Yummy whole hearty beef stew

 

I ran across a yummy whole hearty beef stew recipe on pinterest that I wanted to share. It was delicious and easy. All you have to do is throw the ingredients in the crock pot and let it cook all day. Super easy recipe for us moms on the go! The only thing I done different was added about half another thing of beef broth and that was the only adjustment. Here is the link and I hope you enjoy!

 

http://www.familyfreshmeals.com/2013/10/best-crockpot-beef-stew.html

Lactation Cookies

Here is the recipe for some awesome lactation cookies and they are yummy too! I have no idea on the source someone gave me this recipe so no it's not my own and I do not take credit but here ya go!

 

Halloween lunch idea

 

With Halloween nearing soon I decided to throw together a little Halloween inspired lunch for the kiddos. 

Here we have:

•Monster applesauce. The container actually contained 'boo goo' I washed it out and reused it. Inside is natural applesauce mixed with green food coloring.

•Piranha goldfish. I thought piranhas sounded scary since the kids think of a fish with scary looking teeth. 

•Pumpkin mandarin oranges. Just use a sharpie to draw on the face. I used no sugar added mandarin orange bowls.

•Witch hat quesadillas. These are just 2 flour tortillas with cheddar cheese in the middle. I cooked it in a skillet. Quick and easy.

•Halloween themed fruit roll ups. These are actually trick or treater sized.

•Capri sun

The kids enjoyed their lunch and was excited to share the idea with their friends at school. 

Monster & Ghost Pancakes

The other morning I decided to try another Halloween themed pancake idea so I chose ghosts and monster blobs. They turned out better than the pumpkins.

 

 What you'll need:

•pancake mix (I used whole wheat)

•water

•no stick skillet or cooking spray

 

Here is a video I'm how to make these. Keep in mind that you need to let the outline darken before filling in and once you fill in be sure to fill in as fast as possible. 

 

 

Kid lunch idea

Broox is the child who is not a fan of bread but loves his meat and cheese so for his lunch instead of sandwiches he likes meat and cheese roll ups. For this I use 1 piece of turkey, 1 piece of ham, and slices of cheddar cheese. I open up the meat place cheese on it and roll it up very simple. For this lunch we used...

•simple truth ham

•simple truth turkey

•sliced cheddar cheese

•ritz crackers

•sugar free gummies

•fresh watermelon pieces

•all natural squeezable buddy fruits

•Capri sun

Quick and easy Breastfeeding breakfast/snack

I am not a big oatmeal eater and until now I don't think I had ate oatmeal since I was a child. I had read how oatmeal is great for breastfeeding moms and healthy too! Oatmeal has many health benefits ; it helps lower cholestoral, contains complex carbs, high in fiber and aside from that it helps with energy and can help your milk supply. I thought I'd give it a try again. Now, I've seen a lot of people posting about chia seeds so while in Kroger I stumbled upon Simple Truth Organic instant cinnamon and cranberry chia oatmeal. Incase you are not familiar with chia seeds here is a picture from www.authoritynutrition.com with some information.

To me this seemed like something I could eat every morning to help me with breastfeeding, have energy, feel fuller longer and to be healthy. I bought some and decided to add my own touch. I added some fresh strawberries, blueberries, apple pieces and cooked it all together. Once it was ready I topped it off with some Simple Truth organic vanilla yogurt. This was a yummy treat that would be good any time of the day!

What you'll need:

 

•1 packet simple truth organic cranberry & cinnamon chia oatmeal.

•2 strawberries

•8-10 blueberries

•10 apple pieces

•water

•milk 

•organic low fat vanilla yogurt

1- pour oatmeal in bowl, cut up your fruit and add it in. 

2- add water just enough to soak the oats/fruit but not drown them.

3- I cook my oatmeal for 2 minutes but depending on your microwave it may be less. I cook them until all the water is absorbed and they are fluffy.

4- I add a little milk to cool it off and to make it a little more soupy as the water is usually completely soaked up after the microwave. Do as you please for the consistency you desire.

5- stir it up and top it with some vanilla yogurt. It kind of reminds me of a hot pie/cobbler with vanilla Icecream.

 

Hope you enjoy!

Raffertys Potato Soup

I have always loved my granny's potato soup for as long as I can remember. It was one of my favorite dishes. One day she made a new recipe and it was to die for. She told me it was the homemade version of Raffertys potato soup which includes bacon and cheese! Now, I have never had their potato soup so I'm unsure how it compares but I must say this is one of my favorite fall/winter dishes and it is approved by Broox my youngest child. This is my own recipe as the original does not call for anything lite or fat free. I tried to make it a little healthier.

What you'll need:

• 2 packages of fat free cream cheese

• 16 oz finely shredded cheddar cheese 

• 1 can fat free cream of mushroom

• 1 can fat free cream of celary

• 1 package of low sodium bacon bits 

• about 6 good size potatoes

• 1 onion

• stick of butter

• 1 cup of milk

• salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic salt

1- peel your potatoes, cut them up in cubes, place in strainer and rinse.

2- put the burner on medium heat, fill a soup pan about half full with water. Once boiling add in potatoes.

3- boil until they are soft. You don't want them too soft as they may mash up in the soup.

4- once done place them in strainer.

5- slice up the onion 

6- in a soup pan add in half a stick of butter and 2 packages of cream cheese and the sliced onion. Stir them until melted.

7- once melted add in cream of mushroom and cream of celery. 

8- once everything is creamy and mixed up good add in the potatoes and the milk. Add more milk to get the consistency you like.

9- add salt, pepper, garlic salt, onion powder to flavor for your liking. 

10- add in the package of bacon bits and half a cup of cheese stir together. 

11- you may top it off with more cheese and more bacon if you'd like.

We enjoy corn bread as a side to this dish. Hope you enjoy!

Kid lunch idea

We tried out a new lunch idea today! Broox loved it and said he got full.

•turkey pepperonis 

•lite mozzarella string cheese

•sugar free gummies 

•strawberries

•blueberries

•small serving of cheezits 

•danimals yogurt

•Capri sun

I used cupcake liners to separate the fruit and cheezits.

Healthy Lunches

As you know I'm trying to come up with some new healthy meals so I thought why not get creative with the kids lunches and make them neat and packed with foods they like yet also healthy. I have one child whom is a picky eater and one whom is a big eater he loves to eat. 

The first lunch is 

Grapes

1 boiled egg cut in half without the yolk

Natural applesauce

Ritz crackers 

Veggie/fruit Capri sun

Jelly rolls on whole wheat bread

The second lunch is

Grapes

1 boiled egg cut in half without the yolk

Natural applesauce

Ritz Crackers

1 can of Tuna in water with a little lite mayonnaise

Jelly rolls on whole wheat (smaller portion since he has tuna)

Veggie/fruit Capri sun 

•to make the jelly roll I cut the crust off of the bread, lay the bread on a paper towel, take a glass cup or a rolling pin and flatten the bread, spread on jelly/peanut butter/almond butter/Nutella whatever you prefer and then roll up the bread, slice the big roll. 1 slice of bread will make 4-5 smaller rolls.

These were a big hit with my kids they loved the entire meal. Although, you may want to warn your kid(s) that the boiled eggs will smell awful during lunch time! My oldest was embarrassed and didn't eat his eggs until he got home, haha! 

Enjoy!