

Nut Free Nutella, Weelicious
Slow Cooker Honey Rosemary Chicken, Kojo Designs
Lacinato Kale Salad, Marin Mama Cooks
Coconut Curry Squash Soup, 52 Weeks of Meal Planning (Week 37)
Pumpkin Pie Overnight Oats, My Whole Food Life
Pumkin Spiced Latte, Farm Girl Gourmet
Whole Wheat Tea Biscuits, 100 Days of Real Food
Baked Apple Chips, Taste, Love & Nourish

Snack Highlights

Cinnamon Rolls - I made a batch of Whole Wheat Tea Biscuits and split the dough.  I used half to make cinnamon rolls.  I rolled out the dough into a rectangle (fairly thin) and spread melted butter, a sprinkle of cinnamon and a generous sprinkle of brown sugar.  I rolled that up lengthwise and cut into 1" rolls and bakes along side the tea biscuits.  yum.

Baked Apple Chips - I've been seeing this recipe everywhere lately.  I gave it a try this week and LOVED them!  Will attempt the bananas next time too.

Apple Chips

Week in Review

Monday was my Birthday eve and we were just back from a weekend away.  I was not even capable of defrosting anything... we had a Take and Bake pizza from Costco.

Tuesday was my special day!!!  I booked the day off of both work (I vowed last year I would never work on my birthday again) and cooking.

Happy Birthday!

Nut Free Nutella & Banana on Tortilla - I made this simple "faux"-tella with Almond Butter (so my version was not nut free) and spread it on a tortilla that I had frozen from last week with sliced banana.  Absolutely as delicious as it sounds.

Slow Cooker Honey Rosemary Chicken with Rice and Kale Salad - A couple of weeks ago my sister-in-law sent me a link to freezer slow cooker recipes.  I've seen this idea before but never really "got it".  When I include a slow cooker recipe in my weekly plan I simply prep it the night before... so I never saw the benefit of prepping farther ahead.  But the timing of seeing this link made the light bulb go off.  I knew I was going to be away this past weekend and it occurred to me that if I had some complete meals ready to go in the freezer I wouldn't have to get groceries the instant I got home.  A few other things I liked about these particular recipes... they use "real" ingredients, are mostly all recipes that have little or no additional steps the day of cooking, and can be left for 8 or more hours.  This recipe was good but because it met all the above criteria I'd rate it great.  I have one other recipe from this site waiting to be cooked and I plan to try more.  The rice was also from the freezer and I made the Kale Salad the night before to make this a completely effortless meal.  Marin loves this salad by the way (I skip the red pepper flakes for her), so don't be afraid to put it on the "kid-friendly" list.

Wednesday only Dave required lunch because I had a work event. We had just enough leftovers of the chicken - sweet!

Pork Chops, Brussel Sprouts & Coconut Curry Squash Soup -  I had bigger plans for this meal but got stuck in traffic so in the interest of time I modified the plan - same ingredients, different method of cooking.  I basically just cooked the pork chops & brussel spouts (trimmed & halved) and in a skillet with olive oil, a diced onion and seasoned with salt & pepper.  I also thawed a serving of Coconut Curry Squash Soup from last week.  I was pleasantly surprised with the results of this speedy meal.

Thursday was back to the old grind.  To get myself into the groove I treated myself with a Pumpkin Pie Overnight Oats for breakfast.  Another fall hit!

Turkey, Cheese and Avocado Wraps - I used up the last of my tortillas for these wraps... will have to restock this weekend! I try to stay away from deli meats but once in a while I'll splurge on a package of the Naturals, just can't beat the convenience.  I rolled up the turkey with cheddar, slices of avocado, lettuce and a little mayo.  Really good... and quick.

Whole Wheat Flour Tortillas

Shepherd's Pie - Yet another toss together meal that turned out pretty darn good if I do say so myself.  I browned the beef and added soya sauce, organic pasta sauce (awesome Costco buy by the way) and a little brown sugar.  The topping was sweet potato and parsnip mashed with milk and butter.  I assembled and baked it for a few minutes to get it heated through and a little crunchy on top.  So good!

Happy Friday!!  I started my day with a Pumkin Spiced Latte.  I do a modified version of this recipe from Farm Girl Gourmet.  Mine makes a single serving and takes a couple of shortcuts to make it easy to pull off in the morning.  And a tip for the pumpkin - I use canned pumpkin puree.  Last week after making the Pumpkin Buns I spooned the leftovers onto a cookie sheet into about 2T servings and put it in the freezer.  Once they were frozen I moved them to a freezer bag.  One "blob" is just right for both oats and lattes.

2 cups milk (any % you choose)

4 tablespoons canned pumpkin puree

2 tablespoons white sugar

2 tablespoons vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1/2 cup strong coffee or espresso

Read more at http://www.farmgirlgourmet.com/2012/11/pumpkin-spiced-latte.html#WC3b4uzEHjWBil1m.99

Pumpkin Spiced Latte (Modified from Farm Girl Gourmet)

2 cups milk (any % you choose)

4 tablespoons canned pumpkin puree

2 tablespoons white sugar

2 tablespoons vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1/2 cup strong coffee or espresso

Read more at http://www.farmgirlgourmet.com/2012/11/pumpkin-spiced-latte.html#WC3b4uzEHjWBil1m.99

1 Cup milk
2 T pumpkin puree
1 T maple syrup
1/4 t vanilla (I recently switched to Kirkland brand and find it strong so I tend to go light)
1/4 t pumpkin spice

Combine all ingredients in a blender (I like to use the Magic Bullet for this recipe).  Pour into microwave safe mug and microwave on High for 1 1/2 mins (careful it doesn't foam up and overflow).  Slowly add espresso - I prepare a Tassimo espresso directly in the mug. Top with whipped cream (optional but recommended!)

** This is a recipe that you might have to play around with to adjust to taste.

Supper, Use up Loose Ends - I have a few things that need to be consumed so we're having a supper surprise!  Grilled cheese?  Goat cheese omelettes?  Loaded Baked Potatoes?   We'll see what inspiration hits.

Happy Weekend!

Sandra

Week 35 - Back to School Series, Part 2: Healthy Lunchbox

Printable Version of Meal Plan

Whenever I talk to Mom's about back to school I commonly hear about two things - the crazy school supply list and the dreaded packing of lunches.  I've said it before and I'll probably say it again... I look forward to packing Marin school lunches.  I know, I know... file it away so you can say "I told you so" but the way I see it is that whether I'm packing it the night before or making it the day of, ya gotta eat!  And I pack a lunch for Dave and I every day so what's one more?

The Inspiration

Here's some great links I've come across while doing my "research" this week:

100 Days of Real Food, 10 Recipes to Freeze for School Lunches
100 Days of Real Food, 21 Ways to Plan Ahead for School Lunches
Top Lunch Tips from Weelicious
Weelicious School Lunches on Pinterest
Canadian Family, 15 School Lunches They'll Love
Kraft What's Cooking, Simple Lunch-Box Ideas

And very exciting news... the Weelicious Lunches Cookbook is out!  I love the original Weelicious Cookbook (highly recommend it and not just for wee ones!) and can't wait to get my hands on this one!

And don't forgot to follow 100 Days of Real Food for daily lunch inspiration.

Recipe Quick Links

Overnight Oats, Kath Eats
Tex Mex Rice Cakes, Weelicious
Sticky Honey Sesame Chicken, Canadian Living
Fish Sticks, Attach of the Hungry Monster
Sushi Bowl, 101 Cookbooks
Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese, Women's Health
Dinner Dippers, Canadian Living
Whole Grain Fruit Filled Bars, Weelicious (via Two Peas in Their Pod)
Hummus, Carrot and Avocado Wraps, Weelicious (via ewg.org)

Lunch Snack Ideas

For me the bigger challenge with lunches is the snacks.  I always pack our main lunch the night before, but I rarely prepare the snacks ahead of time.  Instead I just grab 2-3 things on my way out the door.  Some mornings end up being rushed and that just doesn't end up happening.  As a result we're either starving when we get home or grabbing unhealthy (and expensive) snacks during the day.  Individually wrapped granola bars, pretzels, etc... are fantastically convenient but I have to say since I've become more of an ingredient reader I'm finding them less appetizing.  I'm continually irked by how many (seemingly healthy) things have artificial color!!

Here's a few of our favorite snacks to have on hand.  Sometimes you just need some fresh ideas!

Cheddar Crackers - surprisingly simple and delicious!
 

Muffins - Blueberry, Banana, Pumpkin, Zucchini.... the possibilities are endless!!  Tip - I almost always replace the oil with apple sauce and can never tell the difference.

Homemade Pop Tarts - can be frozen and definitely a welcome lunchbox treat!

Granola Coins - nut free and super quick and easy to make!  A perfect granola bar replacement.

Apple Sandwich - use a seed butter to make this a nut-free treat

Fruit cut into fun shapes using cookie cutters.

Nature's Bakery Fig Bars - one of the things I do buy (at Costco) in single serve packs.

and a few more ideas...

Whole Grain Fruit Bars - This was a Weelicious Lunches sneak peak that I found and tried and they are pretty easy to make and very tasty.  I made the mistake of pressing down a little too much on my top layer and as a result squeezed out most of the jam... but even the jamless ones are good.

Apple Sauce - another thing I sometimes buy pre-packed.  Just beware of ingredients because some have added sugar and artificial color.  PC Brand Just Apples is... just apples!!  It's also really easy to make and great way to use up old-ish apples.

Popcorn Snack Mix - In place of popcorn you can use a puffed cereal such as Puffed Rice or Puffed Kamut (or as Marin calls it "Puffy Popcorn") and whatever add-ins you like such as chocolate chips, pumpkin seeds, rainsins and pretzels.

Yogurt & Berries - I put frozen berries in a single serve container, top with plain yogurt and maple syrup or honey to sweeten.  The berries thaw by the time I eat it.  I was actually never a yogurt fan until I started eating it this way.

Fruit - We each take at least one piece of fruit a day.  I always core and slice my apples and pears (with a corer/slicer tool).  I wrap in Saran, either fit it all back together including the core or I remove the core and replace it with a spoonful of peanut butter.

Cheese & Crackers - Cheddar and Triscuits are our standard choices in this category.  I love cheese strings for the grab and go convenience.

Smoothie Pops - I've been making smoothies and freezing them in popsicle molds.  It's been a great after daycare treat to have on hand!

Check out my favorites tab for even more ideas!

Week in Review

Monday

We were actually just getting back from the cottage on Monday so we didn't make either meal on the menu.  But since this was a themed week I though I'd throw in a couple of ideas.  Another Weelicious Lunches sneak peak too!

Tuesday

Lunch - Tex Mex Rice Cakes.  If you've gotten this far you now know I'm a huge Weelicious fan.  I've made these many times... love them!  I actually used quinoa in place of the rice this week and I reheat them at lunch but they could most definately be eaten cold.  You could round out this lunch with some veggies and dip.  One of my favorite dips is Ranch... you can premix the spices and then just stir them in with some sour cream and mayo when you're ready or prepare the dip to store in the fridge for a few days.

Tex Mex Rice Cakes
 

Supper - Sticky Honey Sesame Chicken.  Remember when I was looking for the perfect Honey Garlic sauce for meatballs a few months ago?  Found it!  The recipe calls for drumsticks, I used boneless skinless breasts instead and I think meatballs would work great too. 

Wednesday

Lunch - Quesadillas.  The idea was to use up leftover chicken in the quesadillas... but there were no leftovers.  That's what happens when you find a tasty recipe!  So they became cheese quesadillas with some orange pepper and onions.  I used packaged tortillas that were in the freezer - from before I found out I was capable of making tortillas!!  I reheat these at work but would happily eat them cold as well.  I mixed sour cream and salsa for dipping.

Supper - Fish Sticks w/ Sweet Potato Fries.  I first made this recipe in Week 7 and it was a huge hit but I've been so busy trying new recipes I haven't had a chance to make it since.  Happy to report we still like it.  I pre-cut the sweet potato into sticks the night before, boiled them for a few minutes and then tossed them with olive oil, salt and pepper and roasted at 450 until they were nice a crisp! 

Thursday

Lunch - Sushi Bowls.  I love sushi but admittedly it's a bit of work.  This sushi bowl recipe was much easier to put together.  I loosely followed the recipe because the orange I bought for the sauce was rotten in the middle.... grrr!  I made the Asian Sesame Dressing from my salad dressing cheat sheet instead and replaced the avocado with orange pepper and mango because that's what I had.  Dave email'd at lunch to say the rice tasted like sushi... I'm not sure if he liked it but at least he recognized it.  I'm going to call it a success.

Sushi Bowl
 

Supper - Dinner Dipper with Veggies and Crackers.  Another find from the September issue of Canadian Living!  Well it was a find for me because I liked all three dips.  Marin and Dave both ate but were less enthused.  Seriously... I have a kid who will eat fish and kale with no problems but turned her nose up at a pink dip that was sweet enough to almost be considered dessert!!  It makes no sense.

Dip Trio
 

Friday

Lunch - Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese.  This was ok... the sauce was less creamy and more clumpy than I had hoped but the taste was good.  You would never know there was squash hidden in there so a good way to sneak in some vitamins if you happen to be the sneaky type.

Supper  - Steak and Salad. Have to get some grilling in while we still can!


I realized at the end of this week that I might be in a lunch rut... Patties, Quesadillas... not exactly new to me.  Going to review my links above and see if I can switch things up in the next few weeks.

What are you packing for lunches and snacks??

Sandra

Week 23 - "Pin"spiration

Printable Version of Meal Plan and Grocery List

We had another busy weekend so I decided to not bog myself down with a theme.  I got up super early on Sunday morning, made a coffee and did a one-stop shop visit to Pinterest to throw together a quick meal plan and grocery list for the week.   I threw in a few stand-by’s too.  Sometimes you just need to not over think things!

Recipe Quick Links

Chinese Chicken Salad, Weelicious
Tex-Mex Rice Cakes, Weelicious
Grilled Portobello Burger, 52 Weeks of Meal Planning
Kale Salad, Marin Mama Cooks
Grilled Romain Hearts, Key Ingredient
Crispy Sweet Potato Fries, Foodvee
Overnight Oats, The Yummy Life

Snack spotlight - Fig Bars

You might have noticed these in my snack list recently.  I found these treats at Costco last month and we're on our second huge box.  They're certified Non-GMO which is great... but mostly they are just really, really tasty!  And convenient.  If you like Fig Newtons, you'll LOVE these!


Nature's Bakery Fig Bars



Week in Review

Monday

Lunch – Chinese Chicken Shrimp Salad.  I didn’t think I was going to rant and rave about this one but I have to say the dressing for this recipe is awesome.  I’m a huge fan of salad dressings, I used to have a fridge full of them.  The problem was I could never go through a whole bottle so I was forever throwing them out.  So stumbling upon this Asian Sesame dressing was a big deal for me… and it uses ingredients I always have on hand.  I was actually all chickened out from the weekend so I substituted shrimp for the chicken which worked well and I used coleslaw mix to save some prep time.

Supper – Goat Cheese Portobello Burger.  This is one of my own recipes, something I came up with trying to use up odds and ends in the fridge one night.  The last time I made it (Week 5) I used the indoor grill, this time I roasted the vegetables in the oven because it was raining out.  Always good but highly recommend grilling the veggies on the barbecue – it just adds a little something extra. 

Tuesday

Lunch – Chinese Chicken Shrimp Salad.   Dave didn’t need lunch so I used up Monday’s leftovers.  I added some cashews this time and enjoyed the extra crunch.

Supper – Salt Cod Fish Cakes & Asparagus.  I prepped these the night before so when I got home I just had to fry them up a bit.  We make a very basic fish cake – I boil the cod with fresh water at least twice, drain and mix that with mashed potatoes, an egg and minced onion.   They were pretty wet so I think refrigerating them overnight ending up being a good thing.  Just before frying I coated them with breadcrumbs to give them a little crunch.  We had simple asparagus on the side.  I just cooked the asparagus in a frying pan with a small amount of oil until they were done but still crisp.  I crumbled some feta on top, pepper and a squeeze of lemon over the whole plate.  Totally enjoyed!

Wednesday

Lunch – Tex-Mex Rice Cakes.  This is a super easy recipe and I really enjoyed them.  This is a good basic recipe that you could easily customise with different veggies, cheese and spices.  Next time I think I would add a little Mexican Spice Blend for some added kick and perhaps even some black beans.  I do think these would be best eaten fresh out of the pan instead of reheated the next day, but still a satisfying lunch.  They'd make an excellent toddler food as well!

Tex-Mex Rice Cakes

Supper – Marin & Mommy night out.  Dave unexpectedly had to go out of town this week so I pushed the Lasagna I had planned to Friday and I took the night off.  Marin and I headed up to Cafe Brea, a new cafe that opened in our neighborhood that I've been wanting to try.  It's not really a supper place so it was nice and quiet and perfect for a date with my little monkey... kind of felt like we were girlfriends, going out for coffee.  We had some healthy stuff but made sure to save lots of room for treats!  Afterwards we headed to a local kids book & toy store - Marin thought it was the best store EVER!



Marin at Cafe Brea



This is what Marin thought of our date... or maybe it was the cupcake.



Thursday

Lunch -- Leftover Fishcakes and Kale Salad.  There was just enough leftovers from the fishcakes for one, so I held off on them until today when Dave was going to be out of town.  I had them with a side of kale salad which was perfect.  This salad is so simple yet so packed with flavor - love it!

Supper -- Grilled Chicken & Romaine with Sweet Potato Fries.  OK, I had to try it but I'm going to admit, I just don't get 'grilled lettuce'.  The Caesar dressing was good but I don't like my lettuce warm.  Maybe I did something wrong, maybe my lettuce wasn't crisp enough to start... I don't know.  But I doubt I'll try it again.  I also had high hopes for the fries but they didn't really turn out either.  I think I didn't add enough oil.  sigh... such a mediocre meal.

Friday

Lunch -- Tex Mex Rice Cakes.  Again.  Because I delayed the lasagna I had a couple of lunches to make up.  I had extra rice and really likes these the first time so I made them again.

Supper – Easiest Lasagna EVER.  I had originally planned the lasagna for Wednesday to get us through the rest of the week but having it on Friday is nice since I prepped it on Thursday.  All I have to do for supper is stick it in the oven and we'll have leftovers for the weekend!  I used pasta “sheets” for the first time and I’m never going back.  They were so easy to work with!  This lasagna came together in about 5 minutes...

Here's my layers:
Sauce (straight from the jar)
Noodles
Sauce
Cottage Cheese (mixed with egg & parmesan)
Shredded Mozzarella
Noodles
Sauce
Spinach (frozen, thawed and water squeezed out)
Cottage CheeseNoodles

Sauce
Shredded Mozzarella

I measured nothing.  We'll see how it turns out.



Cutting the pasta sheets to fit the pan



Pasta Sheets waiting for the next layer