Kim's Menu: Week of June 19th

Mon: Chicken Cream Tacos

Tues: Whole Wheat Spaghetti & Romaine Salad 

Wed: Tri Tip Steak, Spinach Salad, Zucchini

Thurs: Turkey Tacos 

Fri: Leftovers

Sat or Sun: California Club Pizza

Next week I really want to try 

THIS  and THIS!

Biscuit Chicken Pot Pie

Adapted from pleaseholdtheonions.blogspot.com

Prep Time: 1 hour

Cook Time 30 min.

Ingredients:

3/4 - 1 lb. chicken breast (cooked and shredded)
6 tablespoons unsalted butter (use 3 T. butter + 3 T. Oil)
5 carrots, peeled and chopped
4 ribs celery, chopped
4 cups chicken broth (you should BUY THIS at Shar's Bosch Kitchen Center, will be your new best friend)
1/4 cup flour (use whole wheat when you can!)
1 1/2 cups frozen green peas
salt and pepper to taste
1 egg
2 T. milk
12 herb biscuits (recipe follows)

Preheat oven to 375. Melt butter in large skillet over medium-high heat and add carrots and celery. Saute, stirring frequently, about 10 minutes. Add flour and cook, while stirring, until flour is light brown, 3-4 minutes. Slowly whisk in chicken broth and bring to a low boil. Add peas. Season with salt and pepper, reduce heat, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thick, 10-15 minutes. Add chicken, remove from heat, and transfer to a 9x13 baking dish. Top with biscuits. Beat egg and milk together and brush over biscuits. Bake until biscuits are golden brown and chicken mixture is bubbling around edges, 25-30 minutes.

Herb Biscuits
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour, plus more for dusting (again USE WHOLE WHEAT!!!!)

1 teaspoons baking powder
1/2  teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

1 stick unsalted cold butter, cut into small cubes (use 1/2 stick butter + 1/4 c. oil)
1 tablespoons dried parsley

3/4 cups buttermilk

Sift flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. Cut butter into flour mixture, using a pastry blender or 2 knives, until mixture is coarse and crumbly. Stir in parsley. Make a well in center of flour mixture, pour in buttermilk, and stir using a fork until dough comes together- do not overmix. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and pat dough into a circle about 1/2 inch thick. Cut out biscuits using a floured 2 1/2 inch round cutter.

Enlightening Article Of the Day

Today I received my daily email from Body Ecology and decided to share with you my favorite points from the article I read.

The article was all about BREAKFAST, which we all know is the "most important meal of the day".

When I think back to before I was married my weekly breakfast menu looked something like this:

cinnamon sugar poptart, frosted flakes, 2 pieces of white toast, etc.

Sometimes I would even have donuts or PUMPKIN PIE! My mom would justify it by saying pumpkin is a vegetable :)

What we need to remember is that the breakfast FOODS we eat are the important part of this necessary meal.

From Body Ecology:

 What do you eat for breakfast?
Some of the most popular breakfast foods are cereals, energy bars, bagels, fruit, yogurt, fruit juice, and coffee. If you drink your coffee black, what do all the other foods have in common? Sugar.

These foods are quick and energizing.
Keep in mind while most processed foods make squeezing in breakfast more possible, it also means that these foods are more likely to contain additives that your body does not need, including high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). In fact, all of the foods listed above except coffee, if purchased at a supermarket, likely contain fructose.
While juice, yogurt, cereal, and energy bars seem healthy, the amount of sugar in these foods makes them extremely unhealthy.

• Pasteurized fruit juice contains large amounts of sugar, and oftentimes, manufacturers will add even more before selling the product.
• Cereals, baked goods, and energy bars all have added sugar, even when they claim extra fiber content and to be “heart healthy”.
• Unless you are eating homemade yogurt from raw grass-fed dairy, chances are that the yogurt has added sugar, typically in the form of high fructose corn syrup. Reading labels helps the consumer discern the best product available.

To read the full article click here:

Surprise! These Popular Breakfast Foods Aren't As Healthy As You Think

What breakfast foods are cleanER choices?

My personal favorites are:

Scrambled eggs (1 egg + 2 egg whites) and ham (nitrate free) 

Smoothie: 1/4 c. oj, 1/4 c. soymilk + frozen fruit and ground flax

BEST OATMEAL EVER 

"Champion Juice" aka apple carrot celery juice :) makes you feel like a champ!

Start today by making one cleanER breakfast choice this week.

Your body will thank you! 

Kim's Menu: Week of June 12th

I can't believe it is almost Thursday already! This week flew by so fast. Highlight of the week was Jess's parents coming home from their mission in Norway! We missed them so much for 18 months and I don't know what I did without my sweet inlaws! So glad they are home so I can get to know them better.

Dinner this week:

Mon: BBQ Chicken Salad/ mashed potatoes

Tues: Homecoming Dinner w/ Jess's Family (TACOS!)

Wed: Biscuit Chicken Pot Pie/ side salad

Thurs: Spanish Rice, farm fresh corn on the cob, cheese crisps

Friday: Leftovers or sandwiches!

Sat/Sun easy meals: Pasta or Chicken cream tacos

Kristen's Menu - Week of June 12

Breakfasts:
Favorite Oatmeal (Never gets old...)
Berry Oat Bars (Excited to try this new recipe.  No strawberries on Kate's half.)
Crepes (I would say I will post this recipe from my Bosch cookbook later, but I know I won't.  So here it is...)
      1/2 c. fresh ground wheat flour
      1/4 c. white flour (always buy unbleached)
      3/4 c. milk
      2 eggs
      1 T. honey
      1 T. olive oil
      dash of cinnamon
Combine in blender and process 1 minute.  Refrigerate about 30 minutes.  Brush skillet with oil and when hot pour about 3 T. batter into pan.  Tilt pan in all directions until batter covers pan in a thin film.  Cook crepe 1 minute.  Turn or flip crepe and cook 30 more seconds on other side.  Stuff with fruit, drizzle with natural syrup, and be in heaven.

Lunches:
Sandwiches (This week it will be almond butter/jelly, chicken or turkey, and tuna.)
BBQ Chicken Wraps (Seriously, so yummy.  I use nitrate-free deli sliced chicken and add a drizzle of healhi{er} ranch with the bbq sauce.)

Dinners:
Pizza (I tried premade wheat pizza dough last time I made pizza and remembered that nothing compares to homemade pizza dough made with fresh ground wheat.  Learning about the amazing benefits of using this type of wheat is one of the most important things you can do for your family's health.  Just substitute it for white flour in any recipe.  And if you need some, just let me know.  I grind every two weeks, thanks to my kind mother-in-law who lets me use her grinder.) 
Lentil Rice with Chicken (I bought this on sale at Sprouts a month ago and decided to try it tonight.   I love having convenient meals around that are still healthy.  I am happy to say that this one was a hit with everyone!  Follow the link and click on the Lentil Pepper Rice Medley recipe on the right of the page.  I reduced the cumin to 1/4 tsp., left out the pepper flakes for the girls, and substituted olive oil for butter.)
Tamale Pie (Another easy meal that everyone likes.  I try to go easy on the cheese and leave out the sugar.  I will be using some of the organic grass-fed ground beef I stocked up on last time Sprouts had it for only $3.99/pound.  It's supposed to be as good for you as salmon, and much cheaper/easier to make too!)

Shopping at Sprouts this week.  Here are my picks...
nitrate-free deli meat chicken (Always go nitrate-free with deli meat, hot dogs, bacon, etc.  Especially for children.  The new research on nitrates is just plain scary, so try to stay away from them when possible.)
watermelon
strawberries
blueberries
white onion
cucumber
red pepper
green pepper
organic bananas
organic apples
Earth's Best Chicken Nuggets Family Size Bag (Only $3.99 so I am stocking up.  These are the healthiest/yummiest you will find for your little ones.  And maybe for yourself too.)
eggs (omega 3)
fruit juice
milk (always antibiotic/hormone free)
Sprouts brand Mac & Cheese (Always nice to have on hand, these are much healthier than the traditional brand and are only 89 cents a box this week.)
Real maple syrup
Sprouts brand tomato sauce

That's about all for the week!  Kim is coming over to help bake bread tomorrow, yay!  And I absolutely must remember to take my iron and protein this week.  And here is a picture, since I never take the time to post any.  Not that this even looks good at all, but I try to teach Olivia to make a rainbow at each meal and this was her attempt one day for lunch.  Grapes, strawberries, cheese, meat, and lentil chips on a piece of bread.  Yummy.  :)  And speaking of rainbows, I need to post our baking session on Saint Patrick's Day when we made rainbow cupcakes using fruit to create the colors. 

Roasted Red Potatoes and Carrots

This recipe is amazing for so many reasons. Use it as a side dish to grilled meat and salad or be extra clean and make it your main entree! I love this recipe because it requires NO butter, milk, or cheese to make the potatoes delicious. Have not found another potato recipe that does that yet! MAKE THIS tonight and adjust the seasonings to your liking. Also experiment with other vegetables you enjoy.

Ingredients:

* 2 pounds red potatoes, scrubbed and cubed

* 2 c. baby carrots

* 2-3 T. Olive Oil

* 1 clove garlic (minced)

* Salt & Pepper, to taste

* 1 T. dried parsley flakes

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a large ziploc bag, combine cubed potatoes, baby carrots, olive oil, and minced garlic. Shake bag to coat the vegetables thoroughly.

3. Spray a large baking sheet with a small amount of non-stick spray, and remove the vegetables from the bag. Spread out onto the sheet in a single layer.

4. Season with salt, pepper, and parsley and stir the vegetables to evenly coat. 

5. Cook for 30 minutes, then turn the oven to 400 degrees and finish cooking for 20-25 minutes, or until potatoes are crisp on the edges.

**Tips**

1. before turning to 400 degrees, stir the vegetables to prevent sticking and to get an even crisp on both sides.

2. turning to 400 degrees for the last 20 minutes brings out the sweetness in the carrots and creates an amazing flavor!!!

 

Spanish Rice

 

When Jess and I went vegan for 2 weeks, this recipe saved my life! Even if you aren't a vegan, having one vegan meal a week is a great change that always leaves me feeling healthier. When you take out meat and dairy... it's almost impossible to eat unhealthy! Rice doesn't always have to be a side dish, make this your main meal with some Clean Eating Guacamole  and Reduced Guilt tortilla Chips from Trader Joes on the side!

Prep time: 10 min

Cook time: 30 min

Ingredients:

* 1 T. Olive Oil

* 1 c. uncooked white rice

* 1 onion, chopped

* 1 clove garlic (minced)

* 1/2 green bell pepper, chopped

* 2 c. chicken broth

* 1 (10 ounce) can diced tomatoes and green chiles

* 2 tsp. chili powder, or to taste

* 1 tsp. salt

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a deep skillet over medium heat. Saute onion, garlic, and bell pepper until onions are tender.

2. Add the uncooked rice and let it brown for a few minutes.

3. Stir in chicken broth and tomatoes. Season with chili powder and salt. Cover, and simmer for 30 minutes. 

4. After 30 minutes, remove skillet from burner and let sit for 5 minutes BEFORE taking off the lid. 

5. Remove lid, fluff rice, ENJOY!