Weekly Menu (8/18/13-8/24/13)

This week in our Bountiful Basket we got (which I share with my brother):

• pineapple
• plums
• bananas
• mango
• avocado
• tomatoes
• cucumber
• baby carrots
• romaine lettuce
• spinach
• green onions

We also got an Italian add on pack:

• herbs
• parsley
• zucchini
• yellow squash
• onions
• garlic
• mushrooms

Our kale, spinach, bell peppers, and eggplant are going strong in the garden, so we'll be using those as well. We also have potatoes, celery, and apples.

The kids are now both at day care for breakfast and lunch. School starts on Thursday, so starting Thursday lunches will consist of:

• Sandwiches (Peanut Butter and Jelly or Ham)
• or Pizza Flatbreads (Schar crispbread topped with cheese and pepperoni)
• or Crackers, veggies, and hummus
• chips or crackers
• fruit (usually applesauce, mandarin oranges, or bananas)
• milk

Sunday: 

• 1st breakfast (5am): nothing, I'm sleeping in :)
• 2nd breakfast (7am):  green smoothie and toast topped with peanut butter
• morning snack (9am): carrots and almond butter
• lunch (11am-12pm): leftovers or a ham sandwich and lots of veggies
• afternoon snack (3pm): grapes
• dinner (5-6pm):
• Pot Roast with potatoes, celery, and carrots
• Green salad
• smoked eggplant (working on a recipe)
• rolls

Monday:

• 1st breakfast (5am): plum
• 2nd breakfast (7am): scrambled eggs with veggies
• morning snack (9am): celery and peanut butter
• lunch (11am-12pm): leftovers
• afternoon snack (3pm): veggies, crackers (my family's new favorite cracker is this one), and hummus
• dinner (5-6pm): 
• sloppy joes (using leftover roast)
• oven fries (both potato and zucchini)
• apple slices

Tuesday:

• 1st breakfast (5am): plum
• 2nd breakfast (7am): green smoothie
• morning snack (9am): carrots and peanut butter
• lunch (11am-12pm): leftovers
• afternoon snack (3pm): apples and peanut butter
• dinner (5-6pm): 
• tacos with homemade tortillas
• pineapple slices
• green salad

Wednesday:

• 1st breakfast (5am): grapes
• 2nd breakfast (7am): scrambled eggs with veggies
• morning snack (9am): celery sticks and peanut butter
• lunch (11am-12pm): leftovers
• afternoon snack (3pm): cashews and dried cranberries
• dinner: (It's back to school night, cub scouts, and our GF meeting...so I know I won't be cooking)
• sandwiches 
• grapes
• carrot sticks
• chips

Thursday: 

• 1st breakfast (5am): plum
• 2nd breakfast (7am): green smoothie
• morning snack (9am):  carrots
• lunch (11am-12pm): leftovers
• afternoon snack (3pm): kale chips
• dinner: 
• french toast
• bacon
• hashbrowns
• pineapple

Friday:

• 1st breakfast (5am): carrots
• 2nd breakfast (7am): scrambled eggs with veggies
• morning snack (9am): celery and peanut butter
• lunch (11am-12pm): leftovers
• afternoon snack (3pm): kale chips
• dinner: (the hubs and I are going out, so this will just be for the boys)
• chicken nuggets
• carrot sticks
• apple slices

Saturday: 

• 1st breakfast (5am): sleeping in :)
• 2nd breakfast (7am): green smoothie
• morning snack (9am): carrots
• lunch (11am-12pm): sandwich and veggies (I usually use my teff sandwich bread, teff biscuits, or flour tortillas as my bread)
• afternoon snack (3pm): whatever fruit I have
• dinner: 
• Calzones
• green salad

Blueberry Muffins

I've started my prep work for when school starts and my kids want quick breakfasts.  Muffins are a staple in our house, and I make several batches at a time and freeze them.  We can pull them out as needed and give them a quick zap in the microwave for a quick, but fantastic breakfast.  I finally got around to making a traditional blueberry muffin recipe, so here it is:

Blueberry Muffins
2 cups GF flour blend
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon (optional, you could also try nutmeg instead)
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup dairy-free milk
1/3 cup agave, honey, or other liquid sweetener
1/3 cup canola or grapeseed oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups fresh blueberries

Directions
Preheat oven to 375F and line or grease muffin tins.

In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.  In a separate bowl stir together the eggs, milk, agave, and oil.  Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.  Fold in the blueberries.  Fill muffin cups and bake ato 375F for 20-25 minutes.

This post was shared on Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays, Gluten Free Tuesdays, Allergy Free Wednesdays, Gluten Free Wednesdays, Waste Not Want Not Wednesdays, Whole Foods Fridays, Allergy Friendly Lunchbox Love, and Gluten Free Fridays.

Weekly Menu (8/11/13-8/17/13)

This week in our Bountiful Basket we got (which I share with my brother):

• pineapple
• nectarines
• watermelon
• pears
• plums
• blueberries
• radishes
• butter lettuce
• tomatoes
• cucumber

We also got an Italian add on pack:

• herbs
• parsley
• zucchini
• yellow squash
• onions
• garlic
• mushrooms

And a juice pack add-on:

• carrots
• celery
• apples
• lemon
• lime
• ginger
• beet
• pineapple

Our kale, spinach, bell peppers, and eggplant are going strong in the garden, so we'll be using those as well. We have potatoes, hot peppers, a mango, and bananas.

The kids are now both at day care for breakfast and lunch.

Sunday: 

• 1st breakfast (5am): mango (sadly I'm working bright and early, so I can be home for church)
• 2nd breakfast (7am):  breakfast sandwich, using my teff biscuits
• morning snack (9am): carrots
• lunch (11am-12pm): leftovers or a ham sandwich with teff biscuits and lots of veggies
• afternoon snack (3pm): plum
• dinner (5-6pm):
• Chicken and Eggplant Unparmesan (we use dry GF breadcrumbs now instead of cornflake crumbs)
• GF pasta
• carrot and zucchini noodles (I just use my vegetable peeler to make the 'noodles' and steam it for a minute)
• green salad

Monday:

• 1st breakfast (5am): nectarine
• 2nd breakfast (7am): scrambled eggs with veggies
• morning snack (9am): celery and peanut butter
• lunch (11am-12pm): leftovers
• afternoon snack (3pm): veggies, crackers (my family's new favorite cracker is this one), and hummus
• dinner (5-6pm): 
• brat burgers with Udi's buns
• oven fries
• watermelon

Tuesday:

• 1st breakfast (5am): plum
• 2nd breakfast (7am): green smoothie
• morning snack (9am): carrots and peanut butter
• lunch (11am-12pm): leftovers
• afternoon snack (3pm): veggies and hummus
• dinner (5-6pm): 
• navajo tacos (fry bread topped with refried beans, ground beef, lettuce, tomatoes, etc)\
• watermelon

Wednesday:

• 1st breakfast (5am): nectarine
• 2nd breakfast (7am): scrambled eggs with veggies
• morning snack (9am): celery sticks and peanut butter
• lunch (11am-12pm): leftovers
• afternoon snack (3pm): cashews and dried cranberries
• dinner: 
• pigs in a blanket
• oven fries
• pineapple

Thursday: 

• 1st breakfast (5am): plum
• 2nd breakfast (7am): green smoothie
• morning snack (9am):  carrots
• lunch (11am-12pm): leftovers
• afternoon snack (3pm): kale chips
• dinner: 
• crispy waffles
• bacon
• hashbrowns
• pineapple

Friday:

• 1st breakfast (5am): carrots
• 2nd breakfast (7am): scrambled eggs with veggies
• morning snack (9am): celery and peanut butter
• lunch (11am-12pm): leftovers
• afternoon snack (3pm): kale chips
• dinner:
• Indian Spiced Chicken
• Saag Aloo
• Basmati Rice

Saturday: 

• 1st breakfast (5am): sleeping in :)
• 2nd breakfast (7am): green smoothie
• morning snack (9am): carrots
• lunch (11am-12pm): sandwich and veggies (I usually use my teff sandwich bread, teff biscuits, or flour tortillas as my bread)
• afternoon snack (3pm): whatever fruit I have
• dinner: 
• Calzones
• green salad

Allergy Friendly Ice Cream Sandwiches

One thing my boys have missed since our diet change, has been ice cream sandwiches.  So, I finally made some and they LOVED them.  My older son usually turns his nose up to dairy-free ice cream, but he absolutely loves this ice cream...it's the base for my Double Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream and my Caramel Cashew Ice Cream.  The cookies are a modification of my graham crackers, so they aren't overly sweet, but they pair perfectly with the very sweet ice cream.

Allergy Friendly Ice cream Sandwiches
3/4 cup GF flour blend
1/2 cup almond meal
1/4 cup cocoa
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons coconut oil
2 tablespoons coconut sugar
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon water
1 teaspoon vanilla

ice cream of choice (we used the base of this one)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375F.

In a medium bowl combine the dry ingredients.  In a saucepan melt together the coconut oil, coconut sugar and honey.  Once the sugar is dissolved into the oil, add in the water and vanilla and pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Mix together with a spoon, then knead with your hands until the dough is nice and smooth.

Roll the dough out on a piece of parchment paper (makes for easier clean up) to 1/8" thickness and cut out your cookies with a pizza cutter or a cookie cutter.  Place the cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet and poke them with a fork.

Bake at 375F for 10 minutes.  Allow them to cool for a few minutes on the cookie sheet, then finish cooling on a wire cooling rack.

Once the cookies have cooled, top half of them with a scoop of ice cream, then cover with another cookie.  Wrap them in paper or aluminum foil and freeze until ice cream is set.  (The cookies soften to just the right consistency when they've had time to sit in the freezer with the ice cream).

This post was shared on Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays, Gluten Free Tuesdays, Gluten Free Wednesdays, Waste Not Want Not Wednesday, Allergy Free Wednesdays, Allergy Friendly Lunchbox Love, Gluten Free Friday, and Whole Food Fridays.

Weekly Menu (8/4/13-8/10/13)

This week in our Bountiful Basket we got (which I share with my brother):

• carrots
• celery
• butter lettuce
• spinach
• green peppers
• onions
• tomatoes
• nectarines
• bananas
• cantaloupe
• cherries

We also got an Mexican add on pack:

• onion
• garlic
• lemon
• limes
• tomatillos
• jalapenos
• anaheim peppers
• cayenne peppers
• avocado

We also got an add on pack of mangoes.

Our kale, spinach, bell peppers, and eggplant are going strong in the garden, so we'll be using those as well. We have potatoes at home and I also got beets and turnips at the farmer's market.

The kids are now both at day care for breakfast and lunch.

Sunday: 

• 1st breakfast (5am): nothing, I'm sleeping in :)
• 2nd breakfast (7am):  nothing, I'm fasting as part of my religion
• morning snack (9am): nothing
• lunch (11am-12pm): nothing
• afternoon snack (3pm): nothing
• dinner (5-6pm):
• Meatloaf
• mashed potatoes
• roasted beets and turnips
• green salad
• cherry chocolate chunk icecream for dessert

Monday:

• 1st breakfast (5am): carrots and peanut butter
• 2nd breakfast (7am): scrambled eggs with veggies
• morning snack (9am): celery and peanut butter
• lunch (11am-12pm): leftovers
• afternoon snack (3pm): homemade salsa and beanitos
• dinner (5-6pm): 
• Teriyaki Chicken
• basmati rice
• stir fried veggies
• green salad

Tuesday:

• 1st breakfast (5am): carrots and peanut butter
• 2nd breakfast (7am): green smoothie
• morning snack (9am): mango
• lunch (11am-12pm): leftovers
• afternoon snack (3pm): salsa and chips
• dinner (5-6pm): 
• tacos with homemade tortillas
• salsa verde
• green salad

Wednesday:

• 1st breakfast (5am): mango
• 2nd breakfast (7am): scrambled eggs with veggies
• morning snack (9am): celery sticks and hummus
• lunch (11am-12pm): leftovers
• afternoon snack (3pm): cashews and dried cranberries
• dinner: 
• spaghetti
• green salad
• sliced cantaloupe

Thursday: 

• 1st breakfast (5am): nectarine
• 2nd breakfast (7am): green smoothie
• morning snack (9am):  carrots
• lunch (11am-12pm): leftovers
• afternoon snack (3pm): kale chips
• dinner: 
• honey oat pancakes
• bacon
• hashbrowns
• sliced cantaloupe

Friday:

• 1st breakfast (5am): carrots
• 2nd breakfast (7am): scrambled eggs with veggies
• morning snack (9am): celery and peanut butter
• lunch (11am-12pm): leftovers
• afternoon snack (3pm): kale chips
• dinner:
• Calzones
• green salad

Saturday: 

• 1st breakfast (5am): sleeping in :)
• 2nd breakfast (7am): green smoothie
• morning snack (9am): carrots
• lunch (11am-12pm): sandwich and veggies (I usually use my teff sandwich bread, teff biscuits, or flour tortillas as my bread)
• afternoon snack (3pm): whatever fruit I have
• dinner: We will be at my Father-in-law's for dinner...
• Hamburgers/Hot Dogs (we'll bring our own buns...New Grains brand is my new favorite for store bought hamburger buns)
• corn on the cob
• potato salad
• chips
• etc.