Heavenly Homemakers

Encouraging women in homemaking, healthy eating and parenting

Lunches I Packed September 25-29, 2023

by 2 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Here are the school lunches I packed September 25-29…

This week was mostly hot weather so I packed cold lunches every day but Tuesday. I packed a hot lunch that day, only because I had leftover chili from our huge 65-person meal that Sunday. The kids love chili, so they were excited I had packed this!

Kiya has informed me that she is getting tired of pickles in her lunch. Fair enough. I shall now hold off on the pickles. :)

Lunches I Packed September 25-29, 2023

Monday: Cottage Cheese, Fruit Cups, Packaged Muffins, and Cucumbers (for Brayden)

Tuesday: Chili with fritos and shredded cheese, Pear Cups, and a Peanut Butter Bars.

Wednesday: Chicken Salad on Croissants, Carrots with Dip, and Applesauce Cups

Thursday: Cheese and Pepperoni with Crackers, Yogurt Cups (found these whole milk yogurt cups at Aldi!), Mixed Veggie Bag for Brayden and Pickles for Kiya (<— that afternoon she requested no more pickles for a while please :) :) :) )

Fun Friday: Sandwiches, Chips (Kiya actually chose pistachios for her “chips”), Applesauce, and a Treat of their choice

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

All the ways I’m using these little cups with lids…

by 7 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

I am such a big fan of jars. You know this about me, and you also know that I’m not actually a big fan of plastic. But still, I bought these delightful little plastic cups last year, and I’m happy enough with their function that I feel it’s worth telling you about them.

plastic cup

See how adorable? How functional? How plastic?

I know. I know.

While I know that glass and stainless steel are much better options, I also know that I have a family that is on the run a lot. Sometimes we need disposable containers. So I bought a package of 100 cups with lids last fall, and today I want to tell you a few of the great ways we’ve used them to make life a little bit simpler.

Note: While these are disposable, if it works, we wash and reuse them. We can’t help it.

Homemade Applesauce Cups

Homemade Applesauce Cups

In an effort to save money on purchased applesauce cups last fall, and to prepare an on-the-go applesauce option – I filled a bunch of these cups and froze them. These turned out to be a lifesaver when we headed to soccer games or basketball games during the school year.

Note: I don’t recommend throwing these into a diaper bag or backpack. These only travel well when placed carefully in a cooler or lunchbox that isn’t likely to tip or crunch cups.

Berries to Go

I found it easy to cut up strawberries or fill cups with blueberries to pack for the road. These cups work so much better than a plastic baggie.

Pudding Cups

pudding cups

When we headed to church camp for a week of teaching Bible class, I knew I’d need some special food items to accommodate my “special diet.” I filled several of these cups with Homemade Tapioca Pudding and I can’t tell you how wonderful it was to have these to help fill me up when my food choices were limited.

Obviously, these would be great for Chocolate, Vanilla, and Butterscotch Pudding too.

Other great ways to use these cups with lids

These cups are great filled with Ranch Dressing to go with carrots and cucumbers on the road. Or use them for Homemade Peanut Butter to dip sliced apples. Or fill them with trail mix.

What else can you think of?

Great uses for these plastic cups with lids

When possible, I stick with glass. But it sure is nice to have these disposable cups with lids on hand as a convenient option!

This post contains affiliate links.

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

Busy Morning Breakfasts That Can Be Made Ahead of Time

by 11 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

I am so messed up on breakfasts right now. Our second son started taking a college class on MWF and he has to be on campus at 8:00. Color me late to this “get your kids out the door for school on time” game, but well, that’s exactly what I am. We work from home and we’ve home-schooled forever, so getting out the door to church with combed hair on Sundays has been our only morning schedule struggle. On school days, we usually eat while beginning our Bible time and school time in our jammies a few minutes after we wake the kids. Now, if you can possibly imagine, I must actually be dressed and have breakfast on the table by 7:20.

Yes, I’m sure most of you can possibly imagine, and many of you are thinking, “Really, girl? 7:20 am is practically mid-afternoon at our house.” God bless all of you early morning head-out-the-door-to-work-and-school friends. I have some recipes to share with you. We shall all eat well together…at whatever time each of us considers to be early.

Busy Morning Breakfasts That Can Be Made Ahead of Time

Yum

Busy Morning Breakfasts That Can Be Made Ahead of Time

My goal this week was to prep breakfast foods and put them into the freezer so that I’ll be perfectly organized and never have to think again. Scratch that. My goal this week is simply to prep some breakfast foods and put them in the freezer. I’ll never be perfectly organized and in typical mom-life fashion, I found myself having to think straight and answer difficult questions like “are my soccer socks clean?” just a few minutes ago.

Here are my favorite breakfast foods to put into the freezer. They save time, money, and brain – my favorite things to save.

1. Hashbrowns and Hashbrown Patties

I’ll be baking a few pounds of potatoes this week to shred and put into the freezer. Fry up some eggs with these, serve with fruit – done. Everyone loves these and thinks you’re wonderful when you make these. It is fun when everyone thinks you’re wonderful.

Homemade Hashbrown Patties

2. Muffin Batter

You knew I would say this one. I can’t help it. Making and freezing muffin batter saves so much time. Not to mention dirty dishes. Deliver me from dirty dishes.

frozen_muffins_3

3. Cooked Turkey Sausage and Prepared Biscuits

I can make biscuits and gravy sooooo fast when I do this. My family is always amazed. Let’s just let them keep thinking that I am incredible to pull this off. Add the above mentioned Hashbrowns to this meal and you can picture my kids breaking into a lively Mom is Our Favorite Person in the Whole World dance (not really).

Freezer Biscuit Tutorial

4. Oatmeal Cups

You wouldn’t think that this would save time, but it truly does. At least it saves brain. That’s worth a whole lot.

frozen oatmeal3

5. Giant Breakfast Cookies

Best thing to pull out of the freezer for breakfast…ever.

breakfast_cookies

6. Pancake Muffins

Yep. My newest favorite. I cannot get over how easy these are.

Easy Pancake Muffins

7. Quick Breads

Find our favorite quick bread recipes here. I usually double or triple a batch. If I allow them to cool completely, then wrap them well before freezing them, quick breads thaw and serve well. It is so very nice to pull a prepared loaf or two out of the freezer to go with breakfast in the morning.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread

If you freeze nothing else to save yourself time, brain, and money (while also eating healthy, because you are just that awesome) – make and freeze some of these breakfast foods. It will make your morning routine so much easier. Pick the recipe that looks the easiest to you – then go for it!

What are your favorite breakfast foods to prep ahead? Have any new ideas for me? What time to you eat breakfast at your house?

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

Whole Wheat Pizza Swirls ~ The Make-Ahead Lunch Box

by 13 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

The Make-Ahead Lunch Box

I’m excited to kick off our new Make-Ahead Lunch Box series with a fun new recipe I recently tried for my family. We all love these Whole Wheat Pizza Swirls.  Here are my favorite perks to this recipe, and why I think this is perfect for your Make-Ahead Lunch Box:

  • You can make Pizza Swirls ahead of time, wrap them individually, and store them in the freezer until you need them.
  • You can fill the Pizza Swirls with any of your favorite toppings, making this recipe versatile and ideal for accommodating food preferences.
  • These taste great both hot and cold.
  • Pizza Swirls are simple to make.
  • Pizza Swirls are filling and easy to eat.

Whole Wheat Pizza SwirlsYum

1 recipe of Whole Wheat Pizza Dough
1 cup pizza sauce
2 cups shredded cheddar or mozzarella cheese
3 Tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
variety of pizza fillings – your choice – like meat, olives, and veggies
2 Tablespoons olive oil (optional)

Mix Whole Wheat Pizza Dough as directed. On a clean, well floured surface, roll dough into a long oval until it is about 1/4 inch thick. Spread pizza sauce over the dough. Sprinkle with cheeses and your favorite pizza toppings. Roll the dough up, beginning on the long side. Tuck the ends under. Place on a cookie sheet. Spread olive oil over the top if you like. Bake in a 375° oven for about 15 minutes or until the top is golden brown. Slice and serve. Makes about 8-10 Pizza Swirls.

Whole Wheat Pizza Swirls

Bonus Tips:

  • Want to pack these Pizza Swirls to go? Once the swirls have cooled completely, wrap them individually and place them in an air tight container in the freezer. Set frozen wrapped Pizza Swirl in the fridge overnight to thaw to pack in a lunch box the next day.
  • Need to eat Gluten Free? Copy the idea and use your favorite gluten free dough recipe.
  • Tired of pizza? Skip the sauce and use turkey or chicken with cheese to make Meat and Cheese Swirls.

Great to Serve with Pizza Swirls:

  • Fresh fruit like apple slices, orange slices, peaches, cantaloupe, pineapple, or pears
  • Carrot sticks, sliced cucumbers, celery, or sweet peppers
  • Olives or pickles

I double, triple, or quadruple this recipe so that I can make lots at once to make my getting-ahead efforts worthwhile. This also means I can make a variety of different Pizza Swirls to have on hand. Our favorites are:

  • Pepperoni and Cheese
  • Combination (meat, cheese, green peppers, mushrooms, olives)
  • Hamburger and Green Pepper
  • Pepperoni and Olive

What kind of pizza swirls do you think your family will like? Have any other ideas you feel would be good to serve with Pizza Swirls (especially ideas that will pack well in a lunch box)?

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

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

by 3 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

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.

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. :)

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

Easy Fruits and Veggies On the Go

by 10 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Last weekend, we headed out of state to a weekend-long basketball tournament for our boys. It was two and a half days full of hotel continental breakfasts, fast food, and other treats. Weekends like that can be a lot of fun. At the same time, we knew our stomachs would start to rebel after a meal or two of white flour, white sugar, and grease. In an effort to give us some good nutrition in the midst of ice cream cones and burgers, I packed as many colorful fruits and vegetables as I could.

While I was getting it prepared the morning we were to leave, it occurred to me how pretty it all was. Out came the camera.  After all, I had plenty of time for food photography in the midst of laundry, packing, and making last minute preparations, right?

Fruits and Veggies On the Go 2

I made good use of my Pyrex dishes with lids. These travel well, and keep fruits and vegetables from getting squished. They all stack nicely together in a cooler, and keep the food fresh. I simply stuck a few ice packs in and around the food containers, and it all stayed chilled and nice all weekend long.

My encouragement to you with this post is to think outside the box a little bit as you pack fruits and veggies for travel. Before just a year or two ago, I didn’t really think beyond packing apples and carrots. Those got old after a while. Then I started noticing what other families had packed to eat during games. Oh, there are so many great options!

For this round of travel, beyond apples and clementines, we washed, prepared, and packed 2 pounds of strawberries to munch on, grape tomatoes, sliced cucumbers and ranch dip, and sweet peppers. We also had a few applesauce and peach cups packed with spoons.

Fruits and Veggies On the Go

While we enjoyed our fair share of restaurant food, we were able to counter it with nutrient-filled food too. This was especially important, we felt, for our boys who were playing hard and sweating all weekend long. They needed energy and nourishment!

Here’s a list I created so you can get some fruits-and-veggies-on-the-go ideas at a quick glance:

  • Apples
  • Oranges or Clementines
  • Pears
  • Grapes
  • Cherries
  • Blueberries
  • Raspberries
  • Strawberries
  • Sweet Peppers
  • Grape or Cherry Tomatoes
  • Carrots
  • Celery
  • Cucumber Slices
  • Applesauce Cups
  • Peaches, Pears, Mixed Fruit Cups in 100% Juice
  • Fruit Leather

I would add bananas to the list, but have found that they get squishy quickly while being carried in bags from car to gym. What fruits and vegetables would you add to this list?

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