Exciting News!

Earlier this week I was reading Adrienne's blog (which is very funny, go check it out) and found out that she had nominated me to be featured for The Athlete's Plate. This is so cool because it’s perfect timing. I am on a journey right now to improve my overall health as well as my family’s health. I’ve been doing pretty well, but there is always room for improvement and I am constantly on the lookout for new recipes that are healthy and that my family will like. The other concern is that I don't always have lots of time to spend in the kitchen because the more time I spend in the kitchen the more time 3 boys have to draw on the wall with crayons and jump off tables!

If you haven’t heard of The Athlete's Plate then let me enlighten you. Jason from Cook Train Eat Race has a section on his blog aptly called The Athlete's Plate where he creates a menu for a specific person that is yummy and healthy (yes, these two things can go together) and is based on that person’s traits and personality. He even includes the nutritional breakdown for each recipe. I’ve been checking out his blog for awhile now and he always comes up with tasty combinations and recipes that help fuel athletes. Here's a peek into his post this week which I think is very fitting...

Breakfast – Road Rage Raspberry Smoothie
(this is especially good for after a workout as protein & carbs go into the system)

Click HERE for the full menu including recipes.

What’s amazing about Jason is that not only is he a distinctive and unique cook, but he is also training for his first 70.3 (half ironman) in April 2011 and right now he is hosting The Cupcake Marathon 2011.

In Jason’s words, this is a virtual race that is meant to be a fun way to get you active and moving in time for the spring racing season. Event distances will include a 1/2 Marathon (13.1 miles) and Marathon (26.2 miles) and you do not have to complete the mileage on ONE run but over the course of the two weeks. You will have a chance to win prizes, including cupcakes! It’s Like A Marathon But With A Cherry On Top. Sounds like fun doesn't it? What are you waiting for...sign up!

By the way, if you'd like to be featured for the next edition of The Athlete's Plate, please leave me a comment letting me know what you'd like to improve about your health, eating, lifestyle, etc. I will announce the winner this Sunday.

Big thanks to Adrienne for nominating me and to Jason for being so thoughtful and creating such a yummy and easy to make menu for me this week! I'll be sure to post photos of my meals.

Homemade Granola Bars

Obviously there is something about Fall that makes me want to bake!!

This was my first attempt at making my own granola bars. I had the idea after seeing different recipes on other blogs. What I like about this recipe is the versatility of it. You can change it around and add whatever you like to it.

My sons really like the store bought granola bars and I like the convenience of being able to grab them and take them along on trips and to give them to the boys for a quick snack. I don't especially like the price of the store bought bars and could do without some of the ingredients.

I made this recipe last night and gave both of the older boys a granola bar to eat this morning. They gobbled them up and said that they liked them. Charlie asked if there were raisins in them and I said, "No, would you like me to add some next time?" He told me that he would. He also said he'd like to add peanut butter chips too!

Overall, I liked the flavor of the bars. I thought they held together very well. My husband liked the chewiness of them. I think I would have liked a little more crispiness. Next time I might add some brown rice cereal and use less flour or no flour. The possibilities are endless!

Homemade Granola Bars

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup rice krispies
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup whole ground flaxseed meal
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup honey
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup applesauce
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
handful of chocolate chips

Note: I made up this list of ingredients after reading lots of different recipes online. Some recipes use oil or butter instead of applesauce, some use wheat germ instead of flaxseed, some use white flour instead of wheat, some add dried cherries and almonds instead of chocolate chips...you get the idea.

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease 8 x 8 or 9 x 13 baking pan. *NOTE: The last time I made these I noticed that they did not fill the pan and I hand molded them into a shape that did not stretch to the edges of the pan. You will probably need a smaller pan that what I have listed here. 8x8 may be okay, but I think 9x13 is too big.

2. In large bowl, mix together the oats, brown sugar, flax, cinnamon, flour, and salt.

3. In small bowl, mix the honey, egg, applesauce and vanilla. Add this mixture to the large bowl, add the chocolate chips and mix together well.

4. Pat the mixture evenly into the pan.

5. Bake for about 20-25 minutes. Once they are brown on the edges take them out. If you leave them in too long they’ll be dry. I took mine out after 20 min.

6. Cool for 5 minutes, then cut into bars or squares. Do not allow the bars to cool completely before cutting or they will be too hard to cut.

June's Big Cooking Day

Success is mine!

It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be and I got done cooking a lot sooner this time than I did last month. I think that it's mainly because I started making a few things the night before. There were a couple of things that I didn't get around to making, but then there were also a couple dishes that I made more of...like the chicken fried rice and the pulled pork. It helped a lot that I was able to use my mother-in-law's crock pot. I only have one small one and hers is huge (Thanks Jane!).

I also realized that I still have a few dinners left in the freezer from last month's big cooking day!!
Now that I know I'm going to stick with this type of cooking, I think I need to invest in some large cookware, mixing bowls and possibly some more baking sheets.

Breakfast:

• Chocolate chip and banana pancakes (x 5)
  
• Rainbow Pancakes (x 5)
  

Sides:

• Applesauce (x 3)
• Garlic Bread (x2)
  

Dinners:

• Buffalo Chicken Fajitas (x 3)
  


• BBQ Pulled Pork (x 5)
  


• Lasagna Soup (x 3)
  


• Cheesy Ham & Pasta Bake (x 2)
  


• Chicken Fried Rice (x 4)
  


• Pizza Pinwheels (x 1)
  


• Chili (x 3)
  


• Teriyaki Chicken (x 2)
  


• Beef Brisket (x 2)

I really want to try making these Cinnamon Rolls next time. They look delicious and don't seem like they would be that bad for you...

If you want more menu ideas or recipes then you can check out Life as a Mom. If you're thinking about doing this type of cooking she's got so much helpful information to get you started.

Another great site that has information and menus for each week is Orgjunkie.com. She hosts Menu Plan Monday at the beginning of each week and other bloggers link up and post their menus and recipes too.

May's Big Cooking Day

Since last month's meal plan was such a success (we didn't go out to eat once and never ordered take out) I decided to do everything on my own this time. I chose recipes that I thought our family would like and I also added some sides and breakfast items this time. I cooked most of this on Saturday and a little more on Sunday. I tried to make sure that each meal would make enough for a dinner and for lunches the next day.

I thought it would be nice to share the links to the recipes I used and to also add comments about each of them. Each month I will comment on which meals worked out and which ones didn't.

I'm on my second month and I am happy to report that it's been fun and we've enjoyed trying new recipes. Charlie doesn't always eat the new food but that's no surprise because he's always been a picky eater. I did recently find out that both of the older boys really like Spanish Rice!

Breakfast:

• French Toast Sticks - I made this recipe without the butter and not so much sugar. Charlie ate two of them without any syrup and he really liked them.


• Blueberry Pancakes - I used the pancake mix from a box I had in the pantry and added vanilla and blueberries.

Lunch:

• Chicken Salad

Dinner:

• Pork Loin - We bought a large piece and cut it up into 3 separate pieces and froze them. Mike will grill them with his seasonings when the time comes and each piece will be enough for dinner and lunch the next day.
• Turkey Meatballs - We tasted these after they came out of the oven and they tasted very good and were moist.
• Chicken Spaghetti
• Oven baked Potato Wedges - I got the instructions from a very helpful and informative article that explains how to cook, freeze and reheat any type of potato.
• Applesauce - I used Rome apples, added a bit of cinnamon and no sugar. It turned out great. The baby liked it! The other boys haven't tried it yet.
• Pulled Pork - this was really simple to make and turned out very tasty. I'll definitely be making this again.
• Stir-Fry Chicken With Garlic Sauce
• Baked Chicken Fingers - I used this recipe but I did not bake the chicken fingers, instead I flash froze them then put them in Ziploc bags. On baking day I'll put them in the oven at 425 for 18-20 minutes.
  

The meals we liked from last month:
These are the original recipes, but they were adjusted a bit because they were all frozen and cooked later.

• Slow Cooker Chicken in Mushroom Sherry Sauce - I ended up mixing everything together in a Ziploc bag and placing it in the freezer. I thawed it out the night before then baked it in the oven. I served it over egg noodles and it was good.


• Buffalo Chicken Fajitas - For this I combined the cut up chicken and sauce in one bag and the veggies in the other bag and put them in the freezer. I only thawed out the chicken and sauce the night before (kept the veggies frozen.) Then on the day of cooking I cooked the chicken and sauce in one pan and the frozen veggies in the other. When both were cooked I added them together and topped it with the blue cheese.


• Baked Southwestern Egg Rolls - I assembled these then put them in Ziploc bags and froze. The day of cooking I followed the regular baking instructions. I really liked these a lot and would definitely make them again.
  
  

April's Big Cooking Day

I finally did it! Two weeks ago I took my grocery list to the store and picked up all the ingredients I needed to make a month's worth of dinners. On Sunday I prepared and froze all of the meals. My Freezer was stocked, full, absolutely packed! We're going on week 3 and I'm happy to say that I still have lots of meals left in the freezer. I've spent less time preparing meals and no time stressing about what we're going to have each day. What it has given me is more time to spend with my family.

I'm already putting together my menu/recipe list for next month. I really think this is saving us money and time. I must admit that I was exhausted by the time I was done preparing and freezing everything on my big day of cooking for the month, but the time and money I will be saving is worth it!

Besides saving time and money, the other thing I like about make ahead meals is trying new recipes. Most of the meals we've tried so far have been great and it's made me realize how many other things I could make in batches and freeze instead of spending lots of money on store bought items that definitely aren't as tasty as homemade. I'd like to try this bread recipe sometime.

I've been wanting to try this type of cooking for quite some time but always felt overwhelmed when it came to finding all of the recipes and compiling the shopping list. Then I found a website that did all of that for me, it's called Once a Month Mom and it's great. Everything is organized and ready to print, from the recipes to the grocery list and even labels with baking instructions. They even have a section on baby/toddler food. I thought this recipe for Toddler French Toast Sticks looked good and is something I'm going to try.

Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution

I just watched the first episode of Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution last night on TV and found it to be very inspirational (you can watch a clip of it HERE)! I really think he is doing great things and I personally want to support his initiative. He thinks America's kids need better food at school and better health prospects and I agree.

I like the show. You can tell that Jamie is passionate about this subject and he seems very genuine. The show reminded me that I would really like to get my boys involved with cooking more and choosing the foods that they eat. My oldest son is a very picky eater and I'm hoping that if I get him more involved with the food choices and preparation he will become more interested.