Brrrr, baby it’s cold outside! There’s no better time than a cold, winter day to throw together a big pot of chili and enjoy.
My favorite part about chili is that it’s super flexible in terms of add-ins. Have zucchini and carrots on hand? Shred them and throw them in. Bell peppers, onions, fresh tomatoes? Sure, why not!
We love muffins around here. My children would live off of my homemade bread and muffins if I let them. And these muffins are one of our favorite! They have definitely been a staple around here lately. Sometimes I double the recipe to make extra for the freezer….except somehow they never make it there.
It’s back to school time for many kids (and a lot of parents are saying ‘yessssss’ right about now) which means that it’s time to get creative with the lunchboxes again. I thought you could use a little school lunch inspiration!
I was grocery shopping the other day with my two little ones when my 5 year old, Allison, pointed to a Lunchable and asked what it was. To which I replied “ohhh, that’s just a package of chemical filled junk”. I get it though – they’re quick, easy, and kids eat them (hey, I ate them as an adult a kid too!). But they’re not doing your child any favors and they’re far from what I would consider a healthy choice.
Instead, make your own at home by purchasing a quality lunchmeat, sliced cheese off the block, and organic crackers. My goal is to always keep my children’s food as ‘real’ as possible. This starts by turning the package over to look at the ingredient list and asking myself “would I stock all of those ingredients in my pantry?”. You can find a great post by Lisa over at 100 Days of Real Food on this very subject.
I have a few favorite websites that I would recommend for school lunch inspiration:
100 Days of Real Food – Pictures of her daughter’s lunchboxes and a linked up recipe index that includes many of the recipes pictured.
Weelicious – Awesome lunchbox inspiration pics on Catherine’s Facebook page so I’m linking to one of her albums there.
Super Healthy Kids – Lots of fun, kid-friendly recipes to try out!
Although we don’t officially pack ‘school lunches’ everyday, I do still pack a lot of meals to take with us while we’re out of the house. It’s the easiest way for us to avoid the temptation of grabbing something while out.
Also, our kids love packing their PlanetBox Rovers. I try to get Allison and Nolan involved in their meal prep as much as possible. They’re more likely to eat it when they’re the ones who picked out and prepped the food in their boxes.
Bonus – don’t forget the cute printable lunchbox notes and jokes (like this one or this one). Just a little something to bring a smile to their face 🙂
Do you know what I love about food documentaries? They’re enlightening, full of facts, and super motivating! They usually go deep inside the matter at hand to expose things I wasn’t aware of.
I also like that I can generally find them for free or cheap on Netflix, Amazon Prime, or at the local library.
A common question I get asked is if I have any recommendations on food documentaries to watch. Why yes, yes I do! You’ll never look at food the same way again. Trust me!
1. Food Inc. – An oldie but goodie! This film shows where our food comes from, sheds light on factory farming, and points out the controversial connections between the big food corporations and the government, and the subsidies that promote unhealthy food to take over our supermarket and diets.
2. Supersize Me – Under the supervision of doctors and a nutritionist, Morgan Spurlock eats only McDonald’s for 30 days and then examines the detrimental health results.
3. Food Matters – Focuses on the connection of ultra-processed food and our declining health as well as why the health industry doesn’t want us to change our eating habits. [Read more…]
These homemade Strawberry & Coconut Cream Ice Pops are made with just three ingredients and are super simple to make.
My kids love them! Bonus – they think I’m the coolest mom ever when I let them have one for breakfast.
To them it’s an amazing, special treat and I have no guilt about what chemicals or food dyes they might be consuming.
Also, I love that by using frozen fruit and canned coconut milk, the ingredients are easy to keep on hand and we can throw these ice pops together quickly.
Look for full-fat coconut milk, like Natural Value brand, that is in a BPA-Free can and has no additives or preservatives. The only ingredients in this brand are coconut extract and water.
[Read more…]
