Easter Egg Hunt Snacks

We had our annual Easter Egg Hunt the weekend before Easter so I had to make some snacks for the dozen kids that came, and their parents. I put together a few healthy treats...

Hummus cups with carrots and cucumbers. Need I elaborate on this?!

I followed this recipe for Banana Oatmeal Muffins. It was really simple and the muffins were so delicious. I threw a few dark chocolate nibs on some of the muffins and they definitely made them taste more like dessert. As far as "healthy muffins" go, these were probably the best I've made. At least, I liked them a lot! I made these again for Dylan's Easter party at school. 

Along with the muffins and hummus cups, I also made some peanut-butter-banana-honey-wraps using none other than Lavash Bread from TJs. They took all of 2 minutes to construct and you just can't go wrong w/ "PB&J" when it comes to kids! 

I also followed this recipe for Chocolate Macaroons. They were really easy to make and tasted pretty good. Not really the absolute best thing you've ever tasted but if you like coconut, you'd like these. They were tasty but they lacked a wow-factor. They lasted us through the week and I sent them to school with my son as his "treat". He REALLY liked them! 

In addition to these items I also put out a bowl of strawberries and blueberries. 

St Pattys Day School Snacks

Although my son was sick and could not attend the St Patty's Day celebration at his school, we still dropped off the snacks that we signed up to bring. We LOVE the lavash bread from Trader Joes and use it in so many different ways. It's like a tortilla but a little bit more hardy. 

A favorite of my four year old's is a wrap with hummus and cheese so we made that for his friends. I was going to puree some spinach and add it to the hummus to make it green but when he woke up and sick and I had to work from home while taking care of him and Finley, I was just too busy for the extra step. Instead I added spinach leaves to add a hint of green to the snack. It's just too simple and really delicious. Not sure if all of the other kids went for it but my son usually eats the entire wrap when I send it in his lunch. 

I also cut up some kiwi slices for the kids; again trying to stick with the green theme! My kids LOVE kiwi. Between the four of us, we go through almost a dozen a week sometimes. 

Real Food

Whole Wheat Cookie Cake

My son turned 4 this weekend so he celebrated his birthday at school on Friday. I ordered a pizza to be delivered at lunch time, sent sliced oranges off our tree (they are SO GOOD) and made this whole wheat chocolate chip cookie cake. I didn't want to send the typical store bought cupcakes that are loaded with too much sugar and toxic food coloring so this was a great alternative. I saw the recipe on my favorite blog and it was so easy! It was a little dry as far as cookies go but for how healthy it was (or I should say how unhealthy it wasn't), the cookie was perfect. 

I saw this awesome way to cut a round (cake) desert on Pinterest. Genius idea! 

Lemon Chicken w/ Green Beans and Potatoes

Last week I made this recipe for lemon chicken with green beans and potatoes. It came out really good but the next time I make this, I am going to reverse the order. The recipe says to layer the lemons, then green beans, then potatoes and then the chicken. I think the chicken should go on top of the lemons and then everything else should follow. While everything cooked nicely and tasted really good, the green beans were really lemony. Overall though, it was very simple to make and pretty tasty! 

Linguini and Veggies w/ Kale Pesto

Pasta with veggies is a go to dinner around here. Unfortunately my husband does not tolerate tomatoes very well so I rarely get to make (my favorite) spaghetti sauce. We eat a lot of pesto. I have been playing around with my own variations of pesto for a while and am in love with this recipe for Kale Pesto. I've made this enough times to where I don't even follow "the recipe" anymore, I just throw all of the basic ingredients together and add enough olive oil until I have the consistency I desire. I also add a bit more parmesan cheese and some basil, oregano and red pepper. Once the sauce was made I started on everything else...

I toasted some pine nuts in the pan I later used to sauté the veggies. These just take a couple of minutes in high heat. Watch them closely bc they'll burn fast. 

Golden but not too dark...

The sauce and pasta sit in wait...

Sautéed zucchini, mushrooms and asparagus.

Whole wheat linguini cooked per package directions. 

Mix it all together...

Topped w/ parmesan cheese and homemade garlic bread on the side. Easy, inexpensive and healthy! 

Salmon w/ Rice and Veggies

We all love salmon in this house (wild only of course). On this night I just broiled the filets on top of a bed of lemons. I sprinkled a little pepper on them and then put a few lemon slices on top. Usually fish only takes about 10 or so minutes when you broil it but a couple of these filets were pretty thick so it took more like 20 minutes. It came out really good!

Having a lemon tree in my backyard is oh-so-convenient!

I also had some fresh zucchini and some sugar and snap peas from the farmers market. I sautéd them in some sesame oil for a few minutes along with some (a lot) of garlic! 

Veggie Mac n Cheese

I really like mac n cheese, especially the boxed c-r-a-p (though I haven't had it in years) so I LOVE the mac n cheese I make with hidden goodness. I did not come up with this concept on my own, rather I melded two separate versions of other peoples mac n cheese to create my own "recipe". According to my dad, I am not allowed to call this mac n cheese bc it's anything but (traditional mac n cheese).

First, the sauce: my mom bought me Jessica's Seinfeld's cookbook a few years ago which employs the method of hiding pureed fruits and veggies in everything you make. I love the cookbook! Her recipe for mac n cheese calls for butternut squash or pumpkin in the sauce (something orange to head-fake the kids). So that's where this concept came from. I follow her recipe for sauce to a certain point and then alter it to my own liking. See below for details...

Second, the extras:  One of my favorite local delis makes the best mac n cheese. They add spinach and french fried onions giving it a little something extra; but when I found out (from someone I knew who worked there) how they made it, I was horrified and I haven't eaten it in years. I mean it's really delicious and all but so unhealthy (isn't all mac n cheese??). Nevertheless this is where the idea of adding veggies and onions came from. So, my mac n cheese goes something like this...

I start by cooking the organic whole wheat macaroni (according package directions) and sautéing the cauliflower and zucchini (I also like to use yellow squash in this but I couldn't find an organic one this weekend). I just want to soften them a bit before they go into the mix. At the same time I thaw and strain some frozen spinach and kale. 

The sauce is last thing you want to be ready so I don't usually start on that until everything else is about done. Plus, it needs your full attention so I hate to be dealing with veggies and pasta while trying to work through the sauce. Three pans on the stove and 2 kids who are usually at my ankles while I cook is just too much for me! 

The sauce...I follow Jessica's recipe for the sauce using 1 tablespoon each of olive oil and whole wheat flower and 1/2 cup of milk. From there, I add an entire can of pureed veggie rather than the smaller amount she asks for. I prefer to add more because A) it increases the nutritional content and B) I am using a lot more pasta than she says to so I need more sauce (but don't necessarily want to add too much more cheese). I have used butternut squash and pumpkin numerous times and honestly prefer either one-I cannot tell a difference between them. On this night I used butternut squash. I add a generous amount of cheese (not quite double what she calls for but maybe one and half times the amount). Keep stirring the sauce until all of the cheese is melted and everything is cooperated. Stir-stir-stir otherwise it will scorch. 

Throw everything that's ready and waiting (for the sauce) into a large bowl. Once the sauce is done, pour it in top and mix together really well. I also add a big fat handful (maybe two handfuls) of french fried onions (they really make this dish).

Bake at 350 for about 15 minutes or so and then top with more onions. Let bake for about 5 more minutes or until the onions are nice and golden (but not burnt)! 

So delicious! 

Laundry Soap

For about a year now I have been making my own laundry soap as opposed to buying the more expensive, chemical free alternatives on the shelf. Homemade laundry soap is very easy and much cheaper than buying conventional products. More importantly, it is so much better for the environment and your skin (which absorbs everything from the products you lather on to the chemicals left in the clothes and linens that you come into contact with). I have found countless "recipes" for both liquid and powder and I have come to make my soap with the following ingredients: 

• Castile Soap-I use the baby mild version bc it's the only scent-free castile bar soap I can find. I have used lavender before but husband wasn't keen on that scent on his clothes (I for one love it)! Can't go wrong with baby mild. I usually buy this at Whole Foods and I think it sells for around $4 or $5. 
• Washing Soda-not to be confused with baking soda. This ingredient gave me a challenge when I first started on my laundry soap journey. I could not find it ANYWHERE. I eventually resorted to ordering it on Amazon about 4 or 5 times before I found out that Walmart carries it. I don't shop at Walmart, in fact I can count on ONE hand how many times I've stepped in to one. Anyways, I was paying almost $8 a box to order it online (the shipping is a little high bc it's a heavy box) and Walmart sells it for just over $3. So months ago I went and bought 5 boxes and still have 3 left. 
• Borax-I usually buy this at Target but I've seen it at Whole Foods, Home Depot, etc. It's not difficult to find and a box is about $3 or so. 

Grate the bar of soap using your cheese grater. From there, run it through your food processor or an electric chopper (I am obsessed with my mini-chopper by Cuisinart) to get a more fine, powdery consistency. Combine the soap with about 4 or 5 cups each of washing soda and borax. In the past, I have gone so far as to shake all of the ingredients through a fine strainer to get a really fine powder but when I'm feeling lazy, I just throw all of the ingredients in a large bowl or a ziploc bag and manually mix them together, trying to work out any clumps in the powder ingredients.  

I store laundry soap in a mason jar in my laundry area (keeping the rest on a ziploc bag) and with an old baby formula scoop, I use 2 scoops per full load. I haven't had any problems with this formula and our clothes always come out clean and residue free. I also do not use any fabric softener or dryer sheets. Once you get used to not using them, you wonder why you ever bothered. 

Quesadillas

On Thursday's my son has swim class so I have about an hour and 15 minutes from the time I get home from work to the time we have to walk out the door. I usually always have a crockpot meal on Thursdays but once in a while, I don't and then I just resort to something quick. Quesadillas are one my favorite quick meals. I usually make them sort of southwest style with chicken, black beans, corn, green chiles, tomatoes, etc. 

On this night, I was running late and even more pressed for time than usual so we just had cheese, chicken (the rest of the meat that I didn't use when I made chicken soup earlier in the week) and green chiles. I don't put green chiles on the quesadillas for my kids but my husband and I really like them in ours. I baked them at 350 for about 15 minutes or so and served them with a side of pinto beans. It's quick, easy, mostly healthy and qualifies as dinner (in a hurry)! 

Turkey Balls w/ Rice and Broccoli

I have seen many recipes for turkey meatloaf balls or turkey muffins so I did not come up with the overall concept myself, but I did concoct this dinner based on my own taste preferences! I basically just mixed one pound of organic turkey meat with the ingredients pictured below. I LOVE fennel and sage and am usually pretty generous with these spices. I used a couple sprinkles of worcestershire and a few dashes of the celery salt, pepper and onion flakes. 

To the meat and spices, I added some hydrated chia seeds (these were the binding ingredient as opposed to eggs, and added a ton of nutrition) and some sautéed apples and celery. Don't ask...all of this just sounded good together! Sometimes I just go with it (it being my brain)! 

The mixture was pretty wet and sticky so I added some whole wheat bread crumbs and then rolled them into balls, maybe about 2 inches in diameter. I didn't want to make them too small bc I was afraid they would've been dry. I baked the balls at 350 for about 30-40 minutes (I can't remember exactly how long they cooked).

These came out SO GOOD! I made some brown rice and broccoli to go with them and the dinner was delicious! Everyone approved.