Weekly Menu

Saturday--Ribs, salad, potatoes
Sunday--caponata sandwiches
Monday--spaghetti with yellow squash and ground beef in the sauce
Tuesday--pulled pork, salad, golden melon, fresh pineapple
Wednesday--hamburgers with bacon and avocados, fresh fruit, salad, beans
Thursday--Mexican Quinoa Enchilada Salad  the spin I did on it turned out to be quinoa, black beans, enchilada sauce, onion, and frozen sweet corn. We all loved it! I threw it together in about 15 minutes and was nervous about the fam liking it.  They devoured it!
Friday--chicken taco pizzas, salad

Weekly Menu

I've missed this weekly menu posting.  Have you?  Well, in the hopes of greater organization and time management, I'm bringing it back :)  Though, for the summer, I'm not sure what day of the week it'll show up.  I have a harder time planning too far ahead because I like to see what all the fresh local foods are at the farmers' markets and Whole Foods.  Those of you who participate in CSA, do you know ahead of time what you'll get?  Do you make a menu after receiving your CSA?
Sunday--leftovers (because it's the hottest day yet this year and I have ZERO desire to cook) and salad
Monday--a spin on this recipe. I'll toss quinoa, ground beef, onion, green chilies, S&P, black beans, cilantro, tomatoes, enchilada sauce, and bell peppers (chopped) all together for what I'll dub Mexican Quinoa Salad
Tuesday--BBQ chicken pizzas--BBQ sauce, grilled chicken, red onions, cheddar cheese, jalapenos.  and a green salad
Wednesday--Prosciutto, Asparagus Pasta--adjusted to be dairy and gluten free. No cream or cheese added, will toss with some meyer lemon olive oil
Thursday--Sausage and Polenta casserole...I made this a few weeks ago and we all loved it!  It's one from the Everyday Food Magazine.
Friday--Grilled Pork chops with garlic honey mustard, Sweet potatoes, and a green salad
Just a note--I made this awesome pizza with our fresh picked blackberries last week when Grammy and Papi were here. You've GOT to try it! I made ours without the chicken and it was still super delicious!
Ugg, I can't figure out why the text is all highlighting. Do you know why???

Almond Butter Strawberry Waffle Sandwich

Mmm, this sandwich is so yummy and perfectly filling.  It makes a great breakfast, snack, or dessert.

This sandwich came about out of my desire to finish off the waffles, a few spare strawberries, and a need for protein.  I liked it so much that I had to make it again...but I used up the last of the waffles.  I did, however, have some GF bread and GF cinnamon raisin bagels.  It still tasted fabulous!  So, you've just got to try it!  Breakfast is such an important meal and should be treated as such.  Eating protein (the almond butter) in the morning will help energize you as well as help you to feel full longer.  The strawberry provides some sweetness as well as a small amount of fiber.  This is sort of like a grown up PB&J...and kids love it too :)

Ingredients
waffle (can be dairy free and gluten free)
almond butter--1-2 tablespoons
2 strawberries, sliced
cinnamon
honey--a teaspoon or so, optional
Directions
Heat or toast waffle (or bread or bagel).  Spread the honey on the waffle then spread the almond butter over the honey.  Top the almond butter with the strawberry slices and sprinkle with cinnamon.  These are great open faced or topped with another waffle.
Serves 1
Enjoy!

Coconut Berry Smoothie

There's no doubt about it, summer's warm temps are here and here to stay.  The warm temps are great for getting out to the pool, playing in sprinklers and on the slip and slide, eating lots more salad and fresh fruits and veggies as well as more smoothies.  I LOVE smoothies and have been making more of a variety than my usual kind of frozen fruit, yogurt, OJ, and spinach.  I came up with this new one recently and was pleasantly surprised at how yummy and fresh it was.
It was super quick and easy to throw together with only 3 ingredients:
Frozen berries (couple of handfuls)
1 can coconut milk
honey (sweeten to taste)

Throw all of these in your blender or use an immersion blender like I do.  Mix it all up. Then enjoy!

Do you have a favorite smoothie?
Linked up at A Little Nosh

Pineapple Macadamia Nut Macaroons

Oh my, these are delicious!  Last week I gave you a little tease about them...eating one conjures thoughts of a tropical vacation. :)  If you like sweet, soft coconut, sweet yet tangy pineapple, and little bits of chocolate and crunchy macadamia nuts, then you will LOVE these cookies.

These Pineapple Macadamia Nut Snackaroons are made by a company called Laughing Giraffe Organics.  They make several different varieties of Snackaroons--Vanilla Almond, Cranberry Orange, and Cherry Ginger to name a few.  They can be bought online via their website or you can pick them up at Whole Foods like I did.*

They are definitely a treat, but they are a healthy choice (though you can hardly tell!) On top of being organic, they are raw, vegan, gluten free, and hand crafted...see, it says right on the front of the package. 

And on the back it tells more about the production facility and also states that Laughing Giraffe Organics are "an independent family run business and (they) greatly appreciate your support."  My mouth is more than happy that I support them :) 

On the back of the package, Laughing Giraffe Organics tells more about their ingredients and their rich nutritional value and how the snackaroons will satisfy your hunger with less and be better than empty calorie consumption.  All their claims are true, but eating just one is hard because they are so delicious!
*As much as I wish I were compensated for this post with a few samples, I haven't been. Maybe one day I'll have some to share.  :)

Favorite On the Go Eating

I do my best to not eat in the car (the kids are another story though!)  Sometimes though it happens.  I'll need something quick to grab and easy to eat and filling, and nutritious too.  I have fallen in LOVE with these

Two Moms in the RAW granola bars.  There are a few different flavors and I've tried them all except the blueberry (I'm going to have to try that next).  I love them all.  I could easily eat a bag of these a day...BUT, they are NOT cheap.  I don't mind too much because they are made with fantastic whole ingredients that are raw, 100% organic, gluten, wheat, and dairy free, sprouted, soaked, and rinsed.   I say I could eat a bag a day, but really, they are so filling that a half a bar works for a light breakfast or very filling snack.  One day I will figure out how to copy these bars and make them myself.  Until then, I will splurge occasionally and buy a bag...and hide them in the pantry because everyone in our house LOVES them!

Popcorn!

We LOVE eating popcorn here.  I have a WhirlyPop that I use to pop the kernels on the stove top.  I love it...it pops pretty much every kernel and works almost as fast as popping it in the microwave.  While checking out Pinterest, I came across this great picture and think that I will most definitely be making this popcorn recipe very soon.  The only change I'll make is the butter--I'll try either ghee or coconut oil in its place so that the snack will be gluten and dairy free.

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Then I found this recipe for chili powder and dark chocolate popcorn!!! 

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While strolling the aisles of Whole Foods, I've found a whole new chocolate world.  They carry a gourmet selection of delicious gluten and dairy free chocolate.  While the bars may be a bit pricy, they taste exquisite and very little needs to be eaten at a time.  I think I'll have to pick some up to make this Chili Powder and Dark Chocolate Popcorn. :)
What's your favorite snack?

Frozen Banana Snack

The boys come home from school absolutely STARVING.  I could almost serve dinner at 3:30 and they'd be happy to eat it. Buuut, they'd be STARVING by 5:30.  Afternoon snacks are a must.  I know I like to snack too :)  I can't serve any wimpy snacks because if I do, then the boys are starving within minutes of eating and are begging for more food and generally driving me crazy while I'm trying to make dinner.  The other day I had some bananas sitting around so I thought I'd try something new for them...the Frozen Banana Snack! 

It's a quick and easy snack to throw together and have ready when the boys get home in the afternoon.  Gather a banana, Popsicle sticks, peanut butter (or other nut butter), chocolate chips (roughly chopped), and foil.  First, cut the banana in half and push a Popsicle stick in the cut end.  Then spread some peanut butter (or other nut butter) over the banana.

Roll the banana in the chopped chocolate chips then wrap the foil around the banana and place it in the freezer.

{These chocolate chips weren't chopped much. After making this one, I chopped the chips up more and they stuck better without having to use so many per banana.}

These take a couple of hours to freeze, so plan ahead a little if you want them frozen or serve immediately.

After eating these, the kids were happy and didn't ask for more food until dinner time  :)
*If you don't have any sticks, no worries, just prepare them without the sticks and serve with a fork or spoon.  Also, these can be made smaller and served as individual bites.  Freeze individual bites on foil without wrapping up.*

Weekly Menu

Dinners this week are going to be fast and at odd times due to violin lessons, baseball games, and soccer practice. I truly value being able to sit down as a family to eat and share dinner.  Tuesday and Wednesday nights will be the most challenging and probably not shared all together.  Usually I'm all about unprocessed foods, but this week I'm breaking out some jarred goods--spaghetti sauce and a new curry simmering sauce that I found.
Have a fantastic week!


Saturday--fajitas--grilled steak, onions, bell peppers, avocados
Sunday--hamburgers, roasted broccoli, jicama sticks with lime juice and cayenne pepper, green salad
Monday--Madras Curry (from a jar!) with pork and rice, salad
Tuesday--Taco Soup
Wednesday--Supercharged Spaghetti and Meat sauce, salad
Thursday--Baked crispy chicken and eggplant--top with left over spaghetti sauce, salad
Friday--Chicken sausage, caramelized onions, and spinach pizzas

Sweet Treats

In my desire to cut the amount of sugar we consume, I've come across many sweet treats that I'd love to try.  Some are naturally sweetened by fruit others honey, and yes, some with sugar and chocolate chips.  Did you know that a high consumption of sugar rots teeth not just on the outside, but from the inside as well. So, indulge as a special treat and enjoy! :)
This Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie is in.cred.i.ble!  It's from Chocolate Covered Katie, so it's got some nutritional value and is dairy free.  It's also gluten free.  The recipe calls for a hefty amount of brown sugar, but I've made it with only about a half cup of brown sugar which is less than half the amount called for in the recipe. Also, when we've eaten it, I haven't topped it like in the picture, but that sure does look good!

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This next one is one I found via Pinterest, but haven't had a chance to try yet.  It looks and sounds so delicious.  Let me know if you try it.  Don't be scared to use coconut oil.  I had a jar for several months before I started using it.  I'm in love with the stuff now!  It's extremely nutritious and versatile to use.  These treats are called Oatmeal Chocolate Peanut Butter No-Bake Candy Bars.  This recipe calls for dried cranberries--remember not all dried fruit is created the same, some have added sugar, so read the labels if you really want to watch how much sugar is used.

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And, if you're going to indulge, eat something yummily good for you either before or after.  I suggest this version of a kale salad.  It's got a satisfying sweet and salty combo with a crunch and fiber to fill you up.

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When I made it, I made a few changes to it.  I didn't use 8 cups of chopped kale--probably about 5, I just chopped up one and a half bunches.  I used more than a pinch of salt, didn't let my quinoa cool, no macadamia nuts, entire avocado, a handful or two of dried cranberries.

When you're cooking, don't be afraid to change up a recipe a bit to meet your needs, substitute ingredients, or try something new.

Weekly Menu

We've got quite the busy weekend coming up and I'm rather excited for it.  John Paul turns 6!  We've got 2 soccer games for John Paul and a baseball tournament for Alexander.  The tournament is the wild card for the weekend--don't know game times yet.  This can be tricky for meals, especially when fast food isn't an option.  I've already told the kids we'll probably have at least one picnic this weekend.  They are SUPER excited!  Penelope and Jaime have been having picnics almost weekly when Jaime takes a lunch break when working from home.  They are pretty sweet and a memory that I hope she keeps forever.

Saturday--picnic food--hummus, carrots, celery, strawberries, ham and lettuce rolls
Sunday--grilled steak salad with onions and mushrooms
Monday--Chick-un Tikki Masala Pizza
Tuesday--Chickpea and veggie Quizza
Wednesday--BBQ chicken, grilled pineapple, salad
Thursday--nachos--ground beef, tomatoes, avocados, black beans, chips
Friday--Quinoa, kale, and cranberry salad

Breakfasts
Monday--eggs, coconut yogurt, fruit
Tuesday--oatmeal
Wednesday--eggs and sausage, fruit smoothies with kale
Thursday--granola and coconut yogurt
Friday--eggs and cereal or oatmeal

Snacks
*popcorn cakes with almond butter and dark chocolate chips
*apple slices and carrots
*breakfast cookies
*Carrot cake bites
*No bake granola cakes

Peanut Butter Crispies

These have been a yummy treat and even breakfast here.  It's got some protein, fiber, carbs, healthy brain fat, and a bit of sweetener.

Peanut Butter Crispies (Inspired by this recipe)

Ingredients
scoop of peanut butter (or any nut butter of your preference)
scoop of coconut oil
a sweetener of choice--sugar, honey, agave, maple syrup, coconut sugar*--but not too much
crispy rice cereal (I use Barbara's Brown Rice Crisps--they're gluten free)
Directions
Place the nut butter, coconut oil, and sweetener (if using) in a microwave safe bowl.  Heat in microwave for about 20 seconds to warm and soften.  Stir the ingredients in the bowl.  After mixed, add in some cereal and stir to coat the cereal.  Enjoy warm or stick it in the fridge to harden.  My kiddos like this with a couple chocolate chips on top :)
*Check out this info about Coconut Palm Sugar.  I need to research it more, but it is worth it!  Coconut oil is so important and nutritious for us.  Our brains and cell walls need the healthy fat in coconut oil.  Chocolate Covered Katie has some fabulous treats using coconut oil!

Supercharged Spaghetti and Meat Sauce

Spaghetti and meat sauce is quick and easy dinner in our gluten and dairy free home.  It's an easy meal that you probably already have in your meal rotation, so why not give it a nutritional boost?

Supercharged Spaghetti and Meat Sauce
Ingredients
Pasta--any size or shape, can be gluten free
1 lb ground beef
1/2 to 1 onion, diced
1 jar organic pasta sauce--have fun with this and choose a family favorite, but watch for added sugar or allergens
1 zucchini, shredded
1 carrot, shredded
fresh or frozen spinach, if frozen, thaw
red wine (optional, when I add it I add probably about a 1/2 cup, but it also depends on how much is left in the bottle)
Directions
Bring a large pot of water to boil.  In a large saute pan, brown the ground beef.  Add the diced onion and saute for a few minutes.  Add the jar of pasta sauce and heat through.  Stir in the veggies and red wine.  Let simmer while the pasta cooks in the pot of boiling water.  When the pasta is done cooking, drain the pasta.  Add the pasta to the meat sauce and toss to cover.  I like to serve this with a sprinkle of nutritional yeast seasoning and/or some Parmesan cheese.  It also tastes great with a side of kale salad!

Kale Salad

This kale salad is adapted from the kale salad at Unforked and is a fraction of the cost.  And, because you are making it, you can easily create it to be gluten and dairy free.  :)
I was quite skeptical at first, but after a friend swore that it was the most delicious thing, I had to give it a try.
And now, I think you should too :)

Kale Salad
Ingredients
1 bunch green kale (I've made it with the green kale and the purple kale.  The purple kale was a bit tougher and didn't taste quite as good in our opinion.)
lemon juice
extra virgin olive oil
salt
pepper
bread crumbs (Glutino makes some great gluten free bread crumbs)
Parmesan cheese and/or Bragg's Nutritional Yeast Seasoning (the yeast seasoning has a Parmesan cheese flavor and is quite healthy and a great alternative to the Parmesan cheese)

Directions
Rinse the kale and pat it dry.  Pull the leaves off of the tough center stem.  Discard the stems.  Chop the leaves and place them in serving bowl.  Sprinkle the leaves with the lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper.  (The amounts of these are to your personal liking.  Start with about 1-2 tablespoons of lemon juice and olive oil and adjust from there.)  Toss the kale.  Sprinkle with bread crumbs and cheese and/or seasoning.
Enjoy!

Weekly Menu

I'm so excited because more and more people are asking me about gluten/dairy free diets, shopping for these foods on a budget, preparing the foods, etc.  I'm having so much fun planning meals and helping to educate people about nutrition and that eating healthy tastes great and feels even better too.


Saturday--Baked Buffalo Chicken Pasta--lunch for Jaime and me,  Chicken Tamale Soup--dinner
Sunday--kale salad, Thai Chicken Pizza
Monday--Barbacoa beef tacos, guacamole, salad (I froze the left over beef, it was pretty tasty!)
Tuesday--spaghetti and meat sauce, kale salad
Wednesday--Green Chili Chicken Burgers (for the dairy free, use Daiya pepper jack "cheese"),
Thursday--Buffalo Chicken Lettuce Cups
Friday--Thai Peanut Noodle Salad

This week's snacks:
Popcorn--I buy the organic kernels and pop them on the stove top.  You can also put kernels in to a paper bag, fold it shut and pop it in the microwave like the expensive store-bought microwave popcorn.
Breakfast cookies (I've made double batches of these twice now.  The first time I added some sugar and the second time no sugar (except what's in the dark chocolate chunks) at all.  Everybody loved both versions.  I will be making these without the added sugar because, have you checked out how much sugar we consume?!  Simply amazing.)
Fruit, Veggies, Roasted Chickpeas

Breakfast
Monday--microwave berry muffins, breakfast sausage
Tuesday--scrambled eggs, fruit smoothies
Wednesday--oatmeal
Thursday--scrambled eggs, microwave muffins
Friday--peanut butter crispies, fruit

Weekly Menu

Easter is tomorrow! I'm not sure at the moment of what I'll be fixing, but I know lamb is NOT on the menu. I've had lamb before and it is okay in my book, but not worth breaking the bank to purchase or worth the effort to cook it. My husband strongly disagrees with me :). Do you have any traditional Easter meals? I have found some fabulous sounding meals that I'm excited to put on the menu and make. I'm really enjoying Thai food lately and am most excited to try the Thai Chicken Enchiladas--gluten free of course.  Next Sunday is Stella's baptism.  We've got a busy week and weekend ahead, so I'm planning ahead through next weekend.

Saturday--pizza, salad
Sunday--kale salad, risotto, grilled steak and shrimp, Thai noodle soup
Monday--Meatloaf, asparagus, roasted parsnip fries
Tuesday--Veggie and beef stir fry, rice
Wednesday--Thai Chicken Enchiladas
Thursday--Smoky Pork chops in crock pot with coconut milk and sriracha and pasta, salad
Friday--hamburgers, kale salad, oven baked fries/roasted broccoli
Saturday--paella
Sunday--Barbacoa Beef Tacos, guacamole,

Happy and blessed Easter!

Weekly Menu

What a morning we've had already.  I started my day with sticking to my resolution of getting up before everyone else and going for a jog/walk, then I made everyone breakfast, coffee for me and J, took the boys to school, picked weeds in the front yard, went on a short walk with Penelope, went to Michaels and a couple of other errands, painted with Penelope, picked up lunch for J since he took the day off to do yard work :), ate lunch, menu planned (loved the meals from this past week but have decided to give in to all of the kids' request for the upcoming week), and now I'm off to the grocery store.  Whew!, all that and umm, no shower.  J just made a pretty sweet comment about my hair.  Oh well, same can be said about his :)  It's a let's-get-as-much-work-done-as-possible kind of day, so I'll make time to shower at the end.  It feels like summer outside...crazy weather! at least mid-week things should cool back down to normal here.


Saturday--Spinach Artichoke pizza, pepperoni pizza, salad
Sunday--dinner with Grammy Julie, not sure what we're having
Monday--Kale and Quinoa Salad
Tuesday--Beef Short Ribs
Wednesday--Spaghetti with meat sauce, salad
Thursday--Tacos, rice, and guacamole
Friday--frittata

Weekly Menu

I'm in a cooking rut!  I feel like several of the new things I've tried are just flops (though some have been fantastic!) and I'm uninspired to cook.  With some beautiful weather on the way, hopefully I'll get out of my food planning/cooking slump.  I love food and want to try new dishes, but I'm just not feeling it lately.  I'm thinking some fresh salads with new dressings topped with some grilled chicken or fish are in order.  Maybe a pasta salad and some sandwiches too.  Pinterest to my rescue! Let's see what I find :)

Saturday--a light dinner because we are going out for a late lunch after the boys' violin concert--zucchini tots, Chicken & Noodles in Spicy Peanut Coconut broth
Sunday--Grilled steak, baked potatoes, salad
Monday--BLTs with spinach, avocado, and sunny side up eggs--here's the idea spark--might use our pizza crust as the bread
Tuesday--Taco Salad
Wednesday--grilled chicken legs, bacon sauteed asparagus (from Everyday Food mag, made this last week for my birthday and it was DE.LISH!) and a green salad
Thursday--Black Bean, Quinoa, Citrus Salad
Friday--Grilled portobello mushroom burgers with hummus and feta, roasted broccoli and parsnips

I'm feeling good about this menu!  Excited to eat again :) Oh, and I'm going to have to squeeze this spinach artichoke pizza in somewhere for Jaime and myself--lunch one day maybe?!

Weekly Menu

What a week we had for Spring Break (hence the lateness in this post)!  It was gorgeous weather for being outside, borderline too hot for spring in my opinion, but none the less gorgeous. We stayed pretty busy but relaxed as well.  We had fun going to a park, a few play dates, a trip to the fire station, a movie night, and the zoo.  Spring sports--soccer and baseball--are underway and now we have something every single night Monday-Thursday!  Rrg, busy nights make dinner a little more tricky, but I love that the boys are back in sports.
Saturday--St Patrick's Day--corned beef, potatoes, roasted broccoli, parsnips, and beets
Sunday--grilled chicken, salad with cucumber and onion
Monday--Spaghetti and meat sauce, green salad
Tuesday--Thai Chicken Pizza (a family favorite and Alexander's request)
Wednesday--Chipotle Chocolate Chili
Thursday--my birthday--I should plan something special, but instead Jaime and I will go out next week--Sauteed chicken with capers, sauteed asparagus with bacon (Everyday Food mag, April 2012, p 23 and 88)
Friday--grilled fish, and salad/veggie

Weekly Menu and Spring Break

Spring break has started--the kids are in heaven!  They didn't sleep in, but quickly ate breakfast, spent time in timeout, played Legos, wrestled, dressed, brushed teeth, and are currently playing basketball (indoors!) Good thing I have some play dates and activities lined up. :)
As much as I love fall and by the end of summer can't wait to start cooking all the warm comfort foods, now I'm looking forward to warmer weather and fresh food. Gardens and farmers markets!  I have these romantic ideas of having the kids truly help prepare dinner and maybe even make a meal all by themselves.  I think it's time to start making them responsible for prepping a bit more of the dinner meals.  I find this easier with garden fresh foods--nothing to risk burning themselves.

Doesn't this look good!?

All 3 of them are pretty proficient at browning ground beef too.

Saturday--Thai Chicken Pizza, Grilled Asparagus, Salad
Sunday--Baked Pasta with Meat sauce, Salad
Monday--Spinach Quinoa Salad with Roasted Grapes, Pears, and Almonds
Tuesday--Portobello Pesto Pizza, Roasted Broccoli
Wednesday--Taco Salad
Thursday--Grilled Chicken Salad
Friday--Sushi Salad

Can you tell that I'm in a pizza and salad mood? :)

A few extra meals since everyone will be home for lunches this week too:
Pizza Stuffed Potatoes
Chicken Enchilada Spaghetti
Broiled PB and Banana tostadas
Bean and Cheese burritos with guacamole
Frittata--kale, bacon, onion, potato