Winter Menu Planning 2015

Ugh!  For goodness sakes, it feels like I was just sitting here struggling through this yesterday.  Actually, it doesn't, but I do remember it well.  Why do I struggle so?  Probably because my husband loves a good meal right when he walks in the door.  Poor guy, he drives two hours a day, and he's HANGRY when he gets home.  (Hungry-angry if you've never heard that one before.  :)  Satan loves it when I don't have dinner ready because it causes strife in our household.  All the more reason to get this done!
We're going back to basics this new year.  Seriously cutting out the processed food in hopes of lowering hubby's blood pressure a bit.  We've already done a lot of that, but now that he's fully on board it's full steam ahead which means I should be back in the kitchen a lot more. 
I have set the timer for 20 minutes to get this planning done, so let's go!




Week 1
Sunday: Chicken bake strips - bread crumb and seasoned - double meat for leftovers
              Make veggie tray for week, rice- plain or seasoned by me!
              Steamed veggies, salad, homemade rolls? - Get back to 5 minute bread dough!
Monday: Green Spaghetti, salad, rolls, smoothies
Tuesday: Tacos without the shell, guacamole!, refrides, Spanish rice from scratch
Wednesday: Leftovers?/ Date Night
Thursday: Chicken Stir Fry using leftover chicken, rice, froz. stir fry veggies
Friday: Shredded Beef, potatoes, onions, etc.  homemade rolls  Lots of leftovers for the weekend!!
             FYI- Make sure you don't cook the plastic they put on the bottom of the roast!  :$






Week 2
Sunday: Chicken bake strips- bread crumb and seasoned - double meat for leftovers
              Make veggie tray for week, rice- plain or seasoned by me!
              Steamed veggies, salad, homemade rolls? - Get back to 5 minute bread dough!
Monday: Chicken Pot Pie with leftover chicken and lots of yummy veggies.
               Homemade Chicken Broth
               Homemade rolls--just use this dough
Tuesday: Ground Beef Asian Stir Fry- onion, peppers, broccoli and whatever else you want.  Throw
                in some teriyaki, soy sauce, worcestershire, garlic, ginger...
                rice
Wednesday: Leftovers/ date night?
Thursday: SW Chicken Salad/Sandwich?
Friday: Shredded Beef, potatoes, onions, etc.  homemade rolls  Lots of leftovers for the weekend!!
             FYI- Make sure you don't cook the plastic they put on the bottom of the roast!  :$


OK!  The timer is beeping...actually I reset it for 10 more minutes.  I usually plan for 4 weeks, but I figure this is a good start.  We'll see how it goes.  Hubby usually has some ideas too anyway.


Dear Lord,
PLEASE give me the wisdom to cook things my husband likes that will make our bodies strong and ready for Your service.  May dinner be nourishing, delicious and ready on time!!  In Jesus' Name I pray--Amen

Menu Planning - Ugh!

I hate menu planning!  Sometimes I wonder if Satan knows how great life is when I menu plan, and that is why I have this mental block.  I was really good with planning our meals when we went gluten-free.  Now, this week, we have fallen apart.  So the struggle begins.  I have done this in the past, so I don't know why it's such a hassle.  I need to start with prayer:
Dear Lord, Please release the block on my brain regarding menu planning.  I pray that I will be able to sort through what my family likes and doesn't like, and what type of meals we need to go with our schedule.  I pray that this time spent will be profitable to my family.  Above all, may Your will be done.  In Jesus name I pray--Amen
Whew!  OK
STEP ONE: What type of meals does my family like to eat?
Pasta, Mexican, Stir-Fry, BBQ, Sandwich, Basic, Leftovers  Alright, that was pretty easy. 


STEP TWO: Basic Weekly Template (We don't eat fish or pork.)
Sunday: BBQ with double meat for leftovers.
Monday: Chicken
Tuesday: Ground Beef
Wednesday: Leftovers/Date Night
Thursday: Chicken
Friday: Beef


STEP THREE: Plug in recipes using each meal type one time per week.
WEEK ONE:
Sunday: BBQ with double meat for leftovers.
Monday: Green Spaghetti broccoli, fruit
Tuesday: Taco lettuce wraps (or tacos), refrieds, Spanish rice?
Wednesday: Leftovers/Date Night
Thursday: Chicken Stir Fry using leftover grilled or crock pot chicken.  Rice, broccoli, fruit
Friday: Shredded Beef with lots of leftovers for weekend lunches.  Onion, carrots, other veg and fruit


WEEK TWO:
Sunday: BBQ with double meat for leftovers.
Monday: Greek Pizza, salad, veg, fruit
Tuesday:  Ground Beef Stir Fry, rice, broccoli
Wednesday: Leftovers/Date Night
Thursday: SW Chicken Salad Lettuce Wraps, refrieds, chips, veg
Friday: Shredded Beef Sandwiches with leftovers for weekend.


WEEK THREE:
Sunday: BBQ with double meat for leftovers.
Monday: Chicken Quesadillas, refrieds, spa rice?, guac
Tuesday: Lasagna in a bowl., or just plain old lasagna
Wednesday: Leftovers/Date Night
Thursday: Turkey Breast (for a change!) From Cost-Co., veg, fruit
Friday: Chalupa (roast, no surprise here!), beans, chips, veg, fruit


ALRIGHT, JUST ONE WEEK LEFT TO GO!


WEEK FOUR:
Sunday: BBQ with double meat for leftovers.
Monday: Chicken Caesar Salad, veg, fruit
Tuesday: Indian Ground Beef
Wednesday: Leftovers/Date Night
Thursday: Summer Chicken "Burgers", veg, fruit
Friday: Shredded Beef Burritos, refrieds, veg, fruit


Holy smokes!  Seriously, I don't know why doing this hurts so badly.  It is such a load off to have this done.  Even if we don't stick with it, at least there's a plan. 
How's your plan?  Are you good at this, or do you struggle like me?  If you don't meal plan, I urge you to try it.  Don't follow mine, create your own - unique to your family.  Go for it!  Just don't forget to look at it when life gets moving.  :)


Dear Lord, Thank You for the resources to plan these meals.  I pray that I will remember to follow it.  May it bring good, healthy food and peace to our family.  In Jesus name I pray--Amen


 

Gluten Free Week 2 Plan and Results

Week Two, here we go!  Result are in italics.


Breakfast:
Same as Week 1


Lunch:
Same as Week 1


Dinner:
Sunday: Grill up lots of chicken.  :) Freeze for week.  Veggie packs on grill.  Gluten Free Mac and Cheese - Annie's - from Walmart.  The Mac and Cheese was good, but $2.56 a box.  We ate two boxes!
Monday: Green Spaghetti using leftover grilled chicken.  Broccoli, salad-caesar?, fruit
*Cook gluten-free spaghetti and drain.  Combine one small jar pesto sauce and one small container of shredded parmesan cheese in pot and stir until combined.  Add spaghetti and chicken a little bit at a time and mix to coat.  Put lid on pan until ready to serve-the chicken will heat up in the pot.  We love this!  It is a definite favorite in our house.  No one noticed the change in pasta.
Tuesday: Taco lettuce wraps, refrieds, Spanish rice, ?
*Cook up a double batch of ground beef.  Add taco seasoning to some and set aside the rest.  Set up a buffet type taco bar: olives, avocado, tomatoes, cheese, etc.  Don't forget the lettuce to wrap it up in!  And, probably, corn chips.  Oops!  I defrosted shredded beef on accident.  No worries, just cooked up shredded beef "enchiladas" instead.  Layer corn tortillas, beef, cheese, sauce, repeat.  Cook until bubbly.
Wednesday: Chicken Stir Fry using leftover grilled chicken and Teriyaki sauce.  Snap peas, water chestnuts, and whatever else you like.  Serve with rice and broccoli.  Yummy
Thursday: Indian style ground beef  This was good.  I was surprised...I didn't think I would like the spices, but this will be a keeper.  Similar to Asian Ground Beef Stir Fry, but different seasonings.  Added fresh cucumber from the garden.  Served with rice.
Friday: Hubby is grilling London broil.  He's cutting it thin, and making enough for weekend lunches.  Salad, veggies, fruit  Contemplating more mac and cheese.  :)


Snacks:
Peanut butter balls  I forgot how good these are.  I only had time for a single batch, but will likely make a double batch as soon as they are gone.  Kids have been eating them for breakfast along with a banana.  Peanut butter, oats, raw honey, better than your average cereal!
Z bars (made by Cliff bars)
Lots of fruit and veggies
nachos (with real cheese of course!)
So far, so good.  We've found a lot of snacks/chips that we like.  The real test will come tomorrow if we go out of town.  Will we pack our food or attempt to eat out?  It takes two weeks for the gluten to get out of your system, I would hate to mess that up when we are so close!  My daughter started taking fiber as her body was noticing the difference.  I hope we make it through the weekend.  I would hate for this to be in vain!
Dear Lord, Please give us the strength to keep going.  May it be abundantly clear if this is how we should be eating or if gluten doesn't affect us.  We desire to be healthy and ready to do your work!  In Jesus Name-Amen

Seasoning with Efficiency - Taco Seasoning

Taco seasoning is used in my kitchen quite a bit.  Therefore, I make it in bulk and store it in my cabinet for easy use.  Making it reminds me of the fun I had using colored sand or salt as a kid to make art in little baby food jars.  I don't think I am explaining that correctly... I remember layering the colored sand into little jars and making pictures with it.  Layering all the seasonings in the pint jar is fun and it looks pretty.  :)


Recipe:
1/2 c chili powder
1/3 c + a little bit more paprika
1/4 c + 2 TBSP cumin
1/4 c onion powder
1/4 c salt
3 TBSP + 1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper


Layer in a pint sized jar and admire the beauty.  The shake it up until mixed.


**I do not actually measure out the extra TBSP and tsp.  I just eyeball it and it turns out just fine.  When I increased the recipe on allrecipes.com, this is what it came out to be.

Gluten-Free Week 1 Plan and Results

The time has come: Gluten free for four weeks!  The biggest challenge for us will be snacks.  No crackers or tortillas?  What?  Luckily, I have recipes ready to go, I just haven't made them in a while.  Here's the plan: Results are in italics.




Breakfast
Crazy Cake - Yes, you can eat this for breakfast!!
Eggs and melted cheese + fruit or veggies This was a hit with Sweet Son.  Daughter still won't try it.  She's been eating Zbars and fruit.  We'll have to work on this next week.


Lunch
Leftovers!  We've been eating everything with taco chips.  Another thing we'll have to work on next week.
Salad with leftover chicken, tuna or canned salmon - Me
Fruit and Veggies


Dinner
Monday: Lasagna type pasta (gluten-free of course)  I may just eat this without the pasta. 
Broccoli or Garlic Green Beans, salad, fruit Side note: I don't do much measuring when I cook.  I try to make things as brainless as possible but still have it taste good.  First I mixed a small tub of Ricotta cheese with a quart sized bag of shredded mozzarella.  Then I layered gluten free penne pasta (Barilla brand which I bought at Walmart), cheese mixture, ground beef, and spaghetti sauce in a glass bowl until full and put the lid on.  Popped it in the small electric "toaster" oven we have on the counter until melted and bubbly.  Hubby really liked this.  He brought it for lunch all week.
*Cook up extra ground beef for Wednesday!
*Cook Crockpot Quinoa in crockpot for Tuesday.


Tuesday: Southwestern Chicken Salad Lettuce Wraps
                *Cook chicken in the crockpot.  Shred and add celery, onion?, mayo and taco seasoning to
                   taste.  Serve avocado, salsa, etc. on the side.  Cook extra chicken and freeze it for later! 
I ended up using leftover chicken I found in the freezer.  I cut it up into small pieces with my chicken scissors.  Forgot about the lettuce, ate with corn chips.  This is a keeper.
                  *Quinoa mixed with something to make it Southwestern-onions, cilantro, cumin, garlic?   
                       How about green chilies?  This is not a keeper.  Turns out everyone refuses to eat quinoa, including Hubby.  Good thing I have chickens to feed it to.  The crockpot did cook up the quinoa nicely, though.
                  *Veggies and Fruit


Wed: Asian Ground Beef Stir Fry
                 *Use ground beef from Monday.  Sautee onions, green pepper and garlic.  Add meat, teriyaki sauce, woreceshire, red pepper flakes, water chestnuts and whatever else you like.  Just found out soy sauce and teriyaki can contain gluten!  Must look into this and re-read my labels.  This was a hit with Hubby and Son.
                 *Asian salad?, veggie, fruit, quinoa No quinoa for my family!  Served with rice.


Thursday: Summer Chicken "Burgers"
          *Grill or bake chicken breasts to your liking.  Serve with melted provolone, green chilies,  
             sautéed onions, avocado  Ended up crock-potting two large packages of chicken.  Used water and lemon juice, cooked on high 4 hours.  I have a ton left over!  Yeah!  Using the same baking bowl from Monday, layered shredded chicken, sliced provolone and green chilies.  Baked in small oven until melted.  Hubby said this was a keeper.  Daughter, who ate just plain chicken, said it was really good.  Victory!
          *Salad, Green beans or broccoli, refrieds, corn chips 
          *Fruit and Veggies


Friday: Shredded Beef Tacos (crockpot), refrieds, Spanish rice?  Make extra for weekend lunches. Cook in crockpot with water, garlic and salt.  Have green chilies on hand at dinner time for Hubby.


Sat and Sunday:  BBQ, salad, veg, fruit  Sunday, grill extra meat for use in meals next week!!!


Snacks:
Almond Bars This wasn't a big hit this go-round.  Son said it needed chocolate chips.  I agree.  Everything is better with chocolate chips!
Lots of fruit and veggies!  We had a ton of these on hand.
Frozen grape kabobs.  Slide grapes onto BBQ skewers, put in a freezer zip lock bag and keep in the freezer.  The kids love these!




So far, so good.  The kids are the ones really missing bread, crackers, etc.  Especially when we walk past the Subway inside Walmart.  It smells so delicious!  Planning meals ahead of time is such a blessing and something I haven't done in a long time!

Crockpot Quinoa

If you are going to cook something, make it as easy as possible and double it!


Crockpot Quinoa (this recipe has been tripled)


4.5 c quinoa
9 c chicken broth/liquid (Adjust liquid to your liking.  This will make soft quinoa.)
3 T olive oil
1.5 tsp salt


1. Rinse quinoa in a fine mesh strainer until the water runs clear!  THIS STEP IS A MUST!!  QUINOA WILL BE BITTER IF YOU SKIP THIS STEP.
2. Dump quinoa into the crockpot.
3. Add oil and mix it around.
4. Add broth and salt.
5. Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours or on high for 2-4. 
The quinoa is done when you can fluff it with a fork and it is tender.
Freeze extra for use later.

How I Make Chicken Broth

I strive to do everything as streamlined as possible, and the same way every time so I can fly on autopilot.  This way I am not wasting time and energy.  Here is my new Chicken Broth routine.  Totally doable and easy.

1. Get the crock pot out. 
    I personally leave mine out in the laundry room.  I will have this broth going for more that 24 hours, and I hate to smell it in the middle of the night, so I hide it in the laundry room.  Plus, hubby hates things cluttering up the kitchen.  I am blessed with a small counter space in my laundry room.  My laundry room is my domain.  Notice the cute little curtain and all the green and pink?  You will find this no where else in my house.  Thank you hubby for helping me make a space of my own.  :)  BTW, I do not leave the crock pot on with the curtain closed.  Too scared of fire.  Just closed it for looks.  :)

2. Buy a whole chicken.
    My personal favorite - Costco organic chickens.  Two in a pack for about $20.  But if I can't get to Costco, any chicken will do.  I am called by God to live within my means, so if I can't afford an organic chicken so be it.  I will do my best with what I have, and trust Him to do the rest.

3. Prep the chicken.
    Defrost the chicken if necessary.  Then, put the chicken in the sink and remove the wrapping.  Take out the giblet package.  This contains the neck and some organs.  Yum, yum, these are apparently great for your body, so cut the package open and empty it into the crock pot.  Rinse the chicken inside and out and stuff it into the pot.  I stay stuff, because it really is stuffed into my small pot.  Hopefully, someday I will have a bigger one.  :)

4. Fill the pot with water and turn it on.
   Cover the chicken.  Leave some room for veggies and simmering bubbles.  Since I am usually doing this sometime in the afternoon, I start the broth on high so the first batch will be done by 8pm or so.

5. Add some veggies.
    My favorites: carrots, onion and garlic.  If you don't have time right away, no worry.  Do it when you can.  BTW, Costco big bag of organic carrots for $5.  What a deal, and a good way to get kids helping in the kitchen--peeling carrots.  Feel free to add some seasoning as well.  Maybe some pepper and salt.  I add salt later when I use the broth.

6. Drain the pot and pull out the meat.
    After a few hours, I just take a big ladle and use it to fill my glass pitcher with broth.  I get as much out of the pot as possible.  Then I take some tongs and try to get out all the meat.  The carcass is totally falling apart by this point, so look out for little bones!  The meat goes straight into a corning ware dish and into my fridge.  This week I will use it in soup and for lunches.  The pitcher of broth also goes into my fridge.

See the broth in the upper right corner?  That is two batches worth.  Chicken meat is in the lower left.

7. Fill the pot with water, turn to low and don't think about it again until the next morning.
    Leave all the bones and veggies in the pot.

8. In the morning, drain the pot again.
   Add the broth to the broth you have already.  Fill the pot again with water, and let is simmer all day.

9. In the evening, drain the pot again.
    I now have enough broth for the week.  One cup each morning, and some for soup.  I have read that the broth will last one week in the fridge, and I tested this last week with no ill side-effects.  However, feel free to freeze some and defrost it mid-week.  Especially if you have a small family and a big crock pot.  This is also good to do if there's no way your kids and hubby are going to drink broth.  :)

10. Dump the remains and clean the pot.
      Let everything cool before you throw it in the trash.  :)

RESET Day 2: Crazy Cake

This is something I've been meaning to post for some time.  We've been eating this for a while, so it isn't really a RESET, but I figured I should tell you about it.  Crazy Cake got its name because it doesn't make any sense to me!  There is no flour, yet it has the consistency of cake...crazy!  Eggs aren't on the fabulous list for A or O, but from my traditional eating background, they are supposed to be great for you.  Plus, we have chickens.  :)  Peanut butter is on the A highly beneficial list.  It is a no-no for type O, but hubby eats yogurt for breakfast.
Following my "If you are taking time to cook something, double it if at all possible!" motto, I double this recipe and cook them side by side in the oven.  I store the cut up pieces in gallon size baggies.  This is so easy for kids to serve themselves for breakfast.  Decent amount of  protein - approx. 12 grams, and low on sugar - approx 13 grams, but yummy!

Crazy Cake

Adapted from:

www.nourishingmeals.com

 

3/4 jar almond butter, peanut butter, or a combo

4 eggs

2/3 c grapeseed oil

2/3 c pure maple syrup or rapadura raw sugar

½ c cocoa powder

4 tsp vanilla

1 tsp baking soda

½ tsp sea salt

 

1. Pre-heat oven to 350.  Grease 9x13 pan.
2. Place everything into food processor with s blade.  Combine until smooth.
3. Taste…I think this is yummy!  J
4. Pour in pan and bake about 30 minutes.
5. Cool and enjoy.
6. Cut into 12 pieces.

This is titled Crazy Cake, because I still don’t understand how it works.  J  No flour?!  I made these for my daughter’s class during standardized testing, and the kids didn’t know the difference.  They were a hit!

What's Cookin'?

So, what's cooking on this wonderfully warm spring day?  Quite a bit, actually.  Amazingly, I had a big block of time...thank goodness since I have been working 5 days a week lately.  Last night, I sliced up a bunch of veggies for breakfast, lunches and whatever else this week.  See that shiney, new Kitchen Aide to the left?  Happy Birthday to me!  It's a big one this year, so I got to splurge a bit.  :)  Anyway, in the back you'll see the bowl full of carrot peelings and other veggie scraps ready for the chickens.  This week for breakfast, I'll plop these out on the table every morning and serve up some eggs and turkey bacon to go with them.  An easy way for the kids to get their first serving of veggies.  I prefer to saute my veggies up and then scramble some eggs right in.  So, in the  fridge I have a baggie holding shredded zucchini and chopped onion.  After I finish the kid's eggs, I'll dump my veg in the pan and cook 'em up.  Pretty simple and yummy.  I prefer to cook up a giant batch and save it for a couple days.  I just put some on a small plate and heat it up in the toaster oven while I cook for the kids.  Lot's of protein and veg to start your day.  Hooray!
What else is cookin'?

Almond Bars

Ingredients:

2 cups crispy almonds*

½ c crispy sunflower seeds

½ c raisins

                                     ¼ c crispy pumpkin seeds

                                     2 TBSP sesame seeds

                                     ¼ tsp sea salt

                                     1/3 c honey

Directions:

1.     Preheat oven to 325F.

2.  Coarsely chop almonds.  While you’re at it, make it double, bag it, and keep it in the fridge for next time. 

3.  Mix all dry ingredients together.

4.  Add honey and stir to coat.

5.  Line a 9x13 pan with parchment paper.  Parchment paper is amazing.  Without it, removing the bars from the pan and clean up is bleck.

6.  Pour mixture into pan and spread out.

7.   Bake at 325 for 17-22 minutes.  Cool.  Lift sides of paper and take bars out.  Cut bars and store in the fridge.

*Crispy = soaked overnight in saltwater, then dehydrated.  See www.thenourishinggourmet.com for details.

Seasoning with Efficiency--Greek Seasoning

Greek Seasoning

1/3 c garlic powder
1/3c dried oregano
1/3 c dried basil
¼ c pepper
¼ c sea salt
¼ c onion powder


Dressing:
2 TBSP seasoning
1/3 c olive oil
1/3 c red wine vinegar
1/3 c raw apple cider vinegar

I throw in the raw apple cider vinegar just because it’s supposed to be so darned good for you. It gets hidden in the dressing, and the fam doesn’t even know it. :)

You can use 2/3 c red wine vinegar if you’d like.
Or, use whatever mixture YOUR family prefers.


Efficient, my current favorite word. This word has power. I am a Power Mom when I am doing things efficiently. I am saving time for my family. I am thinking more clearly, getting things done more quickly, using the most of our resources, blah, blah, blah. I'd better cut to the chase and be efficient with my time. :)
Greek Seasoning. It's a beautiful thing. So efficient because it can be made it bulk and thrown into just about anything, anytime. Tomorrow I will throw a few scoops into the spaghetti sauce. Everyday we use the salad dressing we make with it. The dressing can be used on salads, pasta salads, sliced potatoes that are baked in the oven, chicken that has been a bit overcooked-although my new digitial thermometer from Walmart has taken care of that problem. :) This seasoning is so brilliant (I didn't make the recipe) because it is so versitile. Of course, this is true for my family. As I stated in the last post, get to know YOUR family. If you think this will work for you then, Yeah! If not, search www.allrecipes.com. I adapted this recipe from a recipe for Greek salad dressing I found on that site.

We loved the salad dressing for a long time. Then one day, I was making spaghetti sauce and realized that I was using the same seasonings, and wah-lah, a brilliant, efficient idea formed in my head. Why not make this seasoning in bulk, and store it in a cute pint canning jar so it is available on demand? This has changed my life. No longer am I dreading pulling out the spices to make the dressing. What? We're out of dressing and we're eating dinner RIGHT NOW? No more a problem. Just unscrew the lid, add 2 TBSP of Greek Seasoning, 1/3 part red wine vinegar, 1/3 part raw apple cider vinegar, and 1/3 part olive oil. Mix it up, and done. Really, I don't even measure anymore. I have this nifty dressing container/maker from Pampered Chef, and I just eyeball it. Noone complains. :) I also use a taco seasoning that I will post later.



Efficient Budget Tip: If you don't use organic, buy your spices at Costco if possible. Big containers, small prices. For organic spices check out www.azurestandard.com. Find out if they have a drop off location set up in your area. This is a co-op...you order and pay online, then meet the truck with everyone else. Great prices, no shipping cost for $50 or more. Only $5 if you spend less.

100% Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread in Five Minutes

Here is a recipe worth trying out. It comes from Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day. There is an entire website dedicated to making bread in 5 minutes a day: www.artisanbreadinfive.com. It is a fabulous concept! The website and books are worth checking out. I found the Artisan Bread book at my library. Since this first book, the authors (one being a professional baker) have published also a book titled Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day with recipes using more whole wheat.
I have had a hard time getting this bread to rise, but it could be due to my being at 5,000 feet above sea level. So, I decided to post this recipe anyway, for those of you who are at lower elevations. When I figure out the secret for my altitude, I'll post it again.
It is definitely worth a try! Easy and yummy.

A few notes:
I have made this with milk and also with all water.
Yeast is MUCH cheaper when bought in the large container vs. packages.
I use grapeseed oil, which I buy in bulk from Azure Standard.

Ingredients
1 1/2 c lukewarm water
1 1/2 c lukewarm milk
1 1/2 TBSP granulated yeast (1 1/2 packets)
1 TBSP sea salt + 1 tsp sea salt
1/2 c honey
5 TBSP neutral flavored oil, plus more for greasing the pan
6 2/3 c whole wheat flour (freshly ground if possible, and NOT whole wheat pastry flour or "graham" flour) I like to use my sprouted flour.

Directions
1. Mix yeast, salt, honey and oil with milk and water.
2. Mix in dry ingredients WITHOUT kneading. This is easily done by hand with a spoon.
3. Cover - not airtight - and allow to rest at room temperature until the dough rises and collapses (or flattens on top); approx. 2-3 hours.
4. The dough can be used immediately after the initial rise, or I like to throw it into a container (or two) with holes punched in the lids and put into the 'fridge for a while. Usually until the next day. (This dough is pretty sticky.) The dough can be kept in the 'fridge for up to 5 days.

On Baking Day
1. lightly grease your loaf pan. Using wet hands, scoop out a 1 1/2 - 2 lb handful of dough.
2. Quickly shape the dough to fit your pan and drop it right in. It should be filled a little more that half-way.
3. Allow the dough to rest for 1 hour and 40 minutes.
4. Preheat the oven at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes for a 1 1/2 lb loaf OR
preheat to 375 for a 2 lb loaf.
5. Bake 1 1/2 lb loaf for 50 minutes and 2 lb loaf for 60 minutes.
6. Remove from the pan and let it cool completely before slicing.

This recipe yields 2 loaves if you use 1.5 lbs of dough, or one 2lb loaf and some rolls. My family isn't sold on it yet, but again, I think it is due to the high altitude factor. When I figure that out, I'll let you know!

High Altitude Brownies

Today is the first day of Spring Break! We are at the beginning of what I hope will be a glorious two weeks. The first week is promising, full of temps in the 70s. I love it!
Here is a recipe I adapted from www.allrecipes.com. I use the Lance Armstrong My Plate www.livestrong.com/myplate/ to configure my recipes so each serving has only 10 g/sugar or lower. These brownies have about 10 g of sugar if you cut at least 24. I cook them in a round crockery dish from Pampered Chef, because I like it. :) It is 12" in diameter. The recipe calls for an 8x8 pan, but that was just too little for me. I prefer to have slightly larger, thinner brownies. Then, at 10 g of sugar each, I can scarf them down throughout the day, during my "chocolate days", like I did this week! :)
A note on the high altitude... We are at 5000 feet, so when I saw this recipe, I grabbed it. If it doesn't work for you, you can at least look at my version vs. the original (High Altitude Deep Dish Brownies) at allrecipes and see how I changed it. Then you can find one for you and do the same!

High Altitude Brownies

Ingredients
7/8 c sprouted whole wheat flour (1 c - 2 TBSP)
1/2 c unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp sea salt
3/4 c butter, melted
1 c Rapadura sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3 eggs (we try to use free range or organic)
1/2 c mini chocolate chips
1/2 c peacans (optional)To see how to soak nuts to make them more digestable and make the nutrients more available to your body check out The Nourishing Gourmet.  Check out the tabs at the top of her site, and click on Nourishing Foundations.

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350. Grease your pan.

Cut up butter, and melt over low heat on the stove.
Meanwhile, combine flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt and set aside.
Now, combine melted butter, rapadura and vanilla.
Mix in eggs.
Gradually stir in dry ingredients just until blended. Don't worry if the cocoa powder isn't totally blended.
Fold in chocolate chips and pecans.
Spread the batter evenly in your pan.
Bake in oven for about 20-25 minutes depending on how gooey you like them. :)

We cut these into at least 24 pieces. Then we put 15 aside in snack baggies for lunches. We save the rest for whenever we want them. Hope you enjoy!

Soaked Wheat Crackers II

Aaahhh. It's a lazy, snowy day. Can you believe I actually read for a couple of HOURS and finished a book today? Not sure I should be proud of that, but it's been a nice day, and we have tomorrow off as well.
I'm about to throw some rolls into the oven thanks to a new recipe from a friend. You make enough dough to last five days, and approximately 5 loaves of bread. It is easy and different. More on that later when I am done experimenting with the dough.
Today I wanted to let you know what I am doing with our soaked wheat crackers. I end up making them about every two weeks. With the recipe, you end up rolling out the dough in four batches. I can't always make all four in one day, so I have thrown the dough into the refridgerator for a few days with no problem. It's so much easier to pull it out and roll one batch at a time.
I have started making three different types of crackers each time I make the recipe. With the first/second quarter I sprinkle cinnamon sugar(rapadura-unprocessed sugar) over the top and then cut. The kids love these. The third quarter gets sesame seeds and a bit of salt on top. Finally, the third batch gets a bit of salt and garlic powder for Hubbs. The kids love to eat the cinnamon sugar crackers immeadiately. The sesame crackers get eaten with cheese usually, and Hubbs takes his crackers for snacks at work and while hunting.
The rolls and homemade chicken noodle soup are calling...looks like a nice family night.

Soaked Wheat Crackers

OW! My shoulders, back, arms and my core are hurting! The only reason I can think of is the vigorous rolling out of these crackers! My daughter likes them really thin, like wheat thins, so I was really going at it. I think I'll make them more often. Healthy eats and a workout. I like that multi-task!

This recipe is based off of a recipe posted by Kimi at www.thenourishinggourmet.com. She has great information on why you should soak your grains before cooking. Check out her site...it's fabulous!

Soaked Wheat Crackers
THE NIGHT BEFORE:
3 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour (I am happy to say I used freshly ground hard winter wheat! Yeah Vita Mix!)
1/4 cup oil (I use grapeseed)
1 cup water with 2 TBSP vinegar (or buttermilk, yogurt...)

Mix the above together until it just forms a ball. Feel free to use your hands in the end. :) Cover, saran wrap works best, and leave overnight. This breaks down the phytic acid in the wheat and makes it easier to digest.

MORNING/NEXT DAY
Flatten your ball out on the counter. Use white flour if needed to prevent sticking. I had no trouble with this. Sprinkle the following over the top:

2 tsp sea salt
1 1/2 tsp baking powder

Fold in half and knead until salt and baking soda are mixed in. My dough was a bit stiff, but I still had no trouble with this. I just squished and squeezed my way through it. I also broke it into 4 chunks.

Preheat oven to 425.
Flour your rolling surface if necessary.

If you like thin crackers, roll only a chunk at a time. Roll until it is almost see through. This will give you a VERY thin cracker which will not stand up to hummus or other dip. You'll have to play with each chunk to see how thin or thick you like them.
Cut to wheat thin size with a pizza cutter, and prick holes in them with a fork.

Place them on your baking sheet. (greased if necessary)

Bake for 10-15 minutes depending on how thin they are, and how you crunchy you like them.

Let them cool and enjoy! We like to eat them with hummus or cheese. I just eat them plain. :)

Essential Oil and Green Smoothies hmmm.

Aaahhh. I'm allowing myself 15 minutes with my feet up before starting round two of my day, or it my be round three since it's dinnertime. :) Will is in the bath breathing in our wonderful essential oil mix...eucalyptus, tea tree, clove and peppermint. Just mix a few drops of each with some lotion or glycerin (available at Walmart in the Pharmacy dept) and add it to the water. It feels so good when you have a cold, which he does. 1.5 weeks into school, and he has a cold already! Stink. This year will be a test to see how healthy we are as Will enters the massive germ pool of public school for the first time. Bleck. He's got a major runny nose, but it's not keeping him down at all. So far, so good.
I went shopping today and got spinach for our smoothies. We use two big boxes of organic spinach every two weeks or so. I bring them home and pop them right into the pan with some ice cubes to cook while I am unloading everything. The box says it's been washed 3x and is ready to enjoy, so I trust the box and enjoy the time saved. Apparently, spinach is better for you if it is cooked,so I cook it as a favor to our digestive tracts. It is cooling on the stove right now, and after dinner I will put it in little snack bags and freeze them for future use. It's really not that difficult to be healthy!

OUR GREEN SMOOTHIE "RECIPE"
This makes us 2 good sized smoothies and 1 little one.

about 1 cup of water or water kefir (more about this later) in your blender
one frozen banana (just take your mushy bananas peel, break them apart and freeze them)
a handful or two of frozen strawberries or any other berry  we also like cherry and pineapple
a snack bag at least half full of frozen, cooked spinach
a big squeeze of bottled lemon juice (we like ours tart)  OR two teaspoons of lemon flavored cod-liver oil...seriously, it only tastes like lemon, the kids will never know.

Blend it all up. Add more liquid if you need to, or if you don't like it thick. The spinach makes the smoothie bright green, and we think that is fun. You actually can't taste the spinach at all...really. We tried red peppers once and you could taste it, but not spinach. Spinach is a super food, so it's worth a try! Imagine, you can get one of your 5 veggies in a yummy smoothie! If you want yours sweet, add more fruit and definitely axe the lemon juice. Point is, it is easy to make a smoothie; adjust it to how you like it. It usually takes me a total of 7 minutes clean-up included.

Tip: Cost-co carries big bags of frozen fruit.  Some organic.  :)

Gotta run..sorry for any typos...I'm 6 minutes late for round 3!

Favorite Healthy Lunch

Hey Christine...this one's for you. :)

My favorite healthy lunch...now that I am working, I make it everyday. I love it because it is so healthy it's disgusting, but actually yummy. Everyday I try to eat the following:
Lot's of fiber - 25+ grams
5 veggie servings (including one "leafy greens")
3 fruit servings.
Everything else seems to fall into place if I focus on these top three.

So, here's the ingredients for the super-healthy :) lunch. Super-duper healthy if you go all organic.

Flat Out Bread - find this at Walmart, Cost Co or any store. It comes with flax meal which adds lots of healthy fiber. You can also get it flavored with herbs.

A nice healthy salad - I like to buy mine organic, in a box. We did grow lettuce this spring, and it was awesome. We're going to attempt a mini greenhouse this winter with straw bales and old windows, so we can have lettuce all winter long. More on that later...Fix up a nice salad with some cucumbers, tomatoes...and you can just keep it in the box. It should last several days.

Pepper Jack Cheese - I like a little kick. Shred a bunch and keep it in a zip lock all week ready to go.

The initial prep takes some time, but is worth it. The night before - always make your lunch at night, or you will hate yourself in the morning!! - just whip out your flatbread and coat 2/3 of it with your cheese of choice. Cover the cheese with a bunch of salad and roll it up. Stick it in a quart size zip lock with the bottom bunched together in a corner. That's it! Add a snack bag sized of baby carrots and another of grapes, and you're good to go. (You've already packed these goodies and have them stored in the little drawer of your fridge. This way you just grab them and throw them in your lunch box. Have your kids help and make enough for all of you because school lunches STINK! Unless they are homemade in the cafeteria of course...not likely. Good quality time, and it gets done really fast.) :)

Bring a banana for a mid-morning snack and something for the afternoon or the ride home or else you'll never make a healthy dinner because you are too hungry! Try some raw nuts, shredded whole wheat cereal, some of the yummy treats posted here, etc.

I forgot to mention...keep the wrap inside the bag when you are eating. Just grab the end of the bag and peel it open around your hand. This way nothing falls out on your lap!

Cooking with the Kids -- Chocolate Yummies

Recipe for Chocolate Yummies By: Ellie, Will and Sarah Jane
2 C UNSWEETENED coconut flakes
1 C Cocoa Powder
1 C RAW honey
1/2 C (peanuts only, no sugar added!) peanut butter We like chunky. :)
1 pinch of sea salt

Combine in bowl.
Give it a good stir.
Dive in with clean hands and mush it together until thoroughly blended! We use disposal vinyal gloves to keep the mess at a minimum. :)
Dump the giant chocolate ball into an 8x8 pan and spread out.
Try some now and then stick it in the 'fridge to harden up. MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!

This recipe yeilds a dark chocolate flavor. If that's not to your taste, decrease the amount of cocoa powder.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Oatmeal Balls

Mmmmm. My chocolate/sugar days arrived last week. You know, the days where you just have to have chocolate? This month I had a craving for my peanut butter balls. I made a double batch and with company staying with us, they were gone in a little over 24 hours. They are healthy, but oh, so yummy!!  They are also good to give away since you don't have to be a health nut to love these!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Oatmeal Balls

2 c regular rolled oats
3/4 c natural peanut butter (no sugar/sweetener added!)
1/2 c raw honey (Trader Joe's, Sunflower Market, Whole Foods, etc.)
2 TBSP whole wheat/spelt flour
1/3 c mini chocolate chips

Mix everything together in a medium-sized bowl. I usually start out with a spoon and then just dig in with my hands! Form into balls and store in your refrigerator.
Just the right thing to satisfy a craving for sweets. Especially peanut butter cups.

Recipe - Breakfast Bars

I thought I'd switch it up today and post one of our favorite snack recipes. We call them breakfast bars because they so nice and healthy that I let the kids eat them for breakfast if they want. :) Now, unless you've already begun to deviate from the standard American diet, you may not have all of these ingredients in your cupboard, but they really aren't difficult to come by...especially if you live in the big city, you just have to change where you shop. :)
We have made some major changes in our diet due to God convicting me that our bodies are temples and it's our responsibility to take care of them. One major change is that we rarely eat white flour any more. When wheat flour is refined to make it white, 80% of its nutrients are lost along with a lot of its fiber. Also, after the refining process it is a gray color, so chemicals are used to make it white. I've noticed on labels lately that companies are using unbleached wheat flour. I am assuming this means processed wheat flour that just hasn't been bleached. I suppose this is one step better, but unless it says whole wheat, it's just not what your body needs. With baking at home, we use whole spelt flour, which is a type of wheat that is better for baking. I've also added some barley flour in this recipe because it is a balanced starch and reduces LDL (bad) cholesterol which wheat alone apparently doesn't do. (according to a study conducted at Montana State University)
The other ingredient you can't get at Walmart (where I shop) is Rapadura. Rapadura is raw, unprocessed sugar that actually has minerals and good things still intact. You can use rapadura just like regular sugar. The only thing you'll discover is that it is brown in color, so nothing I make anymore turns out white. :) Beware :), you can buy "Sugar in the Raw" at Walmart, but this is not really raw sugar. Stevia is also a good sweetener that comes from plants, but it is much sweeter than sugar, so you have to convert...too much work for me. :)
So head on over to Whole Foods, Sunflower Market, Sprouts or someplace like that and begin taking care of that body. If you live in Payson, start ordering from Azure Standard or head over to Vitamart. While you're there, park in the spot farthest away from the store and get some exercise in too! :)

BREAKFAST BARS

Preheat Oven to 400

Combine the following in a small bowl and set aside:
2cups whole spelt flour
3/4 cup barley flour
3/4 cup rolled oats
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp baking soda

Combine the following in a large bowl and mix together:
1/2 cup rapadura
3/4 cup NATURAL applesauce
1/2 cup cold water
1/4 cup honey
1 1/2 tbsp molasses

1/3 cup mini chocolate chips - to add into final mix

When second group of ingredients are blended well (I use a whisk) add ingredients in small bowl and mix well. ( I don't even bother getting out my electric mixer. A big spoon works great, and is easier to lick clean. :) Stir in chocolate chips.

Spread in a greased 9x13 inch baking dish.

Bake for about 15 minutes or until lightly browned.

These are cake-like bars, and are great anytime of day. Pack them in lunches or eat them for breakfast! :)