One Hot Mama Challenge - Month 1, Week 1

Our first run with Stroller Strides!

So tracking weekly may have been a bit ambitious... but here it (finally) is...

Wow - where to start? So in the book, each week has a theme, but covers a variety of topics. Since this is meant to be read a week at a time, its helpful to keep being reminded of all the balls that are up in the air, and the nuances that emerge as you move through this fourth trimester.

So the themes for Month 1 are
Week 1: Putting yourself first.
Week 2: Money talks
Week 3: No Comparison
Week 4: New Normalcy

Putting yourself first covers a lot of aspects. I have already mentioned that I am also a fan of The Baby Whisperer, and I love her E.A.S.Y. plan that let's me know that I do get some me (You) time in the day. Granted, I tend to use this time to udpate the family blog and get things done around the house (there is always so much laundry - and sorting out the Pregnancy Disability and daycare paperwork! ... and somehow dishes and grocery shopping has slipped into my day, too... who did these things when I was at work before?), but I am also committing now to doing at least something to nourish ME during these breaks. I like working on this blog (and our family blog), so that counts. As does taking a shower, and getting a workout in, or going to a mommy group. I was actually scheduling in these activities and looking forward to them long before my maternity leave - and I am having so much fun with them, I am already sad about having to give them up when I return to work. To be honest, my biggest challenge will be to keep all these elements incorporated into my life when I DO return to work!

trail running with Stroller Strides!

I have started slipping in a milestone I was pretty proud of: daily showers!! Pretty much by my daughter's second week home, I had gotten into a grove of showering and getting dressed, so I didn't look like a schlub when I dropped off my son at daycare. I know they don't really care what I look like - and that they probably expected to see me in pajamas, but it was probably the most public I'd be all day, so it was a good goal. And if I didn't do it then, I wouldn't do it at all. But once I got the go ahead at my six week visit, I started going to a Stroller Strides class MWF. It was at 9:30, so I wasn't going to shower before the class. I put on my workout clothes (luckily they are stretchy - so they still fit) and took M on into school. And since I did shower after class (usually sometime around lunch), I didn't feel like I needed another shower the next morning...
So, here I am at the end of my 10-week Plum District deal for Stroller Strides, so I am free again to shower as I please. And I'd better get to it, since the countdown for my return to work is getting low. I decided I still need a motivator to keep exercising, so I downloaded a free 'Couch to 5k' app (my completed workouts are going out on twitter!!), and started day one (in the afternoon of the hottest day of the year so far!!). Even though I only had to run for 60 seconds at a time, it felt great!! And its so refreshing to have it feel great. So today I got up when my husband did, and showered and dressed and put on makeup (I still can't bring myself to 'do' my hair... it's been 3 months... I hope I haven't forgotten what little I know about it...)

meal planning - sharing with the toddler!

Another way I can take care of myself is eating well. So I took Erin's advice and finally pitched my security stash of Christmas/Halloween/Valentines/Easter candy (really it was M's and we were hiding it from him... but it was easy to break into at a time of weakness.
I have also been trying to keep making healthy meals for the family. Click the 'recipe' keyword on the side of the blog to our weekly recipes. I have been meal planning for years (I really don't remember NOT doing this... how else do I know what to get at the grocery store? And I refuse to do more than one trip per week...)

Also, I've already had to go solo with both kiddos twice this month... which has really reinforced the need to keep up with our routines.



Giveaway! Answer the question below for a chance to win your own copy of Erin Cox's Book One Hot Mama!

***Question: How do make time for yourself? And what do you do with this special time? ***

Find the other One Hot Mama posts here.

This week's recipes!

Thursday's lunch:
Slow cooker pork Cuban Sandwichn on whole wheat,
cherry tomato halves,
blueberries and blackberries

Here are our recipes from this week!! As always, we included a fish dish and one meatless dish. We all take dinner leftovers from lunch the next day (makes clean up/lunch-packing efficient!).

I have to admit, I was even surprised how filling our meatless baked potatoes turned out to be!!

Easy Chicken Curry - this one we had actually planned to make last week, but let our laziness convince us to order a pizza. This is a new recipe, and Hubby was skeptical. So When we finally made it this week, he was kicking himself for voting pizza before...

Shrimp and Cannellini Beans (with asparagus and toast) - This recipe is SO ridiculously easy and makes your kitchen smell SO yummy! We pair it with a veggie, and some extra carbs (sprouted wheat toast + butter).

Friday's Toddler Lunch:
Baked sweet potato + mozzarella, strawberry,
shelled edamame, orange slices,
and yogurt pretzels

Cuban sandwiches (with Crockpot pork loin). I got this recipe from Parenting.com magazine, but couldn't find a link for it online. For the pork loin, cook tenderloin, onion soup mix, 1c water, 3/4c red wine, 3 tbsp garlic, 3 tbsp soy sauce, on low for 4 hrs in a Crock Pot. We shredded it and used half to make sandwiches. We toasted split, wheat ciabatta rolls, and topped with pork, provolone, deli ham, and dill pickle slices. We served with a side of steamed broccoli.

Sweet potatoes, mozzarella and edamame - really, this is all we ate for our meatless meal. Super quick: microwave some potatoes (M and I had sweet potatoes, hubby went for a regular russet). Cut open and apply a smidge of butter. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese. Serve with shelled edamame. Very filling. Nutritional bases covered. :)

Pork tacos - (see the Cuban sandwich recipe for how we made the shredded pork). Stir in 2 tbsp BBQ sauce with 1 cup of the shredded pork. top a corn tortilla with meat and 1/4 c bagged coleslaw + 1tbsp greek yogurt.

Grilled Pizza - We use store-bought whole wheat pizza dough from Trader Joe's. I shop there about once a month, so I stock up on a few for the freezer when we are low, but we have also found it at many 'regular' grocery stores. You may have to ask where they keep it (sometimes its in the freezer section). Then we skip to Alton Brown's recipe for margherita pizza (about halfway down this lengthy recipe). We omit the red pepper... and usually the garlic (but only because we forget it since this is easy enough to do from memory).

Recipes this week!

Feeling a bit in a rut lately with recipes, so I had to rifle through my big 3-ring binder for a couple of old favorites to liven things up!

As always, one meatless meal and one fish meal!

Cozy at Home (Cauliflower) Mac and Cheese - Ok, this one isn't new... but its one of my favorite meatless options! You can use any veggie in place of the cauliflower, and sometimes we add peas, too. I like that the cauliflower blends in... though I feel a little guilty sneaking them in on my toddler...

Raspberry Chicken Salad (first recipe here on Cooking Light's recommended uses for apricot preserves). I swap in canned, no-salt green beans for the salad greens for my toddler. I also lay out each ingredient separately on his plate, like an artists palate. This is one of his favorite meals :) If you miss the carbs, you can serve with some crusty bread or whole wheat toast.

Chicken Tortilla Soup - Easy and filling! I put this in a pre-warmed thermos for my toddler's lunch.

Gulf Fish en Papillote + Kale Pesto Pasta - Dusted this off from the back of the 3 ring binder! The gulf fish is so simple, fast and healthy, but has the best presentation!! Serve this one to guests! This was my first time making the Kale Pesto (recipe from weelicious.com). It was tasty, but we had tons of leftovers!! I think I still prefer the basil variety, though...

Easy Chicken Curry - truth is we didn't get to this one this week... it will be the first one we make next week, though!

Recipes this Week

Just returned from a week vacation visiting our parents over Easter break, but we are hitting the ground running to make our weekly meal plans, and keep my sanity. Sunday morning after we flew in, hubby and M ran to the store for breakfast supplies (eggs, sausage, fruit, bread and milk). Then later he went back during naptime for the veggies for the sausage and rice! My motivation for cooking most weeknights is to have leftovers - so I have something to pack for M's lunch as well as our own. It helps us all make better food choices when we are crunched for time, and let's us spend our $ on meals out over the weekend when we can really enjoy it.

As usual the lineup includes one meatless dinner and one fish dinner.

Sausage and Rice - Our dinner-in-a-pinch, this week with brown rice! I still haven't perfected this, but I try to sub whole grains for processed ones in as many places as I can. I started 1 cup of brown rice with 3 cups of water. Brought to a boil and then simmered for 10 minutes before adding the kielbasa rounds. Cooked with sausage for 10 more minutes, then added the chopped broccoli and red pepper. Cooked for a final 10 minutes. The result was still a little soupy, and a bit creamier than the white rice version, but I let it rest, uncovered for a bit, served with a slotted spoon. By the end of dinner the extra water had been absorbed/evaporated.

Chicken and Bean Nachos - adapted from this recipe, We make the avocado salsa (usually omitting the jicama if we can't find it). Otherwise we layer tortilla chips, then shredded rotisserie chicken (we use about half of one, and save the rest for something else), rinsed canned pinto or black beans, and a thin layer of shredded Mexican or cheddar cheese on a cookie sheet. Broil for 10 minutes or until cheese is melted, and top with the salsa. We usually make one cookie sheet-ful for our family of 2.5, and the rest makes all our lunches for the next day.
To make the next day lunches, I put all the topings together in a tupperware, one in each corner, and pack chips seperately. Hubby and I assemble all but the salsa, microwave to melt cheese, then top with Salsa. M eats all his seperately.

Not your mama's tuna salad - courtesy of Rachel Ray. This is another easy favorite of mine :)

Tacos & re-fried beans - The tacos are your average recipe (store-bought shells; meat seasoned with a store-bought packet of seasoning... we used half a pound of leftover bison, and some of our leftover rotisserie chicken from the nachos above; diced tomatoes, shredded cheese, avocado chunks, plain greek yogurt instead of sour cream) and we used Ellie Kreiger's recipe for the beans (delicious! even my husband was pleasantly surprised!)

Quinoa salad - adapted from this recipe, I swapped quinoa for the wheat berries, but everything else is the same - YUM!

This week we also took a family urban hike to our closest grocery store on a chilly, overcast day and picked up frozen pizzas (hubby and I always get our own since we like different things, which means plenty for M and lunch leftovers) + frozen veggies for a Saturday-night-in dinner. We also picked up ingredients to make our favorite breakfast casserole Sunday morning:

2 cans reduced fat crescent rolls
1 roll reduced fat breakfast sausage, cooked and crumbled
8 eggs (1 yolk reserved)
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350
1. Unroll one can of crescent rolls on the bottom of a greased 9x13 pan.
2. Top with sausage and cheeses (beware: too much cheese will make the casserole too greasy).
3. Scramble the 7 eggs and 1 egg white (reserving the 8th yolk), and pour over the sausage and cheese.
4. Unroll and top with the second can of crescent rolls.
5. Brush top layer with reserved yolk.
Bake for 25-30 minutes, until center of casserole is set.
Cut and serve!!

Easter Week Recipes

Our version of the Easter Egg Lunch Box!

The list is short this week for the holiday weekend. But I loved the two Easter-themed ideas below. The Easter Egg Lunch Box is SO easy, but such a cool idea!!

We still included a meatless dish and a fish dish!! :) And, as usual, leftovers went to school for the toddler's lunch as well as our own lunches!







Sweet Broiled Salmon (Yum - hubby was especially a fan). We served this with steamed broccoli and leftover brown rice and boiled beets (see below)










Naturally Dyed Easter Eggs .we only did a few colors (blueberries for blue/purple, raspberries for pink, turmeric/yellow beets for yellow, and red cabbage for blue-green), but the toddler really liked helping with this. And we used the leftover berries and juice in a smoothie (seemed wasteful to toss it). We used the boiled beets as a side with our salmon dinner.
We made deviled eggs with these and served with multi-grain bread, and raw veggies (pepper strips, carrot sticks, celery - frozen peas for M). I thought this was going to be viewed as a cop-out dinner, but both of my guys gobbled it up and asked for seconds!!

our resulting naturally dyed eggs!
top row, down: blueberries, raspberries,
 red cabbage + baking soda (one un-dyed egg in this row)
, yellow beets + turmeric

Easter Egg Lunch Box - I used cubed cheese, blueberries, Annie's whole wheat bunnies, frozen peas, and a 'trail mix' of sunflower seeds/pepitas/dried cranberries. I served with some of the leftover deviled eggs from above.

Tacos - the usual recipe, a special request of my husband. We used ground bison meat, taco seasoning from Sprouts, as well as their guacamole seasoning. We added chopped tomatoes, spinach instead of lettuce, shredded Mexican cheese, and black beans, and both crispy shells and soft corn tortillas.

Recipes this week

pretty peppers :)

Baby Sister turned 1 month old this week, and I am finally feeling like I can start to get back in the swing of things! The first two weeks she was with us, we had parents around to help us cook and go out to dinner with, and the first week I was home alone with her we had a lot of 'salads': pasta salad, egg salad, etc.

So, this week, we still have easy recipes, that can, for the most part, be done in stages (prep during the morning's nap (or any of the others during the day when I can catch a break), cooking during her last nap during the day.

As always, there is one fish dish, and one meatless dish. :)

Leftover Quinoa Salad for M's lunch.
We usually swap salad for green beans.

Also I made a batch of a new *No Bake* lactation cookie recipe from The Gluten Free Go To.

So, this week's recipes?

Veggie Bow-Tie Pasta Salad-  (Parenting.com) we used penne instead of bow-ties, and added leftover rotisserie chicken, since that's what we had on hand.

Southwestern Stuffed Peppers (Real Simple, using brown rice instead of white)

Crab Cakes with Roasted Vegetables (Cooking Light) I omit the butter sauce. Not because its bad tasting or for you, I am just lazy and find it isn't necessary... and this week we added the leftover rice from the stuffed peppers as a side... even though this already has potatoes)

Taco in a Salad (What to Eat When You're Expecting)

Curry Quinoa Salad - (FitPregnancy.com, I couldn't find this online, so I printed it below. I am sure in a month or so it will be available) Even M got into this one once I pointed out all the new words in there: "Chickpeas!", "Pepitas!", "Keen-wah!".

Remember the magic words from Sam-I-Am:

"You do not like them, So you say.

Try them! Try them! And you may.

Try them and you may, I say."

watching the monitor while making crab cakes
(stick in the fridge to set up while you run to pick up M from school!
Cook them when you get home!)

Curry Quinoa Salad

1 cup dry quinoa, rinsed

2 cups water

1 tbsp curry powder

1 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp ground red pepper

pinch of salt

2 medium carrots, shredded (about 1 cup)

1 15-oz can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), rinsed and drained

3 green onions, thinly sliced

2 granny smith apples, cored and chopped

1/4 cup toasted pumpkin seeds (pepitas!)

1/2 cup finely chopped parsley

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 tsp grated lime zest

juice of two limes

salt and pepper to taste

9 cups mixed greens

1. In a saucepan, combine quinoa, water, spices and salt. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer on low for around 15 minutes, until quinoa is transparent and liquid is absorbed. Fluff with a fork, cool, and place in a large bowl.

2. Add carrots, chickpeas, onions, apples, pumpkin seeds and parsley.

3. To make the dressing: whisk together olive oil, apple cider vinegar, lime zest, lime juice, salt and pepper. Pour over quinoa mixture and toss.

4. Divide into 6 servings and serve over 1 1/2 cups of mixed greens.

Three more weeks of simple cooking!

If you are working on your simple cooking weekly recipe planning, here are our last 3 week's recipes (again, each week includes one fish recipe and one meatless recipe. And leftovers from all meals were turned into our lunches the next day - including for the 2.5 year old!)

Week 1

I am leveraging some of the goodies from our CSA box this week: carrots, broccoli, lettuce.

Pear struessel muffins, Once a Month Mom. with blueberries instead of the chopped pear and applesauce instead of the pureed one... YUM! We put most of these in the freezer and are doling them out for special breakfasts.
Meatloaf Cupcakes w/  mashed potato 'icing', modified from Cooking Light with a side of broccoli
Shrimp 'Fried' Rice, Weelicious (140 Fast, Fresh and Easy Recipes) - very similar to their Veggie Fried Rice recipe + peeled, deveined shrimp
Turkey Spanikopita Burgers, Rachel Ray (365: No Repeats) with a side salad for mom and dad, green beans for M (he's still not into the texture of lettuce...). Also always a surprise for guests that no, they will not even notice the spinach IN the burger. It's just yummy!
Veggie Bowtie Pasta Salad, Parenting.com. Use your favorite Italian dressing and you can't go wrong. I love all the veggies mixed in, too!
Veggie-filled Sausage and Rice, modification of my mama's savory, FAST recipe :)

Would anyone use it if I included the shopping list for the week, too?

Week 2

This week we leaned heavily on a new cookbook we received from a friend: Williams Sonoma: One Pot: Food Made Fast

Chicken Stew with Dumplings
Chicken and Vegetable Curry - made with zucchini and green curry... so not really spicy. Served with brown rice that I'd made the day before while we were eating dinner
Mustard-crusted salmon & potatoes (& Caesar salad for the adults, canned peas for M). This one actually didn't go over all that well with my crowd, if I am being honest. Too strong a mustard taste.
Cauliflower Mac and Cheese (from Eating Well When You're Expecting)
Mu Shu Pork Stir Fry. This didn't look like it was all going to fit in the pan... but as the cabbage wilted, I could add the rest. Surprisingly good!

Week 3

* bought a bag of spinach to add to 'beef' up the vegetable quotient of some of our recipes

Baked Shells (from the weelicious cookbook) (adding chopped spinach to the sauce). I couldn't find jumbo shells at either the grocery store or Super Target, so I just used whole wheat penne instead and sort of threw all the ingredients together (plus a few handfuls of spinach!) and baked for 20 minutes. It was still delicious! And the toddler ate every last bit of his without us doing acrobatics or bargaining.
Chicken and Kale Risotto with Pine Nuts and Bacon (using spinach instead of kale; from Start Fresh by Tyler Florence )
Taco Salad (from Eating Well When You're Expecting). Hubby said it: this is always so good. Never fails. We serve the toddler's with a side of green beans instead of on a bed of romaine.
Tomato-Ricotta Salata Spaghetti. Another regular in our rotation. We finally found our local CA grocery store is carrying ricotta salata!... and after three weeks in a row, this week they weren't. So I subbed goat cheese. Not bad.
Shrimp and Corn Chowder (& quesadillas made with whole wheat tortillas, Mexican cheese and chopped spinach; from Cooking Light) This is one of our favorite recipes to make. M loves shrimp (he's a southern boy at heart!) and the soup is SO savory!!! It's a quick and easy one to impress guests!!!

This Week's Recipes!!

Another easy, healthy recipe plan for the week! Includes one fish dish and two meatless dishes! And, yes, all except the tortellini and egg salad wraps became my 2.5 year old son's lunch for school the next day (and only because there wasn't enough left over)!

For the Tortilla Soup and Enchiladas, I bought a rotisserie chicken (split between the two recipes) to save even more time. Those things are money-savers, too!! $6-8 for two meals' worth of chicken!

Kale, Gruyere, and Sour Dough Strata, FitPregnancy (I can't get enough eggs in this pregnancy!)

Creamy Tortellini with Bacon, Dream Dinners (side of red pepper strips and spaghetti squash - our first Dream Dinners taste! Look for my upcoming review)

Chicken Tortilla Soup, Weelicious

Not Your Mama's Tuna Salad, Rachel Ray (Pesto, Roasted Red Peppers, shell pasta + tuna = yum! This week, I swapped lightly sauteed carrot slices for the grape tomatoes)

Mexican Enchiladas, Weelicious

Egg Salad Lettuce Wraps, Fit Pregnancy (got some beautiful heads of Bibb lettuce in our CSA box this week! Served with toasted slices of our leftover Sour Dough!)

I can't find links to the egg recipes from Fit Pregnancy this week, so I am reprinting them below:

(From the Dec/Jan '13 issue of FitPregnancy)

Sourdough Kale Strata

2 tbsp olive oil
1 large finely diced shallot
6 cups kale, washed, deveined, and torn into bite sized pieces (about 1 bunch)
1/4 tsp salt
10 eggs
2 cups 2% milk
1/4 tsp pepper
4 cups sourdough bread (best with stale bread) torn into bite-sized pieces
1.5 cups shredded Gruyere cheese, divided

1. Heat olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add shallots and saute 2 minutes. Add kale and salt and cook another 2 mintues. Set aside.
2. Whisk together eggs, milk and pepper in a large bowl.
3. Coat a 9x13 in baking dish with cooking spray. Add kale mixture, torn bread and 1 cup cheese, Toss together and spread evenly over pan.
4. Pour egg mixture into the dish and top with remaining cheese.
5. Cover strata with aluminum foil and let stand 20 minutes (this allows the bread to absorb the eggs mixture) or refrigerate overnight.
6. Preheat oven to 400 F. (If dish was refrigerated  let it warm up at room temperature for a bit so it won't crack in the oven.) Bake 35 minutes, then remove foil and continue baking 15 to 20 minutes until puffed and golden brown around edges. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.



Curry Egg Salad Wraps

6 large eggs
3 tbsp nonfat Greek yogurt
3 tbsp light mayonnaise
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp curry powder
Pinch salt and pepper
1 celery stalk, diced
1/4 c finely chopped radishes (we used carrot instead)
2 tbsp finely chopped red onion
1/4 c sunflower seeds
1/4 c chopped fresh parsley (or dill, chives or cilantro)
8 large Bibb, Boston or butter lettuce leaves

1. Place eggs in a medium saucepan and cover with 1 inch of cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat. when water reaches a boil, immediately cover saucepan, remove from heat and let sit 12 minutes. Place eggs in ice water for 3 minutes to stop the cooking. When cooled, rinse under cold water to peel. Chop coarsely.
2. In a large bowl, stir together Greek yogurt, mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, curry powder, salt and pepper until combined, Add chopped eggs, celery, radishes, red onion, sunflower seeds and fresh parsley and stir until combined.
3. Divide eggs mixture evenly among lettuce leaves (about 1/4 cup each). Roll up and serve.

Fresh Cooking for the Week - How to Simplify

Hoppin' John Soup & corn muffins

How can you work full time outside the home and still get good home-cooked meals on the table for your family most nights of the week? There are several options, but the one that works best for us is what I like to call IE Meal Planning.

IE = Industrial Engineering. This was my major in college - and grad school. The simplest way I've seen it explained is on a nerdy bumper sticker: "Engineers make things. Industrial Engineers make things better." So in case I haven't discussed this already on this blog, it kind of is my hobby to optimize everything, not just the traditional factory stuff the profession was born from. All aspects of life can benefit from the intersection of 'taking the easy way out' and 'doing it right'.

So you and I probably know at least half of the recipes our families make regularly by heart, but I still pull out the recipes for them each week, like a Kan Ban system to help me plan our meals (ok, I am boring you, right? My professors would be so proud, though!). Not only does this help me make sure I have all the ingredients I need, the instructions are still handy in case hubby needs to jump in and help out while we cook.

On Saturday or Sunday, I take requests from the family and pick 4-6 recipes for the week. I generally try to have at least one meatless day and one seafood day - and just enough servings to make dinners and lunches for all of us for most of the week (I admit I look forward to NOT cooking by Friday!). I put the pages on the cookbook holder (even for recipes out of books, I prefer to make a photocopy of the pages I'll use - just to accommodate this system. Is that OCD?). I review the recipes and add the ingredients we don't already have to the OurGroceries app (along with the stuff we need for breakfasts and snacks) and head to the store, reusable grocery bags and phone in tow.

I should interject here that 95% of our recipes are healthy, fast and tasty. Very few make the cut that take too much time or work and even those have to be earmarked for a Sunday evening when we have extra time. Fairly often a recipe for muffins or another snack will make the pile - but those have to be made on the weekends, too!

During the week, Daddy picks up from daycare (I do drop-off), so I can usually get an uninterrupted start on dinner. And most days the meal is in its final stage of cooking (or close to it) when the boys get home.

We dish out our plates, eat together, play a little, then its off to bed for the little one. After he's bathed and tucked in, we pack up the leftovers into our lunches for the next day (check that box on the To Do list!), wash dishes and still have some time to relax ourselves.

As an example, here are our recipes for this week:

Fish Sticks with Green Beans and Potatoes (from Tyler Florence's Fresh Start)
Hoppin' John Soup (adapted from this Parenting.com recipe, by swapping in a can of black eyed peas for one of the cans of white beans, and adding a cup of cooked brown rice)
One Pan Lasagna (from Tyler Florence's Fresh Start)
Cozy At Home Mac n Cheese (from What to Expect: Eating Well When You're Expecting, we use cauliflower as our veggie add-in)
Two Cheese Pesto Pizza (from Weelicious.com)
Pear Struesel Muffins (from OnceAMonthMom.com - but I'll be honest, we probably won't get to these until THIS weekend...)

(if you use MyFitnessPal, I can share the nutrition info I already input for some of the recipes below that don't provide it!)

more weekly recipes:

1 week
3 weeks' worth

Kale Chips

I had heard several (rather unlikely individuals) that kale chips were delicious. I enquired, and the directions seemed easy enough, but I was skeptical and promptly forgot about them until perusing the market this weekend for a veggie side to our burgers.

Very easy recipe:

1 bunch kale
cooking spray
seasoning salt (or other seasoning options - very versatile!)

Wash the Kale leaves. Cut the tough stems out from the leaves, and cut into chip-sized pieces. Spin the pieces in a salad spinner to remove water. Arrange the pieces on cookie sheets in a single layer (it took us two batches to cook them all). Spray with cooking spray and sprinkle with seasoning. bake on 350 for 10 minutes. DONE.

Kale Chips

Toddler lunch - home made fish sticks were a hit!

Happy Friday!

I have a fun recipe to share this week: Fish Sticks.

Not the frozen ones, but simple, healthy ones made at home - quickly. Both kid- and dad-approved.



rasperry summer salad (raspberries, grilled chicken, goat cheese, apricot dressing
 and green beans instead of lettuce) + rosemary crackers;
whole grain blackberry muffin + tangelo slices;
grapes, carrots and yogurt



Homemade Fish Sticks, quick whole wheat cheddar biscuits, frozen peas, apple slices;
whole grain blackberry muffin + apricot slices;
blueberry granola + yogurt

hard boiled egg, Annie's snack mix, cherry tomato slices, green beans, black beans;
blueberry granola, yogurt;
watermelon chunks, whole grain blackberry muffin

Not pictured: two days of the same recipe: cauliflower mac n cheese with our typical sides/snacks of veggies, yogurt, muffin and fruit!

Fish Stick Recipe

(adapted from from Cooking Light's)

 

Ingedients

1/2 c panko

1/2 c bread crumbs

1 pound skinless Pacific cod or other firm-fleshed white fish fillet

1/2 teaspoon salt, divided

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (we used whole wheat) 

1-2 large eggs, beaten

Cooking spray

1/4 cup fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth

2 cups frozen green peas

1 tablespoon butter

8 mint leaves

Preparation

1. Cut fish into 16 (3 x 1-inch) pieces; pat dry with paper towels. Sprinkle fish evenly with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Place flour and egg in separate shallow dishes. Dredge 1 fish finger in flour, shaking off any excess. Dip fish in egg; dredge in breadcrumbs. Repeat procedure with remaining fish, flour, egg, and breadcrumbs. Arrange coated fish on a cooking-spray-coated broiling pan. Bake at 425° for 8 minutes or until desired degree of doneness, carefully turning once.
2. Bring chicken broth to a simmer in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in peas; cover and cook 2 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in butter, mint, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Place pea mixture in a food processor; process until smooth. Place about 1/3 cup pea puree in the middle of each of 4 plates. Stack 4 fish fingers on the puree. Serve with lemon wedges, if desired.

(note: our toddler preferred the whole frozen peas for dinner instead of the mushy ones, but I enjoyed the minty version in the recipe!)

Quick whole wheat biscuits (we used all whole wheat flour, regular milk, and added 1/4 - 1/2 cup of shredded cheddar to the batter before baking!)

Toddler lunches this week - breakfast for lunch!

So we got some feedback this week from school that Mason is no longer interested in his cereal bars. He eats half and throws half. We will no longer be including those, I guess... one less prepackaged thing probably isn't bad.

Also, in talking with another parent at school, he asked, "Are you the family that packs the eco-friendly lunches?" Maybe. I'll take that as a compliment!

So, here are this week's lunches (and a few from last week - sorry I forgot to share)! Perhaps this lends some inspiration to your shopping this weekend.

mini-frittata (see recipe below), half a biscuit, steamed carrots, frozen peas, cherry tomato halves
yogurt and cereal bar,
Weelicious granola, orange slices and raisins

turkey slice, cheese slice, rosemary crackers, cherry tomato halves, raisins
Rise and Shine Muffin, yogurt
Weelicous granola bar, strawberries

leftover black beans and rice, steamed carrots, leftover chicken (from our bike-to-chick-fil-a kids' night), cherry tomato halves
Rise and Shine muffin and yogurt
Annie's snack mix and stawberries

peanut butter and honey sandwich, pear sticks

mini-frittata, half a biscuit, steamed carrots, orange slices, cherry tomato halves
mango and cereal bar
Weelicious granola and yogurt

taco salad toppings, steamed carrots, shredded cheddar, Annie's snack mix
1/4 blueberry bagel and yogurt
Weelicious granola and orange slices

taco salad toppings, steamed carrots, cherry tomato halves, cheddar slivers, Annie's snack mix
mango and yogurt
Weelicious granola and orange slices

Mini-Frittatas

(modified from a parenting.com recipe)

1 c chopped mushrooms

1 c chopped red pepper

10 large eggs

1 tsp salt

shredded mozzerella (about 3/4 cup)

Preheat oven to 350. Saute mushrooms and pepper. Coat a muffin tin with cooking spray. Divide the veggies evenly among the muffin sections. 

Whisk the eggs with the salt, and pour into muffin tin, dividing equally. Top each well with some cheese.

Bake for 15 minutes or until puffy.

Serve with tater tots!

Toddler Food - Mexican Recipe!

In case you need inspiration for your weekend market trip... recipes links are at the bottom!

I was just scrolling through some of the older recipe posts and getting re-inspired for my own grocery trip!

Seriously: try the granola bars. They are really easy, and I made half the batch chocolate chip (for myself! so addicting!) and the other half with raisins/dried cranberries/diced dried apricots for M.

shrimp and corn chowder, wedge of veggie quesadilla, apple slices
weelicious granola (with dried fruit instead of chocolate chips), granola
blueberries, carrots, cereal bar

fish'n'grits, steamed broccoli and carrots
Weeliciouis granola bar and yogurt
kiwi and cereal bar

cauliflower mac n cheese, steamed veggies, edamame, blackberries
tangelo slices, cereal bar
Weelicious granola, yogurt

shrimp and corn chowder, veggie quesadilla wedges, apple slices
yogurt and weelicous granola
strawberries, steamed carrots, turkey slice

Meatloaf cupcake (mashed potato 'icing'), steamed carrots, diced tomato, blackberries
tangelo slices, cereal bar
yogurt, weelicious granola

Shrimp and Corn Chowder (Cooking Light)

Chocolate Chip Granola Bars (Weelicious.com)

Pecan Crusted Trout (Cooking Light)

Cauliflower Mac N Cheese (What to Eat When You're Expecting)

Meatloaf Cupcakes (Cooking Light Santa Fe Meatloaf)

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Meatloaf Cupcakes

These just had the cutest presentation, that I had to share :)

I used this Santa Fe-style cooking light recipe for the meatloaf, but instead of one big loaf, I divided into 16 mini loaves, using our muffin tins. I modified the prep by filling 16 spots halfway with a little less than half the meat mixture, sprinkled the cheese into each, then topped with the other half of the meat. Then spooned a teaspoon or so of salsa onto each cupcake. I baked for 20-25 minutes on the same recommended temperature.

If you like a more classic meatloaf, You could do the very same, by dividing it into muffin tins and starting your cooking time at around 20 minutes until they are done!

For the mashed potatoes, just make 'em how you make 'em (we even left the skins on, but you could also just use flakes if that's how you like them). Then fill up a quart-sized ziptop freezer bag with the potatoes, and cut a small corner off one bottom edge of the bag (start small, you can always make it bigger if you need to) and pipe on top of your meatloaf muffins.

Sprinkle with a little Parmesan and - Ta-da!

Toddler lunch!! Spanikopita Burger Recipe

One of our favorite recipes is included this week: Spanikopita Burgers. I still haven't found the best way to introduce these, because I know the idea of spinach is a turnoff to so many people. Let's just say, the skeptics who've tried it have loved it... so you will love it, too.

Spanikopita burger (see recipe below), corn, blueberries, half of a Rise and Shine muffin;
Plain yogurt, steamed carrots
cereal bar, kiwi

Cauliflower Mac n Cheese, edamame, steamed carrots, blueberries
yogurt, cereal bar
Toddler Trail mix (Annie's snack mix, Mom's Best Naturals Toasted Cinnamon Squares, raisins, diced dried apricot)

OK... this one is sort of embarrassing... but it was a single mom night... and if you read one of those posts...
half-eaten piece of Cheers! Pizza, a quarter of a Spanikopita burger, green beans, halved cherry tomatoes, blueberries
Rise and Shine muffin, frozen peas
yogurt, diced mango

Spanikopita burger, half Rise and Shine muffin, halved heirloom cherry tomatoes, corn
Yogurt, orange slices & craisins
cereal bar, diced mango

Spanikopita Burger (adapted from Rachel Ray's recipe)

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 red onion, 1/2 chopped, 1/2 thinly sliced
• 10 oz box frozen spinach, defrosted
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 pound feta crumbles
• 1 1/3 pounds ground chicken or turkey
• 1 tablespoon Montreal Steak Seasoning by McCormick)
• whole wheat buns

Directions

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. To one side, add the olive oil and butter. When melted add the garlic and onion. Transfer the onions and garlic to a bowl to cool. Return pan to heat.

Wring the defrosted spinach dry (we squeeze in in our hands). Separate the spinach as you add it to the bowl with cool onions, garlic and season with oregano. Add in feta crumbles then chicken or turkey, grill seasoning and. Mix and form into 5-6 patties, 1-inch thick. Raise heat on pan to medium-high. Add patties and cook 6 inches on each side.

Top bun with cooked burger. We like to lightly toast the bun and add regular mustard to ours! Enjoy!

More Toddler Lunches

I apologize for the scarcity of posts lately, as we have been moving and traveling the past couple weeks. But for the few lunches I have packed for my little one, here are some highlights!!

Veggie pasta, orange sections, hard boiled egg (Easter leftovers!!), blueberries;
cereal bar, kiwi
yogurt, Gerber's toddler banana cookies (an Easter basket gift from his Gigi)

The toddler version of tonight's dinner: A summer salad with chicken, almonds, strawberries, goat cheese, homemade apricot-Dijon dressing, and (canned) green beans instead of lettuce!
Admittedly, the goat cheese didn't go over all that well (you should have seen the face he made!!) but it was worth the try. Everything else I was very confident he would enjoy.

look familiar? more veggie pasta, orange sections, hard boiled egg, blueberries
strawberries, yogurt
cereal bar

Sausage and rice, blueberries, (multi-colored) heirloom cherry tomatoes, yogurt-covered pretzel
steamed carrots (funny looking because they are made from REAL carrots, pulled right from the ground!), yogurt
cereal bar, kiwi

the packed-lunch version of the summer salad:
strawberries, almonds, rotisserie chicken, (canned) green beans, Annie's Snack Mix
steamed carrots, raisins (from his Easter eggs!)
cereal bar, yogurt

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