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Menu Plan For the Week

February 23, 2014 by Laura 4 Comments

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Have you tried using our new Ingredient Search feature yet? It will be very helpful to use while you’re planning meals or snacks. Simply type in an ingredient or two you would like to use this week, and several relevant recipes should show up for you to pick from and work with. Find this search box at the very top right of my side bar. Have fun finding tasty recipes that will work with the ingredients you have on hand or that are on sale this week!

This Easy Noodle Stir Fry recipe is a super way to get lots of veggies into one meal.
We love this simple dish!

Here’s our menu for this week:

Sunday, February 23
Oatmeal breakfast bars, blueberries
Lasagna casserole, tossed salad, butterscotch bars (lunch with friends)
Chili cook-off church fellowship

Monday, February 24
Chocolate chocolate chip muffins, apple slices
Easy noodle stir fry with broccoli, carrots, and zucchini
Italian cream cheese chicken, tossed salad, green beans (friends coming over)

Tuesday, February 25
Easy breakfast casserole, oranges
Pizza boats, sweet peppers, olives, cucumbers, carrot sticks, peaches
Cheeseburger soup, tossed salad

Wednesday, February 26
Blueberry streusel muffins, applesauce
BLT wraps (new recipe I created for a new eBook I’m working on), grapes
Alfredo sauce with pasta, steamed broccoli and carrots, tossed salad

Thursday, February 27
Fried eggs on toast, creamy orange cooler
Tuna casserole, peas, raspberries
Chicken tacos, fruit salad

Friday, February 28
Quick mix biscuits, sausage gravy, blueberries
Black bean salsa, organic corn chips, fresh pineapple
Taco potatoes

Saturday, March 1
Scrambled egg sandwiches, raspberries
Hoagie sandwiches on the road, pears, carrots, cucumbers
Leftovers

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Menu Plan for the Week ~ And Why We Eat Hot Lunches Instead of Sandwiches

February 16, 2014 by Laura 20 Comments

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This week, I plan to answer several frequently asked questions that I hear, you know, frequently. Clever idea, eh? I’ll be addressing the question of why I don’t have a Sam’s or Costco membership, how I store fruits and vegetables to keep them fresh, and this question:

Why do my lunches seem so involved? Why don’t I just feed my family sandwiches for lunch? So let’s start with this question since it relates to my menu plan.

The two main reasons we eat full meals at lunchtime instead of sandwiches are to save money and to save time. All six of us are usually home for lunch. We go through about two loaves of bread and up to two pounds of lunch meat and cheese in one meal – and that’s just the sandwiches. The cost of feeding my family sandwiches for a meal can really add up, so we save sandwich meals for times we’re on the go. There are many other meals I can serve at lunchtime that save us on our grocery budget. (Check out our Real Food Dollar Menu recipes for ideas.)

As for time? I find that if I’ve got food prepped in the freezer, it takes less than ten minutes to prepare lunch. A frozen casserole can be pulled out and put it into the oven mid-morning while we go about our school day. Foods like Chicken Patties or Popcorn Chicken freeze easily, and just have to be rewarmed in the oven. Serving fruits and veggies with these meals is easy as all I have to do is pull out the raw veggies that I’ve already cut, wash a container of berries, or steam veggies quickly. I also let my boys help with meal prep and clean up.

You like how I said “let my boys help?” Obviously, that means that I holler out their names and start giving out orders. Oh yes, I let them do all sorts of things around here. (Speaking of which, I really should let someone put the clothes in the dryer right now…)

Sandwiches work for many families – just not mine at this stage of life. What do you eat at lunchtime?

Here’s our menu plan for this week:

Sunday, February 16
Instant oatmeal, pears
Fund raising dinner at church (Asa is going with a group of teens to Ecuador this summer!)
Small group – Soups, breads, fruit

Monday, February 17
Fruit pizza, bacon
Chicken patty sandwiches, carrots and cucumbers with homemade ranch, fresh pineapple
Italian cream cheese chicken, tossed salad, green beans

Tuesday, February 18
Honey cinnamon muffins, scrambled eggs, oranges
Pizza casserole, steamed veggies, canned peaches
Teriyaki chicken and veggies (broccoli, carrots, zucchini), pineapple

Wednesday, February 19
Raspberry oatmeal bars, bananas
Taco corn fritters, sweet peppers and carrot sticks, apples
Chicken noodle soup, tossed salad

Thursday, February 20
Fried eggs on toast, clementines
Healthier cheese dip, organic tortilla chips, grapes, sweet peppers
Chili mac, tossed salad, peas, blackberries

Friday, February 21
Whole wheat waffles, blueberries
Beefy vegetable soup, cornbread
Cheesy salsa enchiladas, tossed salad, corn, raspberries

Saturday, February 22
Dark chocolate almond granola, pears
Leftovers
Beef stroganoff, tossed salad, roasted veggies

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Menu Plan for the Week

February 9, 2014 by Laura 2 Comments

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How’s the Fruit and Vegetable Challenge going for you? I’ll post an official check-in tonight, but in the meantime, I thought I’d share that my goal for this week’s menu is to plan at least two veggies and/or fruits for each lunch and dinner. We always have fruit with breakfast and more fruit and veggies for snacks. But if I’m intentional about scheduling plenty in for meals too, we should be getting all kinds of goodness. What’s fun is that many of my soups and casseroles have veggies in them already, so if I plan two more, we’re getting three to five servings of vegetables and fruits in one meal!

On an unrelated note (well, still on the topic of food, of course) – my jars of Instant Oatmeal are officially empty. Making more has been on my to-do list as I’ve watched my supply getting lower and lower, but I just haven’t found the ten minutes to get some made. This week, it will happen! If you haven’t taken the time to make Instant Oatmeal yet, do it! It’s such a great food to have on hand for healthy breakfasts and snacks.

I’m also completely out of Whole Wheat Quick Mix. While I’ve got out my big mixing bowls, I plan to get a double batch of that made too!

Here’s what we’re eating this week:

Sunday, February 9
Grape nuts cereal, blueberries
Hamburger potato casserole (from Healthy Make-Ahead Meals and Snacks eBook), tossed salad, green beans
Small group – Crock pot barbecue chicken breasts, plus sides others are bringing

Monday, February 10
Cranberry white chocolate chip breakfast cookies, pears
Calzones, carrot sticks, cucumber slices, grapes
Beefy vegetable soup, tossed salad, cornbread muffins

Tuesday, February 11
Crock pot breakfast casserole, oranges
Cheddar ranch burgers, potato wedges, roasted asparagus, kiwi
Calico beans, fruit salad, carrot sticks

Wednesday, February 12
Poptarts, blueberries
Grilled cheese sandwiches, tomato soup, raw veggies
Cheesy salsa enchiladas, tossed salad, avocados, olives, applesauce

Thursday, February 13
Warm pumpkin custard, toast, bananas
Sloppy cornbread muffins, peas, sweet peppers, apples
Three cheese garlic chicken pasta, tossed salad, steamed broccoli and carrots

Friday, February 14
Heart shaped pancakes, raspberries
Pizza soup, applesauce, cucumber slices, sweet peppers
Chicken pot pie, tossed salad

Saturday, February 15
Justus’ 14th birthday! He’s still thinking through his meal choices. All we know for sure is that Cheesy Turkey Sausage Stromboli is definitely on the list. :)

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Pizza Soup

February 5, 2014 by Laura 10 Comments

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Pizza Soup: One of the best inventions in my kitchen so far this winter. Not including the Super Creamy Peanut Butter, of course. I can’t get enough of this soup. Plus, it’s super easy to make. I love this!

In a freaky, way less artificial, and way more wonderful sort of way, this soup tastes kind of like Spaghettios. I only mention this for those mothers who have kids they are trying to break from Spaghettios. If you hate Spaghettios, trust me, this soup tastes nothing like Spaghettios. Really. Okay then.

pizza soup

You’ll notice this recipe is similar to my Cheeseburger Soup recipe. One night as I was making Cheeseburger Soup, I realized I didn’t have enough chicken broth. I decided to add some tomato sauce to the soup for more liquid. Then I added a few different spices and some pasta. Then I fell in love. Don’t worry. I still love Matt best.

Pizza SoupYum

1/2 pound ground beef
1/2 cup chopped onion
3/4 cup shredded carrots
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried parsley
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
3 cups chicken broth
4 cups tomato sauce
salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 cups milk
8 ounces whole wheat or rice pasta
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 cup sour cream (optional)

In a large pot, brown hamburger meat with onions, carrots, basil, parsley, oregano, and garlic powder. Once thoroughly cooked, add chicken broth and tomato sauce, then bring to a boil. Salt and pepper to taste. Add pasta, then reduce heat to medium while pasta cooks, about ten minutes. Add milk, stirring and cooking until bubbly – about two minutes. Remove from heat. Add cheese and sour cream, stirring until melted. Serves 4-6.

Make this dairy free by simply substituting coconut milk and leaving out the cheese. Add chopped green peppers to the meat, onion, and carrot mixture for a more flavorful soup.

Is it super cold at your house like it is at mine right now? Soup is rockin’ my world as I work to keep us warm and fed!

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Menu Plan for the Week ~ And Our Weekend Fun

February 2, 2014 by Laura 9 Comments

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We’ve had quite a weekend! Our older boys had both a basketball tournament and a church youth rally going on. Both were held in our home town (thankfully!) so they were able to run back and forth to both events. I do believe they will sleep well tonight.

Because our church was hosting the youth rally, with over 130 teens from Nebraska and Kansas in attendance, we were among the families who signed up to house kids. We had 10 extra middle school boys stay with us Friday and Saturday night. They were all so much fun and super sweet. Middle school boys – sweet? Why yes, they were. How about that?

Our breakfast this morning was bigger than normal since we were feeding so many. I made all the food yesterday, so prep this morning was simple. We had Easy Breakfast Casserole, Oatmeal Breakfast Bars, Raspberry Oatmeal Bars, and fruit.

See all the crusty stuff on the egg casserole dish below? That’ll be fun to clean up, huh? That mess is a result of me trying to hurry this morning. Somehow I had in my head that the casserole would be more solid than liquid. Um, eggs, cream, ham, and cheese – unbaked? Liquid. Okay then. I was reminded of its liquid state as I sloshed it up and over the edge of the casserole dish on my way to the oven. What a waste – and a mess! Two blessings: Egg goo did not get on my church clothes, nor did it slop into the open drawer I was standing by. It all hit the floor, making clean up easier. Oh wait – a third blessing: At least I did not slosh it into the oven. Yeah, don’t even picture it.

Now we’ll settle back down with our family to begin a new week of school and life. I’ll probably air out the house a little this afternoon. I mean, those middle school boys are sweet, but their socks and shoes are not. God bless ’em.

Here’s our menu for this week:

Sunday, February 2
Easy breakfast casserole, oatmeal breakfast bars, raspberry oatmeal bars, fruit
Sub sandwiches at the youth rally
Super Bowl Party – Pizza, pizza soup, fruit plate, veggie tray, chips and dip

Monday, February 3
Quick mix pancakes, blueberries
Black bean salsa, corn chips, fresh pineapple
Easy noodle stir fry with broccoli, carrots, zucchini, and chicken

Tuesday, February 4
Bacon cheese muffins, raspberries
Chicken patty sandwiches, lettuce/tomatoes/pickles, pears
One dish meat and potato casserole with peas, tossed salad

Wednesday, February 5
Dark chocolate almond granola, oranges
Pizza boats, sliced cucumbers and sweet peppers, kiwi
Creamy chicken and rice casserole, roasted vegetables

Thursday, February 6
Warm chocolate soother, toast with peanut butter, bananas
Grilled cheese sandwiches, homemade tomato soup, carrot sticks
Orange chicken, baked potatoes, tossed salad, green beans

Friday, February 7
Almond flour muffins, scrambled eggs, pears
Taco potatoes, pineapple
Lasagna Casserole, tossed salad, steamed broccoli

Saturday, February 8
Whole wheat waffles, blueberries, whipped cream
Leftovers
Hamburgers, sweet potato fries, raw veggies

Are you doing anything fun for the Super Bowl tonight? I’m very proud of myself for finding out (five hours before game time – a record for me) who is playing tonight. What can I say? I just go to these parties for the food.

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Menu Plan for the Week {31 Days of Real Food Reality ~ Day 26}

January 26, 2014 by Laura 8 Comments

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Just a few days left in our 31 Days of Real Food Reality series! Hopefully, reading the series has been an encouragement to you. Or at least maybe you’ve been convinced to eat real butter. :)

Today’s Real Food Reality Tip: Have fun playing with recipes, making them work for your family’s real food tastes and needs!

For instance, our family has fallen in love with this Cheeseburger Soup recipe. I have been making it once a week for the past few weeks. To keep life exciting (because clearly, not much exists in life that is more exciting than soup in a bowl) – sometimes I substitute the potatoes in the recipe with whole wheat or brown rice pasta. It is delicious this way! Plus, dumping in noodles saves me a few extra minutes if I don’t want to take the time to prepare potatoes.

I’ve also shared that sometimes I make our Raspberry Oatmeal Bars with different varieties of jelly. It’s fun to take basic, favorite recipes and play with them to add variety without adding extra work!

Here’s our menu plan for this week. I may or may not be tweaking some of these recipes to keep life interesting. :)

Sunday, January 26
Instant oatmeal, apple slices
Beef stew, quick mix biscuits, fruit salad
Hamburgers, carrot sticks, spinach salad

Monday, January 27
Mix and match bars, applesauce
Popcorn chicken, roasted cauliflower, sliced sweet peppers, spicy avocado dip with chips
Chicken fried steak strips, mashed potatoes, gravy, peas

Tuesday, January 28
Honey cinnamon muffins, scrambled eggs, clementines
Cheeseburger soup, sliced cucumbers with ranch dip, pears
Pizza casserole, tossed salad, steamed broccoli and carrots

Wednesday, January 29
Warm chocolate soother, toast with peanut butter, oranges
Tuna casserole, peas, grapes
Spaghetti squash with pasta sauce, steamed asparagus, green beans

Thursday, January 30
Sweet potato streusel muffins, turkey sausage, bananas
Salmon patties, potato wedges, green beans
Homemade pizza, tossed salad, carrots with ranch dip

Friday, January 31
Pumpkin chocolate chip bread, applesauce
Rice and veggie stir fry, with broccoli, carrots, and zucchini
Sloppy joes, sweet potato fries, peas

Saturday, February 1
Bacon cheesy eggs, honey whole wheat bagels, oranges
Leftovers
Creamy chicken and rice casserole, tossed salad, fried zucchini

Do you like playing with recipes or do you prefer to follow a recipe precisely?

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Menu Plan for the Week – Branching Out and Eating a Variety

January 19, 2014 by Laura 61 Comments

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My Real Food Reality tip for you today is to be brave! Try something new! You know…like cauliflower. It’s a brand new vegetable. It’s the latest craze in the produce section. Everyone is talking about it.

Uh-huh.

It’s just that our family has just never been very big on cauliflower. So this week, in an effort to give us more vegetable variety (green beans, peas, broccoli…green beans, peas, broccoli…yawn, ho-hum, snooze) – I’m branching out and experimenting with a new cauliflower recipe. Actually, I haven’t found a recipe yet, but I’m sure it’s out there. Have anything for me???

How can you branch out? What “new” real food can you try? I encourage you to continue trying new foods to expand the variety of healthy options you can serve to your families!

My kids have been requesting this Crock Pot Hamburger Cream Cheese Dip for several weeks.
I’m finally remembering to add it to the menu plan.
Tasty, fun, and easy!

Here’s our menu plan for the week:

Sunday, January 19
Instant oatmeal, dried fruit
Leftovers
Small group – Alfredo sauce with pasta, sides others bring along

Monday, January 20
Easy biscuits and gravy, apples
Hamburgers, chips, carrots, raspberries (friends coming over for Elias’ birthday)
Chicken tacos, fresh pineapple

Tuesday, January 21
Pancake sausage muffins, oranges
Grilled cheese, tomato soup, applesauce, sweet pepper slices
One dish meat and potato casserole, tossed salad

Wednesday, January 22
Breakfast cake muffins, bananas
Easy noodle stir-fry with broccoli, carrots, and zucchini
Sweet and sour meatballs (recipe in Let’s Do This eCourse, Lesson 5), rice, something with cauliflower :)

Thursday, January 23
Homemade grape nuts cereal, blueberries
Chili mac, peas, sliced cucumbers with homemade ranch
Fried chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans

Friday, January 24
Raspberry oatmeal bars, clementines
Hamburger cream cheese dip, corn chips, fruit-kefir smoothies
Crock pot bbq chicken breasts, baked potatoes, tossed salad, steamed broccoli and carrots

Saturday, January 25
Zucchini bread, applesauce
Leftovers
Cheeseburger soup, tossed salad

Help a girl out! Give me some good cauliflower recipes (please)! And let us know what “new” real food you can try this week. :)

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Menu Plan for the Week {31 Days to Real Food Reality ~ Day 12}

January 12, 2014 by Laura 3 Comments

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This post is sponsored by Great Homeschool Conventions. I am honored to be working with them to spread the word about the wonderful conventions they offer!

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How have you been enjoying the 31 Days of Real Food Reality series so far? I pray it’s been helpful to you!

My Real Food Reality Tip for you today has to do with organization: When planning what meals to serve to your family, keep it simple. Pick a main dish, then choose one or two veggies to go with it. Easy as that! You’ll see in my menu plan below that there is nothing fancy about our Real Food Reality. Don’t make eating a healthy diet difficult! Remember…it’s just food. :)

On another note, I have to give a big shout out to the Homemade Instant Oatmeal recipe. A healthy breakfast (or snack) does not get any easier than this. It takes about five minutes for me to mix up a double batch of this oatmeal. I store it in a jar in my pantry, then scoop it out and add boiling water when we want it for breakfast. Better yet, my kids can make a bowl of oatmeal for themselves. Love this!

Here is my very non-fancy, but still very real food and family friendly meal plan for the week:

Sunday, January 12
Homemade instant oatmeal, dried fruit
Cheesy pasta bake, already prepared and in the freezer, ready to bake! (Recipe in {Healthy} Make-Ahead Meals and Snacks eBook), tossed salad
Small group – Chicken pot pie, with side dishes provided by others

Monday, January 13
Bacon cheese muffins, oranges
Baked potato with broccoli cheese sauce
Roast, carrots, gravy, green beans

Tuesday, January 14
Cinnamon swirl bread, apples
Black bean salsa with corn chips, pineapple
Chicken burritos, tossed salad

Wednesday, January 15
Oatmeal breakfast bars, applesauce
Chicken salad on pita bread, cottage cheese with peaches
Cheesy salsa enchiladas, tossed salad

Thursday, January 16
Pumpkin chocolate chip bread, pears
Chicken noodle soup, carrot sticks
Lasagna casserole, tossed salad, steamed broccoli

Friday, January 17
Pancake and sausage muffins, applesauce
Pizza boats, green beans, olives, blueberries
Shepherds pie, tossed salad

Saturday, January 18 – Elias’ b-day!
Still waiting for him to decide his birthday meal choices. :)

What’s on your menu this week?

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Menu Plan for the Week – and a Pickle Tradition

December 29, 2013 by Laura 9 Comments

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Who’s heard of the German pickle ornament tradition (which may or may not be true)? I won a pickle ornament at a white elephant gift exchange last year, so our boys decided that we definitely needed to make this a part of our Christmas fun. Who wouldn’t want to find a pickle hanging on the Christmas tree, after all?

The long and short of the tradition is this: Christmas Eve night, parents hide the pickle ornament somewhere on the Christmas tree. In the morning, the first child to discover it receives an extra gift. This explains why my kids were interested in this tradition, right? It’s all about a bonus gift.

All was well until Christmas Eve afternoon when it occurred to me that the boys were counting on us hiding the pickle, and I had forgotten all about providing an extra gift for the winner. Thinking quickly, I brainstormed for something that would make the winner feel special but that all the boys would enjoy (after all of their pickle searching efforts). I refused to go back out and buy something. I was done shopping, thank you very much.

Aha! I ran to the computer and created a certificate which entitled the finder of the pickle to pick all of the menu items for New Year’s Day. I made the certificate goofy (shocking) with a bunch of ridiculous disclaimers, printed it, and put it into a gift bag. There. Pickle present done.

Justus (13) was the winner. Here’s what he chose:

Wednesday, January 1
Whole wheat waffles (which the boys are now all calling “Super Mama Waffles” – I guess they are just that good?)
Tilapia, rice, steamed veggies
Spicy pasta (recipe from a friend), tossed salad

If you’re wondering what happened to Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday in our menu plan…I didn’t come up with plans for those days because we’re with family and working together on food prep. :)

Thursday, January 2
Snickerdoodle muffins, apples
Beefy vegetable soup, fruit
Alfredo sauce with pasta, steamed veggies

Friday, January 3
Poptarts, applesauce
Creamy mac and cheese, peas
Calzones, tossed salad

Saturday, January 4
Honey whole wheat bagels, clementines
Rice and veggie stir fry with broccoli, carrots, and chicken
Beefy enchilada bake, tossed salad

Tell me if you’ve heard of the Christmas Pickle!

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More Christmas Memories – Making Peppernuts

December 6, 2013 by Laura 5 Comments

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It seems like all week long, I’ve been traveling back in time to the days I was a little girl during the Christmas season. Listening to the Muppets Christmas CD has been such a fun blessing as I remember special Christmas traditions with my mom. And now, I’m thinking about my grandma. Why? Because every year she made oodles of little Peppernuts that we would munch on.

What are Peppernuts? Some of you likely eat them each year just like I did growing up. If not, allow me to introduce you to the best little cookies in the world:

These cookies are a little bit time consuming to make, but they make a large quantity for you to enjoy. They are also wonderful to package up in baggies to deliver to others.

Tell me if you’ve had Peppernuts before! And be sure to check out the recipe here.

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