Tasty Tuesday: In My Kitchen

Sorry.  No recipe today.  With family here last week I didn't get around to taking any photos of food I prepared.  Instead I thought I would give you a peak into my kitchen.  I hope it helps at least one person out there...

I'll start off saying that I wish Darrell would agree to go back vegan but for now I guess it's a nice change up in the kitchen.  Chicken. I have to say this stuff is pricey.  I only buy hormone free, antibiotic free, blah blah blah free chicken.  So, yes, it adds up.  Today I purchased almost 20 pounds of chicken (15 breasts and 1 pound thighs).  While preparing lunch from our menu (I actually switched lunch and dinner) I was able to prep these for the freezer.  Normally, I would prep a little more, like cut them into cubes or strips.  Today, I just wrapped them one breast per package and stuck them in my (thank you Rudd Farm) strawberry baskets and tossed them in the freezer.  I decided it wasn't worth pre-cutting today since 1. I already have a jars with pre-cut chicken in the freezer and 2.  I wanted a "quick" day in the kitchen. 

Beans.  This is how I store my dry beans.  Yes. I realize I could leave them in the plastic bag I purchase them in but why?  They don't stack nice and orderly in my pantry.  Besides, isn't this more pleasing to the eye?  Ok, so not the glare, but why take them all out just to snap a quick picture of.  You get the idea (and yes, they are alphabetical)!

Stuff.  Flax seed (bulk purchase I grind, we use as "eggs" and in smoothies/foods), sucanat, yeast, corn meal, nutritional yeast, etc.  Everything here is bought in bulk and then stored in jars.

Spices.  Bulk purchased and stored in half pint jars.

Coconut Oil.  I purchase my coconut oil from Tropical Traditions and Vitacost*.  In December I opened a five gallon, yes you read right, a five gallon bucket of the liquid gold (pictured above).  I scoop it out into a smaller but large container to keep in quick reach.  What do I use it for?  Essentially it replaces butter and skin lotion.  Yes, another great thing about this oil is that it's great for many uses or recipes. 

Wheat.  I also purchase 50 pound bags of whole Hard White Wheat berries (more info here, she does a great job explaining).  Our family (2 adults, 5 year old, 2 year old and one on the way) can easily go through fifty pounds in less than three months.  Crazy but true.  Since everything I make is from scratch it doesn't take long to use it.  I store it in plastic buckets with lids.  To keep things frugal free I collected them from local grocery stores.  Just call and ask the bakery for their icing buckets.  They gladly handed them over to me (5 gallon and 2.5 gallons).  Note:  I recommend a warm day outside when you can use your garden hose to clean those lard ridden things.  Talk about a job cutting the grease...and to think people eat that.  :/  Not judging, just saying!)  I digress.  Back to wheat.  I grind and store in the below container.  That's the start to some cinnamon swirl bread in the bowl, yummy!

*Note: The link in this post is my referral link.  If you go through this link you will recieve $10 off $30 and I will too!

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Menu Plan: January 27 - February 2

Success!  My sister and her little enjoyed all of the meals last week.  At least that is what she told me.  Her son, who tends to be a bit picky, did an excellent job eating.  I think he surprised her at every meal except breakfast and with the spaghetti!  I was thrilled she now has new recipes to serve at home that they both enjoyed.  Lucky for her for DH eats anything so she's sure he'll enjoy too.  :)  

Success x2 at adding food to my freezer.  I added the following tasty treats:  Black Bean Burgers, 1 Sicilian Chicken Kit, 1 loaf of Monkey Bread, large and mini Banana Muffins (would've been more if Whitney and I hadn't snacked on the mini's right out of the oven-yummm delish!), Pizza Crusts, Tortillas (but used those Sunday at lunch) and I also most forgot, Whole Wheat Cinnamon Rolls.  We enjoyed one dish and I froze three more!!  Highly recommend her recipe.  It makes and ton and they won't disappoint.

I am again hoping for some good freezer things this week too.  Although I'm not going to stress out if it doesn't happen.  I am thinking the Quinoa Veggie Chili will for sure be a freezer meal since I tend to make such a large pot of it. 

Sunday,  January 27:

Cranberry Oatmeal
Metcalf Fa-burittos (mix of fajitas/burritos, wrapped like burrito), blueberries
Dinner out

Monday, January 28:

Whole Wheat Waffles, bananas
Mexi-dish potatoes (baked potatoes, season pintos, salsa, guacamole), oranges
Shrimp and Quinoa (Instead of Grits) (dairy/egg free), green salad or some veggie (still working on this one)

Tuesday, January 29^th:

Applesauce Carrot Bread
Spinach-and-Mushroom Quesadillas, Mango
Popcorn chicken, Baked Sweet Potato, Roasted Asparagus

Wednesday, January 30^th:

Cinnamon Swirl Bread, Kiwi
Homemade Corn Dogs, Baby Carrots, Fruit
Taco Salad (will use deer meat, greens, salsa, guac, organic tortilla chips,)

Thursday, January 31^st :

Cranberry Bread, Apple Slices
Turkey Breast Sandwiches, Cucumbers, Strawberries
Quinoa Veggie Chili

Friday, February 1^st:

Homemade Strawberry Jam Poptarts (first time for this), fruit
Chicken Salad on crackers, Carrot sticks, Applesauce
Vegan Quiche (spinach, mushroom, peas, red bell peppers)

Saturday, February 2^nd: 

Simple Sourdough Biscuits (will use soured coconut milk-will have to soak overnight), fruit
Taco Soup
Leftovers

 

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Tasty Tuesday: Baked Beans and Coleslaw (dairy/egg free slaw)

 

Yes, so the beans  (below) aren't so pretty.  I started them around lunch and since it's winter of course it's dark when they finish so no lighting for a good photo.  I also changed my mind from oven to crockpot at the last minute.  So I usually don't dirty a dish just because.  Who wants more dishes? 

 

I never buy beans in a can, always dry.  Here's a post about them.  (I now use only glass to store our food in but who's paying attention?  Yes, I love my glass containers now!!)

 

Bean Type:  Navy 

 

+beans are cooked BEFORE making baked beans.  Pin It

Menu Plan: Jan 20 - 26

Succotash, Cornbread

My sister and her children are visiting for a week or so.  I just hope she and her little one enjoy our meals this week.  They survived the Succotash last night so I'd say they're off to a good start.  ;)
Last week Calico Beans and Black Bean Burgers didn't happen.  I ended up with way more leftovers so I didn't need to make them.  Hopefully, I have planned better this week and with visitors we won't have many leftovers anyway. 

Sunday:
Cold Cereal (so glad I had on hand-running super late for church-thanks to a great deal at Whole Foods)
Leftovers
Dinner out with my sister

Monday:
Whole Wheat Pancakes, fruit
Chicken Salad with apples, Pretzels and Mango
Succotash, Cornbread  (egg/dairy free cornbread)

Tuesday:
Breakfast Cake, Strawberries  (no buttermilk, I use coconut milk with vinegar to "sour it")
Taco Potatoes (meatless), Oranges
Fajitas, will make WW tortillas

Wednesday:
Giant Breakfast Cookies, Strawberries
Black bean burgers, Ranch Potato Wedges, Blackberries
Sicilian Braised Chicken and Couscous with Celery

Thursday:
Whole Wheat Cinnamon Rolls, Apple slices (milk=coconut milk, butter=coconut oil)
Calico Beans (but I'll leave out the meat), Cornbread (didn't make last week)  (egg/dairy free cornbread)
Split Pea Soup, Soft Pretzels  (milk=coconut milk, butter=coconut oil)

Friday:
Monkey Bread, Mango  (milk=coconut milk, butter=coconut oil)
Leftovers
Pizza, Salad, Kiwi  (using this dough, freeze extra for later use)

Saturday:
Chocolate Chip Quinoa Muffins
Chicken, Sweet Potatoes Cauliflower, Fruit Salad
Spaghetti, Salad and No Knead Overnight Bread

Our substitues to linked recipes are:
milk=coconut milk
butter=coconut oil
butter for cornbread=Earth Balance Soy Free
eggs=flax eggs
buttermilk=coconut milk + vinegarPin It

Tasty Tuesday: CFA Nuggets and Sauce(s)

UPDATE:  these bake just fine too,  I think i did 350 for 15 mins.  Depends on "nugget" size too

A few weeks ago I stumbled on this website.  If you can get past her beautiful food photography you'll actually see that she has recipes too!  ;)  Once I wiped my drool away I found THIS RECIPE, copycat CFA ( you know what it stands for).  I KNEW I had to try it.  You see, I love some me Chick Fil A but what I don't love is the extra stuff aka MSG they add.  :(  So now we rarely eat there anymore.  Yes, big tears but what'd ya do?  Avoid junk, that's what we do.  Anyway, I recommend checking out her mouth watering photos of her CFA nuggets and sauce that way you'll be inspired to make your own.

I made the above one Saturday for lunch.  Nuggets, sauce with sweet potatoes fries (baked) and honey mustard sauce.  Don't worry we ate some fruit too so it wasn't all bad fried stuff... Anyway, I think the nuggets are great not exactly ChickFila-ee but pretty close!  I do think the sauce is spot on.  This recipe doesn't have eggs (like the package) so we can eat it here!   Wahoo!!!!!   Random:  Darrell confessed later that afternoon that when I wasn't looking he drank some of the CFA sauce.  Really?!?  I just hope no one else (being the children) witnessed him doing that.  I guess you can say he liked it.  Okay, here's the recipe-dairy free...

For the nuggets:

6 chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces

2 1/2 cups flour (I use freshly ground flour from hard white wheat)                          

1/4 cup powdered sugar (ground sucanat in my vitamix)                                  

4 tsp. sea salt

3 tsp. pepper

1 tsp. paprika

Coconut Oil for frying                      

CFA Sauce:                              

1/2 cup soy-free vegenaise

2 tbsp. mustard (regular prepared yellow mustard or dijon works too)

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1 tbsp. vinegar

2 tbsp. honey

Salt (omitted, vegenaise has plenty I think) and pepper, to taste              

For the honey mustard dipping sauce: 

• 1/4 cup soy-free vegenaise
• 1/4 cup dijon mustard
• 2 tablespoons honey

I sure hope you enjoy these as much as my family does!!

                    

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Meal Plan: Jan 13 - 19

Here it is.  The meal plan for the week. I didn't mean to do pizza for dinner and then lunch the next day (who is complaining anyway?).  But I have cilantro that needs to go before it gets only smoothie worthy and I'd like it on a copy cat Brixx pizza first!! 

Does anyone have a recipe for Sticky Fingers Carolina Sweet Barbecue Sauce?  I'd LOVE to find one but can't seem to find one on the internet  The one I made for this pizza isn't quite there.  I'm still 'doctoring' it but probably won't get close or even be able to do it again.  :/ 

Sunday:
Giant Breakfast Cookies
Chicken salad, raw veggies, pretzels and berries
Homemade Chicken Nuggets, carrots, apple slices

Monday:
Pumpkin muffins
Homemade Nuggets, oranges, coconut yogurt
Whole wheat calzones, salad, apples

Tuesday:

Breakfast Cake, smoothies
BBQ chicken pizza (Brixx copycat, minus cheese), salad, fruit
Curry Chicken, mixed veggies

Wednesday:

Whole Wheat Waffles, blackberries

Black bean burgers, peas, strawberries

Baked Beans and slaw

Thursday:

Banana Bread, grapefruit
Sloppy Joe Muffins, cauliflower, blackberries
Birthday Party at a restaurant

Friday:

Banana Bread, fruit
Hummus, carrots, cucumbers, oranges and pretzels
Jack Basil Meatloaf, okra, potatoes (mashed most likely)

Saturday:

Biscuits, turkey bacon (maybe), fruit
Calico beans (I’ll leave out beef and just do turkey bacon/beans), cornbread
Shrimp, broccoli, quinoa dish (not sure what to call it really)

Going to add to the Freezer:
Calzones, because the recipes makes a ton!
Black bean burgers (again recipe large enough for two meals)
Baked breads (probably banana and pumpkin)

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Menu Plan Nov 11 - 17

It's been a while.  Sorry.  I stopped blogging when morning sickness kicked in full swing, well, in June.  A weekly menu was the least of my worries.   However, it was suggested today that I post my meal plan's again.  So here I am. 

In case you are new here we eat whole foods, period.  I try to make most everything from scratch except rice cakes.  I grind our wheat into flour for yummy breakfast items, bread and even tried and succeeded with pasta.  I linked to Heavenly Homemakers recipes since she too grinds her wheat and has the same food philosophy. 

We don't eat diary, eggs, nuts, peanuts or soy.  So I make the necessary substitutions to make her recipes for our family.   We just came off a complete vegan diet not too long ago.  I know my dear huband is excited about that. 

If you have any questions, leave a comment or email me at splithitter at aol dot com and I'll happily try to answer them.  :)


Sunday  Nov 11
Pumpkin muffins, pears
Shepherd's Pie, salad
Chicken salad on homemade pita, fruit salad

Monday Nov 12
Giant breakfast cookies, grapefruit
Vegan Veggie Loaded Lasagna, fruit
Creamy chicken and rice casserole, green beans

Tuesday Nov 13
Breakfast cake, applesauce
Taco soup, tortilla chips, apple slices
Chicken BBQ, slaw, okra with fruit

Wednesday Nov 14 
Mini apples pies
Leftovers
Tacos

Thursday Nov 15
Oatmeal, pears
Thanksgiving Feast with Homeschool Group
Corn dog muffins (chicken dogs from Whole Foods, Shelton brand maybe), green beans, roasted cauliflower

Friday Nov 16
Whole Wheat Waffles (I recently subbed water for buttermilk, worked great!!)  topped with applebutter
Leftovers
Homemade Pizza Night, salad, pomegranate

Saturday Nov 17
Banana bread, fruit
Hosting our Thanksgiving Feast with our families
Leftovers

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Grocery Gatherings: June 13 - 19

HERE

HERE

HERE

HERE

HERE

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Menu Plan: June 10 - 16

Breakfast:
Oatmeal x2
Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
Zucchini Muffins
Bacon, Biscuits with homemade jam (per request of Davis)
Fruit Pizza on  homemade tortilla's
Toast with honey
All served with fruit and a cold glass of coconut milk

Lunch:
Burritos
Chipotle, so another burrito (good thing we LOVE these)
Hummus w/ cucumbers, oranges
Homemade beans and slaw
Black eyed pea dip, veggie chips for dipping
Popcorn Chicken, baked sweet fries, roasted asparagus
Leftovers

Dinner:
Leftovers
Burritos
Mexican Pizza (tortilla/pinto beans/salsa/avocado)
Fajitas
Homemade beans and slaw
Veggie Delight (squash, zucchini, asparagus served on a bed of quinoa)
Leftovers

Other fun food projects:
*Batch of sugar free strawberry jam (sweetener with honey this time)
*Making batch tortillas (hence many recipes using them)
*A batch of beans a night:  black eye peas, chick peas, pintos, black, red, northern
*Still in search of the PERFECT chocolate chip cookie recipe made with COCONUT OIL...if you have a tried and true PLEASE let me know!! (yes, I'm begging!)



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Whole Foods: June 6 - 12

Here's the match up...

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Educational Freebie: Mail Carrier Unit

Download a free Kindergarten Mail Carrier Unit

"This unit is designed for preschoolers and kindergartners.

It is a fun way to introduce Mail Carriers to your students, and help

familiarize them with the importance of community workers.'
THANKS!  Confessions of a Homeschooler.
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Grocery Gatherings: June 6 - 12

 HERE

HERE

HERE

 HERE

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Menu Plan: June 3 - 9

Photo credit:  Vegan Yum Yum

First of all, can I just tell you I cannot believe it is June already, Sunday June 3rd specifically.  I feel like we just planted our garden last week.  BOOM and we have squash and banana peppers, that-have-been-picked.  Complaining, no, just amazed that days slip by so quickly.

No, I didn't have a menu plan last week on paper.  I tried one in my head and that didn't work either.  I hated it too. I wondered what happened that I didn't do one!  While I cannot remember what kept me from writing it down I do remember how I felt.  NOT GOOD, overwhelmed, annoyed, frustrated, bad moodish (yes, I made that word up), you get where I'm going with this...    Luckily, the children and I ended up in the mountains at the end of the week for a surprise farewell so that was kinda a relief (at meal time).  (My mother left for a three mission trip to Honduras and we just HAD to see her off!)   Darrell survived too, I left him some goodies in the fridge!  So YEA for a new week and new week that has PLANNED meals!!!!! 

Last night I asked Darrell to let me know some things he'd like for dinner this week...he was happy to spit out requests...

Sunday, June 3
Rice chex, blueberries
burritos
leftovers

Monday, June 4
Easy Monday Morning Pancakes*, strawberries
Cucumbers with vegan cream cheese garlic/chive/dill dip, green beans, mango (served in muffin tin)
Delicious Big Bowl Quinoa  OR Simple Fried Rice with Japanese seven spice (minus tofu and sub quinoa for brown rice), tossed salad

Tuesday, June 5
Zucchini Muffins (I'll sub with flax eggs & EB butter), peaches
Black bean salsa, organic blue corn chips, cantaloupe
Bacon avocado lettuce sliders, baked sweet potato fries, fruit

Wednesday, June 6
Vegan French Toast, fruit
Picnic friendly lunch
Baked beans, slaw

Thursday, June 7
Out the Door Oatmeal, apples
Picnic friendly lunch
Butternut Squash Mac ‘n Cheeze (Vegan with Gluten-free & Nut-Free options), steamed spinach, beets from the 2011 garden, fruit

Friday, June 8
Cinnamon Buns (vegan), fruit medley
leftovers
Easy One-Bite Pizzas with Loaded Pizza Sauce, greens, salad, fruit

Saturday, June 9
Davis' choice, fruit
leftovers or grilled squash, grilled honey dipped peaches, and quinoa on the side
Vegan Quiche (spinach, mushroom, tomato, zucchini)   Graduation BBQ at neighbor's house

*recipe calls for all purpose/spelt flour- I use my whole wheat and they turn our deliciously!! Also, no maple syrup needed, that are THAT good!  Make in VitaMix night before and refrigerate for easy pouring Monday morning.

Other Kitchen activities:
Rhubarb Sauce
Mud pie or mud balls
Banana Bread/MuffinsPin It

Aldi: May 23 - 29

Seeded or Seedless Watermelon, $2.99 ea.

Cantaloupe, $1.29 ea.

Blueberries, 1 pint, $1.49

Vidalia Onions, 2 lb bag, 59¢
Strawberries, 1 lb, $1.29

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Grocery Gathering: May 23- 19

 Lowes HERE

 Harris Teeter HERE

Food Lion HERE

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Menu Plan: May 20 - 26

I had to remember when the last time I took a picture of food....then I recalled dinner from last week.  Sorry Sebastian, you sure were tasty!  While I never got around to posting our beachy menu we sure had one and followed it pretty closely.  I did a load of baking (and freezing) the weeks leading up to last week so I took a week worth of breakfast, snacks and lunch with us.  I wanted to enjoy my vacation and not be a slave to the kitchen.    Since we went with family we alternated cooking dinners (kinda).  After a week "off" in the kitchen I am pretty excited to fire up the ol' oven again. 

This week is off to a good start even IF I am just now getting to the computer to write it out.
This morning we made a trip to Whole Foods for our week worth of groceries.  Although I did forget about the Holiday weekend so we may change things up a bit but we haven't completely decided on that. 

Sunday, May 20
Oatmeal, fruit
burritos
cannot for the life of me remember, cereal mix maybe?  (something lame since no food from beach)

Monday, May 21
Whole wheat waffles, fruit
Chicken dogs, blueberries, pretzels
Chicken salad-fresh greens in wrap with apple slices, rice chips

Tuesday, May 22
Oatmeal, fruit
Last night's dinner
Spaghetti, tossed salad, green beans, whole wheat yeast rolls

Wednesday, May 23
Whole wheat waffles, fruit salad
Picnic lunch (sunbutter on rice cakes, carrots, fruit)
Delicious Big Bowl Quinoa - probably have salad too

Thursday, May 24
Toast with sunbutter, applesauceSnacky-Picnic lunch.  Celebrating a sweet friend's graduation
Bean & Butternut Tacos with Green Salsa (may or may not be green salsa)

Friday, May 25
Sweet potato with maple syrup (yeah, we'll see how this goes over)Tuna salad on crackers, tomatoes, olives, carrots
Some type of 'burger', sweet snap peas, roast squash

Saturday, May 26
Darrell's choice
Leftovers
Vegan Quiche (spinach, mushroom, tomato, zucchini)

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Homeschool or educational freebie: Number Writing Sheets

Here's a great freebie....Kindergarten Number Writing Worksheets from Confessions of a Homeschooler

These would be a great thing to laminate and use over and over!! 

Thanks for the freebie Confessions of a Homeschooler!Pin It

Menu Plan: May 6 - 12

Sunday, May 6
Oatmeal, pumpkin muffins
Stir fry brown rice/veggies with mushrooms, apple slices
GiGi is treating us to dinner!

Monday, May 7
Whole Wheat Waffles, strawberries
Burritos, apple slices
15 Minute Creamy Avocado Pasta, spinach mango salad

Tuesday, May 8
Pumpkin Muffins, mango
Rice cake with sunbutter/raisins, raw veggies, oranges
Tomato-avocado-bacon sliders, baked sweet potato fries, mango slices


Wednesday, May 9
Oatmeal, kiwi
Roasted chickpeas, asparagus side of quinoa Darrell: Avocado-Lime Black Bean Salad
Cooked all day baked beans and my coleslaw

Thursday, May 10
Green Smoothie with muffin
Avocado-Lime Black Bean Salad
Clean out fridge or pasta

Friday, May 11
Bagels w/ cream cheese, applesauce
Leftovers
Family here, Japanese maybe?!?!

Saturday, May 12
Davis' choice
Picnic

Snack:
Endurance Crackers (hope to make these)Pin It

Whole Foods Deals: April 25 - May 1

HERE

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Vacation Bible School curriculum: Two Free Downloads

Maybe some of you homeschool mommas would be interested in this....


Ministry to Children is offering their downloadable Vacation Bible School curriculum for free (see below). This curriculum includes a Director’s Manual, Children’s Activity Books, and Teacher Handbooks plus several additional resources.

Fruits of the Spirit

The Armor of God

Thanks Frugal Living NWPin It