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The Simple Meals Our Family Has Been Eating This Week, Part 2

February 9, 2017 by Laura Leave a Comment

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

I’m assuming you downloaded your FREE Simple Meals Planning Packet this week? It is free, after all. Go get yours!

I posted earlier this week about how I’ve been using this week’s Simple Meals menu to easily get food on the table for my family. As it turns out, I used half the plan last week and am finishing it up this week. (Perks of being the one who creates the menu plans – I got to start using it ahead of time!) If you missed it, check out this post which shares pictures of the first few meals in the plan.

Here we go with Days 5 and 6 of following the Simple Meals plan!

Day 5: Crock Pot Night: Simple Overnight Melt-in-Your-Mouth Beef Roast

To kick-start a new week, on Sunday night, right before I headed to bed, I put together the Simple Overnight Melt-in-Your-Mouth Beef Roast. For the record, if you forget to start that recipe at night before bed (because at the end of the day, some of us who shall remain nameless might be too tired to remember to execute good plans like this), you can always start it early in the morning to have it ready in the evening in time for dinner.

I was very proud of myself for remembering to start the roast on Sunday night, and woke up the next morning to the delicious smell of our lunch. I turned the crock pot to “keep warm” setting and at lunch time I stir-fried some veggies to go with our meal. (We have been having our main meals at lunchtime lately because it’s working better with our busy evening activities schedule.)

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I got this fun note from Susan last week about the Simple Overnight Melt-in-Your-Mouth Beef Roast recipe and wanted to share!

Thank you so much for sharing this common recipe. I mean, who hasn’t already made a roast in the crockpot before? But your tips were amazing. And I didn’t know I could put it in the crock without first browning it in a pan (this always felt like so much trouble, and would discourage me from making this dish when I was in a hurry). And Frozen! Are you kidding me? Well – I did it – just like you suggested. Cooked on low for 12 hours, and it was the best tasting, most tender roast beef I’ve ever made. Oh, and I cooked carrots in the bottom, and their flavor was wonderful. Thank you again.

Fun, huh? Thanks, Susan. This is what Simple Meals is all about!

Day 6: No Trouble Night: Simple Pizza Chicken Bake

The final meal on this week’s Simple Meals menu was Simple Pizza Chicken Bake. I could go on and on about how easy this recipe is to make and how very delicious it is to eat. I served it with green beans and tossed salad, so as always, this went on the table very quickly.

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Hopefully you enjoyed the free Simple Meals Planning Packet!

I’d love all of you to take advantage of the Simple Meals Subscription offer! Just think. A complete menu plan and grocery list will land in your inbox every single week, along with a bunch of bonus tips and recipes. Your small investment (which we promise to make very, very worth it) will save you so much time, energy, and money every week! You won’t have to think about what to cook. Bliss. And the meal suggestions are incredibly simple, yet detailed to make everything easy for you.

Don’t forget there’s a $10 off coupon waiting for you here, plus over $60 worth of freebies that are yours after your purchase. That means you get more in freebies than the cost of your entire yearly subscription. Score!

Simple Meals is a ridiculously good offer. (We made it super affordable for all! Less than $1 per week!) Can’t wait to have you join us!

Join Simple Meals Here.

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Menu Plan for the Week (We survived the first week of school!)

August 28, 2016 by Laura 1 Comment

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

The first week of school is always known at our house as the week that “works out the kinks.” This is good because of all weeks for one of our computers to die, one died last week. So much for Math and Spanish lessons on “the back room computer.”

Now that we’re ready for “Week 2” I think we’ve got all the software set up (again) and schedules mostly situated into what actually works. If I’ve learned anything during my life 15 years of homeschooling it’s to be open and flexible. Expect life to happen. Don’t get tied down to the ideal schedule because as ideal as the ideal is, it is rarely pulled off ideally. <— Profound, eh?

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I kept last week’s menu plan simple and am doing the same this week. Is there any other way?

This Week’s Menu Plan

Breakfasts

Always served with some sort of protein and 1-2 choices of fruit.

  • Easy Breakfast Casserole
  • Raspberry Oatmeal Bars
  • Pancake Muffins
  • Stir-n-Pour Bread (toasted and served with peanut butter and honey)
  • Poppyseed Bread (from our Make-Ahead Meals and Snacks eBook)

Lunches

Always served with 2-4 choices of fruits and veggies. This week I have apples, grapes, avocados, bananas, nectarines, applesauce, cantaloupe, carrots, spinach, mixed greens, and zucchini to work with.

  • Chicken Salad
  • Lazy Dogs (prepped in the freezer)
  • Pizza Boats
  • Bacon, Egg, and Avocado Salad
  • Easy Cheesy Bean Dip

Dinners

I’m using my crock pot almost every night this week to save time after a busy day of work and school. Dinners are always served with 2-4 choices of fruits and veggies. I’ll work with all of the fruit/veggies options mentioned in the lunch section, plus sweet potatoes, frozen green beans, and frozen peas.

  • Baked Potatoes in the Crock Pot (served with ham, cheese, butter, and sour cream)
  • Italian Cream Cheese Chicken
  • Calico Beans
  • Apricot Chicken (one of our favorite recipes in the Eat Right Away Collection)
  • Grilled Italian Chicken

Anything yummy on your menu this week?

Final eBook Discount Day

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If you haven’t already picked up our new Low Sugar Treats eBook, you’ll want to do it today so you can get it at the introductory price! Get all the details about this book (with its 41 low sugar recipes!) here. Sale price ends at midnight Monday, August 29!

[wp_eStore_fancy1 id=18]

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Our First Week of School Menu Plan + an Update on my Grain Free Journey

August 21, 2016 by Laura 7 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

What a wonderful, refreshing summer.

First, our 16-year old went to Ecuador.

This is him (gray shirt, black pants) playing soccer with some Ecuadorian children.

ecuador

In June we went to Arkansas for a family reunion to celebrate our darling Nana’s 90th birthday. Here’s a picture of me with several of my 1st cousins and Nana. (I’m second from the right in the back row.)

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The boys spent several weeks out at our church camp – either as campers or counselors depending on the session. Yay for time to grow spiritually as leaders!

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I grabbed some pictures of one of the boys’ favorite evening camp activities – Lip Sync Night.

Justus (16) is on the far right:

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Here’s Elias (14)

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Asa (19) is on the far right:

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Oh look. There’s me. I went to camp too. (Matt and I love team-teaching Bible classes out there.)

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Malachi (11) got to go to camp for the first time as a camper this year. He’s there in the middle between one of his buddies and his counselor:

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Back at home, Malachi also spend hours and hours building with Legos (and taking pictures of his creations):

legos

It’s all been fantastic. It’s been so fantastic, in fact, that I’ve not been at all ready to start up again with ACT prep, Algebra, history lessons, intense schedules, ball games, practices, music lessons, running, running, running….

Ooooh! But Justus got his driver’s license! So that right there has been very freeing (after the first breath-catching experience of letting him head out on his own without a parent). He can get himself to his college class, soccer reffing games, music lessons – AND HE CAN DRIVE HIS BROTHERS AROUND TOO. This is all very happy.

God always provides. He’s actually made me excited again about a new school year. I might be mostly excited about the routine the school year brings. But even the actual school part. That is starting to make me excited too!

We begin school this week. The books are organized; the software has been installed; the assignment lists are on the fridge.

I’ve been freezer cooking a little bit each week in an effort to make the transition smooth. I’m also writing down this week’s menu in an effort to save my brain from having all the organization swim around and try to keep itself in order. I may begin sharing my menus here again if you and I both find it to be helpful.

This Week’s Back to School Menu Plan

Breakfasts

We usually make some form of meat and/or eggs with our breakfasts because our teens really crave protein. Also, we always serve a fruit or two with our breakfast. So to go with our protein and fruit, we’ll serve:

  • Giant Breakfast Cookies (freezer)
  • Poptarts (freezer)
  • Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
  • Quick Mix Pancakes
  • Ham and Egg Breakfast Bowls (with spinach)

Lunches

I’ve got watermelon, blueberries, strawberries, nectarines, apples, applesauce, pickles, sweet peppers, mixed greens, and carrots to serve with our lunches. I usually put out 2-4 fruits and veggies for everyone to pick from during our meals.

  • Beef and Cheese Burritos (freezer)
  • Chicken Sandwiches (in the freezer/recipe coming soon)
  • Homemade Corndogs (freezer)
  • Chef Salads (with leftover grilled chicken)
  • Homemade Pizza (crusts in the freezer)

Dinners

I try to serve 2-4 fruits/veggies with our evening meal, varying them with what we ate for breakfast and lunch. I’ve got broccoli, peas, green beans, zucchini, spinach, sweet potatoes, and mixed greens to work with, plus all the fruit mentioned above.

  • Grilled Lamb Chops
  • Taco Salad
  • Grilled Burgers
  • Easy Noodle Stir Fry
  • BLTs (if our tomatoes would ever ripen)

How’s my grain-free journey going?

If you recall, my natural doctor took me off all grains in early July. Why? Well, she’s been working with me for four (long) years to cleanse and detox my body to get all systems functioning well again. Trust me when I say that there’s been a lot of junk to cleanse out of me (from heavy metals to bad bacteria). This process has been way less than fun as there have been many days during the past four years I have not felt well.

And then there are the days I feel amazing. So I know we’re onto something here.

My health has improved in incredible ways. Probably more importantly, my emotional health has experienced a huge overhaul along with the physical detox. I didn’t see that coming. It’s amazing how our mental and physical are connected. I invite you to read more about that journey here. God is incredible, gentle, and faithful.

So the grain-free thing?

As really old bacteria and metals have been pulling out from all their hiding places from decades ago and finding their way into my blood stream where the remedies I’ve been given are helping my body get rid of them forever  – sugar and carbs have not been playing nice. So cutting out sugar and grains has been a must for me.

But praise the Lord it is not a must for me forever!!!

In fact, this phase of detox is happening quite rapidly (part of why I haven’t felt great some days). My digestive organs are healthy now, so my body can actually handle grains in small amounts. (I’ll continue to avoid refined sugar and only eat honey and maple syrup in small amounts.)

If none of this makes sense, trust me when I say that I barely understand it either. But I trust my doctor who focuses on getting to the root of our problems. It all makes sense when she explains it (except for the parts that don’t, but since she knows what she’s talking about…).

So. Grains.

I’ve learned that I do need a few whole grains and I feel fine when I eat them now.

But I’ve also learned that my 43-year old, non-athletic self does not need many. Going grain free for several weeks really taught me how to sub grains for even more veggies in my diet. I’m eating tons of leafy greens instead of bread. Sweet potatoes are amazing. It’s such a win to eat this way! Also, you must try fried zucchini with this Real Food “Velveeta” and Rotel Dip.

I eat a little bit of whole grain a couple times each day. I enjoy every bite!! Otherwise I eat veggies, meat, fruit, and dairy – and as much good fat as I can incorporate into my meals and snacks.

So that’s the update. I’m eating a little whole grain again. I’m eating more veggies than ever. I’m on the last phases of healing detox (please, Lord).

When you see grainy food in my recipes and menus, you can assume I’m likely not eating many of them. I’m feeding my family whole grains as normal – because they are active and can handle it. I typically eat what they eat, just a grain free version. (Like my BLT will be in a big bowl of greens instead of between two slices of bread. Don’t feel sorry for me. I’ll eat all the bacon I want with garden fresh tomatoes. There’s nothing sad about this.)

Here’s to a great new school year and all the delicious food that goes with it!

Has your family started school yet? What’s on your menu this week?

You’ll find more great menu plans at OrgJunkie. :)

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

30-Day Home Stretch Real Food Menu Plan

April 25, 2016 by Laura 3 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

I have a 30-Day Real Food Menu Plan for you for the home stretch. Why? Well I don’t know about you, but…

I am all done. 

I don’t care how many pages of Worldly Wise or lessons of Teaching Textbooks (math) are practical to finish in one week. I want the boys to finish. Five days. All of it. Overachieve, children! You can do it. There’s ice cream in it for you when you finish. A double scoop.

All the learning moments? We’ve had ’em galore. They have been precious. We’ll have more next year. Right now we’re in a “just finish it already” mode. Finishing by Friday is entirely possible on most of our subjects. They are pretty motivated (by the ice cream) (and the freedom), so I’m pretty sure they’ll be able to pull it off.

Raise your hand if you’re with me – whether home-school, private, or public school family. Are ya ready for summer break??

Malachi school april

This kid. We wears a suit and tie more than he wears play clothes.
Actually, a suit and tie are his play clothes. #mosthandsomefifthgrader

Our oldest, Asa, finishes his second semester at college and moves home this weekend! He leaves again at the beginning of June to travel for the college, recruiting for YC at various church camps in the Midwest. This is part of my push to finish our school year at home this week. All six of us will be home during the month of May and I’d just rather not be dividing our time between family fun and Algebra.

No matter where you are in your school year, I’m sure we can all use a little help getting the family fed easily!

You may remember that I shared a 30-Day Real Food Back-to-School Menu Plan last August when we were all gearing up for this school year. Now that we’re winding down and probably trying to work harder than ever to get everything done, to make it to all the end-of-school events, and basically survive until summer – I thought it might be nice if I recreated this menu plan for you and offered it again.

The 30-Day Back-to-School Home Stretch! Real Food Menu Plan

We’ll begin with breakfast, head into lunch (for the home-schoolers among us), then land on dinner/supper. Ready to dig in?!

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30 Real Food Breakfast Ideas (always served with fruit and often served with some sort of additional protein)

  1. Fried eggs on toast
  2. Scrambled cheesy eggs
  3. Breakfast Burritos
  4. Chocolate Chocolate Chip Muffins
  5. Easy Breakfast Casserole
  6. Dark Chocolate Almond Granola
  7. Giant Breakfast Cookies
  8. Instant Oatmeal Packets
  9. Pancake and Sausage Muffins
  10. Whole Wheat Waffles
  11. Coconut Flour Muffins
  12. Quick Mix Pancakes
  13. Homemade Poptarts
  14. Raspberry Oatmeal Bars
  15. Peanut Butter Snack Bars
  16. Peanut Butter Breakfast Cake
  17. Coconut Fudge Bars
  18. Cream Cheese Pumpkin Muffins
  19. Quick Mix Biscuits
  20. Low Sugar Carrot Cake
  21. Lemon Bread
  22. Ham and Egg Breakfast Bowls
  23. Grape Nuts Cereal
  24. Crepes
  25. Breakfast Cake Muffins
  26. Honey Cinnamon Muffins
  27. Oatmeal Breakfast Bars
  28. Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Muffins
  29. Strawberry Cream Muffins
  30. Peanut Butter Pancakes

Muffin Tip: Make muffin batter ahead and put it into the freezer like this so that you can easily bake them fresh as needed in the mornings!

Tuna Melts on Spinach

30 Real Food Lunch Ideas (always served with 2-4 fruits and veggies. If I’m serving salad, I usually serve some sort of bread to fill my men)

  1. Tuna Salad
  2. Tuna Melts on Spinach
  3. Pasta Salad Bar
  4. Meat and Cheese Burritos
  5. Easy Noodle Stir Fry
  6. Ham and Cheese Pasta Salad
  7. Pizza Boats
  8. Baked Potatoes in the Crock Pot with whatever toppings we have available
  9. Homemade pizza (crusts already made – boys build/bake their own)
  10. Spanish Rice
  11. Taco Salad
  12. Easy Cheesy Bean Dip with chips
  13. Chicken Tacos
  14. Black Bean Chicken Nachos
  15. BLT Chopped Salad
  16. BLT Wraps
  17. Bacon, Egg, and Avocado Salad
  18. Grilled Cheese Sandwiches (with turkey or ham if I have some)
  19. Scrambled Egg Sandwiches
  20. Creamy Mac and Cheese
  21. Healthier Cheese Dip with chips
  22. Real Food Meat and Velveeta Dip with chips
  23. Taco Quesadillas
  24. Tuna Casserole
  25. Chicken Burritos
  26. Plain Quesadillas
  27. Hamburger Patties
  28. Beef Summer Sausage with cheese and crackers
  29. Corn Dog Muffins
  30. Cheesy Salsa Burgers (from Eat Right Away: Beef Edition)

Grilled BBQ Chicken

Dinner/Supper (always served with 2-4 fruits and veggies)

  1. Cheesy Salsa Enchiladas
  2. Grilled Barbeque Chicken
  3. Italian Cream Cheese Chicken
  4. Mongolian Beef (from Eat Right Away: Slow Cooker Beef Edition)
  5. Quick Mix Pancakes with Scrambled Eggs and Bacon
  6. Barbecue Cranberry Chicken (from Eat Right Away: Slow Cooker Chicken Edition)
  7. Sloppy Joes
  8. Cheeseburger Macaroni
  9. Easy Apricot Chicken (from Eat Right Away: Chicken Edition)
  10. Turkey Sausage and Red Bean Stew
  11. Taco Potatoes
  12. Beefy Enchilada Bake
  13. Baked Ziti (from Eat Right Away: Beef Edition)
  14. Baked Three Cheese Chicken Pasta
  15. Garden Veggie Chicken Skillet
  16. Spaghetti
  17. Bacon Cheeseburger Casserole (from Make-Ahead Meals and Snacks)
  18. Popcorn Chicken
  19. Bacon-Wrapped Individual Meatloaves (from Eat Right Away: Beef Edition)
  20. Italian Pasta Bake
  21. Salmon Patties
  22. Teriyaki Chicken and Veggies
  23. Grilled Salmon
  24. Grilled Burgers
  25. Fiesta Chicken
  26. Sour Cream Enchiladas (from Make-Ahead Meals and Snacks)
  27. Creamy Chicken and Rice Casserole
  28. Lamb Chops
  29. Hawaiian Beef and Rice (from Eat Right Away: Slow Cooker Beef Edition)
  30. Grilled Steak

30 Day Real Food Home-Stretch-School Menu Plan

Learning Resources and Freebies Made Easy

How would you like a downloadable version of this?! Learning Zone members can download this FREE 30-Day Real Food Menu Plan Resource to keep handy during this busy time of year.

Are you part of the Heavenly Homemaker’s Learning Zone? We’re frequently offering free printable learning resources you won’t want to miss! If you are a mom, an educator, or in any way spend time with children – I invite you to join the fun of the Learning Zone!

Download the 30-Day Real Food Menu Plan Resource

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

My Menu Plan For This Week (Yep. It’s Been a While.)

February 27, 2016 by Laura 3 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Who knew that strawberries rank right up there with butter in my lists of LOVES? I don’t think I realized how much I’ve grown to love them until I apparently became addicted to them last year and have been impatiently waiting for them to come back in season. I’ve been waiting, and waiting…

The time is now. They were on the Bountiful Baskets order form this week for a great price, but since I’m always very reasonable with bulk purchases, I only ordered two. Cases. What? If it makes you feel better, I put three cases in my cart at first, then realized that 24 pounds of fresh strawberries might be a little obsessive. So I cut it down to only 16 pounds. #noshame

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This might have been my favorite BB order ever. 16 pounds of berries, two packages of whole wheat pizza crusts, all the basket goodies – plus I split a case of pink lady apples and a case of carrots with a friend. We now have so much good food in our house!

A little perspective on the strawberries…

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Me taking my first bite of strawberry this season…

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I figured it was a selfie-worthy event.

The first thing we did after unloading all the produce was make the cream cheese goodness for Strawberry Cheesecake Parfaits. We skipped actually making them into parfaits because we were all dying to dig in and there was no time to wait for strawberries to be layered neatly in glasses. Instead we just grabbed bowls and plopped it in. So, so, so, so good. I can’t tell you how good. Get yourself some strawberries and make these.

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Now I have a confession for you. (Like my huge strawberry purchase confession wasn’t enough.)

I didn’t menu plan last week. I didn’t even grocery shop. We handled the lack of grocery shopping just fine. But the lack of menu planning? Oooff. That was tricky.

I have been either away from home or working on two big projects at the computer, which means I when I was home I barely left the keyboard. As a result, my house fell apart around me. I didn’t even take time to think through our meals for each day because the projects had me so distracted. Here’s how we survived: My kids can cook.

Not only can they cook, they can plan a meal and execute making it from start to finish.

I can’t tell you how wonderfully nice this is!! Tuesday I said to Justus (age 16), “I’m leaving for the funeral. I have no plan for lunch but I will be very hungry and drained when I get home. Can you figure out lunch and thaw something and make something and have it ready? Sorry I can’t help you more than that.”

I didn’t know what I’d come home to, but I wish I’d taken a picture. The kid made not one but two different kinds of chicken with green beans and rolls with butter. It tasted like heaven to me. I’m not sure who was more proud: Justus or his mom.

I put the other kids in charge of other meals this week on equally busy days. They nailed it. Now the kitchen…that was an explosive mess that we all dealt with together this morning. But whatever. They planned and executed meals like pros.

I can’t say enough about teaching your kids to cook, and I plan to focus my blog posts around the topic during the next several days. In the meantime, I have got to make a meal plan. The kids pulled it off for me last week, but I’d rather be a little more organized this week. Plus, I’ve got all that gorgeous food pictured up there to play with.

Our Menu Plan

Breakfasts

  • Strawberry shortcake
  • Scrambled cheesy eggs
  • Instant oatmeal packets
  • Breakfast burritos

Lunches and Dinners

  • BLT Chopped Salad
  • Easy cheesy bean dip
  • Easy noodle stir fry (with carrots, zucchini, spinach, and mushrooms)
  • Italian cream cheese chicken
  • Pizza (using the crusts from Bountiful Baskets)
  • Potato soup
  • Baked potatoes in the crock pot
  • Bacon tomato dip with homemade baked tortilla chips

Travel Food

We’re heading to Kansas Thursday for our big annual Homeschool Basketball Tournament. We’ll be there three full days, so we’ll eat out some and pack a few meals too.

  • Sandwich fixins
  • Pizza (we’ll bake them at home and eat them cold)
  • Tortilla wraps
  • Strawberry cheesecake parfaits (the to-go version)
  • Sweet peppers, cucumbers, carrots
  • Apples, strawberries, clementines, bananas, blueberries
  • Cashews, peanuts
  • Homemade muffins
  • Cheese and crackers

Here’s to a great week! The sun is shining and I have strawberries. All is right in my world. Hope you’re relishing in your blessings too. :)

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Menu Plan for the Week, a Freezer/Pantry Clean Out Challenge Update, and How I Got Ahead This Weekend

January 17, 2015 by Laura 7 Comments

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It would appear that my “only buy produce, eggs, and dairy” challenge has also turned into a “see how deep you can dig down into the pantry and freezer to surprise your family with random food choices” challenge. I’m having a lot of fun. My family? I don’t even think they’ve actually noticed.

It’s just food to them. As long as there is plenty and as long as it is tasty, there doesn’t seem to be any argument to eating muffins made with freeze dried strawberries (this recipe, only with almost expired freeze dried strawberries) or an un-named casserole that used up the rest of our turkey and some odds and ends of pasta.

Kids: Mmm, what’s this casserole called, Mom?
Me: Dinner.
Kids shrug and get seconds

I have not made a dent in our store of food, though I am panicking a little bit as it appears we are completely out of the vital ingredient dried cranberries. I’m not sure how we will survive.

I had fun doing some price matching and buying our fresh produce for the week. Actually, most of what you see in the picture is gone already. We plow through it. I’ll probably head back to the store on Wednesday if we can wait that long.

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Yes, that is one big sour cream tub.
I like that this brand contains only one ingredient, “cultured cream.”
We go through it pretty quickly, and as a side note:
When I use up the sour cream, the container is perfect for soup when I take meals to other families.

Regarding my plans to get ahead, can I just confess (again) how much I dislike cleaning? I was very willing to spend hours in the kitchen, but finding the motivation to go upstairs to tackle some filth? That is not nearly as much fun. Let’s focus on the fun food, shall we?

First thing, I grabbed out my Oh, For Real book and all spices needed to make Turkey Sausage and Ranch Salad Dressing Mix. Two full jars of spice mixes later, I put 12 pounds of ground turkey with spices on the stove to cook.

weekend 1

While the meat was cooking, I went to work on muffins. I had already put together and frozen Chocolate Chocolate Chip Muffins the night before, so I started on Banana Muffins and Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Muffins. Super easy!

Realizing I was hungry and about to faint (not really, but I thought I should add some drama), I pulled out tuna salad and a bunch of fruits and veggies. The boys had slept in and weren’t hungry yet for lunch, so I munched alone while jotting notes in my Menu Planning Notebook.

weekend 2

After working on menu ideas for this week, I turned over to the Freezer Section of printables. I decided to start jotting down what I have left in my freezers since I’m working on getting them cleaned. Having a running list will be helpful. I didn’t finish the list, because the turkey sausage was finished cooking and I was done eating. I’ll take my list out to my freezers later to take final inventory.

weekend 3

Yes, I know. Corn isn’t a vegetable. 

Last, I took a few minutes (yep, that’s all it took) to make a double batch of Instant Oatmeal. It filled three half-gallon jars, so we should be set on that for a while. I love having that on hand!

weekend 4

After the meat cooled, I separated it into freezer bags for easy “almost ready” meals. We’ll be using some for Sausage Gravy this week!

Here’s what our menu choices look like for this week:

Breakfast

  • Muffins from the freezer
  • Quick Mix Biscuits with Sausage Gravy (Elias’ bday choice!)
  • Pumpkin Donuts
  • Scrambled eggs with peppers, spinach, and mushrooms
  • Warm Chocolate Soother
  • Whole Wheat Waffle
  • Poptarts

Lunch

  • Lasagna (Elias’ bday choice, recipe in What To Do With the Cow in Your Kitchen eBook)
  • Baked Potatoes in the Crock Pot
  • Rice and Veggie Stir Fry
  • Bacon, Egg, and Avocado Salad
  • Cheeseburger Soup
  • Salmon Patties
  • Taco Salad

Dinner

  • Chili
  • Creamy Chicken and Rice Casserole
  • Beef Stew
  • Cheeseburger Macaroni
  • Cheesy Beef and Rice
  • Orange Chicken
  • Italian Cream Cheese Chicken

Fruit and Veggie Sides and Snacks (I serve 1-4 with every meal)

  • Cheesy Vegetable Casserole
  • Honey Glazed Carrots
  • Hot Spinach and Artichoke Dip
  • Green Machine Milkshakes
  • Green Beans
  • Peas
  • Cheesy Cauliflower Cakes
  • Spinach
  • Mixed Greens
  • Romaine Lettuce
  • Petite Carrots
  • Broccoli and Carrots
  • Cucumber
  • Sweet Peppers
  • Clementines
  • Oranges
  • Blueberries

By the way, this Easy Veggie Dip continues to be a big hit as we work our way through lots of raw vegetables!

How has your weekend been?

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Menu Plan for the Week, Using Fresh Cranberries, and Price Matching at Wal-Mart?

December 6, 2014 by Laura 20 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

I bought a few groceries at the beginning of the week:  broccoli, pears, cantaloupe, spinach, cottage cheese, cucumber, raspberries, clementines, blackberries, and petite carrots. All but the cottage cheese and half the cranberries are gone already.  Time to go back to the store.  This is a good “problem” to have. I am so thankful for all the delicious variety of produce available.

dec 6 groceries

By the way, that cantaloupe was the sweetest we’ve eaten in a long time. That’s amazing to me, seeing as it’s December. We devoured that melon.

I came up with a fantastic Cranberry Almond Orange Bread recipe this weekend, which I’ll share with you during our 5th Annual Heavenly Homemakers Christmas Brunch. But regarding cranberries – I’m curious what you make with fresh cranberries? Leave a comment to let us know how you like to eat them and what you like to make with them. I’d love to hear your ideas.

You might remember the Orange Cranberry Scone recipe I shared two years ago. I rarely make this, but the Christmas season is definitely the perfect time to treat my family to this. :)

Orange Cranberry Scones

Here’s what our menu includes this week:

Breakfast

  • Applesauce Bread
  • Crepes with fruit and Cream Cheese Filling
  • Pumpkin Pancakes
  • Warm Chocolate Soother
  • Raspberry Oatmeal Bars
  • Poptarts
  • Quick Mix Biscuits

Lunch

  • Bacon, Egg, and Avocado Salad
  • Baked Potatoes in the Crock Pot with cheese and sour cream
  • Beef Summer Sausage with Crispy Cheese Crackers
  • Calico Beans
  • Cheeseburger Soup
  • Potato Soup
  • Pizza Boats

Dinner

  • Tuna Casserole
  • Spanish Rice with Chicken
  • Salmon Patties
  • Orange Chicken
  • Italian Pasta Bake
  • Chili
  • Cheesy Salsa Enchiladas

Fruits and Veggies (I serve 1-4 per meal)

  • Mixed Greens
  • Green Beans
  • Peas
  • Broccoli
  • Applesauce
  • The rest depends on what I get at the store – spinach, pears, apples, clementines, carrots…

Oh! And we have an Aldi in Lincoln now, so I’ve heard I can start price-matching at Walmart since it’s 50ish miles away. I’m excited to learn more about how this will work. Any expert price matchers out there with tips for me?!

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Menu Plan For the Week (Have I Told You How Much I Love Food?)

August 17, 2014 by Laura 4 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

We were in the kitchen putting dirty dishes into the dishwasher together after lunch. As is common after a meal, we were all discussing what we needed to do the rest of the day and how it was all going to get done. Beyond our normal “at home” work, we had two outside commitments to keep: 1) Pick up our food co-op order and 2) Elias, age 12, had soccer practice in the evening.

When Elias realized he may be at soccer practice when the Azure order was brought into the house, without thinking he said, “Wait. Can you maybe not put it away until after I get home so I can look at it first?” Quickly, he grinned at himself for requesting something so silly.

I think this kid is a lot like his mama. There is nothin’ silly about wanting to stare at food. Right? Right???

I see food and I’m like, “Oh my goodness! Look at the beautiful green beans and all the deliciously juicy grilled meat! The canned peaches are sooooo pretty and see these great potatoes that I just got at the farmer’s market?!” But then there are those of you who are like, “there. is. a. watermelon. and. some. other. food. please. pass. the. salt.” Do you mean to tell me I haven’t yet convinced you all of the joy of staring at food? I’ll keep trying.

anniversary trip 144

EEEHHEEEE!!! IT’S SEVERAL DOZEN SWEET CORN FALLING OUT OF BAGS!!!!!!!!

Well anyway, it seems that Elias and I are very similar when it comes to our love of food. He loves going to the grocery store with me – just to look at all the food (and, of course, to smell the pineapple’s bottom). He loves seeing our Azure orders and our Amazon Subscribe and Save orders come in. He likes looking into the pantry to see all the goodies. He loves looking through cookbooks to get new ideas. He loves chocolate and desserts. Hopefully, eventually, he’ll love eating vegetables. We’re working on that one.

So…food. This time of year is so rockin’ with all of the amazing FOOOOOOOOD!!!!!!!!!! Who’s with me on this? Peaches and nectarines dripping with sweet juice. Sweet corn dripping with butter. Watermelon dripping down my chin. I’m not ashamed. I love this time of year. 

We got home from our anniversary trip and had to get to work right away putting up fresh garden produce. It’s hard work! But the bounty and the goodness of this food?! There’s so much to be grateful for. We’ve been picking, snapping, blanching, and freezing (or eating!) green beans. We found a great price on sweet corn (see beautiful picture above) and got several dozen shucked, blanched, cut off the cob, and frozen. This week, we’ll be making fresh salsa with tomatoes and peppers from our garden. We’re frying okra from our garden and eating it like it’s candy.

Meat off the grill with all these fresh fruits and vegetables on our table? Well, it is just incredible.

I’ll take the hard work. I’ll step around overflowing compost buckets and stand over a steaming pot of boiling water in a hot kitchen. Then Elias and I will stare at it all and imagine how great it will be this winter when we can pull this goodness out of our pantry and out of our freezer to eat.

Having said all of that, you can imagine how much fun I have making a meal plan this time of year. With all the fresh variety available – healthy menu planning is awesome.

Speaking of menu planning, I’ll let you in on a little secret. This weekend, we finished a project we’ve been working on! Watch for details of how you can get this resource for free. :)

123 Meal Planning Cover sm

Here’s our menu for this week. (Won’t that food be fun to look at??!!?!)

Sunday, August 17
Creamy orange cooler, granola, blueberries
Italian cream cheese chicken, tossed salad, cherry tomatoes, green beans
Grilled burgers, tomatoes, lettuce, homemade pickles, watermelon

Monday, August 18
Green machine milkshakes, giant breakfast cookies, raspberries
Pasta salad bar, cantaloupe
Grilled barbeque chicken, corn on the cob, fried okra, peas, grapes

Tuesday, August 19
Crock pot breakfast casserole, nectarines
Hamburger sauerkraut dip with tortilla chips, cherries, kiwi
Grilled Italian chicken, baked potatoes in the crock pot, green beans, tossed salad

Wednesday, August 20
Pancake and sausage muffins, cantaloupe
Spanish rice with taco meat, spicy avocado dip, fresh pineapple
BLT wraps, sweet peppers, carrot sticks, strawberries

Thursday, August 21
Pineapple mango smoothies, fried eggs
Black bean chicken nachos, olives, pineapple
Beefy enchilada bake, tossed salad, strawberry/peach/apple fruit salad

Friday, August 22
Instant oatmeal packets, blueberries and strawberries
Cheddar ranch burgers, cherry tomatoes, sliced cucumbers, watermelon
Chicken salad with crispy cheese crackers, sweet peppers, honey glazed carrots, peaches

Saturday, August 23
Cheesy scrambled eggs, strawberry-peach-orange smoothies
Leftovers
Taco salad, nectarines

I’ve asked before but I’ll ask again:  Who likes staring at food?

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What We’ve Been Eating This Week. Did It Include Raspberries???

June 26, 2014 by Laura 8 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

I promised you that since I didn’t post a menu plan this week, I would instead show you some pictures of what we decided to eat each day. I already showed you what we ate on Monday. I also whined plenty about how I’ve been very hungry for raspberries but couldn’t find any in my town that weren’t gross or expensive.

Since I’m sure you’ve been simply worried sick about me all week and thought of little else but the fact that I wanted, needed, and desperately desired raspberries, you’ll be relieved to know that Matt found a small, reasonably priced package for me when he was out and about on Wednesday. What a guy. I was even nice enough to share a few of these with Matt and the boys. But only a few. There simply weren’t many left by the time they came into the kitchen. What can I say?

raspberries

Since I had prepped a bunch of fruits and veggies on Monday, it’s been very easy to continue to pull them out each day to go with our meals. Mind you, most of my “prep” consisted of washing the produce and dumping it into a Pyrex container. See how easy it is to eat healthy food? Wash and eat. Wash and eat. Wash and slice. Wash and eat. I can think of nothing easier.

Tuesday morning I made a simple breakfast of Cinnamon Whole Wheat Muffins (this recipe, without the berries, but with cinnamon sprinkled in). It wasn’t a super exciting meal, but it was yummy.

junefood8

We had BLT Wraps for lunch that day. Instead of making them all and setting them out, I simply prepped the filling and let everyone build their own. Easy!

junefood 1

Tuesday night we had Taco Potatoes for dinner. The crock pot baked our potatoes for us, so we didn’t heat up the house. :)

junefood22

After we finished off all the fresh peaches I had bought on Sunday, we sliced up a couple of plums. They were so pretty!

junefood3

Wednesday morning we scrambled eggs, cut up a cantaloupe, and pulled a loaf of Poppy Seed Bread with Orange Glaze from the freezer (recipe in {Healthy} Make-Ahead Meals and Snacks eBook). This is my absolute favorite quick bread. It stays moist even after being in the freezer. Love it, love it, love it! (By the way, if you bought that book prior to this spring, you should note that I now cut the sucanat by more than half in that recipe. It’s still plenty sweet. My shop now has an updated version.)

junefood4

Everyone fended for themselves for lunch, finding leftovers or making a sandwich. We went swimming in the afternoon, so Quick Blender Chocolate Milk tasted great after we got back while we waited for dinner.

junefood5

That morning, I had marinated several pieces of chicken in Italian Dressing (more details in Let’s Do This, Lesson 1). Matt put it on the grill while I made green beans and sliced watermelon. It was crazy deeeee-licious.

junefood6

What have you been eating this week? Isn’t summer food easy to make?

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The Three Day Menu Plan…Then We’re Hitting the Road (Plus, Want Some Vanilla?)

June 15, 2014 by Laura 3 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

As I mentioned last week, we’re heading to Nashville this week for a family reunion. I can’t wait to hug my Nana, hold the new babies, see all the cousins, watch the kids get reacquainted and play together…it’s going to be great!

On the way, I’m very excited to meet some of you!! If you live in the St. Louis or Nashville areas, please stop by our Meet and Greet locations so we can have a chance to hang out and visit. Get all the specifics here. I look forward to meeting many of you!

Fruits and Veggies On the Go

We don’t mind the treat of eating out here and there while we travel, and enjoy our fair share of burgers and fries on the road. But to keep our stomachs from rebelling too much, we try to take along some fruits and veggies too. :)

Doing any traveling this summer? Here are some posts you might enjoy.

  • 10 Real Food Pre-Packaged Convenience Foods
  • Healthy Food to Pack for a Trip
  • Easy Fruits and Veggies on the Go

Our menu this week is short and sweet since we’re taking off on Tuesday. It’s been fun to celebrate Father’s Day with Matt today – making many of his favorite foods.

Sunday, June 15
Peach cobbler (recipe in Oh, For Real cookbook)
Grilled steak, baked potatoes in the crock pot, grilled asparagus and sweet peppers, cantaloupe
Tuna salad on tomatoes and lettuce, watermelon

Monday, June 16
Banana bread, blueberries
Chef salad with leftover chicken, watermelon
Italian roast wraps with tomatoes and lettuce, peas, fresh pineapple

Tuesday, June 17
Scrambled eggs, pineapple mango smoothies (with fresh spinach thrown in)
Pasta Salad Bar – before we hit the road, we’ll each build a big pasta salad to eat on the way for lunch. Easy and nutritious!
Dinner at my cousin’s house – can’t wait!

pasta salad bar 3

One last thing:  We actually made enough Vanilla Extract this time to avoid selling out within a few hours! If you want some, come get it now as we’ll only be offering it for sale through Monday or until supplies last. :)

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